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Classic Cruiser: 1972 Chevrolet Impala Convertible

Pile in five important riders and drive to the custard stand… “Butterscotch please!” This “excellent” running 1972 Chevrolet Impala convertible makes a great candidate for turn-key summer fun. The Henrico, Virginia classic can be yours with an acceptable high bid here on eBay, where at least five bidders have the market value above $23,000 without meeting the seller’s Reserve. The listing reports only good news on this small-block automatic drop-top, saying “everything works great,” including air conditioning, though hopefully a lowered top provides all the air conditioning you’ll need.

The butterscotch-looking paint may actually be Placer Gold Metallic, and looks great with the medium brown interior on this full-sized Chevy. Vinyl upholstery offers the best protection when your parked convertible drinks up a sudden afternoon rain shower, and it can also sear welts into your thighs after baking in the sun for hours.

Era-correct five-slot wheels add some sportiness and whitewall tires lend an appropriate touch of class. Careful opening those doors when other cars are around; they can get away from you and swing into the next zip code. Dual antennae extend Citizen’s Band (CB) radio reception forward and rearward, at the cost of diminished reception to the sides, but it’s normally done on cars for cosmetic reasons. In other words, it just looks cool!

The ubiquitous 350 cid (5.7L) “small-block” Chevrolet V8 powered countless rides of this generation, and should move the big Impala out just fine in normal driving. Anyone pining for a big-block will pay a premium at the gas pump.

Good looks carry on even with the top up. There’s just not much to complain about on this rig except for questions of taste. More generic color combinations may help resale value, and some buyers see that as all the more reason to be different. You can find a red car with a black interior from just about any decade, but this ride flies its ’70s flag high. Find a luscious wide-lapel leisure suit, a paisley shirt, and bell-bottom slacks and strut your stuff, you off-the-hook hipster. Is there room in your garage for this six-passenger drop-top?

Comments

  1. Avatar Mitchell Gildea Member

    It may be butterscotch in color, but I’d whip this Impala like cream

    Like 5
  2. Avatar Maggy

    Had a 73 same color I bought in 89 from a used car lot right down the street from our shop.The owners son couldn’t get lifters out of a SBC that was sludged up with a flat cam.I got them out with vise grips and wd40. I walked the lot afterwards and saw a 73 Caprice convertible with white vinyI interior no ac car and really no options. Dealer owner told me a couple came up from FL with the car and traded it in for something smaller and newer Had a 400 sbc in it with a typical blown head gasket due to siamese bores and poor maintenance.Paid 1100 for it and it was a clean solid car.I bought a 73 4door impala hardtop out of the trading times w/ a 350 that was a good runner for 200 .Yanked the 400 and put the 350 in and dual exhaust.Parted and Scrapped the 4 door. About 25 years later my wife called me and said there was a blue convertible in our driveway and an older gent wanted to talk to me.It was my old car that I sold to him and he painted it sky blue and said him and his wife loved it from day 1.The 400 sbc ended up in a oval dirt track car that I gave to a guy at a dealership I worked at several years later as
    I saved it in my garage and had no use for it but he did.

    Like 9
  3. Avatar Pete R.

    Now big Jim Walker definitely drove a drop top Cadillac, but you know old Willie McCoy would have happily drove this drop top Chevy up and down 42nd Street after he got all his money back from him. 😂

    Like 2
  4. Avatar Big Bear 🇺🇸

    What a beautiful convertible! I bet the reserve is between $25-30,000… How clean the engine compartment looks. I bet this rides like a dream. First time I seen resonator out back on this set up. Must be factory duel’s. Would love to drive this upstate to the Adirondack mountains. Good luck to the next owner.. 🐻🇺🇸

    Like 1
  5. Avatar william rowe

    Even though it’s not a red Caprice I think someone needs to pick up the Samoan and head for Vegas! Just be sure to open the trunk slowly and carefully or it might explode!

    Like 1
  6. Avatar TheOldRanger

    Very nice looking Impala, but I would choose a different color to fit the flair of this car….

    Like 1
  7. Avatar Scrapyard John

    I love it, even the 70’s color. My parents had a 1973 Caprice Classic hardtop in doodoo brown with a 454 that served as our family car way into the late 80’s or early 90’s. By the time I got my mitts on it, the AC no longer worked and it had that 70’s car musty smell, but it could do a one wheel burnout in the high school parking lot that would make the gearheads and rednecks grin and send cheerleaders running for cover from the tire smoke.

    These were great riding cars, though. A convertible would be a really fun cruiser. Hell, just having one with working AC would be a novelty.

    I can see a lot of people liking this car. Black folks and white folks alike. This car could unite America! I would vote for this car for president. Most cheerleaders probably still wouldn’t like it.

    Like 1
    • Avatar TheOldRanger

      I taught high school math from 1965-1973, and I was a single guy until 1968, but during my single years, all the girls were in love in my 65 Impala SS… mind you, I said they were in love with my car, not me. :-)

      Like 1
  8. Avatar Smokey Smokerson

    Nostalgia is real. This car and I are of the same vintage. When I was young, these were hideous to me. As i got to driving age, most of these were rusted out piles of junk already being used in the demo derby circuit. Now i look and think, what a nice looking car.

    Like 1
  9. Avatar Chris Cornetto

    Great cars, I grew up in a 71 custom coupe. In 1989 I bought a 72 convertible like this one here only in white with black interior. I bought it for 500.00. I have used this car as a summer beater for almost 35 years now. These cars were hated by the late 80s by many. Mine is also a base 350 car, the ac quit in the 90s and I never fixed it for even on hot days with the top up and glass down it is a pleasant (to me) ride. These cars are very reliable, a pleasure to drive and to me one of the cleanest convertible designs with the top down of any of that Era. Mine has the hard boot which I thought was Caddy only but over the years I was told it could have been bought over the counter? The one thing that I like better on mine than this copy is power windows. On a big cruiser that is a must for me. The power seat is also nice for smaller gals who could be lost in these cars cavernous interiors. The exhaust resonator was usually on the 400 small blocks and big blocks. Not a fan of the corvette type wheels. Mine wears those 10 pound apiece turbine caps along with rear fender skirts. The prices of these are shocking to me but the car featured here is a very nice copy, nicer than mine. I just hope it doesn’t end up purple with orange seats with 22s and TV cut into the dash and a trunk full of speakers but to each his own. Whoever buys this can do what they like.

    Like 2
    • Avatar Scrapyard John

      Agree on all points, Chris. I’ll admit, I wasn’t in love with these in the late 80’s/early 90’s myself. It’s funny how things that are just old enough to be “used” often aren’t that cool until they get much older. I suppose it’s the rarity factor and the nostalgia factor like Smokey said above.

      The fact that it’s a convertible helps the cool / fun factor immensely too. This thing looks like it would be great for cruising or even a longer road trip. I can’t imagine there are a ton of these left this nice that aren’t heavily customized or rusted out.

      Like 0
  10. Avatar Stephen R Macke

    Willy fell victim to the streets of Chicago

    Like 0

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