1969 Chevrolet Impala V8 350ci from North America

Summary:

She may be old, but she'll hold!!!

Faults:

This car was sold in 1980 with a rebuilt engine and the original transmission.

General Comments:

A behemoth that lasted a really long time.

Built when GM took pride in their cars.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 26th September, 2020

26th Sep 2020, 16:38

The last sentence in your review says it all.

28th Sep 2020, 02:19

Thanks for writing about this :)

The original 350 V8s were interesting.

You could have a Regular Fuel, 255 HP, 4-Barrel Quadrajet V8 with the Small-Valve heads (1.72 Intakes/1.50 Exhausts).

You could have also had a Premium Fuel, 300 HP 4-Barrel Quadrajet V8 with the Larger-Valve heads (1.94 Intakes/1.50 Exhausts).

1969 Chevrolet Impala 4-Door 327ci V8 from North America

Summary:

HOOPTIE!

Faults:

- Tires

- Carb

- Body rot

- Coil spring

General Comments:

I bought this vehicle just because I wanted some beater to drive around for the winter to preserve my nice car. I bought this car for $900 from a middle-aged Puerto Rican man in a nearby city. The car had terrible bondo, a white spray-paint job, and two snapped-off studs in the intake manifold. The price was knocked down from $1000 because in trying to get the car started (by pouring gasoline down the carb) the guy set it on fire, trashing the air filter and thermac unit.

After getting the car flat-bedded home, I set about taking the carburetor off so I could remove the broken studs with a torch and a pair of vice-grips. I replaced the gasket and finally the car roared to life - the tired old 327 ran rough and shrieked like a banshee from the combination of manifold exhaust leaks and the poorly-installed cherry bomb exhaust. The Rochester 2-barrel carburetor constantly stuck its needle, requiring frequent bashing with a hammer or rock.

The car had a mix-match of bald 14 inch bias plys, bald 14 inch radials, and at least 3 different kinds of rims. One tire in particular was so bad that chunks of rubber flew off when driving down the road.

The TH350 transmission shifted okay, and the massive weight of the car coupled with absolutely ruined shock absorbers and a broken front-left coil spring meant the car handled like a boat.

I drove the car around in this state for a while, and once while on the way to work another tire decided to explode. I then abandoned the car in a FasTrac gas station parking lot while I hitched a ride to work. It stayed there for two days until I finally got another tire for it. After this, I was getting tired of it so I put the thing out on the street with a for sale sign and sold it - at $500 profit!

9/10 - Would recommend.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 25th October, 2017

26th Oct 2017, 00:05

Nice story.

26th Oct 2017, 07:56

I had 4 Impalas; the newest a 1964. Just shows you how durable these great cars are. None of mine lost money either.

29th Oct 2017, 02:57

You should experience one of these before it is in Stage 4 - End of life status.

In reply to 29th Oct 2017, 02:57

29th Oct 2017, 15:53

I posted the 4 63 and 64 Impala post. Only 1 was in great condition when I bought them. Not all at once. But 3 were Super Sports. Back then you bought cars with nice interiors as there were not as many reproduction parts readily available. We use to do the weekend junkyard search and you could find parts there well into the 80s. You had high quality paint available to repaint before all the EPA hit. Easy to build. Some needed floor pans and rear quarters. As bad as this gem on this review sounded, it still ran. Not something I would go after for just 500 profit, but a pretty good and funny story.

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1969 Chevrolet Impala 327 V8 from North America

Summary:

Park it, fill it with dirt and use it as a planter

Faults:

Engine would intermittently stop running, body rusted out, suspension sagged and became very loose. Transmission was basically useless junk, and the brakes could barely stop a bicycle going uphill. Engine eventually froze up.

General Comments:

I think this car was designed by the same engineers that designed the Sherman Tank. The driver's side door on this car weighs exactly as much as a 2009 Toyota Corolla. (at least if feels like it) This car is the perfect car for use in a demolition derby in which the competition drives armor plated hummers. The only problem with this car is that it is: unreliable, inefficient, unsafe, slow, handles poorly, leaks in the rain, is very loud, and is one of the reasons GM is bankrupt today.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 27th August, 2009

28th Aug 2009, 15:40

You bought a '69 car in '69, and it already had 60,000 miles? I think that explains all the problems right there...

19th Feb 2011, 01:13

I owned a '69 Impala sedan with a 350 back in college 12 years ago. I paid $500.00 for it with unknown miles, and installed a new water pump AND timing chain/gears just because I heard the nylon gears wear out. Long story short, that car was the best damn reliable car I ever owned. I own a '06 BMW 3 series and it's been in the shop more than my garage, drives me nuts.

I bought a newer 2000 Acura Legend in '02 after the Impala was gone, and had nothing but transmission problems. I don't know what you're complaining about, it seems some people and older cars don't go together well.

In reply to 19th Feb 2011, 01:13

16th Sep 2022, 13:35

This is my dream car, people that say that it's better off as a planter should probably just sell it to someone that will appreciate it or at least fix it up and sell it to someone that wants an old car, but doesn't have the time to fix up a beautiful car.

In reply to 16th Sep 2022, 13:35

17th Sep 2022, 11:43

I had a total of 4 Impalas 63-64. The best was a power top convertible with factory 4 speed with console. A full size car. I later bought a 70 Chevelle SS mid size 4 speed. Having full frames, both were a better choice than a unibody.