The owner of this 1966 Chevelle SS 396 purchased the car from an estate and has decided to move it on rather than restore it himself. Their loss could be your gain, because this appears to be one very solid SS. Barn Finder Patrick S referred the Chevelle to us, so thank you for that Patrick. It is located in Irvington, Alabama, and is listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding has reached $11,600 at the time of writing, but the reserve hasn’t been met. Given the car’s desirability, I won’t be surprised if there is a bit more bidding to go yet.
As far as rust issues are concerned in the Chevelle, there is a hole in the leading edge of the hood on the passenger side. Otherwise, there is the expected coating of surface corrosion in a number of areas, and there might be a couple of spots appearing in the bottoms of the doors, but it is pretty hard to be sure. If that is it, then this appears to be a solid car, and this would explain the interest that has been shown in the car so far.
The owner is a bit stuck in one area with the Chevelle, and that surrounds the drive-train of the car. He has been able to establish that the 396 is date correct, but hasn’t been able to locate the VIN on the engine to confirm whether the car is numbers-matching. It’s the same story with the 4-speed manual transmission, while the Chevelle also features a 12-bolt rear end (same story here, as well). If it does turn out that this is a numbers-matching car, then that will be a huge bonus for the next owner. Having said that, the owner doesn’t tell us whether the engine actually turns freely, so that’s a question that I would definitely be asking.
The interior of the Chevelle appears to be missing a number of trim items, but none of these are items that are hard to source. The good news is that the dash is original and unmolested, while the dash pad looks to be free of cracks. The factory gauges are looking good, and while we can only get a glimpse of the edge of it, the owner assures us that the car is fitted with a “knee knocker” tach. There is a seam separation on the edge of the driver’s seat, and if that could be repaired, then the covers look like they would revive quite well with a good clean.
The owner of this 1966 Chevelle SS 396 goes to some trouble to inform us that this car is the real deal, and is not a clone. That puts this in company with some of the most sought after classics on the market today. The fact that it is a solid car is a bonus, and once it has been restored to its original Tropical Turquoise, it will turn heads wherever it goes.
“BMC,” Big Money Car. When I was young, these were everywhere and a few thousand dollars would get you one. In California, the leadership wants to take all this away (Gasoline). Makes me wonder where the market will go and should I be looking for a wrecked Tesla, so I could swap in the drivetrain to my next build. But for now, long live the 396. A gas sucking damn good time.
Vote! The Green New Deal is not destiny but it will be if people don’t get out and vote.
More like the Green Raw Deal to me! If you live in the PJM service area look at PJM.com and envision life with 90% less electricity.
Im sure you half joking but, Good luck with getting parts for a Tesla, once they are totaled Telsa takes the VIN out of the system and will not sell you any parts for that vehicle.
@ dirtyharry… I’m not sure “when you were young” but don’t forget to adjust for inflation. Let’s say for example it was 1976 and someone paid a few thousand dollars for one of these cars. I’m not sure what exact amount is “a few” but let’s say $3000. Adjusted for inflation that 3k in 1976 is a little over 13k by 2018 (I’m using 2018 because 2019 isn’t quite to the halfway point). I have to laugh a little when people talk about what they paid for stuff “back in the day” as if it was cheap but don’t bother to consider inflation. Here’s the link for anyone interested: https://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl
I know I’ve used the back in the day reference before but I can tell you my paycheck has not been adjusted for inflation. I made more actual dollars back in the day than I do now. As I grow older with less physical ability it’s difficult to not go backwards every year. Definitely my fault. I suppose I got left behind. 500 dollars for me is still a big deal.
Is that a 396 in the picture? Had about 3 of the monsters and my 66 and 67 SS never set up like that in the front, motor was too heavy. Looks like a small block to me and if so no way is the car worth what they are asking.
I am not a Chevy expert (in all actuality I not an expert at anything other than divorce, I seem to have that down in spades) but I wasn’t aware that anyone was VIN stamping blocks in ’66.
My 56 and 57 Canadian Pontiacs had engine S/N to VIN tag ienetity.
As a matter of fact my 57 Pontiac Laurentian 2 Dr HT (Sport Coupe) that I owned for 40+ years from originality to a show car in the mid 70’s appearing in ISCA world Of Wheels shows in Calgary Edmonton and Winnipeg, under went a major work over as a Resto-Mod and still enjoys the original 283 V8 with dual quads atop plus a few other nice upgrades.
Awesome job – – thank you Barry P.
Only the solid lifter Chevy’s had a VIN stamping on the engine, and the hydraulic lifter cars didn’t have any VIN stampings till 68. If the car is only a 325hp L35, the closet they will be able to come to determining if it’s the original engine or not is by the block suffix code stamped on the block pad, and the date codes corresponding with the build date on the cowl tag. Same goes with the rear end.
It appears from some google results, the 66-67 engines had partial vin numbers put on the stamping pad where the engine code is, when they were mated to the car they were going into.> https://www.cars-on-line.com/how-to-buy-a-car-online/identifying-a-chevelle-ss.html<,..I'm not an expert, I have had 64, 65, and a 67 Chevelles. 65 was the only SS model.
I’m not an expert but if I had one …hey srt8 look for a gal that loves cars as much as you do..
Um ya she probably already married to some guy with a SS and a nomad
“Their loss”..yeah, right. Big bucks to be made here as this car looks very complete and straight. They are flipping for a handsome profit.
My absolute favorite of all Chevelle body styles!! Some rust on the floor but a good project but they never go cheep!!!
Over 14K, still climbing, and reserve not met.
How high will she go?
It’s old, it’s battle ridden, it’s the classic ride from my youth when these were not quite twenty years old yet, and out in numbers. Of all the things wrong with it the most upsetting sight is that little go cart air cleaner on such a massive engine. That’s just dumb.
I never saw many ’66 SS’s compared to the later years. Were there less made?
Funny, I saw more 66 SS’s than 67 or later growing up. They seemed to be the most prolific model where I lived at the time.
@PRA..High production in ’66, about 72000 total, a drop in sales saw ten thousand less in ’67, same for ’68. 1969 was the big year for these with over 86 thousand SS396 Chevelles sold, back down to approx. 53,000 in ’70 along with 8700 plus SS 454’s. Sales really dropped in ’71-72, tanked really, at 19,000 and 25,000. Those numbers are rounded off, can’t forget the 201 Z16 Chevelles built in ’65, the best of all but practically invisible…..lots and lots and lots of these since forever
Didn’t Dan “Hoss” Blocker have a Z16 convertible? That would be a big dollar car.
Neat car…but at some point (like now), the price paid just doesn’t justify the purchase and restoration. Anyone slightly responsible and financially savvy – not to mention experienced – would rather buy a done car for a little more and enjoy it right away than sock a ton of money and time into the black hole that car restoration has become. It’s not like you can’t find a ’66-67 Chevelle SS for sale these days…they made more than a few of them. Even for free – you’d be hard pressed to be in it all done for less than paying up for a restored car. But hey, it just needs the motor rebuilt…and then some body work, paint…interior…suspension…glass…chrome and trim…wheels and tires…wiring and weatherstripping…dash bezels…hmmm, sounds like about $40-$50k to me.
Guys if you didn’t see the auction on BaT the other day for the wicked/cool/oh yum Studebaker Lark R2 blown stick car that went cheap you missed one of the bestest comments regarding our hobby from one of the guys. ” Purchased for the price of a used Camry.” Think about that now when we look at some of the candy up for sale, no one here batted an eye purchasing a family driver/truck/plaything for 30/40K or more, so really is it worth bashing anyone anymore for prices that still come in under what a used car goes for? Just my two cents…….
Pretty rustic.
Price has gone nuts.
Take the money and buy a restored one
No matter who buys this or what happens it will always be part of the highest pantheon of muscle car royalty. GTO, Roadrunner, CobraJet, and SS396 are arguably the Mt. Rushmore of the greatest automotive era in history.
Love this car. Hope it gets what it deserves.
I’ve had 4 SS 1966 Chevelles back in the day, my favorite of all, still have pic’s of one. I paid $100. or less for all except one. What l would do just to have one them back!!
I would make the interior pristine and never wash the outside. The graveyard mold looks so right on this.
Gone!
“This listing was ended by the seller because the item is no longer available.”
Where is the 66 auction located online I wanna bid 20k
How much for the seats ?