And now for your review is one of approximately 700K Chevrolet Impalas produced in 1962. This is the model that at one time dominated the driveways of every city and town in America. And it wasn’t just the 1962 version, the Impala was a crowd favorite into the ’80s. This dusty example is located in Discovery Bay, California and is available, here on craigslist for $18,000. Thanks to rex m for this tip!

Impalas came in several different body styles for ’62 including “a folded top” two-door hardtop like our subject car, a convertible, a pair of four-doors in both sedan and hardtop styles, and finally a four-door station wagon. The previous year’s “bubble-top” thin pillar, two-door hardtop was moved to the mid-tier Bel Air, and the one year only two-door sedan was discontinued. The “folded top” roofline, designed to look like a convertible top in the raised position, was a Fisher Body styling cue that was introduced in ’62 and found its way across various Chevrolet, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Buick models through the ’64 model year.

The Impala SS, a popular option but still not a separate model, reached full production in ’62 and was made available with any engine option choice. This example is not an SS, just a standard Impala that appears to have been parked outside for some term. The finish is a repaint and the surface rust bleed-through is evidence of long-term exposure to a lot of sunny days though typical for a California car, there doesn’t appear to be any rot-through. The body panels look to be free of crash damage and the dented grille is the only evidence of a little motion friction. The trim and chrome are pretty fair but the engine badges, on the leading edge of the front fenders, are incorrect for ’62, they made their first Impala appearance in ’64. Finally, later model rally wheels are holding up this Chevy’s four corners.

Under the hood is an unidentified small block V8 engine, but which one? Three were available in ’62 including a 170 gross HP 283 and a pair of 327s, one at 250 HP and the other producing a healthy output of 300. I’m going to vote for a 283 based on the “power-pack” casting marks on the front of the cylinder heads. The intake manifold has been swapped with a later variety version and it’s topped with a Quadrajet carburetor that never saw use on a 283. The air cleaner and valve covers are, obviously, non-original pieces. The typical throw-away line of, “was parked running, looks as if it would run with little work but we haven’t tried to start it” describes this Impala’s operating characteristics. The installed transmission is a less than thrilling Powerglide two-speed automatic unit.

The interior is in iffy shape. The seat upholstery looks OK but not the carpet/floors and the kick/door panels. It’s not too visible but there appears to be a hole in the floor on the driver’s side of the transmission hump. The original radio is missing but an aftermarket tachometer has been wedged into the instrument panel. The steering wheel is a curious shade, it’s tan or fawn, while the rest of the interior is blue.

So what’s remarkable here? Nothing really, other than the price which I’m having a tough time squaring with a generic Impala that really has nothing notable going for it. Sure, it can be cleaned up and turned into a respectable cruiser but there are still a huge number of these old Chevies beating around and available in this condition but at a more reasonable price point. What’s your thought, a good buy or keep looking?