Chevy

This  1957 Chevy Nomad looks as though it is first class all the way, but the owner, Joe Wurm of Aberdeen, MD, says this high-maintenance beauty gave him a run for his money.

A finished restoration worth the wait.

In 1957 I traded a ’54 Ford Crestliner and $1200 for this ’57 Bel Air 2-door hardtop. Black with a black/silver interior along with a 270 horse, 2x4 barrel set up, 3-speed tranny and a 3.55 single track rear end. This was in February of ’57, and the only drag strip open that time of the year was Yello Belly Drag Strip in Grand Prairie, Texas. The car ran 16 seconds flat at 90 mph crossing the finish line in second gear. This was our family car until 1960, then we purchased a 1959 station wagon.

Since high school, I had longed for two things. A 1957 Chevy convertible was number one and number two was an El Camino. The ’57 Chevy came first, and the search for an El Camino came later. I started with a ’71 then sold it and bought a ’77, then ’80 SS. My desire still had not been fulfilled, much to my disappointment. The sun did shine on me however the day I stood looking at this ’67. My heart skipped a few beats when it dawned on me that this car had a lot of potential. After much discussion with my wife regarding my vision for purchasing this El Camino and doing a restoration, the car became a reality. That was in April of 2006.

When most car people talk about the 1994-1996 full-size Chevy era, most talk centers around the Impala SS model. Having owned both a ’95 and ’96 Impala SS brand new, I can tell you first hand it was the only big Chevy we had on our minds back then. The Caprice models were all but ignored. Over time, that has changed – the Caprices are very much appreciated by the Chevy B Body enthusiasts.

In 1965, we lived next door to the local Chevrolet Dealership. In October of that year I saw a load of cars being delivered on a transport truck. On the very top was an amazing 2-door Caprice! It was love at first sight. I told my wife, Diane that we were going to buy that car. On October 7^th, 1965 we bought it for $3270. We traded in our 1959 Impala, and our note was $74 a month. I admitted to Diane that I wasn’t sure if we could afford it, but we would enjoy it while we could. We ended up owning the car for ten years and put over 100,000 long miles on it.

As a teenager growing up, I was always around cars. My daddy was a car salesman and one of my uncles ran a junkyard. Through the years, I had a '56, '57, and '58 Chevy. I always wanted a '55, but never had one.

When I retired in 2010, I sort of got serious in my desire to have a '55 Chevy.