There's a lot of debate as to which Chevrolet Impala is the prettiest. The original 1958 with its imposing front fascia or the second-gen model with its massive, V-shaped rear finds? The more conventional third-gen coupe or the muscular, late 1960s Impala? Well, I like all of them as long as they're finished in the right color.
Chevrolet's color palette included many great hues in the 1960s, so it's really difficult to get it wrong, but I tend to like the green and blue hues more than the rest. Turquoise is perhaps one of the most popular, but I like my Impalas in the somewhat rare Surf Green. If you haven't seen one yet, here's a 1962 survivor finished in this fantastic color.
Why a survivor, you ask? Well, this Impala was parked into a barn some 15 years ago and it hasn't seen a public road ever since. One and a half decades later and the folks over at YouTube's "IowaClassicCars" saved it from a lifetime in storage and decided to put it back on the street. Amazingly enough, the 327-cubic-inch (5.4-liter) V8 engine fired up without much intervention.
And as the video below shows, the Impala runs pretty smooth, despite sitting in storage for so long. Sure, it needs to gulp gas from a can until its fuel tank will be fixed, but it's a solid find for a 70-year-old classic.
But while it looks fantastic, the Surf Green paint is by no means original. This car originally left the factory in Twilight Turquoise. The front seats are finished in a similar hue, which provides a great contrast with the mostly black upholstery, but there's no word as to whether they're original or not.
Anyway, while the exterior is no longer finished in the original paint, this light and metallic shade of green looks a lot like the Surf Green that Chevrolet offered for the 1962 model year. So I guess we could say that it's pretty authentic relative to what GM had to offer that specific year.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the "SS" badges are fake. This Impala is a plain Sport Coupe model, which is nothing to sneeze at given the 327 Turbo Fire engine under the hood. Chevrolet offered this engine in two flavors, rated at 250 or 300 horsepower. This one's the four-barrel version, so it packs the extra oomph.
It's an Impala that needs a bit of work to become road-worthy, but it's definitely a cool find. Check it out taking its first drive in 15 years in the video below.
Ask Ciprian about cars and he'll reveal an obsession with classics and an annoyance with modern design cues. Read his articles and you'll understand why his ideal SUV is the 1969 Chevrolet K5 Blazer. Full profile
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