Chevrolet had a record sales year in 1965, selling more than a million full-size automobiles. So, it’s not surprising that demand would be off for the similar 1966 editions. Yet Chevy managed to crank out more than 47,000 Impala convertibles like this one. It’s a project that the seller says is a work in progress that he/she has lost interest in taking the work further. We’re not sure how complete this Impala drop-top is, and the price is $3,500 OBO in South New Jersey and here on craigslist, though the map opens up in Europe.
This Chevy is an ordinary Impala rather than a Super Sport (which had become a series of its own in 1964). We’re told the car is numbers matching with a 283 cubic-inch V8 and an automatic transmission (2-speed Powerglide?). The seller is light on photos and overlooks capturing the engine compartment which we believe is intact. The odometer has gone around once and currently sits at 5,000 miles.
Some body work has already been done on this classic, including new pans in the floors and trunk. A bit of rust remains and much of the drop-top is finished in primer. We have no idea about the top or interior though new carpeting will be thrown in. A new gas tank and radiator have been installed but we’re unaware what else is needed. It’s one of those “ran when parked” vehicles when it went into storage (when?).
“I don’t do emails.”
Smells strongly of scam.
As soon as I read Southern New Jersey I wondered if it was my oldest sister’s car. She and her new husband bought a brand new ’66 Impala convertible w/o the Super Sport option in late ’65. Yellow with a black top and black interior. Only hers was a 357 4 on the floor with a bench seat.
About a month after they got it she almost totalled it running over a Volkswagen bug. Back then they didn’t total car unless it had frame damage and even then sometimes they’d straighten out the frame.
A lot depends on how this car was stored while the work was being done, especially with the top gone, as exposure to the weather while still in primer, particularly for the dash, can’t be good. The fact that the ad is light on pictures is suspicious. The fact that it was photographed sitting outside next to a forest does little to inspire confidence. I just hope that a lot of the parts are in the trunk or the passenger compartment, because finding replacements from a donor or reproductions will not be easy!
I would be skeptical of this from the jump. Nothing feels right about this ad. Even if it is legit, this thing would be a monster project to take on. I’m a pretty big fan of ’65 Impalas, but I believe that a fella would get underwater in this thing in a hurry.