The owner of this 1979 Chevrolet Impala describes the vehicle as “all factory.” That means that it is exactly as it rolled out of the showroom. No modifications, no aftermarket additions. He is also a man of very few words, so we need to spend some time looking closely at the photos to understand and appreciate this Impala. It is located in Lewes, Delaware, and has been listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding now stands at $7,600, but the reserve hasn’t been met.
When I said that the owner was a man of few words, this was not an exaggeration. When the entire listing description runs to a total of six words, you aren’t going to be flooded with information. Making matters more difficult is the fact that some of the photos are pretty poor. Still, we can struggle on. The Impala is finished in Midnight Black, and it does present well. The panels appear to be straight, with no signs of ripples or problems. There are a couple of spots where there are potentially some small blemishes in the paint. However, these could just as easily be imperfections in the photos. I can’t spot any visible rust or any signs of prior repair work. The exterior trim seems to be in excellent condition, and the glass looks to be spotless. One of the coolest styling features on the Impala Coupe is the rear window. The way the company chose to bend it around the rear of the car was an inspired move. Without this feature, the Coupe’s styling had the potential to be quite bland. This feature gave the car a visual lift.
The Impala’s interior gets a whole two words to describe it, and one of those is “immaculate.” Black-on-black cars will always be a bit of a winner, and this one is no exception. It is hard to see specific details, but there are no signs of any issues with the upholstery, while the dash and pad appear perfect. The carpet looks to be in good condition, and the fitting of rubber mats will have helped its cause. With all of that black paint and trim, the decision to equip the Impala with air conditioning would be a welcome one. The car isn’t loaded with much else. There is an AM/FM radio, along with a remote driver’s mirror.
From the time that the first impala appeared, Chevrolet had managed to shoehorn some pretty respectable lumps of cast iron under the hood. However, the V8 under the 1979 Impala’s hood was never bound to get your heart racing. It needs to be remembered that this was the height of The Malaise Era, so American V8s were taking quite a hit. In this case, what we find is a 305ci V8 that would produce 130hp. This finds its way to the rear wheels via a 3-speed automatic transmission. The Impala’s saving grace was that at 3,728lbs, it wasn’t the heaviest car on the block. However, a ¼ mile ET of 19.5 seconds still rates as pretty sad. This is another of those cases of a car copping the double whammy. Sluggish performance is acceptable if there is a trade-off with excellent fuel economy. However, an average consumption figure of 14.4 mpg isn’t that flash. Once again, we are short of specific information on this car. The description indicates an odometer reading of 28,000 miles. However, it isn’t clear whether this is original or whether it has rolled over. The owner also provides no information on how the Chevy runs or drives. I wouldn’t describe the engine bay as being immaculate, but its presentation is acceptable for an original survivor of this age.
I wish we had some more information about this 1979 Impala Coupe. I would love to know whether the odometer reading is genuine. I would love to know how it runs and drives. I’d happily settle on some clearer photos. There must be some people who like what they see. After all, there have been ten bids submitted up to this point. Will you be submitting the 11th?
5.3 LS swap with a ProCharger supercharger, 700r4 transmission and a 94-96 Caprice 9C1 rear end will wake up this car’s performance AND fuel economy
this just an impala , not worth more then the asking price , of this was a caprice ? it would be a different thing!!
price?
$5600
Car has been for sale for years. Didn’t even update the pics.
Didn’t see many of these when new. Most “bent glass” coupes were in Caprice trim. Friend of the family had one this year and it was loaded. Black with red interior, and those ” sport” wheelcovers instead of the wire caps. It did change the look, less stodgy. Had a factory CB, also. The guy smoked Pall Malls. Only guy I knew who smoked that brand…
Anyway, some 15×7 rallys with the whitewalls turned in is a quick and inexpensive way to “sport” it up. Guess you could always find a set of those wheel covers.
Sooooo…. reserve umnet on this at $7600, while the reserve on the stunning ’71 Eldorado convertible below is met at the same price. Someone wants to sell, someone doesn’t.
If it weren’t for the appearance of a few late model cars popping up in the background of a couple of the photos I would have guessed these photos were from 1995.
Makes me laugh when they do that occasionally.
Funny you should said that, as the pic is from around 2010 when this car was for sale. I remember it since I had never seen a triple black coupe ever. Note the plate is Virginia, which is where it was for sale then, but car is for sale now in Delaware.
My father and eventually I owned a similar 1979 Caprice with a 350 and no emission controls other than a EGR, PVC valve and catalytic converter. the one odd thing was it had a 3 cluster gage package. Speedo, fuel and economy vacuum gage. Cool car, wasn’t particularly quick but towed our travel trailer without issue.
I bet they would have sold more 2 doors if the car had frameless side windows.
Love these. Sure beats all the AMC Pacer look alike cars made today.
Just a matter of taste. Pacer look alike or Velveeta cheese box.
Add a real engine and donate those bumpers to be hammered out and made into an Airstream . . .
Barn Finders are sharp folks. Someone needs to talk to the Seller and find out what’s going on here. If you live in a warm climate don’t do this. Too much Black.
I inherited a 4 door version of this when I married my wife. She had bought it from a 94 year old woman when it was 5 years old. We drove the wheels off that thing. It had a 350 with air, power steering and brakes and an am radio. Was a great car! Sold it my niece and she finally scraped it years later with over 300,000 miles on it. Think of it fondly but wouldn’t own one again for anything. Had to rebuild the alternator every year!
130 hp that’s down right asthmatic, but I guess acceptable for a 40 mph town car but it appears to be immaculate condition
I had one just like this (well almost). Mine was a ’78 Impala, silver with black interior. Bought it ’91 from a body shop owner, for 1700.00 and this included a new paint job.He also removed the ugly vinyl top, which made the back window more noticable. Looked great with the 15″ rally wheels and white letter tires.The 305 was a slug, but the old R-12 a.c. would freeze us out even with the black int.
I had a 77 Caprice Triple red,350,rally’s white letter tires wish I still had ir
Love this generation Chevy, I had a 77 Caprice Coupe from 79 until 84, GREAT car, the 305 was silky smooth, only problem was a bum transmission that had to be replaced
Hello Folks… First time posting here. I bought a 78 Caprice Classic from a little old man for $200.00 cdn. 350,auto, 250 K km’s.Put another 350K km’s on her. The body and tranny went but that 350 was still going strong .A buddy pulled the engine and will use it one day. R. I. P. Old Bessie.
PS: synthetic changes, replaced the Q-Jet once ,regular maintenance.
The car sold for 8,200.00
I know this is an older chat, but I found it looking for an old Impala like I used to have. 1979, 2-dr sport coup Impala. My 1st car. I did a lot of work to it. 2-tone Black(top) and Silver. Sanded it down and painted all black. All red interior with custom charcoal felt material on rear deck, headliner and dash. Neon lit interior. Done right. 1988 Blazer bucket seats (swivel) and center council. Corvette Rallies(16 x 9.5) Lowered 2″ with all sport suspension and neoprene bushings…get rid of that body lean in turns and better handling since they were so big. Wish I still had it.