Get the car here: https://www.gta5-hub.com/vehicles/57-chevy-bel-air-add-on-animated


Version 2.0 (pending) makes the handling much more fun and realistic with major updates to the vehicles physics and performance, plus the ability to free roll without throttle, disabled the ABS which should not be on a classic of this era to begin with, switched to a solid rear axle like the real car and a new more realistic underside texture in case you catch a glimpse of the bottom of the car in a jump or rollover. Unfortunately a couple places in both the new and old underside textures are stretched and there is nothing I can do about that.
This update also removes the inline 6 handling options and replaces them with the 265 2 barrel V8 and 283 2 barrel V8 options instead to better fit the model.





This handling provides realistic top speed, power, gear ratios, center of gravity and engine sound for Neophyte Industries' 57 Chevy bel Air add on.




The .ytd makes the grille and other trim parts stainless steel instead of imitation gold. I've also included a carcols.meta that beefs up the engine mods slightly and makes the suspension upgrades lower the car more than before.




I've included four engines to choose from, the two barrel carb 165 horsepower 4.3 liter 265 V8, the two barrel carb 185 horsepower 4.6 liter 283 V8, the single four barrel carb 220 horsepower "Super Turbo Fire" 283 V8 with standard 3 speed manual transmission and the twin four barrel carb 270 horsepower "Super Turbo Fire" 283 V8 with choice of a standard 3 speed manual or a 3 speed manual with optional factory overdrive with lower final drive ratio effectively making it a four speed. The optional overdrive transmission package with it's much lower final drive ratio and much taller extra top gear made the car much faster in both acceleration and top speed.

I've also included an extra handling labelled "Hot Rod" that represents a mildly modified 283 V8 with a close ratio 4 speed, better tires and minor suspension and brake upgrades. This version has also been raised slightly in the rear and lowered slightly in the front for that iconic "Hot Rod" look.



283 Single Carb V8
220 HP
110+ MPH
8.6 second 0-60

283 Twin Carb V8
270 HP
120+ MPH
7.7 second 0-60 3 speed manual
6.0 second 0-60 4 speed

283 Hot Rod v8
390 HP
??? MPH
??? second 0-60 4 speed close ratio manual




The 55-57 Chevy is a universal icon of American hot rodding, street racing and custom car culture. The car marked a significant shift in automotive styling and was the first sales-successful Chevrolet produced with an optional V8 engine. The V8 developed for the 55 and up Chevy's would prove to be an immensely successful and long lasting design as many all original non rebuilt examples are still in good running condition to this day and are direct ancestors to the current generation of GM V8 engines with many core similarities.
For 1957 the optional V8's were a 265 cubic inch (4.3 liter) OHV engine equipped with a two barrel carburetor producing a modest 162 HP and four different optional 283 cubic inch (4.6 liter) OHV engines. The 283's were simply 265 blocks bored out to increase engine displacement and equipped with dual exhaust and successively better camshafts and intake manifolds. The optional 283 equipped with a single two barrel carburetor produced a fair 185 HP, the optional 283 equipped with a single Carter four barrel carburetor produced a respectable 220 HP, the optional 283 V8 equipped with two Carter four barrel carburetors and Duntov solid lift camshaft produced an impressive 270 HP and when equipped with a manual transmission provided some of the best performance available at the time partially thanks to the fact that the 55-57 Chevy weighs much less than it appears to, coming in it a mere 3400 pounds(1542 Kilograms). The last and most expensive optional 283 V8 produced 283 HP marking the first time a GM engine would produce exactly one HP per cubic inch and was identical to the Corvette 283. The Corvette 283 was equipped with a then state of the art fuel injection system and the same solid lift Duntov camshaft from the twin carb 283. Unfortunately very very few buyers opted for this engine as it added a whopping $500 to the price tag amounting to a fourth the cost of the $2000 car. In addition to a higher price tag the higher maintenance costs and trivial 13 HP gain of the new fuel injection technology dissuaded many potential buyers making the twin carb 283 the "go to" option for people wanting a brand new car with the power and sound of a well built American hot rod.
Often referred to as the "Power Pack" the dual exhaust V8 equipped Chevy's had one of the most unique and aggressive sounds of any stock vehicle of the time period and many auto enthusiasts could tell a 55-57 Chevy "Power Pack" was approaching long before it came into sight.
Another uncommon mechanical option was the addition of an overdrive gear available for the 3 speed manual effectively turning the three speed into a four speed which obviously offered an improvement in top speed as well as fuel economy. 57s equipped with the overdrive option were also outfitted with a 4.11 final drive ratio as opposed to the standard 3.55 offering a significant improvement in acceleration as well as top speed.
Needless to say a twin carb or fuel injected 283 Power Pack equipped with an optional overdrive was one of the most powerful cars available in the 1950's giving 57 Chevy owners acceleration and speed comparable to and often better than most small sports cars of the era without having to sacrifice the comfort, convenience and style of large American cars.
As for handling one might be surprised at how well this car corners for it's age and models equipped with power brakes were capable of stopping fairly well provided the owner kept good tires on the vehicle. The 55-57 Chevy's exceptional handling capabilities made it a formidable opponent in both dirt track and paved oval racing, in fact much like the Plymouth Superbird and Dodge Daytona of the early 70's the 57 with its fuel injected 283 (referred to as the "Black Widow") was the first car to be outlawed by NASCAR as it was virtually unbeatable at the time.
An unfortunate downside of the cars success in motor sport is the fact that many 55-57's were stripped down into bare bones race cars and essentially used up. Another contributing factor to the cars rarity was it's resistance to damage making it a highly successful and desirable demolition derby car. Ironically the same features that promoted good handling were the same features that made it a good derby car, these features were an exceptionally strong body, very strong frame rails and a recessed engine and radiator. These features help keep the car from flexing too much and keep the weight better distributed and closer to the center of the car. When being designed the engine and radiator were set as far back as feasibly possible, thus the front of the engine is roughly even with the center of the front wheels and the radiator is roughly a foot behind the actual grille. The recessed engine and radiator obviously kept unnecessary weight off of the front wheels as well as providing a large amount of crush room between the front of the car and any vital components.




Inverse power by IKT is a "must have" mod if you are sick of the game letting off the gas for you in the middle of a slide.: https://www.gta5-hub.com/scripts/inversepower

My realistic surface traction overhaul mod is another must have for a more challenging and realistic driving experience on all terrain types: https://www.gta5-hub.com/misc/realistic-road-grip-and-braking