Mary Kolbert's 1952 Chevrolet

1952 Chevrolet Bel Air restyled by Matt Kolbert for Mary Kolbert of Pomona, California in 1957. Mary was newly graduated and needed a car. Matt decided to give her a custom car with the 1957 look. Owning and operating his own custom shop in Pomona, Matt got hold of a 1952 Chevrolet Bel Air Hardtop and began restyling it. Matt rough-shaped the fins in sheet metal until a desirable contour. The shapes were then welded and molded to the tips of the rear fenders. Each fin took 17 hours to complete, these modifications could fast run in to money when the charge of one hour was $4.50 at the time. Housings were made beneath the new fins to house a set of Pontiac taillights. The hood and deck lid were stripped and the holes were filled. The deck lid was fit with a Buick emblem. Air scoops were fit to the leading edges of the fenders and fitted with 1953 Mercury grille teeth. The gas filler door was kept intact, giving the car a stock look. The door handles were retained as well. The front was updated by installing a set of 1955 Chevrolet headlights. This modification was done by welding a frame for the headlights by using metal rods, sheet metal was used to fill the gap. The grille was fit with chromed mesh screen and a 1955 Mercury emblem was centered in the middle. The car was lowered 3 inches all the way around. Once the bodywork was done, it was painted a 2-tone lacquering consisting of Adobe Beige and Chrome Copper metallic. The bumpers, moldings, etc was re-chromed.

Magazine Features

Rod & Custom December 1956