It’s a fair bet that many of us here at Barn Finds have at least one experience with a 1977-1979 Chevrolet. My aunt and uncle owned one, an orange ’77 Caprice Classic wagon with wood sides. A high school friend drove a ’77 Impala Sport Coupe with a 305, a pretty nice car for being over 15 years old at the time. Honestly, they were so inescapable that they never truly disappeared; I still see an Impala sedan in this color plying my local roads year-round, a little rustier every year but still going. Still, finding a decent one-owner original isn’t that easy these days, but Ted has brought us another Ohio gem from Marketplace. Priced at $7,000, it’s a solid alternative to a ten-year-old SUV with 250,000 miles on it, which is about what $7,000 gets you these days.
As is often the case with Marketplace ads, the pictures are…creative. This is about the best we can do when it comes to the engine, a 305 with a Dualjet carburetor and 130 horsepower. The Dualjet is an interesting example of the fuel mixing art; it’s fundamentally a Quadrajet without secondaries. I saw one in a junkyard when I was in high school, and even then I figured that GM was saving money somewhere by manufacturing a two barrel with the footprint of a four barrel. I have no experience working on a Dualjet, but the Quadrajet is a good carburetor if you get to know it, so I imagine that the Dualjet isn’t bad.
The seller says that the camshaft was replaced at 60,000 miles, which was sadly common on Chevy small blocks of the 1970s. Apparently it was a successful operation, because there are now 104,000 miles on the odometer. I don’t know if it’s true, but I’ve read that the dealer mechanics changed the oil and filter a time or two and sent them on their way after the cam swap. Any GM dealer technicians out there who can verify that?
The Impala wagon was available in six- or eight-passenger configurations; this one appears to seat six, and indeed the six-seater outsold the eight seater 39,644 to 28,710. The interior looks to be in decent original condition.
Except for the front bench seat. This is a good opportunity for you to check out the latest styles in bench seat covers online or at your local parts store. Blue was once a fairly common color, but the proliferation of black and gray interiors might make your task a little more difficult these days.
It’s always rewarding when a car from the rust belt rides out 46 years and lives to tell about it; clearly, this one has been well-maintained (by the same mechanic for 40 years, according to the ad) and garaged (which the ad also mentions). If you find yourself in Columbus sometime soon, it may be worth taking a look at this honest, original wagon. It might not be fair to subject it to the rigors of the Ohio salt after it’s survived this long in one piece, but it would be a fantastic three-season cruiser for all your trips to the park, or the home improvement store, or wherever the road leads you.
In the late ‘70’s the 305 was known for soft cams, although our ‘77 escaped that. I never heard that issue on 350’s then.
We bought a ’77 Caprice Wagon new and they said there was minor damage because one of the chains holding it down on the Convoy truck had scratched the paint so the hood needed repaint. Little did we know. A few months into ownership, a parking lot scrape scratched the rear door. The other party offered to pay for the repair out of pocket. As the shop began to feather the paint, it began to come off in sheets. They showed us what they were up against (you could peal it off with a fingernail). The entire right side was reprimed and painted. Insurance would not cover it and the dealer bailed entirely. I bought and drove Toyotas until 1994 when I bought a Cadillac that the beautiful White Diamond paint actually stuck.
Nice looking two seat long roof. Likely purchased by a more mature client. Wanted the utility but didn’t need all the seats or cubes. The next year a 305 would be the max displacement unless you wanted an oil burner.
I had 3 77 Impala wagons. Transmissions gave up @125,000 $425.00 to fix it. 350 V8’s. Great cars!!!!
its 2025 and GM still can’t make a camshaft that is durable. i had to have mine replaced in my 15 yukon. it was not cheap. GM only offered a few hundred towards the repairs. you would think they would have learned their lesson by now.nothing is made like it was.
I bought used a 79 caprice estate wagon. It was 1989 and it had 45K on it. Dk red with all options including dual power seats. It ran without issue until 1991 when I decided to get a pick up and traded it. I got more in trade value than I paid for it and the only thing was the paint was slightly faded. It was terribly uncool to drive though a few people people I dated refused to ride in it but it was a great car for the time.
I’m literally about to go look at this exact vehicle tomorrow. Kinda weird reading this article lol