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Real SS 409? 1964 Chevrolet Impala

1964 Chevrolet Impala SS 409

Clearly someone began restoring this Impala, but never got around to finishing it. They claim it’s a real SS car with the original, but rebuilt, 409 V8! If you know much about Impalas, you know the 409 is a brute of an engine. This one looks to be one of the lower horsepower engines, so it either has 340 or 400 horsepower depending on if it’s the L31 or L33. One thing that has me a bit concerned though is the lack of any tags on the firewall and the listed VIN isn’t complete. Oh and maybe I’m decoding it incorrectly, but isn’t body code 67 mean this VIN is from a convertible? There are a lot of questions to be answered on this one! Have a look at it here on eBay and let me know what you think is going on here.

Comments

  1. Avatar Joe

    Josh, good point on the “67” VIN number. Also, ad says “The drive-train is an original rebuilt 409 with a 2 speed Power Glide transmission.” The words “an original” worry me. This could just mean a 1964 409 from any car. This does not mean the car left the factory with the engine that sits in it now. Should read “the” original…needs documentation, correct VIN and cowl tag and to properly value this car.

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    • Avatar doug

      The flag on the side indicate a 283.

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      • Avatar cyclemikey

        Actually, the fender emblems are for a 327. The 283 cars didn’t have the crossed flags, just the little “v”. The 409 cars had the 327 emblems, but with “409” spelled out in addition.

        This car looks like a bit of a mutt..

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    • Avatar Tom L

      The VIN shown indicates it is NOT an SS car but rather a V8 Impala. Also 67 in VIN indicates convertible. Something very wrong here.

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      • Avatar dave

        No matter
        Still a smoking buy
        9/10s of 09s on the road are fake

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      • Avatar Jason Houston

        Is it still listed? Someone should flag it. There’s a small button on the lower right side of the page.

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      • Avatar dave

        Sold 13,777

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  2. Avatar TLouisJ

    Awwww…..You young folks have no idea what it was like growing up in the ’60s in small town America (Eastern Ore.) . Gary’s folks bought him a brand new 1963 SS Impala, red on red, 2 door hardtop, 425 h.p. 409, close ratio Muncie 4.11 posi. I never got a ride – he was a senior and I as a lowly sophomore , but we did get entertained by Gary and that car smoking it past the McEwen High parking lot on a Saturday night. Sound and fury, burning rubber, grabbing gears as he screamed past us heading out of town. It was awesome. :-) Terry J

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  3. Avatar Joe Gotts

    Only the 340 hp 409 was equipped with a Powerglide.

    JoeyG…

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  4. Avatar dave

    They had 3 409 HP engines
    340
    400
    425

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  5. Avatar piper62j

    Way too much going on with this car.. Looks like a hack job to me.. Different color door and panels.. Stripped down firewall,, questionable vin…

    Might be best to avoid this puppy..

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    • Avatar dave

      This car would part out for more than he is asking. Engine 5000 to 10.000 and on. These cars fetch good money. Do the search.

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  6. Avatar John

    Well it’s gone so our questions will likely remain unanswered. My memory isn’t the best, but I can’t remember the 409 being around in 64. I can remember 327/350 motors quite well.

    I can remember everyone being sad at the demise of the 409. One other question, can we tell if this is a real 409 or perhaps just a 348. The air cleaner and Carter carb sure look like 348 parts. I can would surely wonder how a power glide would hold up to the 409’s torque. Most 348s were Turbohydros by 61. Still, it’s good to see those curved valve covers. The splayed valves were a thing of wonder in my day.

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    • Avatar dave

      409 was made till Feb of 1965
      340 and 400 were offered
      It was replaced by the 396 in two HP
      325 and 425
      No turbohydro till 65

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  7. Avatar stillrunners

    my old 64 was most likely a 409 car with the factory tach and four speed console witch had an what was left of a ’09 emblem in it. at the time 1975 we didn’t care much about the W motors…I just put a 396 in it a started blowing rear ends….they say the fuel line was a tell tell as it was 3/8 I think…my car was a repaint and had no holes in the fenders for the 409 emblem…a buddie built a nice 1962 SS clone 409 in the late eighties…he street raced it after a few builds and surprised a lot of guys with it…

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    • Avatar dave

      Where was this?
      Sounds like Mr
      Timing a little off

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  8. Avatar JagManBill

    I remember my Grand-dads 64 Impala with the 427. Freakin screamin engine and pretty rough on right rear tires!

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    • Avatar dave

      No 427 in 64
      Ist year was 66 for the 427

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  9. Avatar hhaleblian

    She’s real fine my

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    • Avatar ydnar

      409

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  10. Avatar JagManBill

    actually, the first year of the 427 was late 63. It didn’t go into full production till 66. My Grand-dads car was a COPO. Yellow over yellow with black interior, bench seat, dog dish caps. He really liked his sleepers….

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    • Avatar dave

      No sir
      That was porcupine heads on a 409 block called the mystery motor
      The other 427 over the counter was a 2 part intake and a 409 lower end was dub as Z11
      I had them all

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  11. Avatar Rocco

    I used to beat those ’64 SS 409’s 8V, in ’69-’71, with my little ’65 Mustang 289 4V with a .470 lift solid lifter cam, cast iron intake, AFB carb, and cast iron exhaust manifolds(with dual exhaust). I loved the 409’s, but I loved to beat them more. Weight makes a big difference.

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    • Avatar dave

      Never had a 289 beat my 09 that tan 10s

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      • Avatar Rocco

        I’m talking street cars that were daily drivers with street rubber. Back then(’69), we were lucky to see a street car with cheater slicks run in the high 11’s or low 12’s at the drag strip. Anything faster than that was a RACE CAR that was towed to the drags.

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  12. Avatar dave

    Wrong
    This was 11s street car in 69 in my high sshool blew doors of LS6 Cheville
    Ya my 65 09 in a S’S convetanble Impala
    I had my act togather. Now 8 sec with todays tech on the strip with the bottle.

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    • Avatar dave

      Mosts kids and adults alike did not know how to work on these 09s and most couldnt shift. Had a friend with a 09 daily drive (only car) in a 62 Vette that ran low 11s with headers open and clicks. That car was just MEAN!! They have 09s street cars now in the 9s all day long. Have a friend with a 61 Pontiac from Canada witha a factory 348 dual quad 4 speed.

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      • Avatar Rocco

        I don’t know for sure about the ’61SS 409/348. I was in high school and we all were told it was a 409. It had the 409 emblem on the fender. Hell I was just learning what a short block was. This one guy after school was showing everyone his new 327 short block he just had put in(under warranty) his ’65 Chevelle. I was trying to see a place to measure the front of the eng. in relation to the eng. compartment, so I could compare the length when I saw another ’65. What did we know back then. I had a ’56 Chevy I had put a 283 bored .030 with the 098 Duntolf cam. I was pretty quiet just trying to learn about cars. I was just happy to have a V8 power in my ’56, since it came with the 235 Blue Flame 6 that lived on bulk oil in the trunk. I was just lucky to a car to get back and forth to school and work($30 a week) at the Sunoco station. Circa: ’66-’67
        Oh, the good old days.

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    • Avatar Rocco

      WOW! You did have your act together. Very unusual. Congrats, you were the exception. There was this guy in high school(’66) that had a ’61 SS 409 that ran real fast, but he couldn’t keep it together. Luckily, for him his dad was a mech. and fixed it all the time. It was a cool car. Him and another guy with a ’64 GTO would always get into it. I don’t know who was faster, but the GTO stayed together.
      Cool pics below. What year are the ones at the drags?

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      • Avatar dave

        I’m sure the 61 that you talked about was a 348. They only made about 203- 409s in 61. the 61 409s used the 348 block and had problems. They won the nationals with the 61 09 and in 62 also. 62 they used a different casting and got most of the bugs worked out but not all of them. I was racing 409s when I was 16-1968 till the late 80s.
        When in high school, 440s-340 6 pak-302 Zs-302 Boss-455 Buick and back yard hops would be good runs. They gave me the most trouble. L88s were the boss of the road back then and 55 Chevs with big blocks were also killers. All this was in Detroit on Woodward Ave and Telegraph was my second home. Even had a 13 second Corvair that kicked a lot of big cars.

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      • Avatar dave

        61 with 409 usually were had by racers and well-known people. Super rare back then with only a hand full made
        This was another 09 that I had bought in 68 with no drivetrain. I was in the 10th grade and was all excited. Interior still had plastic seat covers and it was a bench seat 4-speed car. 200.00 and I thought that was a lot of money with only making .75 per hour. YEP! Good old days.

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  13. Avatar Jim Morrison

    The older I get the faster I was, now where did I leave that damn Shelby?

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    • Avatar dave

      Love the picture!!

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  14. Avatar dave

    One of my 62 09 street car with air that ran low13s in 81.

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  15. Avatar dave

    We cloned the car that took the nationals in 62 except we put a Z11 427 in the car. Car was awsome on the street. Never had it down the 1/4. Engine to rare to beat it up.

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  16. Avatar dave

    The mighty torque of the 09

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    • Avatar Rocco

      Do you know what year is this photo?

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      • Avatar dave

        I would say in the last couple of years.

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  17. Avatar dave

    This is a small 409 on a 2 barrel Holly with a power glide.

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    • Avatar Joe

      Great photos. Like the white one from 68.

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  18. Avatar Jason Houston

    The buyer is probably someone who has no problem re-vinning it, or just wants the conv. vin plate.

    Years ago I drove into a K-Mart parking lot. On the way into the store there was a white ’64 Impala 2DHT parked there. About fifteen feet beyond was a VIN plate for a white ’64 Impala 2-DHT lying in the driveway. I went and looked at the car, but it had it’s VIN plate.

    Never did figure out what the story was.

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    • Avatar dave

      The engines sell for 5 to 10 Gs

      Like 0

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