This 1955 Chevy Biscayne Concept Was Dismembered, Dumped, Then Made Whole Again

Karolis Kavolelis/Shutterstock

It's not different for an automaker to bid nan demolition of a conception car aliases prototype erstwhile it has served its purpose. For galore concepts, that intent is to airs sweetly astatine galore shows, gauge nationalist sentiment connected creation and mechanical innovations, and past discontinue quietly. Such was nan expected destiny for nan 1955 Chevrolet Biscayne concept, and successful 1956, erstwhile it had served this purpose, General Motors dropped it disconnected astatine Warhoop's junkyard successful Sterling Heights, Michigan, and ordered its destruction. The bright, bold conception — designed to showcase GM's then-new 265-cubic-inch V8 — was trim into 8 pieces and forgotten ... by, seemingly, each but 1 man.

That man is Joe Bortz, a erstwhile edifice and nightclub proprietor from Chicago. See, Bortz has a fascination pinch aged GM conception cars, and has been collecting and restoring them since nan 1980s. He caught upwind of a fewer specified cars hiding distant successful Warhoop's junkyard, went there, and struck gold, uncovering and buying not only nan dismembered Biscayne Concept, but besides a 1956 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham Town Car conception and 2 1955 Buick LaSalle conception cars.

No matter really wished Bortz was, restoring a one-off car that had been chopped into pieces and near for decades is nary locomotion successful nan park, truthful nan remains simply sat successful his attraction for a while. That was until immoderate of his trusted restorers fto Bortz cognize they had nan assurance to return nan task on.

Karolis Kavolelis/Shutterstock

In astir regular cases, restoring a car involves buying a number of books and manuals, trawling done aged forums for advice, and picking nan brains of others who person been done nan aforesaid challenge. Bortz faced a unsocial challenge, though, arsenic conscionable 1 Biscayne conception exists, truthful there's nary book aliases guideline to mention to. What's more, his dismembered Chevy had nary chassis, and galore trim pieces were missing. In an effort to complete nan picture, Bortz reached retired to GM, which really had kept documents referring to nan Biscayne's design, contempt having ordered nan model's demise immoderate decades prior.

Kerry Hopperstad of Hopperstad Customs was fixed nan task of building nan chassis utilizing those original GM blueprints, while Fran Roxas played nan portion of restoration consultant, and Ruben Collazzo of Ruben's Upholstery Shop took power of nan interior. Mel Francis squared nan salvaged bodywork connected Hopperstad's caller frame, successful summation to creating a mold for nan missing windshield, and crafting galore one-off trim pieces which had been mislaid to time.

In short, thing was easy, and experts were drafted for each aspects of nan unthinkable build, which coiled up taking years. At slightest nan powerfulness train was easy to root — a run-of-the-mill 265-cubic-inch GM V8, hooked up to a near-indestructible two-speed Powerglide transmission — though bizarrely its output was 215 horses, an output not shared by immoderate different '55 265-powered model.

Once complete, Bortz displayed nan revived Biscayne astatine nan prestigious Amelia Island Concours D'Elegance, wherever it received overmuch praise, including from Wayne Cherry, retired GM vice president of design. Cherry noted nan Biscayne concept's captious power successful shaping a number of GM models that arrived successful nan pursuing years.

When taking nan Biscayne's creation successful arsenic a whole, it mightiness beryllium tricky to spot which models it influenced, but zoom successful connected nan details, and it becomes clear. That rear-end creation is oh-so-early Corvair, and those scalloped cutouts down nan broadside shriek early Corvette — some notable Chevy models, and some owing immoderate mini acknowledgment to nan Biscayne's bold creation team.

The striking creation mightiness beryllium reliable to emotion for some, but there's nary denying that it's eye-catching, particularly successful that greenish hue. And that was nan full point — to tie attention. Capturing nan regard of onlookers is surely nary easy feat erstwhile surrounded by different awesome creations, arsenic this conception erstwhile was, nether nan agleam lights of GM's Motorama new-vehicle shows. The Biscayne managed nan feat perfectly, opinionated retired arsenic 1 of nan awesome designs of nan Harley Earl era. Heaving crowds would person been drawn successful and fixed a chance to look complete nan Biscayne's existent statement portion — that 265-cubic-inch V8 — drumming up excitement for early accumulation models that would besides athletics nan caller powerfulness plant.

Restoring this masterpiece of nan '50s was nary easy feat, but asked successful 2011 by Motor Trend if it was each worthy it, Bortz simply answered "Absolutely!" He added: "There's only one, location will ne'er beryllium another, and it was almost mislaid to history" — intelligibly outlining nan value of his, and his team's, activity restoring this forgotten hallmark of '50s creation to its original glory.