In the early Fifties, Chevrolet sold one basic car, the full-size Chevy. In 1953 it came in three basic forms. At the bottom of the totem pole was the 150. This was a stripped down model, largely devoid of chrome trim, mostly intended for fleet and government sales (although not limited to them). It had a largely painted metal interior with rubber floor mats and plain upholstery.
At the other end of the scale was the Bel Air, with lots of chrome inside and out, a carpeted interior, and shiny hubcaps.
In the middle was the 210, like the '53 model seen here parked on College Avenue on Saturday afternoon.
This one has the 235 cubic inch Blue Flame Six engine, with a 7.5:1 compression ratio and a single 1-bbl carburetor, putting out 115 SAE gross horsepower through a 2-speed Powerglide automatic transmission. Popular Mechanics at the time clocked a 4-door '53 Bel Air with this powertrain at 19.6 seconds zero-to-sixty and 21.9 through the quarter mile.
This one's been spotted around the neighborhood a couple times before, but I'll always make time for it.
This time I snapped it with the Olympus E-5 & PanaLeica 14-150mm f/3.5-5.6.
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