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Editor's note: This is part of a series at KSL.com featuring some of Utah's coolest cars. If you own a customized vehicle — from sports cars to semitrucks — email fjolley@ksl.com with a photo of the vehicle and a brief description for consideration.SALT LAKE CITY — Gale Frandsen’s 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air two-door hardtop coupe has a lot of history behind it.
For Frandsen, it’s not just the Chevy’s streamlined body and pure American engineering that call to times past. The most important history that the Bel Air carries with it is that of Frandsen’s family.
It began in 1954, when Frandsen’s aunt, LaRue Listak, purchased the then brand-new Bel Air in Chicago. It was a turning point in Chevrolet’s history; the car marked the company’s first vehicle with an optional V-8 engine and was a huge success with its streamlined “shoe-box” body and newfound power. Listak drove the car for a few years before she and her husband, John, decided to purchase a set of new matching Oldsmobile convertibles.
Listak drove the car cross-country to give to her parents, B.L. and Elizabeth Frandsen in Price. From then on, it became the couple’s family car and daily driver. It remained that way for nearly 20 years until B.L. Frandsen ceased to drive at the age of 84. Gale Frandsen lived with his grandfather in Price while attending the College of Eastern Utah, and his younger brother, Kent, was just turning 16. B.L. Frandsen sold the Bel Air to Kent Frandsen for $1, and the Bel Air was once again passed down the family tree.
The Bel Air ended up sitting out in a field under a tarp throughout the late '70s and into the late '80s before Kent Frandsen once again took up interest in it. The Bel Air wasn’t a lost cause, but it did need some work done. Kent Frandsen struck a deal with Alta High School’s automotive shop — he would provide the car and necessary supplies, and Alta’s students could work on the Bel Air under the direction of their automotive teacher.
The Chevy was completely disassembled and restored from the frame up in the ’89-'90 school year. The car was returned to its original beauty, on the inside and out. The students even converted the Bel Air’s 265 cubic inch OHV V-8 engine to run on regular unleaded gasoline instead of leaded fuel.
The Bel Air ended up spending 20 more years without being driven, this time safe in storage. Gale Frandsen purchased the Bel Air in 2012, becoming the fourth member of the family to own the car. He set out to get the Bel Air up and running again, and after a year in car shops, it was once again road worthy.
The Bel Air holds the rare distinction of being considered an original owner car. It has never been titled outside of the Frandsen family and has all-matching serial numbers on the car’s frame, body, engine and transmission. The Bel Air even boasts all original glass.
Aside from the Bel Air’s unique story, the car itself is a marvel in automotive history. The three-toned Chevy’s 265 cubic inch V-8 engine was revolutionary at the time in which it was installed, as well as the Bel Air’s two-speed automatic powerglide transmission. Chevy went on to use the V-8 in their cars for decades, and they still sell it today.
With each ride in the Chevy, memories come flooding back for Gale Frandsen and his family. His aunt, Beth Hartmann, the youngest daughter of B.L. and Elizabeth, currently resides in Salt Lake City. Listak, the original owner of the Bel Air, lives in Carlsbad, California, at the age of 96. The Bel Air has become a shared passion and source of joy between the three family members. Gale Frandsen and Hartmann still go for drives in the Bel Air together.
“There aren’t too many 86-year old people that still get to ride in their parents’ car,” Gale Frandsen said.
Together, they recall fond memories, such as the times when Gale Frandsen would sneak three or four friends into drive-in movie theaters in its spacious trunk. Beth Hartmann wistfully remembers how stylish and graceful her older sister looked when she first arrived in Utah with the Bel Air, and Frandsen also recalls picking berries and cutting Christmas trees with his grandparents in the Bel Air.
“It’s sleek, but it’s elegant — that’s the fun part of it,” Hartmann said. “It was that way back in its day, too.”
Wes Mangum is a Utah State University student and a citizen of Logan. He can change his own oil and always keeps his blinker fluid reservoir full. Wes can be reached on Twitter @hjmangum or by email at mangum953@gmail.com.
