Not long after high school I moved to Atlanta and took a job at a Gulf station near the entrance to Emory University. I hitch-hicked to Atlanta and did not have a car. Soon I earned enough money to buy a very nice 1953 Bel Aire 4 door sedan. It was a good solid car and I enjoyed it but was dissatisfied with the sluggish performance of the “hot water six” engine.
Those were the days of 327 c.i. powered Chevy’s, 390 c.i. Ford’s, and 383 c.i. powered Mo Par’s. I had the itch for a faster ride but little funds. I drove the ‘53 for a few months until I traded for the most unlikely car of my life a ‘55 Caddy.
The ‘53 only had one flaw as I remember it. The bumper guards on the front bumper had rust, a common thing for that year model. Other than that it was a good, dependable car, just too slow for a teen boy in 1965.
Royce
