A 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible hardly needs help attracting attention. However, someone clearly decided the stock version wasn’t quite eye-catching enough, so they gave it a towering supercharger, staggered custom wheels, and enough exposed hardware to make its intentions a bit more obvious
This particular Bel Air is the product of a custom build that took over three years to complete. Almost every area has been touched, from the hand-fabricated chassis underneath to the tan leather interior and heavily reworked body.
Now it’s looking for a new garage. According to Mecum, the custom Chevy will cross the block at its Nashville auction on September 26, with no pre-auction estimate published.
The photos provide a pretty substantial clue that this isn’t an ordinary cruiser. That supercharger poking through the hood is attached to an engine capable of turning this 73-year-old Chevy into something much more serious.
The Big-Block Can Make 1,200 HP
Under that blower sits a 588-cubic-inch Chevrolet big-block V8 built by renowned drag racer and engine builder Jim Oddy. Mecum rates the combination at 850 horsepower while running ordinary pump gas.
If that’s not enough for you, switching to race fuel unlocks a claimed 1,200 hp. The engine is paired with a Richmond five-speed manual transmission, meaning the driver gets the pleasure—and responsibility—of changing gears themselves.
Power heads rearward to a narrowed Ford 9-inch rear end with 3.90 gears. Considering the engine’s potential output, the substantial drivetrain upgrades aren’t exactly surprising.
The Chassis Was Built To Handle It
The Bel Air rides on a custom hand-fabricated, powder-coated frame with a concealed truss-style roll bar incorporated into the chassis. Rack-and-pinion steering and four-wheel disc brakes bring the rest of the hardware closer to modern hot-rod standards.
Up front is a Fatman Fabrications independent suspension with coilovers, while the rear uses Chassis Engineering four-link bars and double-adjustable coilovers. Boyd Coddington wheels measure 17 inches up front and a considerably larger 20 inches at the rear.
Almost Everything Has Been Customized
Higgins Hot Rods of Columbiana, Alabama, worked with the seller on the metalwork, bodywork, and green paint. Custom fabrication extends to the firewall, floorboards, hood, trunk, quarter panels, and wheel tubs, while Advanced Plating handled the chrome and brightwork.
Paul Atkins Interiors created the tan leather cabin and matching convertible top. The interior also features custom gauges, accent pieces, and a bespoke center console, giving the heavily modified Chevy a properly finished cabin rather than a stripped-out race-car environment.
Mecum hasn’t said what it expects this Bel Air to bring in Nashville. Whatever the final number, potential buyers aren’t likely to find another 1953 Chevy convertible capable of making 1,200 hp anytime soon.