Chevrolet’s Best Classic American Muscle Cars

The Chevy Camaro is one of the most iconic American muscle cars around, and can usually be found at Chevy dealers. Introduced for the 1967 model year and still in production today, it offers an incredible blend of performance and style. However, for today we thought that we would take a different route and instead look back on some of the other vehicles that make up the ranks of Chevrolet’s best classic American muscle cars. Because as noteworthy as the Chevy Camaro is, it was actually a latecomer to the muscle car scene of the 1960s. And when it was first hitting the local drag strips, the Super Sport versions of Chevy’s other cars, such as the original Chevy Impala, Chevy Chevelle, and Chevy Nova, had been racking up quarter-mile records for years. And while these classic muscle cars only ruled the streets for a short time, their influence on American car culture is still widely felt today.

The Original Muscle Car – The Chevy Impala SS

Today the Chevy Impala has a reputation as being a nondescript comfortable midsize sedan. However, back in 1961, the Impala was one of the very first muscle cars to hit the street. Equipped with its top 409 cubic inch (6.7L) V8 engine producing 360 horsepower and 409 lb-ft of torque, the 1961 Impala was the king of the drag strip and could run the quarter-mile in under 16 seconds. This made the car an instant success and even inspired the popular Beach Boys song “She’s Really Fine, My 409.” All of the 1961 Impalas 409s also came standard with the SS package, which included state of the art features such as power steering and power brakes to help control the powerful vehicle. However, the only transmission option was a four-speed manual.

Over the next few years, the already excellent performance of the Impala 409 would improve even further as its power was increased over the 400 horsepower mark. The 1963 model year even saw limited use of an even larger 427 cubic inch (7.0L) engine with 430 horsepower. But while the Chevy Impala may have helped kick off the muscle car era, the focus was quickly shifting away from full-size cars to lighter and smaller vehicles. For 1965 the Impala was redesigned, and the famous 409 engine removed from the lineup, although its smaller 396 cubic inch (6.5L) replacement was just as powerful. A larger 427 cubic inch (7.0L) engine was reintroduced for the 1966 model year Impala SS, but it was unable to rekindle the popularity of the original 409 and 1969 was the last year for the classic Impala SS.

The Muscle Car King – The Chevy Chevelle SS

Just as the American muscle car scene was turning to smaller vehicles than the full-size Chevy Impala, Chevrolet introduced the all-new midsize Chevy Chevelle. While the original 1964 Chevelle did offer an SS trim, it came with a somewhat anemic 283 cubic inch (4.6L) V8 engine producing just 220 horsepower. But before the year was over, a larger 327 cubic inch (5.4L) engine with 300 horsepower was added. For 1965, Chevy upped the 327’s output to 350 horsepower and made it the standard engine for the Chevelle SS. The company also introduced an even more powerful 1965 Chevelle Z16 with a 396 cubic inch (6.5L) engine with an incredible 375 horsepower as well as an upgraded four-speed manual transmission, improved suspension, and host of luxury features such as a tachometer and seatbelts.

While the Chevelle Z16 only lasted for a single year, its large 396 engine became the new standard for the Chevelle SS, although it was more commonly tuned for either 325 or 350 horsepower. But there was another Chevelle engine option as well, although few people knew about it and it took some connections to get. This was a 427 cubic inch (7.0L) 425 horsepower monster taken directly from the Chevy Corvette and only offered through Chevy’s COPO program. However, the ultimate Chevelle came after the car’s 1970 model year redesign. This revision added the 454 cubic inch (7.4L) LS-6 engine that produced 450 horsepower and 500 lb-ft of torque as well as twin racing stripes to make the Chevelle SS stand out on the streets. The 1970 Chevelle SS 454 was arguably the best classic American muscle car ever built and could run a 13-second quarter-mile, but it also marked the beginning of the end of the era and was only produced for a single year. Increasing government regulations had begun stifling the horsepower wars, and the following 1973 OPEC oil embargo turned the public away from fuel-hungry V8’s. By 1974, the once-dominant Chevy Chevelle SS had disappeared entirely.

Muscle on a Budget – The Chevy Nova SS

While the Chevy Impala SS and the Chevy Chevelle SS took the headlines, there was a third competitor in Chevy’s stable of classic American muscle cars. In need of a new compact car for the budget market, Chevrolet introduced the all-new Chevy II for 1962. The top version of this new car was dubbed the Nova, and it did not take long for a muscle car version of the new vehicle to appear. The original 1963 Chevy Nova SS was mostly an appearance package and came with the same 194 cubic inch (3.2L) straight-six engine found in the standard Nova, but for 1964 the Nova received its first V8 engine. Displacing 283 cubic inches (4.6L) and generating 195 horsepower, this engine might not seem worthy of the muscle car name. However, the Nova SS only weighed around 2,500 pounds, so this engine was enough to enable the little car to run a quarter-mile in around 16 seconds.

Still, with the horsepower wars heating up, that respectable performance would not satisfy muscle car shoppers for long, and for 1965 the Nova SS received a larger 327 cubic inch (5.4L) V8 with 300 horsepower. This engine shaved a second off of the car’s quarter-mile time and put it in the running with larger and more expensive cars. When the redesigned Chevy Nova SS hit the market for 1968, an even larger 396 cubic inch (6.5L) big-block V8 became available with an impressive 375 horsepower. But like the Chevy Chevelle SS 454, the days of the Chevy Nova SS 396 were numbered. The big-block engine disappeared from the options list for 1971, and the remaining smaller V8s saw their compression ratios lowered as well. By 1973, the Chevy Nova SS had been reduced to nothing more than an appearance package, although it lingered on in this state until being finally discontinued in 1979.

The 1973 demise of the Chevy Chevelle SS and big-block Chevy Nova SS effectively marked the end of the era of classic American muscle cars. While the cars that followed them were safer and more comfortable, environmental regulations and rising fuel prices meant that they were usually less powerful, which helped contribute to the mystique surrounding the 1960s muscle cars and enshrined their place in automotive history. Manufacturers have since discovered how to produce cars that are both fast and efficient, and even a modern Chevy Impala with its 3.6L V6 can give some of the classic Chevy muscle cars a run for their money on the drag strip, but this has done little to tarnish the reputation that the original cars established over half a century ago.