Chassis no. 21211K188616

409-cid, 409-hp OHV V-8 engine, four-speed manual transmission, coil spring independent front suspension, live rear axle with trailing arm coil spring suspension, and four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes. Wheelbase: 119.0-inches

The arrival of Pontiac’s GTO in 1964 is usually recognized as the birth of the muscle car movement. The roots go much farther back, however, to the 1949 Oldsmobile 88, and even the 1936 Buick Century. Furthermore, it has always been possible for an owner to create his own muscle car from a manufacturer’s option sheet. This car is just such a “sleeper,” comprising the lightest full-size 1962 Chevrolet, the Biscayne two-door “post” sedan, with its most potent powerplant, the 409-hp, 409-cid Turbo-Fire V-8 with dual four-barrel carburetors.

Optimizing the options list consists mostly of leaving things off, like a radio and even a heater. Each one has some weight, so everything added to the car has to serve a purpose, like a tachometer or seat belts.

Ed Ewing is a connoisseur of the 1962 Chevy 409 as his first car was a 409 Impala. This car however, represents something completely different. Ordered with radio and heater-delete options, it has only the tachometer and seat belts as options. Moreover, it’s almost completely original. The car has been repainted and the seats have had new cloth inserts. Apart from a new parcel shelf, that’s it. The car is as it came from the factory.

Unobtrusive in beige over beige, it currently has a plastic cover on the front bench, for preservation. The floor has a simple black rubber mat. The engine compartment is clean and not over-detailed. Underneath, the car shows some light surface rust – it has clearly been used, a fact corroborated by the 95,000 miles on the odometer. It has Classic radial F225/75R14 blackwall tires on steel wheels with “dog dish” hubcaps. In the trunk are some slightly-used drag slicks, further confirming the car’s performance provenance.

It was recognized by the Late Great Chevys club for a “Special Display – Original Unrestored,” and was featured in Chevy Rumble magazine in December 2005. If you’re interested in a muscle car before there were muscle cars, this is it.