Pro Touring Masterpiece: A '55 Chevy Bel Air with an Art Morrison Chassis

Revolutionizing a Tri-Five Chevy with Four-Wheel Independent Suspension

By Gerry Burger – Photography By Chadly Johnson

David Goodwin is like most of our readers; he has been a car lover his entire life. His first new car was an SS 396 Chevelle, so you know he enjoys performance, too. Growing up in the ’60s, David remembers several hot rod 1955 Chevrolets; he once owned a more traditional hot rod ’55 Chevy before he began scheming to build a Pro Touring Bel Air.

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So, he set about doing two things; first was finding a good car to modify. David knew there was no better money spent than on the original car. Paying a bit more upfront for a good example saves you money in the end and leads to a better-finished product.

02 Art Morrison Chassis for 1955 Chevy Bel Air Transformation — The days of modifying the original chassis are over. In today’s world, rolling a completely new chassis under the original body is the order of the day. This Art Morrison Enterprises (AME) chassis will transform the ’55 in every way.

He located a restored 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air hardtop on eBay. It appears the car was subject to a “body-on” restoration in the past and was represented as an excellent car. As we all know, one man’s excellent is another man’s just average. Like many purchases based solely on photographs and descriptions, this purchase came with some surprises, but we would still classify the tri-five as a good start. While the car was far from perfect, it had good “bones,” making it an excellent candidate for the desired modifications.

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Keeping the body mostly original was the easy part. Going the Pro Touring route by adding four-wheel independent suspension, Detroit Speed power rack-and-pinion steering, big Wilwood disc brakes on all four corners, and modern LS9 horsepower underhood sounded a bit more involved.

03 Front Tubular Control Arms and Rack and Pinion Steering on 1955 Bel Air — Up-front tubular control arms, power rack-and-pinion steering, and motor mounts for the LS9 motor were all in place. Coilover shocks will replace the angle iron struts between the control arms.

This brings us to the second thing he set out to do: finding the right shop for the build. After checking out MetalWorks Speed Shop in Eugene, Oregon, David knew he had found the perfect shop to perform the Pro Touring transformation. Before any work began, there would be detailed one-on-one consultation with shop owner Jon Mannila to be certain they were “on the same page.” Could the original ‘55 chassis be modified? Certainly. However, there is a simpler, more cost-effective, and far superior way to achieve the desired goal in one very clean rolling package from Art Morrison Enterprises.

04 AME Front Suspension with Flawless Welding on 1955 Bel Air — A closer look at the AME front suspension shows flawless welding and stout mounting brackets for the front control arms. There is no doubt this chassis is superior to the original frame in every way.

Also Check Out: Under The 1965 Buick Riviera Detroit Speed Chassis

The Tri-Five chassis has long been a mainstay for Art Morrison, and it can be configured to your needs. It turns out Art Morrison has a package that embodies everything needed for the Pro Touring conversion. It was a simple matter of placing an order for a complete, new Art Morrison chassis.

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While they were waiting for the new chassis to arrive, the body was separated from the original restored chassis and prepared for mounting on the new frame. During this disassembly process, the car was examined closely for rust, rot, and other defects. It turns out the car was in above-average condition but still required some rust repair. It was a good start.

05 AME Chassis Center with Formed Box Tubing Crossmembers — The center of the chassis is equally as strong as the formed box tubing crossmembers. Large ports in the X-member allow for high-performance exhaust systems and note all factory body mounts are present.

Once the chassis arrived, the car was mated with the new Art Morrison chassis. Because of the desired independent rear suspension, the trunk floor was removed and replaced, including the original spare tire well. A reproduction floorpan was used in the trunk area, and it blends perfectly with the custom-formed panel that covers the new rear suspension. This custom floor panel then joins the original front floor area. New, larger inner wheelhouses were welded in place to facilitate the 20×12 Budnik rear wheels and Michelin tires.

06 Independent Rear Suspension Installation on 1955 Bel Air — Independent rear suspension will provide a great ride and improved handling. This suspension requires a modified rear floorpan. The team at MetalWorks Speed Shop handled the transformation with ease.

Up front, the original transmission tunnel remains, and the minimal rust on the floor was neatly repaired. Since the battery would be removed from the firewall, along with numerous other holes to be filled, it was determined a new firewall would be cleaner and provide the perfect backdrop for the Wegner Motorsports–built LS9 engine.

And so, with a bit of judicious cutting, grinding, and welding, the floor was now neatly shaped to fit the chassis. By using the original-style trunk floorpan, the view from under the car might have you thinking the floor was never cut. There can be no higher compliment than making a major modification look like nothing has been touched. And just like that, we have a Pro Touring roller.