MyStarCollectorCar has retold the tales of Canadian-only vehicles many times over the years, but we are happy to revisit the topic for the sake of clarity on the matter.
A 1964 Acadian Beaumont Sport Deluxe is an excellent example of a car built for the Canadian market and is a conversation piece whenever its owner hits a show south of the border in the United States.
Jim Sutherland
1964 was a year before the North American Auto Pact agreement changed the game for the US-Canada automotive trade. Heavy cross-border trade tariffs existed prior to the 1965 Auto Pact agreement and virtually eliminated the sale of American cars in Canada-and vice versa.
For example, a Canadian customer could buy a new American car prior to the Auto Pact, but he or she would pay dearly for the privilege. Additionally, small Canadian towns usually only had one dealership to represent a specific manufacturer, so they built models that were virtually identical to other brands sold by the same car builder.
Consequently, the 1964 Acadian Beaumont closely resembles the ’64 Chevelle, an intentional choice by General Motors of Canada because the company could shave costs by using the Chevy platform for a Pontiac model, namely the Acadian.
The net result is a ’64 Acadian Beaumont is bound to create confusion in 2024, but Tom Fisker has gotten used to the attention because he has owned other Acadian models prior to his current one. He recalled one guy at a show in Kalispell, Montana who asked: “What in h___ is that?”, so Tom explained the Acadian brand history in Canada.
Tom is a certified mechanic who “loves the Acadians” and was willing to invest his time and money into ownership of his ’64 Beaumont Sport Deluxe convertible. His convertible is very rare because Canada is primarily a cold weather country and not many Canadian customers chose a drop top 60 years ago. He added: “Only 322 (Acadian Beaumont convertibles) were sold in 1964”.
Tom’s Acadian Beaumont was originally a 327 small block model but now it sports a bored-out 283 V-8 that he called a “302 clone”. The convertible also has a 4-speed manual transmission that can easily handle the beefed-up small block hiding under its free-breathing hood.
The net result is a very reliable car that Tom uses as much as possible during car show season. He has traveled from his home in east Central Alberta to distant car shows over the years and does not believe in trailering it to the events. “I didn’t build it to sit in a garage”, in Tom’s words.
As mentioned earlier, the car has performed admirably over the long hauls but, like every car guy, Tom has encountered the occasional setback, including a wonky starter he repaired while parked in Kalispell, Montana.
The 60-year-old Canuck convertible did not appear to have a sound system, so MyStarCollectorCar asked Tom if the car had one. He pointed to the Acadian Beaumont’s dual exhausts and said, “Just these”.
The car’s exhausts clearly provided the right music for Tom’s ears. It was an answer worthy of every dedicated car guy on the planet.
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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