Bench Seat Project: 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS 396
Even though the Chevelle SS 396 was no longer a separate series after 1968, it continued to sell well. Some 53,600 of them were built in 1970 along with another 8,700 with the new SS 454 option. The seller’s 1970 SS 396 finished in Smoke Gray looks nice enough, but we’re told the engine will need to be rebuilt (and it’s not numbers matching). From the looks of things, this car sports an older restoration, but nothing is mentioned about one or whether this could be a clone. Located in Fort Payne, Alabama, this Super Sport is available here on eBay where $14,100 is the magic number so far with no reserve in sight.
The big news for the 1970 Chevelle SS was the 454 cubic inch V8 being added to the roster. However, 86% of SS buyers still went for the 396 which was now actually 402 CI. Chevrolet continued to market the muscle car as the SS 396 because they had so much equity invested in the brand. We’ve read that the reason Chevy increased the displacement by just six CI was to fool the insurance industry which was well aware of the 396’s reputation, but surely that didn’t work very often. The seller’s car has a TH-400 automatic transmission and a 12-bolt rear end to round things out.
If someone decided to clone a Malibu Sport Coupe here as an SS 396, they cheaped out and stuck with the bench seat interior and column-shifted transmission. Which makes me think this car left the factory as you see it. We’re told the engine needs to be rebuilt, but the seller doesn’t say why he/she thinks this. The body, paint, and interior all look good with no signs of rust, including the especially clean trunk pan.
Many Chevelle SS 396s of this era are found painted red or black, so the dark gray on this one looks like a nice exception. If all you have to do to get this SS back on the road is to refresh the engine, this could be reasonably price find – if this bidding doesn’t go crazy toward the end of the auction.
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Comments
This is like a plain Jane chevelle there’s nothing to catch your eye!
Sleeper potential 😴
I have a ’70 SS just like this in black cherry.
I love the incognito simplicity of it with the bench / column shift and no stripes. Every single clone / tribute car or whatever the hell else they label a fake all look the same.
The 396 was bored .030 over to 402 to meet emission standards. Chevrolet kept the name because nothing else was significantly changed, the name had a familiar ring, and reputation.
The bench seat and column shift may have been the ‘cheap’ option but it was also the smart option if one was looking to minimize weight for ‘acceleration contest’ activities. There was even a further step ‘down’ on the cheap scale in going with cloth seating surfaces over the vinyl. This makes the bench seat a rarity and the ones that are still intact should really be maintained.
This car is a mess although it appears solid where it counts. Is it worth it?? Show me the build sheet.
The bench seat is just standard Malibu interior, The wiper switch is missing for some reason and the factory A/C is missing everything. The vacuum hose to the brake booster is missing and I can’t see any brake tubing from the master cylinder. This car is going to need mega dollars to be presentable again
At least is has the SS dash, I had a ’71 with bucket seats and column shift auto, green with white vinyl roof…gas was $ .68 cents a gallon and I couldn’t afford it at 11 MPG.
Well, I just don’t know what to think. If it’s a clone and the motor needs a complete rebuild, (which I’m assuming it does) I believe that it is overpriced, although not terribly. If it’s the real deal, given the condition and the unanswered questions, it’s probably pretty close. I am a huge fan of ’70 Chevelles, but there is just something about this particular car that gives me pause.
I had a 454 with 450 HP. It really went to all the gas stations in Maine. But it could motivate. 4.55 gears and a 4 speed. 11.5 in a quarter at 108 mph. 7.65 in one eight at 96 mph. what a car