Bel Airs Made It to the Run

 

Following the conclusion of World War II, companies that had been building materials for the war effort tried to quickly re-tool and make peace-time civilian products. This was particularly true for the automobile industry which was initially forced to make minor changes to existing models to be released as new. In 1950, though, General Motors scored big when their Chevrolet division introduced a full-sized car they called the Bel Air. Named after one of the more affluent neighborhoods of Los Angelas, sales started slow but quickly took off. By the debut of the second generation in 1955, the Bel Air was a solid seller. It is the second generation, those cars from 1955 through 1957, that tend to show up most often at car events. The so-called Tri-5 models are without a doubt, popular among collectors. There were quite a few Bel Airs on hand for the Pumpkin Run Nationals. Here are just a few.