Duane “Dewey” Stromberg’s 1954 Chevrolet Bel Air is just one of those “feel good” cars. It’s really hard not to smile when you see it. A 1950s beauty queen if ever there was one.
For Stromberg, a retired resident of Green Bay, Wis., the car came along at just the right time and has helped him get over a mourning period.
“A year and a half ago I had just got my ‘72 Chevelle redone. It was really nice,” he recalled. “I was about a half a block away from home going onto my service road and an EMT hit me in the rear end … I had my left turn signal on and was waiting to turn in, and she hit me and pushed me into a heavy-duty pickup truck. So I got hit on both ends …It was totaled. I’m a Chevy guy. We loved the Chevelle. I just about cried when that car got destroyed.”
Stromberg decided he’d replace the Chevelle with another one, but before he got on the trail of a Chevelle he came across a lovely 1954 Horizon Blue Bel Air two-door sedan for sale in a local newspaper. He figured it was at least worth the short drive to go check it out.
“[The seller’s] father had died and left the two cars to her,” Stromberg noted. “I know her father used to be the automotive repair man at NWTC [Northwest Wisconsin Technical College] and that’s where the car was repainted. He did all the paint and chrome work and the interior was done by some outfit in Appleton… Everything had been redone: chrome, interior, even the screws. The only thing that was wrong was the transmission didn’t work right. It wasn’t shifting right … It turns out it was just a little low on fluid!”
According to Stromberg, the 66,000-plus miles on the odometer are accurate. The Bel Air still has its original engine and original Powerglide transmission. The car was simply too stunning and well-put-together for him to pass up, and these days it looks great in his driveway sitting next to his ’57 Bel Air custom.
“I was 14 years old when this came out, and I had a friend that had a ’54 Chevy station wagon, so I thought this would be nice,” he chuckles. “I had a ’56 Chevy Bel Air at one time, too. I like them all, I thought having a ’54 and a ’57 would be nice! [laughs]”
1954: End of an Era
The Bel Air nameplate first appeared on Chevrolets in 1950 when the Bel Air Sport Coupe moniker was applied to the two-door hardtop models. In 1953, Chevrolet brought out new names and the Bel Air was placed at the top of the lineup, ahead of the 150 and 210. The cars were advertised as all-new, but in reality weren’t much different under the skin than 1949–1952 models.
For ’53, Chevrolet added a double molding on the rear fender pontoon to help identify its new luxury model. It enclosed a panel that was decorated with a short, wide-ribbed beauty molding, Bel Air script and Chevrolet crest on the leading edge above a chrome gravel shield. All Two-Ten trim features and equipment were incorporated, plus rear fender skirls; double windshield pillar moldings; extra wide window reveals on sedans; and saddle moldings on sport coupes and convertibles. Exposed bright metal roof bows and dashboard mounted rearview mirrors were standard in Bel Air sport coupes.
For 1954, the Bel Air was largely unchanged from ’53. It had the traditional assortment of extra equipment and features such as full genuine carpeting; newly designed full wheel discs; horizontally ebbed vinyl door panels and an electric clock. The sport coupe had special “fashion fiesta” two-tone upholstery; rear pillar courtesy lights; chrome-plated inside roof garnish moldings; and rear window frame and bright metal exposed roof bows. The convertible interior seemed even richer, with two-tone all-vinyl trims and snap-on boot cover. The rearview mirror was no longer mounted atop the dashboard. Identifying all Bel Airs externally were full-length sweepspear moldings with double moldings on rear fenders enclosing the name Bel Air and a Chevrolet crest; bright metal double windshield pillar moldings and window molding; body belt molding; rocker panel moldings; bright metal gravel guards; and rear wheel fender skirts.
There were five different Bel Airs in all for ’54: two-and four-door sedans, sport coupe, convertible and four-door station wagon. They ranged in price from $ 1,684 for the four-door sedan up to $ 2,263 for the eight-passenger wagon. A bench seat and three-speed manual were standard. Among the options were power steering and brakes, Guidematic headlight dimmer, two-way power front seat and power front windows. Propulsion came from the “Blue Flame” inline six-cylinder, which utilized hydraulic valve lifters and aluminum pistons. The 235-cid power plant produced 115 hp in stick shift cars and 125 with the Powerglide. A total of 486,240 Bel Airs were built in 1954, which was more than 42 percent of Chevrolet’s total production. Stromberg’s two-door sedan was one of 143,573 assembled for the model year — a whopping total but still well behind the even more popular four-door sedan (248,750 built). As successful as the 1949-54 run had been, the company was ready to move forward with a totally new car, featuring V-8 power, and the ’54 Bel Airs were the last of their breed. The bold reinvention of the entire lineup paid off in spades in Bowtieland, as sales soared when the “Hot One” ’55 models hit showrooms and the lovely ‘54s became yesterday’s news. The good news for collectors and enthusiasts is the ones that remain today are generally more affordable and considerable less common than their higher-profile successors.
A Cure for the Blues
Stromberg hasn’t put many miles on his beautiful blue 1954 sedan in the short time he’s had it, but the car has made it to some shows and gotten plenty of attention. The short local trips have been made smoother by a new set of radial whitewall tires.
“It runs great, and it drives great,” he says. “Before we put the radials on we had bias-ply tires, and with those if you hit a crack in the road you’d go like this [swerves] … It has the original AM radio, but we put a replica AM/FM in it. Otherwise, we didn’t have to do much of anything else.”
Stromberg doesn’t know a lot about the car’s history prior to recent years, but the car had clearly been preserved and pampered by previous owners. With only 66,000 miles on the clock, it’s likely it endured a lengthy slumber somewhere along the line. It was the right car at the right time for Stromberg, however, and he’s hoping to continue to share it with the world as much as he can — and collect a few trophies along the way.
“I get more compliments on the color than anything,” he says. “Women really like that color of blue. I get a lot of comments… And the good thing about the shows, the classes are usually up to ’54. So it’s nice not to have to compete with ’55, ’56 and ‘57s … I have only seen one other ’54 at the shows I go to. “You know, I always loved the Chevelles, but there are a lot of Chevelles around. There aren’t many cars like these.”
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