Photo: Craiglist Euless Texas
If there's one story that keeps being replayed in the story of the muscle car, it's how 1973 was the year the clock struck midnight. Through geopolitical tomfoolery completely divorced from the day-to-day goings on at Detroit's big three (plus AMC), the OPEC-induced oil crisis of '73 was the moment all the fun ended for American auto engineers. People who now had to deal with crippling emissions restrictions to boot. But contrary to what you might think, this all didn't happen at once.
There were still good times to be had at Chevrolet in 1973. This Chevelle SS 454 here before us is proof positive. But partially because muscle car fans tend to hyper-fixate on model years between 1966 and 1972, you won't find hoards of seemingly mindless zombies swarming around later Chevelles the same way you would with a model just a year older. Perhaps no model in Chevy's lineup was so thoroughly transformed as the Chevelle in the early 1970s.
The Chevelle's once sleek and aerodynamic silhouette was dramatically altered in 1973. Its ever-popular four-door hardtop and convertible models were dropped, starting with this, the inaugural year of the third-generation Chevelle. Though not any bigger or smaller than its more popular second-gen predecessor, the Chevelle felt demonstrably more blob-like in its appearance, owing to new federal safety guidelines dictating things like the shape of the front bumpers and headlights. 73 Chevelles were at least the first of the breed to sport front disk brakes as standard equipment, but it can't be said the rest of the car's internals were up to snuff.
Consider that the 454-cubic inch (7.4-liter) Chevy big block V8 under the hood of this example for sale on eBay claimed to make 275 horsepower from the factory. Just two model years earlier, this engine was rated at 365 hp in its LS5 form and as much as 450 in its ultimate LS6 form. Granted, changes in how the federal government measures power figures from gross hp without accessories attached to net horsepower with all the engine trimmings as it would be in a road car might explain some of why hp figures dipped so dramatically in the early 70s.
Even so, 1973 was also the year the Engelhard Corporation, Middlesex County, New Jersey, manufactured the first production-grade catalytic converter to meet new federal emissions regulations soon to be implemented. If switching from gross to gross hp to net hp wouldn't be the knockout blow to the first muscle car renaissance, all this new emissions compliance tech would do the job.
Therefore, this '73 Chevelle is in a tricky spot. Though not as stunning as a gen-II Chevelle, it's still quite a handsome car. With functional factory air conditioning and a tasteful black vinyl interior, it's likely a nice place to spend a small road trip as well. This isn't the muscle car for every person. But for just $15,000, it is at least affordable.
The Chevelle's once sleek and aerodynamic silhouette was dramatically altered in 1973. Its ever-popular four-door hardtop and convertible models were dropped, starting with this, the inaugural year of the third-generation Chevelle. Though not any bigger or smaller than its more popular second-gen predecessor, the Chevelle felt demonstrably more blob-like in its appearance, owing to new federal safety guidelines dictating things like the shape of the front bumpers and headlights. 73 Chevelles were at least the first of the breed to sport front disk brakes as standard equipment, but it can't be said the rest of the car's internals were up to snuff.
Consider that the 454-cubic inch (7.4-liter) Chevy big block V8 under the hood of this example for sale on eBay claimed to make 275 horsepower from the factory. Just two model years earlier, this engine was rated at 365 hp in its LS5 form and as much as 450 in its ultimate LS6 form. Granted, changes in how the federal government measures power figures from gross hp without accessories attached to net horsepower with all the engine trimmings as it would be in a road car might explain some of why hp figures dipped so dramatically in the early 70s.
Even so, 1973 was also the year the Engelhard Corporation, Middlesex County, New Jersey, manufactured the first production-grade catalytic converter to meet new federal emissions regulations soon to be implemented. If switching from gross to gross hp to net hp wouldn't be the knockout blow to the first muscle car renaissance, all this new emissions compliance tech would do the job.
Therefore, this '73 Chevelle is in a tricky spot. Though not as stunning as a gen-II Chevelle, it's still quite a handsome car. With functional factory air conditioning and a tasteful black vinyl interior, it's likely a nice place to spend a small road trip as well. This isn't the muscle car for every person. But for just $15,000, it is at least affordable.
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