HomePick of the Day‘Vive le difference:’ Beaumont seems to be Canadian for Chevelle

‘Vive le difference:’ Beaumont seems to be Canadian for Chevelle

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“It’s the little differences,” hitman Vincent explains to hitman partner Jules in the movie Pulp Fiction about what it’s like to be in a foreign country. “They got the same (stuff) over there that they got here, but it’s just, uh, it’s just there it’s a little different.”

Which brings us to the Pick of the Day, a 1969 Beaumont convertible, which everywhere in North America except Canada would have been a 1969 Chevrolet Chevelle. 

Beaumont
The Beaumont has been dressed up with US Mags wheels

From 1966 to 1969, Beaumont was a freestanding Canadian brand that restyled and rebadged Chevelles and sold them through Pontiac dealers.  Strange but true and no, I hadn’t heard of them either. Then again, I’ve never been to Canada.

The Beaumont is an attractive resto-rod that the Nanaimo, British Columbia, private seller advertising the car on ClassicCars.com said is in good running condition with restoration nearly complete, aside from “very minor body work left to do.”

Beaumont
Auxiliary gauges have been added

“I have babied this beauty,” the seller says in the ad. “I have all paperwork for all the mechanical work that’s been done within the last year. Lots done to make this ride run absolutely beautiful.”

The convertible has been upgraded with a 383 stroker V8 fed by Holley Sniper fuel injection, a 3-speed automatic transmission with a shift kit, 12-bolt Positraction rear, Hoskins sport suspension and a set of US Mags Rambler wheels. 

The gallery of photos with the ad shows a very clean-looking Beaumont. The styling differences with the Chevelle are most obvious in the grille, which looks more Pontiac than Chevy, and the script lettering “Beaumont” on its flanks and dashboard.  Whatever bodywork that’s needed is not apparent in the photos. 

Beaumont
The 383 stroker V8 before it went in

This would be an interesting collector car to own in the States, proudly showing up at a local car show where a Beaumont would stand out as a strikingly different animal than what initially would seem merely like an imaginatively customized Chevelle.  Definitely different. 

The seller is asking $52,000 for the Beaumont-rod but is “open to very solid offers.”

To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day

Bob Golfen
Bob Golfen
Bob Golfen is a longtime automotive writer and editor, focusing on new vehicles, collector cars, car culture and the automotive lifestyle. He is the former automotive writer and editor for The Arizona Republic and SPEED.com, the website for the SPEED motorsports channel. He has written free-lance articles for a number of publications, including Autoweek, The New York Times and Barrett-Jackson auction catalogs. A collector car enthusiast with a wide range of knowledge about the old cars that we all love and desire, Bob enjoys tinkering with archaic machinery. His current obsession is a 1962 Porsche 356 Super coupe.

6 COMMENTS

  1. Beaumonts , especially SD`s ( Sport Deluxe)were fancier than Chevelle`s. Seemed to be more solid and interiors were nicer.
    Same with the Acadian verses Nova.
    Canadian Meteors in the 50`s and maybe before were a little fancier than Fords.
    Not sure about Monarch verses Mercury.

    • I find it strange that an automobile columnist has never heard of a Beaumont. I suggest that you check out models that you don’t know of before admitting that you are not knowledgable in the subject that you are writing about. Just a suggestion. I always enjoy your "Pick of the Day".

      • Gary, unlike some folks, I don’t pretend to know everything about everything. So yes, sometimes I have to look things up, just as I did in this case. Sorry my attempt at humor was not to your liking.

  2. Canadian cars in through the 70’s were generally some form of a weird hybrid of their American counterparts. For example Their Dodge Monaco 500 had a Plymouth instrument panel, rode on a Plymouth wheelbase but had Dodge exterior styling during the late 60’s and early 70’s. The Canadian Dodge Monaco 500 was available in a convertible and had Plymouth Sport Fury interior. The American version rode on a longer wheelbase had a more luxurious interior and was only available in a 2 door hardtop.

    • The reason some car models in Canada were different from their US counterparts was because, in the pre-Auto Pact/NAFTA era, tariffs made it more expensive to import a car from the US than the cost for a car built in Canada. Hence the auto makers tried to make their limited range of Canadian-built cars spread as far as possible by disguising some of them as other US models (no ‘wide-track’ Pontiac for example.) Why the Big Three chose to produce Canada-only versions as discussed here (I think the Fargo truck was another example) made/makes no sense to me. (We had a two different Mercury pickups and a Meteor season in the day).

      • 1964 Canadian Dodge 330`s, 440`s, Polara`s were a bit different from US models. Example Can 440`s had different tail lights than US 440`s.
        You could get console and buckets in in 4 door hard tops, maybe sedans. Not available in US cars.

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