One family-owned Chevrolet Fleetline left for 54 years serves as an accidental time capsule
- A US family’s 1949 Chevrolet Fleetline had been parked in a barn since 1970
- Their grandpa bought it over half a century ago
- When finally removed from storage, it was a glimpse into the past
Published on Jul 26, 2024 at 4:06 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Jul 26, 2024 at 4:10 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
A US family’s 1949 Chevrolet Fleetline had been parked in a barn for 54 years.
After being driven for more than two decades, it was parked up in 1970.
When it was finally removed from storage – it was like a glimpse into the past.
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The barn find
Chevrolet Fleetlines are rare these days with most moldering in junkyards.
However, YouTube’s IowaClassicCars stumbled across an unaltered and highly original 1949 Fleetline.
The deluxe car had been purchased by the seller’s grandpa and was last registered on the road in 1970 before being parked up in the barn.
Totally original – bar some period-correct upgrades – it still boasts an original six volt wiring system.
Inside the cabin, its upholstery could certainly do with an upgrade.
However, the black paint, the interior, and the engine are all original.
Although weathered, there’s no significant rust.
Despite the patina, with cleaning and buffing, the original finish will shine again in no time.
The stunning footage shows the Chevrolet Fleetline seeing daylight for the first time in decades.
The Iowa-based team eventually managed to fire up the 216-cubic-inch (3.5-liter) inline-six rated at 90 horsepower after all those years.
It’s a second generation of Stovebolt engines that Chevrolet used from 1937 to 1962.
Amazingly, the Chevrolet Fleetline shows only 78,000 miles (125,529 km) on the odometer.
It will be hitting the market once it’s back up and fully running again.
Such an unaltered classic Chevrolet find is rare – this 1958 Chevrolet Impala is missing several parts but a surprise made it a great barn find.
What’s more, this man in California is willing to give you his 1959 Chevrolet Impala if you build his driveway.
The Chevrolet Fleetline
The Chevrolet Fleetline is one of the cars that made the brand America’s volume sales leader in the full-size car segment.
The exterior has smooth curves, chrome, and stainless trim.
Introduced from 1941 to 1952, while it doesn’t get the same love as the pre-1955 Bel Air and the iconic Tri-Five series, it’s popular with hot-rodders as an affordable classic.
All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
