Hello all. Well, this car is not exactly in a barn, but in a carport. Seems the last time it drove was about 24 years ago. There is a light bit of surface rust on the car, but as of yet, nothing really bad (that I can see). The car is locked, but the interior looks very good...excellent in fact.... including the steering wheel. There is one insignificant gauge missing. Due to dirty windows, I could not see the odometer. I was able to open the hood to see that it has at least a V8. No, it's not a Super Sport model. I do not know where the air cleaner is, put its probably in the trunk...it too is locked. But the car looks very straight and very original. It even had a half-full triangular bottle of wiper fluid still in its bracket. Looks like there may have been a problem in getting the car started, and someone just gave up on it. I've made a modest offer on the car just to save it from the crusher, but I don't need another car project. I don't know if I'll end up with the car, but if I do, I'll give her a good cleaning and store her in a dry place until I decide to flip it. Depending on the condition of the engine, I may try to get it started. But again, I'm not interested in sinking a bunch of money into it. The car is near the Austin area. Photos are here (I added a photo of a show car just to show what it could look like) http://s322.photobucket.com/albums/nn411/pmcload/1962 Impala/?albumview=grid You can click on the word "slideshow" in the upper right to see full-size photos.
Being a fordor, I doubt it would ever be be worth big bucks. I didn't know until seeing this that they made Impala sedans...I thought they were all hardtops.
I'm under no illusion that it will ever be worth big bucks...just a nice project for someone. But certainly worth saving from the crusher.
my dream car...i love the 4-doors, the body flows so much nicer than the 2-doors IMO 62-63-64...the biscaynes of those years were also very nice.
Hell, in '61, the SS option was available on any body style. Impalas were available as two and four-doors forever.
Yeah! That's Corona Cream, one of the nicest colors that were available that year. In the Seventies, my father had an original Corona Cream '62 Impala 2-door with a 409/409 dual quad motor. He's had about a dozen '09 cars but has always said that one was by far the fastest. One of the few that I don't have a picture of. Anway, it'd be great if you can buy this thing. As I've gotten older, 4 doors really don't bother me as much. They're still fun to drive and heck, the extra doors are behind you, out of sight!
Learn something new every day, I never knew that. Probably cause Ive never seen a four door Impala SS. Who would have thunk it.
The "SS" -package became available first in ´61, only available in an Impala, that is...However, Impalas were not available in any body style, most notably there was never a 2-dr post Impala to be had, not until the ´70s that is, if You wanna call the "glass house" and "Landau Coupes" "posts"...And Yes, contrary to what lots of people think, Impalas were in fact available as 4dr posts anytime after the introductory year of 1958, that is. I´ve just never heard of an "SS" package in a 4-dr body, until 1994, of course. The 409 package was an option completely separate from the "SS" -package, however, available in any full/std-size Chevy starting in ´61. In ´62, they even put the dual-quad 409hp 409 in base-level Biscayne and Bel Air Sedans (2-and 4dr post that is) for Highway Patrol interceptor purposes.
Any old car in that condition is well worth saving and it looks like this is a good one to keep. I dont really like the 4 doors but its great for a family car to cruise around in on a Saturday night.
In 1961, the SS was a trim option ONLY, and not necessarily an indication of performance. There are at least two '61 SS wagons and two SS four-door sedans built that are real cars. In 1962, as noted in the link above, it was applicable only to the two-door hardtop and convertible bodies, but still, you could get any available engine. No link "proof", just personal knowledge I've had in my GM/Chrysler brain for over 35 years. The Impala, as you can plainly see, was available in nearly every body style (no two-door post cars) over the years, including the lowly four-door sedan.
ss was not an option until 62.i owned one of the first ss bucket seat 327 impala's that was ever sold in shawnee okla,it was white with blue buckets.no console was offered.automatic glide on the column was all that was offered besides the 3 spd standard. i'm talking production run sold to public. and i've had a chevy brain for nearly 60 years.
there were 453 trim kits offered in mid 61 for a price of 58 bucks.there were no production ss cars..trust me...
Chevy built 491,000 Impalas for '61. Only 453 had the SS package and of those, just 142 got the 409. But word spread quickly. Here was a mainstream Chevy V-8 with 409 lb-ft of torque and the ability to turn mid-15-second quarter miles with the standard 3.36:1 rear axle and mandatory four-speed manual. "She's real fine, my 409," sang the Beach Boys, and a legend was born. Where is your info that the SS was a "dealer-installed" package? How could there be production numbers on something that was dealer-installed?
never said dealer pat...but i did say i was alive and well when this happened as was many others that will tell ya 453 cars does not make a production run. now the real production run started for the year 1962.....i remember them hitting jorski chevrolet and norton chevrolet...with skinny whitewalls....was you even alive then???
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