You do the drive-train and I’ll do the body work — together we’ll restore the ’59 Impala.” A talented father and son join forces to restore the family sedan.
In an early 2003 conversation between father and son, Bob Huelsman of Ohio told his son, Tom, he was considering selling the family 1959 Chevrolet Impala Sport Sedan to a friend. After giving it some thought, Tom offered his father another option. “Dad, let’s restore the Chevy: you do the drive-train and I’ll handle the body work. We can’t let it go.” Sharing just a scant few words that only a father would need to change his mind, Tom had effectively convinced his dad to restore the Impala with him.
The Impala was the family’s first new car and had remained solid. The secret to the Impala’s preservation was a process Bob had used since the car was new: he had applied used motor oil to the Impala’s body and inner structure. He’d follow each oil change by taking the used motor oil from the engine and put it in a special sprayer to apply it to the underside. Using a manual oil can with a hand pump, he’d then load the inner doors with used motor oil. The high suspect areas received axle grease as a protective measure against corrosion.
Read more.
