1966 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport Convertible

This Madeira Maroon 1966 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport has the 325 horsepower Turbo-Jet 396 cubic inch big block V-8.

The '66 models can be told apart from their 1965 predecessors by slightly different grilles and triple rectangular taillights rather than the previous round ones.

Pardon the potato quality cell phone photo. The car was parked in an awkward spot for photography. I used an iPhone 13 Pro Max to take the picture in Dayton, Ohio back in July of 2026. 

1967 Chevrolet Impala SS 427 Sport Coupe

For its third model year, the Fourth Generation Chevy Impala got refreshed styling, heavy on the "Coke bottle" shape. The Super Sport version, available as a hardtop Sport Coupe or a convertible, came with only one motor, the L36 427 cubic inch Turbo-Jet big block V-8.

With a four-barreled carburetor and the fames "porcupine" heads, the L36 had hydraulic lifters and a 10.25:1 compression ratio and was rated at 385 gross horsepower. It could be backed with three- or four-speed manuals or a Turbo Hydra-Matic, with the three-speed being a special heavy duty unit.

Car Life magazine tested a '67 Impala SS 427 Sport Coupe with the Turbo Hydra-Matic and the optional 3.07:1 rear end (The standard unit was a 3.31, and a 3.55 rear was also available.) The sprint to sixty was accomplished in 8.4 seconds, with the quarter taking 15.8 seconds at 87mph. Top speed was measured at 125.

Optioned like it was, the test car stickered at $4,903, which comes to $49,174 in current money.

The Marina Blue example in the photos was snapped using an iPhone 13 Pro Max in Dayton, Ohio back in July of 2026.

1965 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport

The 1965 model year debuted a whole new generation of full-size Chevrolets. Gone was the X-shaped frame, replaced with a conventional perimeter frame. Dubbed the "Girder Guard" frame by Chevy, this allowed a lower central transmission tunnel and floor.

The new Impala retained the iconic six round taillights of the outgoing fourth-generation cars, and gained almost three inches in length, although wheelbase remained largely unchanged (the new cars was actually a hairsbreadth shorter.)

Midway through the '65 model year the old W-series Turbo Thrust big block went away, replaced with the new 396 cubic inch Turbo-Jet V-8, which would provide the basic Chevy big block architecture through 1990.

While regular Impalas could be had in a variety of shapes, pillared and hardtop, coupe or sedan or convertible, the Impala Super Sport only came as a convertible or a hardtop Sport Coupe like the Mist Blue example in the photos. While boring people could order a Super Sport with any Impala powerplant, including the 140hp Turbo-Thrift 230cid inline six... we've seen '65 Impalas with 283 and 327 small blocks on these pages before ...the "396 Turbo-Jet" fender badges tell us this Impala is ready to party.

Most 396 Impalas had the hydraulic lifter 325hp version of the motor, but for maximum performance a solid-lifter 425 pony variant was available. Motor Trend tested a 325hp 396 backed by a three-speed Turbo-Hydramatic in a Caprice hardtop sedan. With a 3.08 rear end the big Chevy managed an 8.9 second time to sixty and a trip through the quarter in 16.7 at 85mph on the way to a top speed of 103.

The one in the pictures was photographed with a Canon EOS R5 and an RF 24-240mm f/3.5-6.3 IS zoom lens in June of 2026.

1995 Chevrolet Impala SS

The boxy third generation of the Chevrolet Caprice, which had been around since the mid-late 1970s, was replaced for the 1991 model year with a car featuring much curvier, more aerodynamic bodywork. It was about this time that Ford also launched a more aero Crown Victoria.

Interestingly, with police performance packages, these newly sleek versions of the big body-on-frame police cars dramatically suppressed the sales of pursuit versions of Mustangs and Camaros, which had flourished briefly during the later Malaise Era when the blocky sedans were too asthmatic for high-speed chases.

It was from the roots of the fourth generation Caprice 9C1 police package that Chevrolet's Special Vehicle group ginned up a show car for 1992 that revived the Impala SS name, which had lain dormant since the late Sixties.

With distinctive wheels and badging and a sinister murdered-out paint job in any color you wanted as long as it was Black, the show car came to dealerships almost unchanged for the 1994 model year. 1995 saw some minor cosmetic changes and the addition of Dark Cherry Metallic and Dark Green-Gray Metallic to the palette. Production ceased after the 1996 model year after just shy of 70,000 had been sold.

They were all powered by the 5.7L LT1 pushrod V-8 derived from the Corvette making 260 ponies, with a 4L60E GM four-speed auto sending power to a 3.08 rear end.

When Car and Driver hooked the test gear up to a '94 Impala SS, it had enough Wheaties under the hood to launch the bulbous 4,221 pound sedan to sixty in just 6.5 seconds, which was considered a decent sporty coupe number at the time. The quarter went by in fifteen flat at 92 MPH.

All that could be yours for only $22,495 in 1994 money, or about $48,500 in constant dollars.

This one was photographed in May of 2025 using Pentax K20D and a DA 16-45mm f/4 zoom lens.

1964 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport Convertible

The final year of the third generation of Impalas, the 1964 is probably the most desirable. The most desirable of all Six-Fours would be the Super Sport convertible, like this Ermine White droptop with a red interior.

Super Sports came with bucket front seats divided by a console. All transmissions in an SS, whether 3- or 4-speed manual or Powerglide automatic, had a sporty console-mounted shifter rather than a proletarian lever on the steering column.

Despite the name, the '64 Impala Super Sport could be had with the whole gamut of Chevy powertrains, from the humble 230 cubic inch Turbo-Thrift inline six rated at 140 gross horsepower and two-barrel 283 Turbo-Fire 165-horse small block V-8, up through several flavors of 327 and 409 performance mills. Assuming a stock exterior on this example, the lack of "V" badges would indicate that this car began life, at least, with the inline six.

It'd still be plenty fun to cruise with the top down on a sunny day.

This one was photographed in October of 2021 using a Nikon D800 and a 35-105mm f/3.5-4.5 zoom lens.

1962 Chevrolet Impala Convertible

Having launched the third generation of the Impala with the 1961 model, the '62 received only light styling changes. It was still most easily distinguished from its more plebeian Chevrolet kin, the Biscayne and Bel Air, by the chrome spear with a contrasting painted insert running the length of its flanks. On this Ermine White ragtop, the Roman Red inset is eye-catching.

The "V" badge sans crossed flags on the front fender indicates the presence under the hood of Chevrolet's 283 cubic inch Turbo-Fire V-8 with a two-barrel carburetor and an 8.5:1 compression ratio, making 170 SAE gross horsepower. The transmission backing it would have either been a three-speed manual or a two-speed Powerglide automatic.

Checkered flags would indicate a 327 Turbo-Fire, rated at either 250 or 300 horses. A "409" badge above the checkered flags signified the flagship motor, in 380 horsepower trim with a single four-barrel, or 409 horse dual-quad form. All these more powerful motors could be had with a four-on-the-floor, and the 409 was too torquey for the Powerglide slushbox.

Motor Trend tested a 1962 Impala SS Sport Coupe with the dual-quad 409, four-speed, and optional 4.11:1 final drive ratio and recorded a zero-to-sixty time of 6.3 seconds and a 14.9 second quarter at 98 miles per hour through the traps. Performance numbers equivalent, in other words, to a 5.0L H.O. Fox body Mustang.

The one in the photos was snapped in January of 2016 using a Nikon Coolpix P7000.

1970 Chevrolet Impala Custom Coupe

1970 was the last model year for the fourth generation Impala. Now in the middle of the full-size Chevrolet pecking order, beneath the Caprice and above the Bel Air, the Impala rode on a 119" wheelbase and could be had as a pillared sedan, a hardtop Sport Sedan, a convertible, and one of two different hardtop coupes: the Sport Coupe and the Custom Coupe.

The Custom Coupe, like the Cranberry Red example in the photos, was the plusher of the two. Unlike the Sport Coupe, which came with the 250 cubic inch inline six as the base motor, the base mill in the Custom Coupe was the 250 horsepower Turbo-Fire 350 V-8.

 

Selecting RPO L48 got the buyer a four-barrel L48 Turbo-Fire 350 making 300 ponies, and a 400 cube version of the Turbo-Fire small block rated at 265 SAE gross horsepower was available as RPO LF6.

Two Turbo-Jet big block V-8s were on the menu, too: The 345 horsepower LS4 454, and the gnarly LS5 454 rated at 390 horses.

Road Test magazine put a 1970 Impala Custom Coupe with the L48 350, F40 heavy duty suspension, and a 3.31:1 rear end through its paces. They were impressed with the front power discs, still a novelty on a Detroit family bus, that stopped the 4200 pound car in 138 feet from sixty. They reported a quarter mile time of 16.15 seconds with a trap speed of 81 miles per hour. Price as tested was $4,715, including about $1,300 in options, so about $38,600 in today's currency.

The top photo was snapped with a Hasselblad Lunar  and a Sony Zeiss Vario-Tessar T* E 16-70mm F4 zoom lens in September of 2021, while the lower picture was taken the same month with a Fujifilm X-T2 and an XF 16-80mm f/4 R WR OIS zoom lens.

1958 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe

We've looked at the original 1958 Impala before, in the form of a sweet Honey Beige convertible, but I've also spotted this Onyx Black Sports Coupe in the neighborhood. Doesn't it look the business?

The 1958 Impalas were built on the new full-size Chevy's X-shaped frame, but with the wheelbase extended 2.5" over that of the plush Bel Air, regular Biscayne and plebeian Delray. The Delray went away after '58, shifting the Biscayne to the bottom rung of the ladder, and the three-level system of Impala, Bel Air, and Biscayne replaced the earlier hierarchy of Bel Air, 210, and 150, and would persist all the way into the early 1970s.

Chevy hyped the 1958 models as being "lower, wider, longer", which became a trope for the styling trends for all the Detroit Big Three in the coming decade. They also touted the new "Sculpturamic" styling with its gull-wing rear fenders.

Base engine was a 283 small block V-8 with a two-barrel carb, making 185 gross horsepower. Optional 283 V-8s were a four-barrel unit making 230 ponies or a 250 horsepower version with Rochester "Ramjet" mechanical fuel injection. Making its debut in the '58 Impala was Chevrolet's new Turbo-Thrust big block V-8. Displacing 348 cubic inches, the single four-barrel version made 250 horsepower, while Super Turbo-Thrust version had three deuces and put out 280 SAE gross horses. You could also get the 145 horsepower Blue Flame inline six as a cost delete option, but why would you?

Motor Life magazine tested an Impala with the single-carb 348 and the Turboglide single-ratio triple-turbine gearbox. It weighed in at 3,684 pounds, averaged 12.9 miles per gallon, and stickered at $2,841 (the equivalent of $31,600 in today's dollars. The test car recorded a 10.1 second zero-to-sixty run.

This particular one was photographed with a Nikon D800 and 24-120mm f/4 VR zoom lens in September of 2021.

1961 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport Convertible

The Impala nameplate, which had begun as a special anniversary spinoff of the Bel Air in 1958, became its own model in the gloriously tail-finned 1959-1960 models. The 1961 model year saw the launch of the third generation of the Impala on GM's new B-body platform. The bodywork was more slab-sided and the tailfins were gone, leaving only vestigial creases atop the rear fenders. The Impala retained the sextet of round tail lamps and featured a stylized “V” in the center of the rear of the decklid.

As with the second generation, the Impala was the top tier of the full-size Chevy model hierarchy, above the spartan, fleet-oriented Biscayne and the mid-line Bel Air. It was available in a full array of coupe, convertible, and sedan body styles. (There wasn't an Impala wagon, per se; the most luxurious trim level of the full size Chevy wagon lineup was called the Nomad, even though it was essentially a five-door Impala.)

New for 1961 was the Super Sport package for the Impala. Available on any model of Impala, the SS package is most closely identified with the Sport Coupes and convertibles.

Unlike regular Impalas, which could be had with the entire range of Chevy power plants of the day, the '61 Impala Super Sport package came with one of three versions of the Turbo-Thrust Special 348 cubic inch OHV big block V-8. The base 4-barrel version had a 9.5:1 compression ratio and was rated at 305 SAE gross horsepower. Next up from that was a 340 horsepower version, still a single 4-barrel, but sporting solid lifters, a hotter cam, and an 11.25:1 compression ratio. The top of the heap was the Super Turbo-Thrust which added triple 2-barrel carbs to the mix for an output of 350 gross horsepower.

The Super Sport package came with a floor-shifted all-synchromesh four-speed manual, although the 305hp motor could be ordered with an optional 2-speed Powerglide.

Midway through the model year, the 348 big blocks were joined by a legendary motor. Chevy bored and stroked the big block to cylinder dimensions of 4.31"x3.5" for a total displacement of 409 cubic inches. The new motor was available with a single Carter 4-bbl carb, making 360 horses.

Back in the mid Nineties, Car and Driver tested a vintage '61 Impala SS Sport Coupe with the 409 and recorded a zero-to-sixty time of 6.7 seconds and a 15.2 second E.T. in the quarter with a trap speed of 94 miles per hour. That 409 coupe cost $3,986 new back in 1961, or about $42k in today's money, so this Jewel Blue droptop would have been a little spendier.

It was photographed in July of 2017, in Enfield, New Hampshire. The top photo was taken with an iPhone 6S, while the lower two were snapped with a Hasselblad Lunar and an 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS zoom lens.

1960 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe

1960 was the second model year for the second generation of Chevrolet's Impala, now its own model line rather than a special edition Bel Air. It could be had as a pillared sedan, a hardtop sedan, a five-door wagon, a convertible, or hardtop Sport Coupe like the one in the picture.

This second generation Impala shared its basic body shell and X-shaped frame with other B-body General Motors offerings from Buick, Olds, and Pontiac, although its 119" wheelbase was shorter than its closest kin, like the Catalina and LeSabre.

The '60 Impala Sport Coupe came with an almost bewildering array of driveline options based around OHV inline-sixes, and small-block and big-block V-8s. The bottom of the motor hierarchy was the 235 cubic inch Hi-Thrift inline six, which made 135 horsepower and could be had with three- or four-speed manual transmissions or the two-speed Powerglide automatic. 

Next up was the Turbo-Fire 283 OHV V-8, in either low-compression, 2-barrel 180hp form or as the Super Turbo-Fire, with a 9.5:1 compression ratio, 4-barrel carb, and 230 ponies. Big block options were the 4-barrel Turbo-Thrust 348 cube big-block rated at 250 horsepower, or the Super Turbo-Thrust, which sported triple deuces on a free-flowing intake manifold and was rated at 280 horsepower. The two performance V-8 options came with close-ratio synchromesh 4-speeds rather than the overdrive 4-speed manuals of the lesser power plants, or else a 3-speed manual or 2-speed Powerglide. 

This Roman Red and Ermine White two-tone '60 Sport Coupe would have been the swoopiest thing in the Chevy catalog that year that wasn't a Corvette.

When Motor Life magazine tested a 1969 Impala Sport Coupe they noted its rich options list and the way it would cruise quietly and comfortably at seventy for as long as the petrol held out. They also pointed out that the $2,597 base price ($28,200 adjusted for inflation) was pushing Chevy out of the bottom end of the market, making the recent introduction of the cheap, compact Corvair a sensible addition to the lineup.

With the 250 horsepower Turbo-Thrust big block V-8, the 3,840 pound test car managed to get to sixty from a standstill in 10.7 seconds and returned 12 to 17 miles per gallon over the course of testing.

The car in the photos was snapped with a Nikon Coolpix P7000 in Alliance, Ohio back in July of 2015.

1969 Chevrolet Impala Convertible

The fourth generation of Chevrolet's Impala launched for the 1965 model year and received a heavy styling refresh for 1969.

More sharply creased, the '69 Impala saw the disappearance of vent windows and a front bumper that was a flush chrome loop surrounding the egg crate grille and its horizontally-arranged quad headlamps.

The base version of the 1969 Impala convertible started at $3,261 ($27, 830 in today's dollars) and came with the Turbo-Fire 327 cubic inch small block V-8 with a two-barrel carburetor. With a 9.00:1 compression ratio to allow running on regular gas, it was rated at 235 SAE gross horsepower. 

The badge over the front side marker light on this Glacier Blue example says it came with one of two optional 350 cube Turbo-Fire small blocks: The 9.00:1 compression two-barrel LM1 rated at 255 horsepower, or the racier L48. The latter, originally developed for the Camaro SS, had a premium-fuel-only 10.25:1 compression ratio, dual exhausts, and a Rochester 4-barrel carburetor and made 300 ponies.

This example was snapped in September of 2020 using a Nikon D5000 and 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 VR II zoom lens.

1958 Chevrolet Impala Convertible

William Durant, a wagon maker who had just acquired Buick, founded General Motors in 1908 as a holding company with the intent to purchase more automobile manufacturers (he got the idea for the name from General Electric). To celebrate its fiftieth anniversary, all the divisions got to build a new, special, extra-deluxe version of their top of the line car.

Chevrolet's anniversary car was an even higher-zoot version of their Bel Air that they dubbed the Impala.

Available as either a Sport Coupe or a convertible, the Impala was available with a variety of powerplants. The most vanilla was the 235 cubic inch Blue Flame six, the latest iteration of the by-then long in the tooth Chevy Stovebolt, rated at 145 SAE gross horsepower.

But why would you get a swoopy Impala with such a dull grocery-getter of a motor? Moving up the option list came three variations of the 283 Turbo Fire small block V-8: a single two-barrel carb version with 185 horsepower, a 230-horse 4-barrel, and the Ramjet fuel-injected 250 horsepower version. (The latter two were down a few ponies from the previous year because they now had 9.5:1 compression and hydraulic lifters to civilize them a bit.)

The real news, though, was the debut of the new Turbo Thrust 348 cubic inch big block V-8. In single four-barrel trim the 348 was rated at 250 horsepower, while the triple-two-barrel Super Turbo Thrust put out 280.

The Honey Beige ragtop in the photos was snapped in July of 2023 using a Canon EOS-1D Mark IV and an EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom lens.

1966 Chevrolet Impala Sport Coupe

The 1966 model year was the second one for the fourth generation of Chevrolet's Impala nameplate, and some notable exterior styling differences set it apart from the previous year's model.

The lower opening of the grille was shrink and the pattern of the grille itself was changed. Around back, the six circular taillights, which had been a hallmark of full-size Chevys for most of a decade by that point, were replaced with six rectangular ones.

The '66 Impala also had chrome side molding to protect from door dings but at some point this hardtop coupe has had that removed and the mounting holes filled.

Mechanically, full synchromesh finally trickled down to even the base three-speed column-shifted gearbox. The base motor remained the Turbo-Fire 283 small block V-8 with a two-barrel carb, rated at 195 SAE gross horsepower, with the 155 horsepower 250 cubic inch Turbo-Thrift inline six as a credit delete option. 

Optional V-8s included the 220 horsepower 4-barrel version of the 283 as well as the 275-horse Turbo-Fire 327. For real fun, the buyer could opt for big block Turbo-Jet V-8s in the form of the 396, which was rated at 325 SAE gross horsepower, or one of two flavors of the new Chevy 427: the 390-hp L36, with hydraulic lifters and a 10.25:1 compression ratio, or the raucous solid-lifter L72, rated at 425 horses.

In a period test of a 1966 Caprice hardtop with the L36 427 and a 3-speed Turbo-Hydramatic and a 2.73:1 rear end, essentially the same car with plusher trim and a different roofline, Motor Trend recorded a 7.9 second zero-to-sixty run and a best quarter mile performance of 16.3 seconds at 88 miles per hour.

The car in the photos was snapped in January of 2020 using a Sony Cyber-shot RX100 point-and-shoot camera.

1965 Chevrolet Impala Convertible

While Super Sports, like the '65 Crocus Yellow L30 hardtop we saw back in August, get all the attention, a regular 1965 Impala is nothing to sneeze at, either.

'65 was the first model year of the Impala's fourth generation. It saw the car move from the old X-shaped frame to a new perimeter frame structure to aid in achieving those Sixties Detroit goals of Longer, Lower, and Wider.

The fender badges tell us that popping the hood would reveal a Turbo-Fire 283 cubic inch small-block V-8. Rated at 195 SAE gross horsepower, it featured a Rochester 2-barrel carb and a 9.25:1 compression ratio. It was no rocket, but it was definitely up to some chill top-down cruising in your 3,765 pound boulevardier.

This super clean Regal Red example was photographed with a Nikon D7100 and 16-80mm f/2.8-4E VR zoom lens in April of 2022.

1965 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport

Check out this immaculate 1965 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport coupe parked out in front of Good Morning Mama's on 54th Street while its owner was inside enjoying a delicious brunch.

In Crocus Yellow with a black vinyl roof, this thing sure is a looker. While the late third generation "six-four" Impalas get all the love, I think the more flowing lines of the early fourth gen cars make them the best looking Impala SS of them all. That sloped rear window blending into the sculpted rear fenders is an aesthetic improvement over the more vertical rear window on the '64.

Despite what you might think, not all Impala SS's came with V-8s. The base motor on the 1965 Super Sport was the 140 horsepower 230 cubic inch "Turbo-Thrift" inline six. Next up on the option list was the 2bbl L77 283cid V-8, rated at 220bhp.

The "327" fender badges and single exhaust outlet tell us that the buyer of this car sprang the ninety-five bucks for option L30: which was Chevy's 327 cubic inch "Turbo-Fire" V-8 with a 4-barrel Carter WCFB carburetor and 10.5:1 compression ratio for a rated output of 250 SAE gross horsepower. (For $138, they could have gotten the higher-compression dual-exhaust 300bhp L74 327.)

Car Life magazine road tested a '65 Impala SS coupe with the L30 327 and a 2-speed Powerglide and measured a 0-60 time of 9.8 seconds and a 17.8 second quarter with a trap speed of 81 mph. Top speed was clocked at 107.

Dig those groovy taillights!

These pictures were snapped in March of 2024 using a Nikon D700 & 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6G zoom lens.