For decades, a wildly customized 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air sat largely unseen in a Saskatchewan garage. Its elaborate paintwork had once made it a fixture on Canada’s show circuit, but the car had eventually disappeared from public view.
Today, Gary Ponich drives that same Bel Air across North America, sometimes covering thousands of miles between shows. As he explained in an interview with the Magnacars YouTube channel, the car was originally built by his late father and two friends in the early 1970s.
Gary had walked past the Chevy in his garage for roughly 30 years, occasionally bringing it out but never putting it back into regular use. After experiencing health problems himself, he decided he had waited long enough to enjoy something that meant so much to his family.
That decision has transformed a preserved show car into an unlikely daily driver. Its half-century-old paint, handmade details, and family history now travel together wherever Gary takes the wheel.
Three Young Men and 16 Months of Painting
Gary’s father began the transformation in 1971–1972, handling the bodywork and spraying the Bel Air silver before handing candy-colored lacquer to two friends studying art. The original plan was a candy-red finish, but the young artists had other ideas.
Over approximately 16 months, they created an elaborate collection of hand-masked stripes, patterns, and murals. One artist, Bruce, painted an atomic-bomb motif on the roof and a coastal driving scene on the trunk, complete with a red Chevrolet.
The paintwork even reveals how the project evolved: the first side received particularly intricate detailing, while the opposite side became simpler as a car-show deadline approached. Despite decades of fading and wear, much of that original House of Kolor lacquer remains.
A Show Winner With Original Details
The Bel Air became a successful Canadian show car, although its first outing left Gary’s father dissatisfied with the engine compartment. He subsequently reworked the area, and Gary recalls the Chevrolet collecting numerous awards during the 1974 show season.
Inside, the period customization continues with distinctive textured upholstery covering the seats, doors, dashboard, and headliner. Gary eventually learned that the unusual material was called Statesman, a product associated with the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Under the hood sits a 283-cubic-inch Chevrolet V8 sourced from a 1957 model, paired with an M21 four-speed manual transmission. The custom wheels also carry personal significance because Gary and his father worked on them together.
From Forgotten Show Car to Daily Driver
Gary’s decision to return the Bel Air to regular use began with an application to the Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona, California. He fitted tires and drove south from Saskatchewan during a period when temperatures at home had plunged to minus 44 degrees.
During his subsequent travels, he said he was covering approximately 11,000 miles in a year, visiting shows and meeting enthusiasts across the western United States. The Chevy has even survived a deer collision, with friends helping repair the damage in time for another California appearance.
Mechanical trouble has occasionally interrupted those journeys, including an axle-bearing failure in Oregon. A fellow enthusiast helped Gary obtain parts and get moving again within roughly two hours.
Keeping His Father’s Legacy on the Road
One noteworthy encounter came when a man in California recognized the Bel Air from seeing it in British Columbia as a 12-year-old. Decades later, the distinctive paintwork was still familiar enough for him to share photographs with his brother.
Gary now uses the Chevrolet as his daily driver, preferring back roads and spontaneous stops to navigation systems and interstate highways. He also hopes to continue traveling with it, carrying his father’s creativity into places the original builders never reached.
The attention and trophies are secondary to the experience of driving something his father created. Every journey brings new conversations, old memories, and another opportunity to share a remarkable piece of Canadian custom-car history.