Photo: Garage Kept Motors
The L72 big block engine was one of the most important powerplants offered by Chevrolet for its cars back in the 1960s. It was launched in 1966 and used on the Corvette, but also on the Chevelle and Camaro as a COPO offering. Chevy’s full-sized models, the Impala, Bel Air, and Biscayne got it too.
The L72 was made only until 1969 as the carmaker’s most powerful engine at the time. It’s so rare on the cars of the age that anytime one pops up today with this hardware, it is poised to draw some attention. Like the one we have here.
You’re looking at an Impala SS from 1969 that allegedly packed the L72 hardware – a 427ci (7.0-liter) unit capable of developing 425 hp. It is said to be one of just 500 or so Impalas to have been fitted with the powerplant back then, and would have been a real treasure chest had the original engine still been there.
The vehicle is for sale, and the dealer in charge with that says it has all the paperwork to prove L72 was what powered the car – including “a signed and notarized affidavit from the owner of the Chevrolet dealership that sold the car brand new,” and “a copy of the original MSO that states this vehicle was a sold as a 427/425 car.”
But the asking price is of just $47,900, and that’s because the original powerplant is no longer there. We’re not told what happened to it, other than it was lost prior to a restoration in 2004, but luckily, a second L72 (stamped, thus apparently good as far as car shows judging standards go) was located and fitted under the hood.
Sporting a Blue Metallic exterior over a white interior, the car packs other changes as well, including an Air Ride suspension that gets it very close to the ground. If this modification does not suit the taste of whoever buys the car, the “original components were saved and can be bolted on.”
You’re looking at an Impala SS from 1969 that allegedly packed the L72 hardware – a 427ci (7.0-liter) unit capable of developing 425 hp. It is said to be one of just 500 or so Impalas to have been fitted with the powerplant back then, and would have been a real treasure chest had the original engine still been there.
The vehicle is for sale, and the dealer in charge with that says it has all the paperwork to prove L72 was what powered the car – including “a signed and notarized affidavit from the owner of the Chevrolet dealership that sold the car brand new,” and “a copy of the original MSO that states this vehicle was a sold as a 427/425 car.”
But the asking price is of just $47,900, and that’s because the original powerplant is no longer there. We’re not told what happened to it, other than it was lost prior to a restoration in 2004, but luckily, a second L72 (stamped, thus apparently good as far as car shows judging standards go) was located and fitted under the hood.
Sporting a Blue Metallic exterior over a white interior, the car packs other changes as well, including an Air Ride suspension that gets it very close to the ground. If this modification does not suit the taste of whoever buys the car, the “original components were saved and can be bolted on.”
Google News