The 1960s were a time of rampant growth for American muscle cars. The US motor industry, the beloved Big Three in particular, was locked in an arms race of ever-growing machismo.
Amid this horsepower arms race, one car rose to prominence above all others. It immediately became one of the most iconic classics to emerge from this golden period in US motor industry history. It was, of course, the Chevrolet Chevelle Midsize, not the first muscle car of its kind but the one that would eventually be crowned king.
There’s also a certain magic to the car, a knowing wink that crosses generations. Again and again, people tell you that they bought an original to restore out of fond recollections of a long-ago uncle or their dad. Sentimentality sells. The Chevelle makes a great project car.
But what made the Chevelle such a notable offering when it was new, and why does it enjoy such a cachet as a classic car today? It’s time to explore the fascinating history and timeless appeal of this midsize masterpiece.
The A-Body Legacy
You might be surprised to find out that the Chevrolet Chevelle Midsize can trace its lineage back to 1923! The A-body platform on which the Chevelle was built is one of the most legendary muscle car chassis of all time.
Over the years, it spawned countless offspring, including, but not limited to, the Chevelle. Other famed models that rode on the A-body include the Malibu, Monte Carlo, GTO, and Cutlass.
Stretching back to the 1920s, when General Motors developed its A-body platform to underpin Buick, Chevrolet, Oakland, Pontiac, and Oldsmobile vehicles, the impractical architecture became an inexpensive mainstay through the mid-1950s.
When General Motors dusted off its A-body architecture for the final-generation Bel Air – it was reissued in 1958 and updated for 1959, but inevitably doomed – other automakers were taking a similar strategy to name the vehicles that rode atop this aging workhorse.
The same A-body continued into 1959 to support the redesigned Bel Air as well as the introduction of the two-door Buick Special Skylark fastback coupe and the new-for-1958 Chevrolet Impala convertible and three-door hardtop.
Buick called it its Special, Chevrolet called it its (moans) Biscayne, Pontiac called it its Star Chief (standard), Catalina (four-door midsize), Chieftain (two-door big car) and Super Chief (two-door big car with fancy trim).
The A-body’s longevity is further testimony to the car’s basic strength and utility. In the relatively simple machines of that era, the A-body lent itself to a variety of body styles, including wagons and convertibles, throughout the 1950s.
Resurrection and Evolution: The Chevelle Is Born
General Motors suspended the A-body for two years but returned to it for what was effectively the first year of a new generation of automotive design with the 1964 model year.
Consumer tastes were shifting in the 1960s, with some buyers looking for smaller, more fuel-efficient transportation and others coveting high-speed thrill machines.
Encouraged by Ford’s experimentation with a fully unibody Fairlane in 1962, Chevrolet set about creating its own ‘intermediate’ offering to fill a void that we now call the midsize category.
Its exterior was to hark back to the great ‘Tri-five’ Chevrolets of 1955-1957, with the same 115-inch wheelbase (stretched slightly to 117 for wagons), and to be built off a single platform for maximum configuration diversity.
What threw this car off so much was that it was a full-size vehicle platform underneath a medium-sized body. Even with a four-link suspension with coil springs, the Chevelle rode and handled more like a proper intermediate vehicle should have.
The first-generation Chevelle offered an impressive array of body styles:
- Two-door hardtop coupe.
- Four-door sedan.
- Four-door station wagon.
- Convertible.
- Two-door utility.
Engine choices were as broad as the body styles, including the fuel-efficient HiThrift I6, the invincible 396 cubic inch V8 of the SS model, and everything in between. It was this flexibility, combined with a forward-thinking build ethos typical of all Chevelles, that helped the Chevelle’s initial generation achieve such insane success. The second generation was even more of the same.
The 1968 Model
The 1968 model year introduced an all-new body for the Chevelle that followed the design of the wildly successful – and fuel-injected – midsize Camaro.
The Chevelle shared much of the Camaro’s visage, including a long hood, fastback-style design, and short rear deck that created a more aggressive, sporty stance.
Chevrolet realized that the world had changed, and the Chevelle’s radical styling updates brought the A-body into the modern era: The Chevelle’s new body shell embraced the A-body legend, continuing to offer the full range of engines from fuel-sipping sixes to fire-breathing big-blocks.
Another fascinating aspect of the ‘new’ second-generation Chevelle was its annual styling updates: the models from 1968 through ’72 each received significant design changes from the year preceding it. Such innovations allowed Chevrolet to keep the Chevelle a true original with each succeeding model year.
The SS Package: When Two Letters Spell Performance
A discussion of the Chevelle would be complete only by first mentioning the SS (Super Sport) package. These two letters have long been associated with high performance in General Motors cars, and the Chevelle SS certainly was no exception.
Beginning as an option package on the Malibu trim in 1964, within two years, it had come into its own as a model line all its own – the SS. Here are the SSs in stages:
| Year | Engine Options | Horsepower Range |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | 283 cu in V8 (initial) | 220 hp |
| 327 cu in V8 (mid-year) | 250-300 hp | |
| 1965 | 327 cu in L79 | 350 hp |
| 1966 | 396 cu in V8 | 320-375 hp |
| 1970 | 402 cu in V8 (marketed as 396) | 350-375 hp |
| 454 cu in V8 | 360-450 hp |
The most powerful Chevelle of its day was the ’70 LS6 version of the 454 cubic inch V8. That beast of a motor, with a single four-barrel Holley carburetor and a cowl induction hood, cranked out 450 horsepower and 500 lb-ft of torque, making it one of the most powerful engines ever offered in a Chevrolet passenger car.
Only about 4,500 LS6 Chevelles were produced, making them highly desirable among collectors today.
Raw power wasn’t the main thing the package brought—in the SS’s terminology, ‘appearance’ was SS emblems, special vinyl seats with a floor console, and a four-gauge cluster.
As it later evolved, the package came with several other performance improvements, such as updates to suspension components and increased engine cooling.
The Twilight Years: Adapting to a Changing World
But the third-generation Chevelle, appearing in 1973, spelled the end for all of that. Not only did the pillarless hardtop design – a hallmark of the Chevelle line – make no sense now with the new federal rollover-crash safety regulations, but they were all but mandatory in 4-door cars by 1973.
Among the changes made for the return of the pillared two-door coupe was Chevrolet’s first return to conventional styling with a two-door coupe since the early 1960s, now dubbed the ‘Colonnade Hardtop’ – the body style that would go on to be the single most popular style of the 1970s and into the ’80s.
Engine choices remained diverse, from a 250 cubic inch straight-6 to a huge 454 cubic inch big block, but even that largest engine could boast only 245 horsepower – proof again of the era of plenty being turned to one of diminishment through the 1973 oil embargo and tighter emissions standards.
By the late 1970s, the Chevelle line grew to include more upscale models in general, such as the top-of-the-line Laguna series (with power seats and saccharine options such as vinyl or cloth color-matched tops) and, in 1978, the Monte Carlo spin-off that would eventually also catalyze the end of the Chevelle for good.
A Legacy That Lives On
Though the Chevelle ceased to be produced long ago, auto culture was indelibly shaped by the car, which is why it remains such an appealing and evocative classic today.
With a mix of utility, performance, and style that made it a successful car in its era, the Chevelle is now the gold standard of a dream car.
If you want to return to the muscle days with a Chevelle of your own, there’s nothing like it for restoring a matching survivor or restomodding one into a hot street machine. Why the Chevelle? It’s easy: with a rich history, considerable aftermarket support, and reliable performance, it’s an ideal choice for retro enthusiasts and hot-rodders alike.
The Chevrolet Chevelle’s story, from senior compact to muscle car icon, is one small, shining thread in the tapestry of automotive history. It’s a story of what could be when the big, freewheeling corporations of US carmakers were pushing the edge of performance and styling to create compelling, showy machines that still resonate today.
The Chevelle lived beyond these specifications and is synonymous with a period, a testing ground for new ideas and technology, and a dream car to thousands of enthusiasts.
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