The Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS has long hovered between muscle car beater and collector car gold among enthusiasts, as it seems the car is either cherished to the point of obsession or treated like a dirt track special that is best suited for providing cheap speed. The fourth generation Monte Carlo SS certainly has all the pedigree of being a coveted collector car, with distinct upgrades unique to the SS package and a direct connection to NASCAR racing in the 1980s. Still, many of them seemingly end up like this one, a barn find apparently stored for 25 years. Find it here on Facebook Marketplace in Covington, GA for $12,900.
Now, the SS name has been used and abused for years, but this generation of the Monte Carlo still offered customers a distinct set of upgrades over the standard model offering. For starters, the SS came with a 180 b.h.p. 305 V8; 3.73 rear axle; rear sway bar; unique color schemes; and SS-specific alloy wheels. This wasn’t just some window dressing on a Grandma-special Monte Carlo. Still, it was produced in fairly strong numbers as the fourth generation model proved quite popular with car shoppers and the SS model was a no-brainer upgrade for anyone looking to unleash their inner Dale Earnhardt. That’s a good thing for finding spare parts, but not for future collectability.
Now, the interiors were always a let-down, as Chevy didn’t make the cabin feel any sportier than a standard base-model Monte. The bench seat, dull colors, fabric upholstery – this was a car that needed some factory Recaros and a three-spoke Grant steering wheel. Just some aftermarket goodies to remind you that it’s an SS from the inside. Still, that didn’t stop car buyers from scooping these SS Montes up left and right. However, if you did want to own a more hard-to-find model, the 1988 Monte Carlo SS is a good place to start. Production was winding down at this point, and just over 16,000 SS coupes found owners for the 1988 model year, which were all built towards the end of ’87. This one features the optional T-tops.
Now, there’s a few things about this car that are hard to sort out. For one, there’s this: some ugliness underneath the car. I can’t quite figure out what’s going on here – can any readers give us a clue? It doesn’t appear to be rotted through, but it could be on its way. The listing includes a picture of a title belonging to an owner from Indiana, so I don’t believe this has been a lifelong Georgia car. The seller also says it has a 350, which is certainly possible if an engine swap occurred, but there’s a chance he simply misplaced some numbers when he meant to type 305. Regardless, this Monte Carlo SS doesn’t appear too far removed from returning to road use despite its 25 year sleep, but is it worth the asking price?
I sold a pristine 87 t top completely original and untouched,silver with 92,000 original miles and it only brought 14k,I don’t think the seller will get any offer above 8
Reminds me of the old joke: How do you empty out a disco? Run inside and yell “THERE’S A BLACK CAR OUTSIDE ON FIRE”.
“cherished to the point of obsession or treated like a dirt track special ”
brilliant!
Funny, April first is Thursday…
About 10k overvalued in this condition
Indiana cars tend to become Swiss cheese rust buckets very fast. This one looks pretty sad on the underside.
Looks like the car was wet on the first photo, that is a weasel way to make the paint appear better than it is.
Maybe would consider this for 5 to 7K but these really were not very special. Best thing was the looks, and that can be duplicated on a better MC. It’s not like these were Superbirds, or Daytonas, they were just NASCAR window dressing on a not very special car…
The 1980s Monte Carlo, El Camino and Camaro used to be the Official Car of Surrey. An inside joke here in British Columbia.
Odd when new, desirable when used
I soit my perfect, every option 88 SS in Claret for $9,300 in 1993. 36,000 summer only miles No rain. Garaged every night I owned it. I knew it would be worth much more in the coming years, but was getting divorced and it had to go. Too much rust here.
I wouldn’t pay no less then $6000 I’ve bought cars and restored many I’m at like 13 total and even though it’s a fourth gen Monte Carlo the damage cost to replace the floor boards and all the work involved to restore it back to its rightful beauty is costly in today’s day and age the body work and all the maintenance involved after it has set for so long could be high end maintenance as well so that’s a gouge in the price and any true collector or enthusiast knows the potential but also knows the kind of money it would take to restore it properly and not just enough to make it an everyday driver the car deserves better then that and to top it all of it deserves to be restored properly because it is in my eyes a classic I consider this generation to be among the greats in its class I am not attacking anyone just giving a professional opinion I love these cars and hats off to the owner who found this gem thank you