Parting with your first car

After five decades, the time had finally come, but he never expected this.

Gerald A. Iwan was so overwhelmed and in awe to be in Scottsdale, Ariz., that he literally could barely get the words out of his mouth to say so.

“I have to slow down, I’m stuttering,” Iwan said, surprised by the attention that he and his gleaming black 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible were getting at the giant 37th Annual Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Event.

Iwan’s mood was understandable.

While Barrett-Jackson’s audience was loaded with celebrities, millionaires and big-dollar auto dealers, Iwan was about as much of a regular guy as there was among the buyers and sellers of the 1,200 cars consigned at the show. It was his first time to the signature Barrett-Jackson event, which took place in mid January. Other Barrett-Jackson events are upcoming.

It’s not surprising that the sheer largesse of the event left him a little star/car struck, not to mention that like most, if not every, vehicle that crossed the auction block, Iwan’s car has a great personal story behind it. They’re not just rubber, glass and steel, they’re part of someone’s life.

A retired steelworker from Cleveland, Ohio, Iwan bought his Bel Air new on July 25, 1957, at age of 19, when he was so young that he had to get his mother to co-sign the loan for him on the $3,693 purchase price. What followed was a 50-year love affair with his black Bel Air, a car that has never been restored, per se, but one that has lived a life of almost constant modification and guaranteed affection.

“I just loved the car when I got it, and I fixed it up the way I like it.”

First it was a tonneau cover that Iwan added in 1958, the year after he bought the car. Then he began the process of chroming as much of the undercarriage as he could. Off came the gold centerpiece on the huge Bel Air grille, on went a set of chrome teeth from a 1954 Chevy. In 1959, the standard black and silver interior was replaced by a white-and-red rolled and pleated leather interior, complete with a record player in the back seat to play 45 rpm vinyl records. The addition of special exhaust system and aftermarket wheels completed the period-correct look while a high-performance camshaft gave the 283 cubic-inch V8 engine a little more grunt and a whole new sound.

And while Iwan has always loved his car, he hasn’t driven it much. A marriage and six children meant the miles were few and far between. In fact, it carries only 16,241 miles since new.

“That’s the actual mileage,” Iwan said, as if there were any doubt about it.

The Bel Air has never seen rain, never seen snow and each October, Iwan begins a slavish ritual of disassembling and cleaning the car so it’s road ready the following spring.

“I just love this car. What else can I say?”

So why sell it now?

“I’m going to be 70 now, OK?” he said. “I’ve got to protect my wife, in case something happens to me in the future. She said, ‘You know that car is really nice. We have a lot of fun with it. But how am I going to get rid of the car if you pass on?’”

It’s a question Iwan spent serious time pondering.

“A lot of times, I’ll take the car apart about Oct. first. Say I die in January. Who’s going to put this car all back together? Because there’s no water, no oil, no brake fluid in it. I’ve got the tires in my basement, I’ve got the lake pipes (custom exhaust) under my bed. It’s all wrapped up. So how are they going to get it all back together to get it going?”

It’s that Midwestern pragmatism that led Iwan to contact Barrett-Jackson about selling his car, rather than spend yet another winter polishing and fine-tuning it.

Surprisingly, perhaps, the car became one of the stars of the show, and Barrett-Jackson gave it an excellent spot in the tent with its high-end cars, putting Iwan’s humble ’57 Chevy close to the likes of Carroll Shelby’s personal GT500 that was also up for sale.

Asked what he thought the car would bring when it crossed the auction block, he became furtive.

“Everybody says the car is very, very popular. Everybody likes it here, but we don’t know where it will go. Who knows? Just between you and me, I got $5,500 in the car. But don’t tell nobody that. We can’t tell the buyer that, ’cause they’ll only give you a quarter (of what it’s worth) for that.”

As it turns out, he didn’t have to worry. The ’57 crossed the auction block for a cool $90,000.

“This car represents a wonderful piece of Americana and more importantly, the passion for automobiles that draws people to Barrett-Jackson lifestyle events,” said Steve Davis, president of Barrett-Jackson.

“When the Iwans decided to part with their Bel Air, they chose to do it at Barrett-Jackson where they could enjoy a great going-away party for the car. We’re proud to have shared this moment with them.”

Watching his ’57 drive off the auction block, Iwan was somewhat wistful, but without obvious regret.

“I will be 70 years old next year, coming to the end of a special era in my life. The car needed a new home. I want someone else to enjoy the 1957 Chevy convertible as I did for 50 years.”

Tom Jensen is a feature writer with Wheelbase Communications. Wheelbase is a worldwide supplier of automobile news, reviews and features. Drop them a line on the Web at www.wheelbase.ws/mailbag.html