VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND NEWER 1949-1954 1949 Chevrolet Fleetline 4 Door

saw a 1949 Chevrolet Fleetline 4 Door for sale locally the other day at a show. It is the 6 cylinder, with 3 on the column/ tree. It does NOT run, but seems to all be there.

Been doing some research and reading and was wondering:
1- HOW to tell if it is a deluxe or a special
2- what would be the rough value of the car
3- what should i look at on these cars, not very familiar with them, but may be interested IF price it right. would be next after i get my 1929 complete :)

I am waiting to get some pictures, once i do i will post them. It is black, looks like all chrome is there as well.

The Deluxe had chrome around the windshield and back window and a chrome spear on the side of the front fender and it ran into the door.
Rust can be a problem. Common areas are around the rear wheel openings, rocker panels and floor and supports on the floor that hold body onto the frame.
What is it worth. Not a lot. A #2 restored one about
10,000 to 12..000 dollars. One needing a lot of work $1000 and you will have more than its worth into it when you are done.

if its a deluxe, there will be stainless trim moldings that run across the top of the doors. if its a base model, no stainless trim in the noted area.look at the floor and trunk pans as well as the rear wheel wells which are notorious for rust. if not rusty in these ares and engine can be run with little or no $ input , then i'd put its value at 1K. if its rusty, walk on it. good luck, mike mccagh

As well as the stainless trim mentioned above, a Special will have black rubber stone guards on the leading edges of the rear fenders. The Deluxe models have stainless ones.

well got pictures, and yes it is rusty... he posted it up on craigslist, here is a link CHEVY FLEETLINE 1949 4DR - $2500

looks like way more work than i want to get into :/

I had a 1951 Chevrolet 2 door Deluxe in the exact same condition and it was all original too. Sold it as a parts car for $500 and I was lucky to get that!

With the amount of rot that can be seen in the pictures, I'd recommend you leave it. I'm sure with a bit of sleuthing you could find another '49 Deluxe Fleetline in far better condition. If it was a convertible, it would deserve consideration for a restoration.

That car is junk.
There will be more solid cars like that available.....keep looking.

I support all of the previous posts, but want to take another angle in my response. This is the example of a very good parts car. One that could be well worth a $1000 - $2000 price for its parts. In today's restorations world if you are not doing a restoration of a vehicle in excellent condition the parts hunt can be very long and expensive. I had three bodies and several drive trains to pick parts from. Normally, I picked through what I thought was reusable and recycled the rest, usually within 6 months. Craigslist was my major source along with ebay. I got to a point that I could look at bodies and drive trains and know what held value.

I did have the luxury of time and a learning curve to work on my restoration over a 15 year period, a nice garage with extra space to store parts, my wife's support, and the financial means to finance my project over all those years.

I am assuming those familiar with this year and model could find a lot of value still in the car. A careful inspection where you list and place a value on parts is a must, before making any decisions. If you are looking for part values you can begin with ebay and parts catalogs to see what is available and for what price.

Thanks, Mike

I agree with you Mike on what it MIGHT bring in parts pricing-the problem as I see it is the owner wants $2500.00.

I agree. Even for a parts car the $2,500 is too high. However, for parts to help with another restoration, I could see the vehicle selling for $1,000 to $1,500.

I think the only race that car is going to win is the one to the junkyard......