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1961 Chevrolet Biscayne Was Left to Rot in the Woods, Gets Second Chance After 20 Years

Full-size cars are slowly dying now that SUVs are selling like hotcakes, but there was a time when mainstream automakers had several of them on offer. Chevrolet, for instance, had three of them on offer in the 1960s.
1961 Chevrolet Biscayne junkyard find 6 photos
Photo: Mr. Goodpliers/YouTube
1961 Chevrolet Biscayne junkyard find1961 Chevrolet Biscayne junkyard find1961 Chevrolet Biscayne junkyard find1961 Chevrolet Biscayne junkyard find1961 Chevrolet Biscayne junkyard find
Introduced in 1958, the Impala is by far the most iconic, but Chevrolet also offered a slightly more affordable Bel Air and a no-frills Biscayne model. The latter was devoid of fancy features and it was primarily produced for the fleet market.

The Biscayne remained in production until 1972 (GM Canada sold it through 1975) and just like the Impala, it was offered with a variety of inline-six and V8 engines. But looks and underpinnings aren't the only things that the Biscayne and Impala have in common. Both are a common sight in junkyards nowadays.

This light blue 1961 Biscayne is one of the many full-size Chevrolets that have been abandoned in car graveyards, but it was lucky enough to get a second chance at life. Left to rot out in the open for more than 20 years, the full-size grabbed the attention of YouTube's "Mr. Goodpliers" at a junkyard auction and ended up leaving its resting place on a trailer.

Not only that, but a few days later it became a running classic. Granted, it's not exactly road-worthy and it's still missing a few parts, but hey, it's far better than spending retirement in a scrapyard, eventually waiting your turn to go into the crusher.

Like many early 1960s Biscaynes, this one was sold with a 235-cubic-inch (3.9-liter) Blue Flame inline-six under the hood. And I'm pretty sure this is the original, numbers-matching mill, which is great news for someone looking to restore it.

Of course, the "Blue Flame" mill isn't as potent as the V8 options that Chevy offered back in the day, but it's a decent powerplant at 135 horsepower and 217 pound-feet (294 Nm) of torque. If anything, the "will it run?" video below proves that whiles not exactly powerful, these engines are tough and refuse to die, even if they've sat for decades.

So is this Biscayne getting a full restoration? Not yet. "Mr. Goodpliers" is actually looking to sell it for $1,700 as is or $2,000 titled. Would you put this classic back on the road?

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About the author: Ciprian Florea
Ciprian Florea profile photo

Ask Ciprian about cars and he'll reveal an obsession with classics and an annoyance with modern design cues. Read his articles and you'll understand why his ideal SUV is the 1969 Chevrolet K5 Blazer.
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