Spotted: a 1956 Chevrolet 3100 Panel Van
The spotted specimen
On the A12 near Reeuwijk we saw this very nice (almost) original 1956 Chevrolet 3100 Panel Van, which has been in the Netherlands since 2021. Even on license plates it is still an “ordinary” van. A nice change from the pickups and Suburbans, because vans usually don’t make it to vintage age. Never mind that they remain an ordinary van and are not converted into a camper or something similar.
Although this example has remained beautifully original on the outside and still looks as it might have driven around in the past, the technology has been updated. According to the RDW, the Chevy is now powered by a 220 kW (299 hp) 6.0-liter V8. Originally, this Chevrolet was only available with “at most” a 116 kW (158 hp) strong 4.6-liter V8.
Chevrolet’s first vans
Chevrolet and its related GMC have been making vans for decades. Yet they have “only” been making models developed as vans since the 1960s. Before then, vans were based on pickups. The first Chevrolet Panel Van in this form was introduced even before model year 1935, based on the Suburban. A model line that still exists today. As such, you could think of the then Suburban as one of the first SUVs. Or an early crossover, because it also had something of a tall station wagon. The Chevrolet passenger cars back then were also based on the same platform.
Evolution of the Chevrolet Panel Van
In the later model generations, the pickups and the derivative Suburban and Panel Van became completely separate from the passenger cars, forming a trinity in their own right. The pickup as a pickup, the Suburban as a practical passenger car variant and the Panel Van as a van.
Fourth-generation Chevrolet Panel Van
The specimen we spotted is a fourth-generation Chevrolet Panel Van, which entered the market for the 1955 model year. The pickup line was almost completely redesigned and so were the derivative Suburban and Panel Van. In addition to the much more modern design, the cars were also given a somewhat lower build, though of course it remains a taller model than a regular passenger car.
Engine offerings included a 3.9-liter six-in-line and a 4.3-liter V8. Later, the capacity of the latter was increased to 4.6 liters, which also provided some extra power. As usual, drive went to the rear wheels, but starting in 1957 there were also all-wheel-drive models. For the transmission, there was a choice of a three- or four-speed manual and a four-speed automatic.
Follow-up for the Panel Van
The model spotted remained in production, with mainly some cosmetic model-year changes, through model year 1959. As late as model year 1970 (now the sixth model generation), the Suburban was also available as a Panel Van. That year, the all-new third-generation Chevrolet G-Series Van appeared, which had been developed from the beginning as a van. In addition, the new G-Series Van was much larger than its predecessor, making the Suburban-based Panel Van obsolete.
