This 1958 Chevy Impala was a featured at Mecum’s Indianapolis auction in 2013. It features full size Lake Pipes and louvered fender skirts. Cars like this are again gaining in popularity and sales of Lake Pipes and louvered skirts/hoods are on the upswing. (Photo complements Mecum Auction)
1958 recollections and the love of a ’57 Chevy ragtop
Q: Good morning Greg. I read this morning your article in the Daytona Beach News Journal on the 1958 cars with a picture of the Bonneville convertible. What a scrumptious vehicle!
My brother-in-law had a 1956 Pontiac with a three on the column and it was a total screamer. My Air Force roommate in 1961 had a 58 Impala, 348 four-barrel with a four-on-the-floor. He used to scare the heck out of me, as it was probably the crazy “Tennessee driver” in him!
My fondest vehicle was a 55 Chevy Del Ray two-door sedan with leather upholstery. It was a 265-V8 with a three on the column. I had dual exhaust on it and it sounded really sweet. Then I had ““shorty”” Lake Pipes installed and they were awesome. I wrecked it, bought a 65 Corvair Corsa turbo, which was very fast but spent most of its time in shop repairing the turbo. I wrecked that one too. Then came a‘58 BelAir four door with a 283 powerglide. It could barely get out of its own way and was sluggish. That was the extent of my experiences with the 58 models.
I always wanted a ‘57 BelAir convertible, but just couldn’t afford one. I now drive a 2005 Impala, which is an exceptional vehicle. Thanks for your article. Steven Brown, Deland, Fla.
A: Steven thanks for your letter as I’ve received an overload of letters on the 1958 model columns and I wanted to squeeze a few more in before we move to the next subject. Those Lake Pipes you mention were so “in” back in the fifties that they again are best sellers for those restoring 1950s style street machines. Good luck to you, and maybe one day you’ll own that ’57 Chevy, with Lake Pipes!
‘Real’ shade-tree mechanic
Advertisement for the 1957 Chevy Convertible, still one of the most popular collector cars in the world. (Complements Chevrolet)
Q: Greg, I just finished your article in The Gadsden Times here in Alabama on the ’58 car designs. I enjoyed it very much and have a unique muscle car story to share.
Many moons ago, my friend bought a new 1962 Chevrolet Impala SS with the 409/425-horse engine with a four-speed. I bought a 1962 Impala two-door hardtop with a 327/250-horse V8 with a three-speed on the column.
In 1964, my friend wanted a new Chevy, and his mother wanted his ’62 SS but not with the 409/425 horse engine. So, we switched engines and exhaust systems in one day!
This operation was literally real “shade tree” work as the homemade hoist was 2 x 6 wooden beams tied between two oak trees. We removed my 327, placed it in a wheelbarrow, and then pushed my Chevy away. We then drove the other in, removed the 409 and swapped places with my Chevy body.
We installed the just removed 409, backed it out, lifted the 327 out of the wheelbarrow, pushed my friend’s Impala SS back under the trees and installed the 327. We then removed the exhaust systems on both and reinstalled them on their respective cars!
We did take a break for lunch to eat tomato and bologna sandwiches and it was great fun. I had to change the shift arms to clear the bigger 409 valve covers, but I enjoyed my 409/425 Impala until late 1965, when I traded it for a 1965 Chevelle. I sure wish I had the ’62 back! Mike Bryant, Gadsden, Ala.
A: Mike, you letter brings back so many fond memories of “shade tree” mechanical work I think we all did when we were young, perhaps not between two oak trees! Back then, when you opened the hood of a car you could see the engine and had instant access. You could change spark plugs, cams, or, as you did, complete engine removals and installations in record time.
I remember many times ripping an engine down at 10 p.m. at night to change cams, or putting on a new set of headers on my GTX and then firing the car at 2 a.m. in the morning! (My neighbors were fine people!).
I also recall changing rear end gears, either because we blew them up speed shifting or because we needed quarter mile gears, ala 4:56 or 4:88 ratios. We never hesitated as doing work like that back then was, compared to today, quite easy. Even at college, my buddy and I changed a clutch and pressure plate in my ’68 Camaro 396/375 in one eight-hour “shift” laying on our backs in the college maintenance garage at Mt. St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Md. I could go on and on, but I don’t have the space.
Today, if you look at the engine compartment of a muscle car like a Challenger, Corvette, Mustang or Camaro, you pretty much can’t do anything. The modern day engine is a computer-based technological wonder and other than maybe changing spark plugs if you can get to them, you’re relegated to engine oil changes and exterior polishing.
Thanks again for your letter, and I think we’re all the better for growing up spending many hours of our youth doing the projects like you, me, and our friends did – without ever blinking an eye.
(Greg Zyla is a syndicated auto columnist who interacts with readers weekly, so write him with your questions or comments on collector cars, auto nostalgia or old-time racing at 303 Roosevelt St., Sayre, Pa. 18840 or email at greg@gregzyla.com).
