1964 Chevrolet Bel Air

The Bel Air nameplate, which had signified the top trim level of Chevrolets through most of the 1950s, got pushed down a notch at the end of that decade.

With the arrival of the Impala as a distinct model, the Bel Air was now the middle tier car between it and the plain brown wrapper Biscayne. The 1964 model year was the final one for this generation of Bel Air and, other than the badges, a chrome trim strip down the flanks, and a window sticker $100 higher, there wasn't much externally to distinguish them from the cheaper model.

Available as a pillared sedan or coupe or the Townsman station wagon, all of them riding on an X-frame chassis with a 119" wheelbase, the Bel Air was the anchor of Chevy's value-priced full size rides.

The base motor in a '64 Bel Air was the Turbo-Thrift 230 cubic inch OHV inline six, making 140 horsepower. The V-8 lineup started with the Turbo-Fire 283 small block, which had a two-barrel carb and put out 195 horses.

The "V-with-flags" badge on the fender signifies that this Ermine White sedan has the next size bigger Turbo-Fire, the 327 cubic inch version. This came in two varieties, both of which had a 10.5:1 compression ratio and required premium fuel. The lesser 327 had a two-barrel carb and made 250 horsepower, while the hotter one had different heads with bigger valves, a four-barrel carb, dual exhausts, and was rated at 300 SAE gross horsepower.

If the V-with-flags badge had been accompanied by the number 409, then it would have had the legendary Turbo-Fire mill with that displacement and 340 gross horsepower.

This one was photographed with a Canon EOS 5DS and EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom lens in June of 2021.