Photo: Mecum
In the history of American car making, the Chevrolet El Camino occupies a special place. It is not, by far, the only coupé utility made by an American carmaker – Ford, for instance, has a lot more experience with them Down Under – but it is without a doubt the most exciting one to roam American shores.
Born out of the carmaker’s need to offer something fresh to the American customer and at the same time steal some people away from the Ford Ranchero, the El Camino quickly rose to icon status in some circles.
Blending the looks of a station wagon at the front with that of a pickup at the rear (the car is classified as such in the U.S.) the model failed to be welcomed with as much excitement by the general public as Chevy hoped. First made in 1959, it went out of production in 1987, as did the entire coupe utility segment in the States.
But the El Camino remains in high-regard among custom and auction-goers across the country. Especially when we’re talking about an SS variant as the one we have in the gallery above. The SS badge, born for the first time with the Impala, made its way on the El Camino as well in 1968 as a separate model, and is today among the most sought after models.
This here El Camino is specced as an SS, with all the trim, suspension and engine upgrades that came with it. The car is powered by a 350ci (5.7-liter) V8 linked to an automatic transmission that back in the day developed up to 325 hp.
Restoration work has been done on this orange El Camino, and that can also be seen at the interior. There, black bucket seats are to be found in front of the black dashboard, both elements giving the car a certain feel of meanness.
The machine is listed for sale during a June Mecum auction.
Blending the looks of a station wagon at the front with that of a pickup at the rear (the car is classified as such in the U.S.) the model failed to be welcomed with as much excitement by the general public as Chevy hoped. First made in 1959, it went out of production in 1987, as did the entire coupe utility segment in the States.
But the El Camino remains in high-regard among custom and auction-goers across the country. Especially when we’re talking about an SS variant as the one we have in the gallery above. The SS badge, born for the first time with the Impala, made its way on the El Camino as well in 1968 as a separate model, and is today among the most sought after models.
This here El Camino is specced as an SS, with all the trim, suspension and engine upgrades that came with it. The car is powered by a 350ci (5.7-liter) V8 linked to an automatic transmission that back in the day developed up to 325 hp.
Restoration work has been done on this orange El Camino, and that can also be seen at the interior. There, black bucket seats are to be found in front of the black dashboard, both elements giving the car a certain feel of meanness.
The machine is listed for sale during a June Mecum auction.
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