Up for sale is a rusty, non-running, blue 1965 Chevrolet Impala SS that has potential and can be your next project car. The Buy-It-Now price is $3,950 and you also have the ability to make an offer. This project is currently located in Columbus, Mississippi. It has no VIN listed to verify the authenticity of it being a true SS. There are no miles listed, but the title is claimed to be clear. You can view more on eBay.
Part of the reason this car is a non-running car is that it has no engine or transmission. You can see in the engine bay that the body is not too bad, but the frame is going to need to be repaired or replaced. They also note that the floors and trunk pans need to be replaced. While the eBay listing says the car is located in Naperville, Illinois, the sellers mention in the listing that car is in Mississippi.
According to the listing, the interior is all original but that doesn’t seem to add up because there are a few aftermarket gauges on the car. It is also missing a radio. The interior itself is in quite rough condition, but a deep clean might help it out. Based on the floor console, the car has an automatic transmission. That might be a less appealing attribute about an SS, but it could be converted.
Thankfully there are some photos of the rust spots. While there might be plenty more rust the photos do showcase enough to know it needs help. The interior photos are also helpful even if they are not the best. If you look at all the things that are lacking about this car, the price does start to look a lot more reasonable, especially if you can make an offer. It could be an awesome car to the right person.
Hard pass. Lots of rust and previous rust repair. Picture numbers 11 and 20 are enough to disqualify this car from consideration. Better to wait for something better and more complete.
Steve R
automatic with air conditioning. wow! The body looks solid. Dubious that it is an true SS at that price.
It is a real SS. Pictures of both the VIN and trim tag are in the ad, 16637 proves it’s a V8 SS coupe.
Steve R
That’s correct Steve.Kudos to seller for actually providing a pic of the cowl tag, I’ve always wondered why so many don’t as the tag can be so vital for decoding a vehicle’s identity.
Further details :
11A= built 1st week of November(in ’64 of course)
JAN= Janesville, WI
815=black bucket seats
W= Glacier Gray
6= Black vinyl top
E=Tinted glass
2KMPSR=AC,PowerGlide,convenience group A,rear antenna,rear speaker
3C= padded dash
It should be noted that though interior is said to be original the seat upholstery is not correct for a 65 SS
I would say, if it lived anywhere in the Midwest, a magnet is going to fall off the body real quick like.
At this stage the added tachometer on the steering column is an after thought, missing radio is minor compared to what could be missing. Great body style here along with what would have been a sharp interior. I’m thinking it was a 327 car? Definitely no 409 or big block.
Shaffiroff 598 Big Block Chevy Twisted SR20 Pump Gas Engine and do the chassis .
Not true, the 65 had 409 and the first series of 396
Looks like it also had a vinyl top at one time also (note the trim around the top), don’t think that trim was present unless it had vinyl.
No drivetrain, plenty of rust and a very optimistic price to boot. Unless you really want this car, IMO you can do better.
Chevy sold hundreds of thousands of 65 Impaled. Keep looking. Parts car and not much left. Had factory air. Big deal.
That big hole cut into the driver’s side door jamb is a bit disconcerting. access hole to push out body damage in the cowl area at one time? Add in a vinyl top for more potential rust areas… questionable car. It was a factory PS/PB, AC car, floor shift, console, rear antenna and gauge car from what I see. Pretty nicely equipped when new, likely a 283 car. 327 and up had the engine CID above the crossed flag fender emblems from what I remember.
Must be price error ?
Meant $395.00 ?
I’ve cut to much rotten metal out of too many rotten cars in my 65 years..
So…
I’m thinking that I’d rather have the ‘66 GMC V6 in the background.
It’s apparently a street worthy runner..
By 1965 the SS option was a V8 only option, correct?
Would it have to have been a big block?
I doubt it was a big block. Fender emblems look to be the 283, no displacement indicators above the flags. Big blocks had the deep V emblems on them from what I remember. More than a couple of my friends changed emblems to make it look like a car had more engine than it actually had.
It is a general misconception that SS Impalas were V8 only. Take look at the cowl tag 2nd line; 16637 indicates this example was indeed a V8 when new. However, the 230 I-6 would actually be the base engine for any Chevy fullsize in 65 even the SS. If optioned with an I-6 it would state 16537 on the tag.
Sadly there’s no way to decode whether a car came with a BB with the info from VIN or cowl tag; only V8 or I-6
283 emblems said only v8 327 &396 had crossed flags with displacment above
Good project car if you can do your own bodywork!! It is a frame car not unibody so it holds its shape better when still attached to the frame when you remove the panels!! Or you could put it on a rotisserie and really go all out!!
Finally someone is being positive here!
I think we’ve become too accustomed to believe that rust-free Cali cars are the only candidates worthy a resto – in a couple decades there will not be many dry Cali cars left to pick. That means anyone looking for a 65 Impala SS in the future will have to make do with a lesser starting point than what we have access to today.
At the right (much lower) price and in the hands of a skilled DIY this ‘pala has potential.
I live in California, 1960’s and early-70’s cars are still common. If someone’s goal is to find and buy a decent project at a reasonable price and isn’t fixated on a specific year, make or model they should be able to find something without too much effort.
This car has too much rust to make a worthwhile project, especially with that asking price. Spending a few thousand dollars more for a better car will pay off exponentially with time and money later on. Just because this specific car still exists doesn’t mean it’s worth saving.
Steve R
My neighbor 2 doors down had this car in green with white vinyl interior and a 4-speed. It was the 327. The valve seals were shot so it blew blue smoke badly out both dual exhaust pipes. He didn’t care because he always had a carload of kids riding around at 15 mph smoking pot non-stop. Only needed some engine work to be a real nice car. This was at the same time I was driving my 65 GTO convertible, winning drag races on street and strip…oh the good ol days.