Long before the invasion of foreign brands, General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler dominated the American car market, especially during the mid-fifties when all three consistently introduced new designs. For the 1955 model year run, especially for Chevrolet and the completely new ’55 models, the company was going to produce GM’s 50 millionth vehicle. To celebrate that milestone, GM planned a massive celebration to drive home their dominance.

For the decade of the 1950s, GM sold more vehicles than Ford and Chrysler combined. For the 1955 model year alone, Chevy sold more than 1.775 million cars. To put that in some context, in 2022, Toyota sold just 295,000 Camrys in the United States. Of those huge numbers of ’55 Chevys, one is the holy grail for Tri-Five fans: the gold ’55 Bel Air hardtop that marked GM’s 50 millionth vehicle.

In addition to the unique Bel Air Sport Coupe, Chevy produced 5,000 gold Bel Air four-door sedans (painted in a production-code gold color, not the custom mix applied to the show car) that were distributed to 5,000 select U.S. dealers. Many of those four-door models still exist. The famous 50 millionth car disappeared decades ago, fueling all sorts of theories about its ownership, location, etc. But what makes the history of this car more confusing is there was more than one 50 millionth car produced.

Locating The Gold 1955 Chevy

We know more today because a dedicated group of Tri-Five Chevy experts is building a tribute to the gold car. Beginning with this installment, we’ll detail how the project came to be, the incredible outpouring of support from Tri-Five aftermarket specialists and individual gearheads who donated period-correct new-old-stock (NOS) pieces, and the completed work by the team.

This project began several years ago with a simple, offhand remark about a pair of NOS wiper arms and blades. Joe Whitaker, co-owner of Real Deal Steel (RDS) and the driving force behind this project, tells the story of how the project developed.

“Years ago someone mentioned that he had the gold wiper arms and blades off of the 50 millionth car,” Joe says. “I asked him if he wanted to sell them, but the price was ridiculous. He brought them over (to the RDS shop) and they were indeed the real things. I took pictures and posted them on my Facebook page.”

Because of that social media post, a person who used to work at the Sloan Center reached out to Joe and told him that he knew the location of the original car. At about the same time, someone else told Joe that he, too, knew the location of the original car. That information intrigued Joe and he talked about the car with Dave Snodgrass of Snodgrass Chevy Restoration in Melbourne, Florida, which regularly bought Real Deal Steel reproduction Tri-Five bodies for their projects. “I think I can reach the guy who owns GM’s 50 millionth vehicle,” Joe told Dave. “I didn’t know there was more than one at the time,” he said. (Keep reading to learn how many were actually produced!)

“If there was ever a million-dollar Tri-Five Chevy, it would be this gold car,” Joe said, to which Dave agreed. Joe proceeded with, “Are you up for it? Dave said ‘Sure.’” Joe called the son of the owner and asked what he was going to do with the car; he said he was going to rebuild it someday. Joe asked if he’d be interested in selling it, and he said no. This was several years ago, and the original gold Chevy wasn’t exactly a car any longer – it was a collection of burned, rusted remnants.

In that conversation, Joe asked the owner’s son if he’d take $100,000 for the remains of the car. “He didn’t skip a beat – he said no,” Joe tells us. “I offered a hundred grand for a pile of crap.” At that point, the thought of doing something with the famous gold Chevy was relegated to the backburner.

Fast forward to 2022 and things start moving again. During those ensuing years, Joe got to know Steve Blades, a Kentucky resident who is, by all standards, a high-level Tri-Five addict. During a conversation, Joe told Steve about a fascinating piece of Tri-Five Chevy trivia.

“I told him where there is a set of NOS wiper arms and blades made by Trico with the shop-order tag for the 50 millionth car – the ’55 Chevy,” Joe says. “Steve said he had to wind up with them. I told him they’d be expensive, but he said he didn’t care. I bought them and got them to Steve.”

Steve explains that the shop order tags are an important part of the story. It was a GM accounting procedure to track expenses on the gold car project. Steve says that the shop order tag for the wipers had a “Car No. 1” notation on it, which he thinks is a clue that GM knew early on that there would be more than one car. That simple transaction reignited the dormant project.

“We got to talking about the project,” Joe says. “I told him that I knew where the remnants of the car were, but I couldn’t buy them. Snodgrass and I had talked about building that car and I said we can’t build it because I can’t buy it, so we should build a replica.” That decision was made earlier this year and the build is now underway with a goal of having it completed by year’s end. Steve and Joe have become advanced Chevy anthropologists, researching GM’s 50 millionth vehicle, the celebration, and the car’s history.

Celebrating GM’s 50 Millionth Vehicle

Planning for the massive 50 millionth car celebration, GM decided that the car would be a Chevy. But no ordinary Chevrolet, because the 1955 model was a major design and engineering upgrade, with totally new sheet metal, new chassis and suspension, and the introduction of what was to become the iconic small-block Chevy V8.

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That unicorn Chevy – with more than 600 gold-plated pieces – was shown off in parades, auto shows, and GM’s own Motoramas throughout the country.

To mark this occasion, GM planned a massive parade in Flint, as well as celebrations at its factories, dealerships, and many of its suppliers’ facilities. This also included books, a movie, and a massive advertising program. Building off the 50th anniversary-is-the-golden-anniversary tradition, the broad celebration took on a gold theme.

For the parade, that meant one car from each GM brand – Chevy, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick, and Cadillac – would be painted gold. While the Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick, and Cadillac cars would be production models painted a standard gold, the 50 Millionth ’55 Chevy would be truly golden.

That meant a heavy emphasis on gold – lots of gold. The car would be painted a custom-mixed shade of gold, a special one-of-a-kind gold interior would be installed, and more than 600 pieces of trim and hardware would be plated in 24-carat gold. That included all trim pieces and nearly 300 screws, nuts, and bolts. Imagine what that would cost in 2023 dollars.

At this point in the project, Joe and Steve discovered that the remnants of the gold Chevy in North Carolina were actually from the first gold ’55 Chevy to come off the line in Flint. And, there were actually three gold ’55 Chevys produced. Here’s where the mystery grows.

Because GM had this massive celebration planned, it needed a car for various promotional needs before the actual 50 millionth vehicle would come off the line. This is the car that ended up in North Carolina. Joe likes to call it the “Motorama car” since it was the car the general public saw all across the country in 1955.

Gold Chevy No. 2 is a bit of a mystery. It was built sometime in October of 1954 so that it could be filmed for a GM promotional movie and additional PR photos. What happened to this car is unknown.

Gold Chevy No. 3 is the real 50 millionth car. That car came down the line on Nov. 23, 1954, and it was loaded with gold. Even heater hoses, spark plug wires, and other items were painted gold. The assembly line was packed with people as that car was assembled. As it rolled off the line, there was a small ceremony and the car was driven directly onto the float that rolled through downtown Flint. After the parade, the Bel Air was displayed in a large hall for a luncheon attended by several thousand invited guests. After that, though, the car disappeared.

Each car has differences, some important and others incidental. For example, according to Steve, the first and third cars had custom gold vinyl and fabric interiors, while the second car had only a stock, production interior. Also, Steve says, the first car had all kinds of power options – while the second and third did not.

A Tribute To The 50 Millionth GM 1955 Chevy

The tribute car that’s under construction is based on the third, and actual, 50 millionth car, but pays homage to all three cars. And, as luck would have it, Joe saw an ad on Facebook Marketplace earlier this summer that the original owner’s son was advertising old Chevy parts for sale.

Joe visited the family, looked at the pieces for sale, and noticed several of the Motorama gold car remnants. He was able to find more scattered around the property and made a deal to buy them. While none of the surviving pieces will be used on the tribute car, some of them still have the gold plating or gold paint on them. The plan is to display some of those remnants when the tribute car is shown at events in 2024.

“It’s rather a miracle because we entered the project not thinking that we’d get anything from the original Motorama car,” Joe says. “To wind up with much of the remnants of the original car is amazing.”

While Joe and Real Deal Steel, Snodgrass Chevy Restoration, and Steve Blades are doing the heavy lifting to build the tribute car, other aftermarket specialists are active as sponsors and parts suppliers. Golden Star Classic Auto Parts supplied all the sheet metal, bumpers, and other chrome parts for the car. Shafer’s Classic Reproductions provided all brake lines, fuel lines, exhaust, and other engine compartment components. American Autowire supplied the complete wiring harness for the project. Auto City Classic provided all the glass and chrome window frames for the car.

Ciadella Interiors in Tempe, Arizona will create the correct interior, using actual NOS vinyl and fabric that was acquired from SMS Fabrics in Canby, Oregon. Gene Smith Parts supplied the grille, grille surround moldings, dash trim, wiper arms and blades, horn ring, and other small chrome parts for the project.

Individual Tri-Five enthusiasts have offered items such as period-correct AC spark plugs, correct light bulbs for the gauges, the radiator cap, etc. Randy Roberts, a friend of the family of the last owner of the real 50 millionth car, supplied a date-code correct 265 cubic-inch V8 that was rebuilt by Tim Weber, an Orlando-area Chevy enthusiast. Steve Blades donated the correct Powerglide automatic transmission.

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The outpouring of support has ranged from time-period-correct spark plugs to a complete 265 engine that was rebuilt and given the gold treatment.

A Facebook group – 1955 Chevrolet 50,000,000th GM Gold Cars – which was started earlier this year, is drawing attention from Tri-Five fans. From offers of parts and information to questions and positive comments, group participation grows as more enthusiasts learn of it. As of mid-September, nearly 900 people follow the build.

Steve says the response to information being posted on the group page has evolved from skepticism about some of the emerging details to enthusiasm. Enthusiasts have begun to follow the build in anticipation of seeing the finished car. Many commented, “We can’t wait to see the finished car!”

In our upcoming installments, we will explore the sourcing and building of the chassis and driveline, the construction of the new steel body, as well as the detailed installation of the interior. And, finally, a full photo feature and recap of the entire journey to recreate what might be the most important ’55 Chevy ever built.