We don’t often come across a car from one of the Big Three that leaves us intrigued and curious, well except for the occasional prototype that is. When we came across this 1965 Acadian Beaumont here on eBay, we were left wanting to know more about this Canadian GM. Looking at it you quickly recognize that it is based on the Chevelle, but it is different enough to pique our interest. It looks as if a Chevelle and a GTO ran off to Canada together and this is the resulting offspring. Typically a run of the mill rebadged version of a relatively common car wouldn’t interest us much more than the car it is based on, but this one is a Sport Deluxe model that was optioned with the L79 V8. There was only a handful built in ’65 with this 327 option and only 6 are still left.

The muscle car craze wasn’t popular just in the US, but was also popular with our neighbors to the north. For the most part, they received the same cars that we did, but there were a few missing from their lineup and a few of theirs that we didn’t get. To fill the compact model gap in the Buick-Pontiac lineup, GM of Canada created the Acadian brand. Initially, they were based on the Nova, but in ’64 they started being built on the Chevelle platform. To distinguish them from the American Chevelle, they received a different grill (which has a Pontiac look to it) and slightly different trim.

What really makes this car special is the motor. Muscle cars were just starting to become popular, so prior to 1966 the Beaumont wasn’t offered with GM’s full range of high performance V8s. The most common V8 found in the Acadian prior to ’66 was the 283. For ’65, they offered the Beaumont Sport Deluxe with the 350 horsepower 327 V8, but only around 20 were ordered with it. All that power is routed through a 4-speed manual and a 10 bolt Posi-Traction rear end.

Keeping with the Sport Deluxe badges and the performance of the L79, the interior needed to be sporting as well. To keep you well planted, diagonal stitched bucket seats were installed up front with Pontiac LeMans instruments placed in front of the driver. This car was previously restored and looks to have done to a decent level throughout, especially the interior. We don’t normally feature restored cars, but this one looks to be in nice shape and is rare enough to justify a closer look.

We are sure this Beaumont would be a blast to drive and the slight variation would leave many American muscle car guys scratching their heads wondering, “What happened to that Chevelle?” We aren’t sure if the L79 option, different grill, tail lights, and trim work are worth the $65k premium, but then again in the muscle car world it’s all about options and relative rarity. Would you spend the extra to own one of the six remaining 1965 Beaumont L79s or would you save yourself some money and just buy a V8 powered Chevelle?