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I know, I need to stay away from these rusty projects, but this Impala is an SS 396 with it’s numbers matching engine and even factory A/C! Really the only way this project could get better, besides being rusty of course, is if it had the 427. The seller claims the body is solid or as they put it “99% rust free”, although I see a lot more rust than a percents worth. However, I don’t see many holes, so it might actually be solid! If it had a 4 speed, it really would be the Impala project of my dreams. If it is the car you’ve been dreaming of restoring, you can find it here on eBay in Greensboro, North Carolina with a current bid of $560.
I have always had a fondness for these ever since my late grandfather bought a ’65 model. He was a retired pharmacist by occupation and I loved and miss him dearly. One of his attributes was that he was so thrifty he looked for ways to patch things rather than to repair or have them repaired properly. I’ll never forget when the metal around the rear glass started rusting out and water started leaking into the trunk, he promptly got some duct tape and put it all around the back window. Then he went to the local auto parts store and got as close in color to Turquoise Poly as he could in a spray can and let it rip. It looked awful, but he was proud of his efforts. I’ve seen quite a few ’65 SSs with a factory 4-speed, but not a ’66 SS. I’m sure there were quite a few produced though and just wonder what the percentage difference was in 4-speeds between the two model years SSs.
the 66 SS was a popular car when new and I have seen several through out the years with a 327 and 4 speed but not many (Any?) behind a big block I am sure many were made they just got trashed through the years. nice car restored but it will cost more to restore it than it is worth.
i have a 66 impala ss with a 327 4 speed. i have been looking for a parts car but they r hard to find.
Not sure about 1966 but if I Remember right in 1965 Chevrolet built over 1,000,000,000 impalas
I think it’s a record that still stands today
I think that you might have three extra zeros there.
We want …. One Billion Impalas!
I wanted to buy a ’65 SS 327 3 speed on the tree when I was in high school. It was burgundy with black interior. I couldn’t get financed or co-signed, since I was just 18 and ready for the draft as soon as I graduated. The owner left it at the Citgo station when he was out of town on business with instructions to use it occasionally for errands so it wouldn’t just sit, and that it was for sale. The boss let me drive it now & then. I remember the torque the 327 had. I can’t imagine the torque of the 396.
I still love those old chebbies, including the ’65 SS 396 Chevelle.
I worked in the Diamond Reo plant one summer with Randy Boggs, a good ol’ boy from Eastern Kentucky. He had the best comeback whenever anyone asked him, “How ya doin’ Randy?”
“Oh, by hand mostly…”
He owned a red Caprice with black vinyl top that had a 427 in it. I presume he used it to get back home real quick on the weekends, another displaced Appalachian who found work in the factories up north.
Good ten footer….
I’m always kind of skeptical when I see the word “RARE” multiple times in an advertisement for any old car or truck, almost as much as the phrase “they don’t make these anymore”! And as you’ve mentioned above, what IS the percentile scale for rust on a classic car? The seller “assumes” that there is no rust on the driver’s side floor, but says the passenger side has been repaired with a “piece of sheet metal”? Also have to assume this was built as a 325 HP/396 with a Turbo 400, which wasn’t considered a HiPo combination that year, and was sold to salesman as an upgrade from the small-block 327. But I guess “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” because as of midnight the bid is up to $3400, with the reserve not met. And is it just me, or did anybody see the tachometer on the hood?
You’re probably right about the car being an upgrade for salesmen & business men.
He already recanted the hood tach in his ad, in giant RED letters.