- Seller: David B (Contact)
- Location: Killingworth, Connecticut
- Mileage: 68,000 Shown
- Chassis #: 136379B389297
- Title Status: Clean
- Engine: 396 HPE L34 V8
- Transmission: TH350 Automatic
Bench seats and column shifters usually suggest sensible transportation, but this 1969 Chevrolet Chevelle combines both with big-block power, a 3.73-geared Positraction rear end, and an exhaust note that the seller describes as decidedly lopey. Restored and modified in 2020, it also has Vintage Air, four-wheel power disc brakes, and shouldn’t have any issues keeping up in modern traffic. This Frost Green Chevelle is located in Killingworth, Connecticut, and is offered here on Barn Finds Classifieds for $72,000. It has a clean title, and its odometer currently shows about 68,000 miles.
The current owner bought the car about two years ago from Blue Line Classics in Ohio. He was told that it had previously lived in North Carolina and retained its original sheet metal when it was restored. The body was stripped and refinished in its original Frost Green, the bumpers were rechromed, and a new black vinyl top was installed. American Racing Torq Thrust wheels and staggered Cooper Cobra radials, 215/70R15 in front and 275/65R15 at the rear, give it a muscular stance. The seller rates the exterior as excellent, noting only a couple of tiny paint drips along the lower edge of the driver’s door.
Chevrolet’s 1969 sales literature advertised 325- and 350-horsepower versions of the SS 396. The seller identifies this car as a genuine SS, but its original engine is no longer present. In its place is a big-block represented as a date-coded November 1969 396 with the L34’s 350-horsepower specification. Since the SS became an option package for 1969, the VIN is consistent with a V8 Malibu Sport Coupe built in Baltimore but does not independently establish SS status. A build sheet, Protect-O-Plate, original sales paperwork, or other factory documentation will be needed to verify its SS status.
The replacement engine wears an Edelbrock intake and carburetor, chrome valve covers and air cleaner, and a later HEI distributor. Power steering, a power-brake booster, an aluminum radiator, and the Vintage Air compressor share a very tidy engine compartment. The seller reports that the air conditioning blows cold, the heat works, and the engine starts easily. A strengthened TH350 automatic with a shift kit sends power to a 12-bolt Positraction rear end with 3.73 gears. The seller says it pulls hard and will chirp the tires on both the second- and third-gear shifts. A custom 2.5-inch exhaust with XLerator Turbo mufflers handles the soundtrack.
Drilled and slotted power disc brakes have been fitted at all four corners. Blue Line Classics reportedly represented the car as having the F41 suspension package, and the visible upgrades include front and rear sway bars and boxed Southside Performance rear control arms. The underside was reportedly sandblasted and refinished during the restoration. Overall, it looks clean in the supplied photos, though the close-ups show light surface oxidation on some frame and body-mount hardware.
Inside, green vinyl upholstery covers the bench seats, and the restoration included matching door panels. The column shifter and tilt steering wheel leave room for three across, while the U14-style instrument group provides a tachometer, speedometer, clock, and auxiliary gauges. The seller reports that the gauges and electrical equipment operate properly. A retro-look radio adds an auxiliary input without appearing too modern, and both the trunk and full-size spare are neatly carpeted. The disclosed flaws are a separated seam in the rear portion of the headliner and a few small chips on the glovebox door.
This is not presented as an untouched survivor or a numbers-matching restoration. Instead, it is a polished, thoughtfully upgraded Chevelle that appears ready for summer cruising and local shows, with the visual appeal of a 1969 SS 396 and a drivetrain built to be enjoyed. Documentation will matter at this price, especially for the SS package, the engine’s identity, and the restoration work. Would you preserve its current street-friendly formula, or would you change anything before putting this big-block Chevelle into regular rotation?
How did you get a TH400 transmission pan fastened to the TH350 transmission?
I noticed that right away in the pictures and always thought a real big block car had a 400 trans. Still a nice Chevelle here. To bad it has A/C added to it.
I was going to ask, why would anyone replace a TH400 behind a BBC with a TH350. Good news is, seller does not know better. Bad news is, seller does not know better.
I like the car but not sure about all the modifications. Do they help or hurt the value?
Very nice car. But $72k? Maybe if it was numbers matching original. But I have always thought Chevrolets were over priced. GLWS
I wonder how much he paid for the car, 2 years ago,v when he bought the car from Blue Line Classics, in Ohio?
Probably somewhere really close to 72K.
That’s what I’m thinking. It’s gonna be hard to get that money back.
It IS a very nice car, but I agree with Terry. This is my era and there were certain options that were considered mandatory to up the cool factor. The TorqThrusts with the staggered fitment are perfect as is the paint color (not my favorite, but period correct). But if you’re going to the expense of all the upgrades why not put in bucket seats and a console?
Then we get to the black vinyl top. GM stylists did a great job with the A-bodies from 1964 through 1967 with a coherent beltline and 3-box architecture. Then they did a masterful job with blending and smoothing the C-pillars in 1968 and ’69 but the designs were NOT intended for BVTs. The clumsy additions of them catastrophically ruined stylistic masterpieces. The worst offenders were the Olds Cutlasses but all the A-bodies suffered.
Enough vitriol from a grumpy old man. This is still a very nice car. A bit overpriced, but those upgrades didn’t come cheap. It demands to be driven and enjoyed looking through the windshield and hitting the loud pedal.
Nice car and well-presented. I especially like seeing the engine running the stock exhaust system instead of headers, which heat the bay up well past nuclear meltdown.
I question a TH350 transmission behind a BBC. A 350, yes, but a 396? Never saw one that didn’t run everything through a TH400.
I remember watching a BJ auction segment when they had a car similar to this. It rolled over the floor camera and revealed a TH350. I immediately questioned the “genuine” Super Sport. Of course it was also spoiled because it ran headers. But I remember one of the announcers commenting on the TH350. Another one mentioned that there were far more “NUMBERS-MATCHING” ’69 Chevelle SS 396’s out there than were ever built.
Too bad because the ’69 models were IMO the BEST Chevelles ever built…
The seller messed up while writing the description, it may say TH350, but the pan is for a TH400. When I worked in automotive owners misidentifying how their car was equipped was common, we’d have pictures of parts like TH350’s and TH400’s that we’d show to help identify what they had. It helped ensure the parts we sold them didn’t come back opened.
Steve R
Hi everyone,
sorry about the mis-ID on the TH. The data sheet the owner rec’d on the car from Blue Line listed it as a TH350 .. While I checked all the numbers on the engine (and I have all those photos, just not shown here) I did not check the trans. I’m not enough of a Chevy fan to know the difference between a TH350 pan and a TH400. That is my bad and I will change the description post haste.
The most glaring faux pas is the transmission being misidentified as a Turbo 350. I am no fan of a bench seat and column shifters and if the seller expects $72 large (which is a stretch), there should be docs to back this car up. Not one pic of the engine ID pad, casting numbers, or date codes for the drivetrain. At this price point, the car should be sorted out, (headliner, correct intake, correct distributor and fuel line). No one is going to drop that kind of bank, on a car that looks like it was owned by an 18 yo kid from 1982. Not every car that has “SS” plastered all over it, is worth a fortune.
I have over 400 photos available if you’d like to see them, please use the contact seller button above. You are all correct, as mentioned above, while I checked all the numbers on the engine and axle, I did not check the trans. I’m not enough of a Chevy fan to know the difference at a glance like many of you. Now, show me a Jaguar DOHC six and I can tell the differences across the XK and AJ engines that most here wouldn’t have a clue about .. wink, wink.
While most would be going the route of buckets and console shifter, the owner of this car is a bigger guy and the bench and column shift, along with the AC was a primary selling point. It gives bigger guys room to get in and out and the AC keeps them cool.
The ASKING price is $72,000. I sell a lot of cars, for a lot of people and the over all quality of this car puts in a range that most 18 years old today or in 1982 would only dream of. You are also correct in saying that it is a lot of bank and while you may not spend that kind of money, I’ve already rec’d several emails of interest in this car. While it probably won’t sell for $72,000, it won’t be far off from it.
Best of luck to you.
Another case of Chevelle derangement syndrome….$72k.
Never heard of BB equiped with th 350, that’s why the photo shows a th 400!
Bad signs
Nice SS!! Lots of coin though as mentioned!!
I should have bought one back when they were affordable. The ’69 SS 396 has been my “Dream Machine” for years.
Most of us can say that about way too many cars from “back in our day”. The ones we had and sold, the ones we let get away…
Tsk tsk tsk…purists eat your heart out. I like 4 speeds as much as anybody, but having owned two L78 Chevelles with bench seats and an SS Nova with one, I still kinda like them! And if you have an automatic it might as well be column. That said, I agree this car is a bit optimistic on the price. Oh, and I don’t mind vinyl tops either as long as they’re in good shape and not bubbled up underneath. Jmo
I had one just like this in 72-76, only it was the L78, 4:11s and M 22 four speed. To my knowledge, the SS was available only with the TH400. $72000 is high for the L34.
Some of you may know my moniker on here. I assist folks in selling their cars.
I’m representing this one for the owner.
My BIG mistake was checking all the numbers on the engine and diff and not confirming the trans .. hits head on brick wall.. DOH!
The fact of the matter is that you will be hard pressed to find one in similar condition. This car is not represented as original, it is sort of a resto-mod .. it looks stock but all the mods, in my opinion, make this car a much better driver, more comfortable .. and the work done makes this car look awesome.
I’m generally not a fan of the light green, especially with a matching interior .. and the same goes for vinyl tops .. BUT .. I think this car pulls all those together, along with the Torque Thrust wheels and looks really cool. The lines of the quarters, the black stripe, the black top .. I’m also not a big fan of Chevelles, but I like this combo and the time I got to spend driving this car and around it, I truly appreciate the work and what Chevy put together all those almost 60 years ago. It was a blast driving it, it actually handled (well, at least in muscle car terms) didn’t roll and wallow through corners and punch that gas and it responded just like you’d want it to, like you’d expect it to.
Any questions, please feel free to ask and if you’d like to see the 3 videos (cold start, idling walk around and driving) and the 400+ photos, please contact me via the button up above.
Thanks!
I really like this car, and the Frost Green looks great to my eye. I bet it handles well with the suspension upgrades, but I do wonder why the headliner wasn’t repaired and what they’re looking to get in their “Make offer”.
nice Chevelle. that frame section under the motor was hammered so bad they welded a plate on that section. makes me question the condition of the frame.
Considering how the oil pan looks I’d say you were right. I’d like to look under that plate.
THIS is what my ’69 SS looked like on the outside at least, prior to black stripes being painted on the hood and trunk lid. Still love the color! Funny, my recollection from 50 years ago is that the vinyl top was actually very dark green, not black.
The interior leaves me a bit cold, though. The color of the seats and door panel material seems off, although that may be a photography issue? But the real disappointments are the front seat and transmission lever. My car had the buckets, and the floor console with the horseshoe shifter. I wouldn’t have it any other way, if I wanted to invest in another SS Chevelle.
Another difference is the engine, mine being the 325 version. That car launched from a standstill like no other when I had it, checking out 2-3 car lengths immediately while the car in the other lane was still hunting for traction. There was a shift kit in the TH400, crisp!
To this day, it remains The One That got Away.
72K? Uh, no.
I have submitted a find for a rare SS that is part of an estate sale nearby my home in Michigan. The BF guys should be all over it! A real LS6 car with the broadcast sheet! Tons of related stuff, as the owner drag raced it for a while. I’d have kept it quiet if I could afford to acquire and restore such a car, lol.
I had one as well, the top was green.