The 1959 Kingswood wore "cat's eye" tail lights found on no other Chevrolet — a one-year-only styling touch replaced the very next model year.
Median 205 hp across 9 similar cars
Lead trim: Kingswood 235 Blue Flame six · up to 335 hp
Chevrolet KingswoodKINGSWOOD-1959 · 1959–1960
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Nobody in Burbles has spotted a Chevrolet Kingswood yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactThe 1959 Kingswood wore "cat's eye" tail lights found on no other Chevrolet — a one-year-only styling touch replaced the very next model year.
The Chevrolet Kingswood was a 4-door station wagon built by Chevrolet in 1959 and 1960 (and again from 1969 to 1972) on the GM B body platform. It was deliberately made unique: headlights placed as low as the law would allow, cat's-eye tail lights unique to this model and flat, wing-shaped tailfins identifiable from a distance. The car was built on a 119 in wheelbase and was 210 in long, 11 in longer than the 1957 model and so the longest car in the low-priced range, 3 in wider outside with 5 in more width inside through thinner doors, on the GM X frame with no side rails. It was a mid-range full-size 4-door, 9-passenger-only wagon with a rear-facing third-row jump seat as standard, positioned between the 6-passenger Parkwood and the Nomad (now Impala-based). Speed options such as fuel injection, special cams and better compression gave ratings up to 315 hp; for 1960 fuel injection was no longer available, but the 348 cu in engine reached 335 hp at 5800 rpm with three double-barrel carburettors, a special cam and an 11.25:1 compression ratio, all sold as a package. GM discontinued the Kingswood name after two years and offered a third-row nine-passenger option on the Brookwood for 1961. The page gives the 283 as 195 to 290 bhp and the 348 as 250 to 350 bhp, ranges with no single rating, so those are left blank.
Collectors Spotted in the Chevrolet Kingswood Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Chevrolet Kingswood yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
4 published trims in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kingswood 235 Blue Flame six | 1959–1960 | 3.9 L Inline-6 | 135 hp | 217 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| Kingswood 283 Turbo Fire V8 | 1959–1960 | 4.6 L V8 | 185 hp | 270 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| Kingswood 348 V8 three two-barrels (1960; 335 hp) | 1960–1960 | 5.7 L V8 | 335 hp | 362 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| Kingswood 348 W-series Turbo Thrust V8 | 1959–1960 | 5.7 L V8 | 250 hp | 355 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs
Chevrolet's flagship family wagon borrowed a sports-car trick: the 1969 Kingswood Estate could be had with hidden, flip-up headlights, just like the Caprice it was built on.
The 1959 Kingswood wore "cat's eye" tail lights found on no other Chevrolet — a one-year-only styling touch replaced the very next model year.
Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.
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A wagon beat the SUVs at their own game: this Outback generation won Motor Trend's Sport/Utility of the Year award for 2010.