The Chevrolet Chevelle was all new for 1968, available as a convertible, coupe, hardtop sedan, pillared sedan, or wagon. Further, it came in several levels of plushness, from the base 300, through the 300 Deluxe, to the Malibu. Much more rounded and aero-looking than the previous iteration of the Chevelle, the coupes were especially good looking. They rode on a shorter 112" wheelbase and had classic long hood and short deck proportions and a graceful fastback slope to the rear window, above the muscular haunches of the rear fenders.
The top of the Chevelle heap for '68 was the SS396.
Technically the SS396 treatment was an option package that could be ordered on any trim level of Chevelle coupe or convertible, so the cheapest way to speed was to stack it on a basic 300 coupe. The Super Sport treatment added 7" wide sport wheels with polyester-belted F70-14 tires, power front disc brakes, and that all important Turbo-Jet big block V-8.
Under the hood of this Tuxedo Black beast would be one of two different flavors of Turbo-Jet 396. The one that came with the package was the L35, rated at 325 SAE gross horsepower. Optionally the buyer could spring for the 350hp L34 motor. Both motors had the same 10.25:1 compression ratio, Rochester Quadrajet carb, oval-port closed chamber heads, intake & exhaust manifolds, and hydraulic lifters. The difference was that the more potent L34 used the hotter camshaft borrowed from the L36 'Vette 427 motor.
When Car and Driver tested a 1969 SS396 with the L35 motor, 3.55:1 limited slip rear end, and Turbo-Hydramatic three-speed automatic, they recorded a zero-to-sixty time of 5.8 seconds and a 14.4 second quarter at 97 miles per hour.
The one in the pics was snapped with a Nikon D700 and a 24-85mm f/2.8-4D zoom lens in June of 2020.
"...recorded a zero-to-sixty time of 5.8 seconds and a 14.4 second quarter..."
ReplyDeleteIt has to be some sort of universal sin that a soulless electric Universal Transportation Appliance has faster to 60 and quarter times than a '68-'70 396 Chevelle.
You could probably shave off a few tenths with modern rubber and a well-shifted four speed manual, but the days of the Muscle Car Era being the peak of automotive performance are long in the rear view mirror.
DeleteBy the mid 2010s, your average family sedan would demolish all but the quickest big block street heroes from the late Sixties.
For Boomers and GenX, who spent decades with all the fast cars being in the past, it's hard to adjust to.
Oh, I don't disagree, time and technology march on relentlessly. It was huge when Garlits broke 200, when the 7-second 1/4 barrier was broken, and now it's barely above 3 and right at 400. Yeager did the sound barrier in 1947, today we're trying to figure out realistic fractional light speed.
ReplyDeleteBut the iron back then.....a smiling, happy blonde snicking through the Muncie in a 396 Chevelle was one thing, the same person blowing past 10 years ago in a Camry look-alike ride or today in a faster 3-row electric SUV, well.....
It just ain't the same, mostly because it was never meant to be the same. Nothing ever is.
*shrug*
DeleteAny sub-13 quarter equals character in my book, whether the wheels are spun by gas, diesel, batteries, pedals, or a thousand coked-up hamsters.
A 2021 Toyota Camry V6 has 300hp net and a 5.8 second 0-60 time. In many ways 2010-2022 is high point with 700hp cars at your Dodge dealer
DeleteHey, check this out! ;-)
Deletehttps://carsgoneby.blogspot.com/2025/01/2019-toyota-camry-xse-v6.html