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This is a 1957 Bel Air two-door hardtop rolled off the assembly line at the Los Angeles, California plant on Tuesday, April 9, 1957. After a while, it was transported to Los Angeles, California courtesy of Chevrolet. My father, Anthony Bonno, 24 years old and working there as a mechanic, bought it new. It was a few years before he met my mother and married Janet. I was also brought home in this car as a baby. I have strong memories of this car, from weekly visits to my grandmother’s for dinner, going to church, and sleeping in the backseat on the way home every Sunday.
The car became a second driver after my father bought a 1969 Impala around 1971. Then around 1975, the Bel Air sat on the side of the house for a few years before being moved into the garage. I remember the day around 1978 when my dad started it so he could move it into the garage. After starting it, he took it for a spin around the block before parking it in the garage. I remember him coming down the street, up the driveway and almost going through the back of our garage! He got out of the Bel Air laughing and I asked him why. He said he lost his brakes when he got to the driveway and was barely able to stop with the parking brake.
So it sat in the garage for 20 years. During this time many different things were piled on top of and around each other. As the years passed, a host of family and friends asked my father if he wanted to sell the Bel Air. Of course the answer was no. I remember one such time in the early ’80s when my family was struggling a bit and an uncle brought over a “car guy” to make my dad an offer of over $10,000. Again, the answer was no, and my uncle was a bit upset that my father didn’t accept the offer, especially if it would have helped us. So, back to the ‘fight’ my family was gone but my dad’s Bel Air was still sitting in the garage.
In late 1998, the Bel Air was born and loaded onto a trailer to be moved to my parents’ new house. Along the way, my dad had people yell some great deals at him from their windows as the Bel Air cruised down the highway. The Bel Air arrived at its new home while still in my father’s possession, and then sat in the garage again until May 14, 2002.
In summer In 2002, after attending a car show and seeing a nice 1957 Bel Air and a bunch of other cars, I started thinking about my dad’s potential, so we sat down and discussed the cars I saw that weekend. We discussed what is needed in terms of time, energy, parts and money. Then we decided it was time to start restoring Bel Air.
We aired up the tires and took them out of the garage, washed them, glued the hub caps on, and took “before” pictures. We stripped the car down over the next 8 months. The chassis, chassis and engine bays were stripped and painted. The front and rear suspensions have been rebuilt with new bushings, springs and steering components. The original 283 was tired, my dad said he put new rings in it too many times, so he eventually got bored. While the engine was at the machine shop, my dad rebuilt the 2 speed cast iron Powerglide. Watching him tear it apart on the tailgate of his 1969 C10 pickup was terrifying. At one point, he couldn’t find some tools to help him, so he used some scrap metal and created his own. I was amazed to see him throw out buckets of parts and sort through everything to reassemble the Powerglide without even a book to help.
Since the restoration took about two years, I took up other hobbies and put the project aside.
My father also let the project stall as my interests lay elsewhere. During this time Bel Air did not develop and unfortunately during this time my father died. One of my biggest regrets in life is that I missed the opportunity to finish his car next to him and watch him drive it. With little motivation after my father’s death, I let the Bel Air sit and collect dust for a few more years, with no progress on the restoration.
In 2011, while looking at my father’s car sitting in pieces, I realized that it was a shame that I didn’t have a piece of my father’s legacy, and that my childhood was over. I mustered all my resources and committed to making my father’s Bel Air restoration/preservation project my number one priority. There would be no stopping, stalling, or quitting until it was finished. I decided to do a full body removal, nut and bolt restoration and preservation of the CCI Judging and Guidelines Handbook as a guide to restore the original state.
All chassis, suspension, brackets, rims, seat frames, etc. they were given a powder coating to match the color scheme. The glass has been replaced with a new date coded EZ Eye glass. Special hardware, hinge and hood hinges are CAD coated. Others were left natural, cleaned and clear coated. It was painted Onyx Black exterior with Matador Red interior to match the 793A paint code and 676 fairing. For the chassis, the Red Oxide primer color was matched to a single-phase paint for easier removal of road grime. A completely new wiring harness was installed in place of the brittle 54-year-old original. It is equipped with an original Turbo-Fire V8 283/185 engine with a two-barrel Rochester carburetor, and the engine is mated to a two-speed cast iron Powerglide transmission with a 3:55 differential. The exhaust package is two in one. Braking is handled by Treadle-Vac electric brakes and factory power steering that help stop and control the 3,000+ pound Bel Air. It has the original clock and radio and all the original gauges that have been restored to perfect working order.
This task took 30 months to complete. As soon as it was roadworthy, my first trip was to bring the Bel Air to my mom and dad’s final resting place for them to see. It was emotional to say the least, standing in front of my parents and my father’s Bel Air.
My father’s Belair was graded 400/400 by the Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA) at the Palm Springs, California event at its first showing and won the first junior award in the class. It was also judged by the Vintage Chevrolet Club of America (VCCA) at the Tustin and Burbank, California meetings and scored 994/1000 and 996/1000 respectively. He was First Junior and First Senior in class and won Best In Show in both events.
– James B., California
