Gerald and Betty Hixson bought their 1957 Chevrolet twice from the same man, but Gerald was beginning to wonder if the second chance would ever come.
In December 1957, just a few days after Gerald and Betty married, they walked into their hometown dealership of Lambrecht Chevrolet in Pierce, Neb., and bought a new 1957 Bel Air Sport Sedan. The new ’58s were out, but that Harbor Blue ’57 Chevrolet four-door hardtop with a Larkspur Blue top really caught Gerald’s eye.
With all of its top-line Bel Air trim, the car was pretty expensive for a young newlywed living on a military salary. Regardless, Gerald had to have it. Ray Lambrecht cut him a good deal — Gerald thinks the car cost him about $2,300, a which is less than the $2,464 factory base price for the V-8 model — and he and his bride took off to Oklahoma in the new, 14-mile Bel Air so Gerald could finish his last year of service.
By 1968, Gerald and Betty’s family had outgrown the Bel Air four-door hardtop, so they went back to Lambrecht Chevrolet in search of a wagon. Before trading in the Bel Air, Gerald removed the fender skirts he had added and kept his copy of one of its keys in case he could use them again. Ray Lambrecht was a good friend of Gerald; his father owned the seed and feed store next to Lambrecht Chevrolet. Gerald thought through their friendship, there might be a chance to buy back his old ’57 Chevy once money wasn’t so tight.
“I told him right away that I wanted to buy it back, but he didn’t say anything,” Gerald said. He soon found out that, no matter who you are, Ray Lambrecht didn’t sell his used-car trade-ins. Lambrecht also didn’t always sell his entire new-car inventory.
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