6-Banger Survivor: 1965 Chevrolet Impala
Here’s a trivia question for you. What GM car outsold the popular Ford Mustang in 1965? The answer is the Chevrolet Impala, which had 803,400 deliveries vs. the Mustang’s 680,500 (this includes the “1964 ½” Mustangs built as 1965s in 1964). And as surprising as it may sound, quite a lot of those big Chevies came with six-cylinder power (56,600 units). The seller’s car combines the sweeping good looks of the Impala Sport Coupe with the practicality of a Biscayne taxicab with a six-banger and “3-on-the-tree” manual transmission. Located in Sacramento, California, this old Chevy is available here on craigslist for $18,000, patina and all. Another great heads-up from Pat L.!
It’s not easy trying to figure out how many six-cylinder motors went into a 1965 Chevy Impala Sport Coupe. The reasoning for doing so is a little puzzling as the logical choice was the 327 V8 in a car this size. Records indicate that a little more than 423,000 Sport Coupes were assembled in ’65, and since the Impala was the only one to be offered in this body style, they get all the marbles. But you’d have to think that more 4-door Impala sedans got the i-6 rather than the sport coupe model, which was also closely identified with the Super Sport, a hot car in 1965.
Under the hood should be the Chevy “Turbo-Thrift” straight-six that was on the checklist from 1962 to 2001. During 1963 to 1965, the displacement was 230 cubic inches, rising to 250 in 1966. The engine featured seven main bearings instead of the four-bearing design of its predecessor, the “Stovebolt” engine, and was considerably smaller and approximately 100 lbs. lighter.
We’re told this Chevy is all original and unrestored and looks the part. There is no evidence of rust, though the light green paint has its fair share of patina on upward-facing surfaces. The interior is acceptable except for the front bench seat cover, which is stained and tattered, so it will need replacing. We’re told this budget-minded Impala runs well with an odometer reading of 10,000 miles (100,000?). This would be a good car to clean up but not repaint, then take it to Cars & Coffee and wait for surprised faces when you pop open the hood!
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Comments
Good, if you like patina; I don’t particularly care for it. I could convince myself to leave the six in place (for the shock value, LOL!) but I’d HAVE to get this beauty painted! GLWTS!! :-)
Well, that’s not an entirely fair trivia question, as they were 2 different markets. A more accurate comparison would be, these outsold all family type cars, but also a bit misleading, in typical Madison Ave. hype. The ’65 Ford, fresh design and resting on the ’64 COTY, wasn’t far behind, at like 900K units. Heck, even Rambler sold over 300K cars in ’65. Still, no denying the ’65 Chevy was a hit. It should be noted, the ’64 Impala was right up there too at 880K units. Can’t find a breakdown, most had V8s, but a few kept to their ways, and got the “Impala” for mom, but that’s it. Otherwise it’s going to be a basic one. Grandpa was one of the 1.15 million( I think) that bought a new ’65 Chevy Impala to replace his ’61 Bel Air. Most were junked and the ground up metal was sold to Japan to make Toyotas and replacement GM panels,,rust and all. I read it was one reason Asian cars and GM fenders rusted so quickly. This car has nothing, and will be a chore to drive. I’d be fine with it, but again, the manual trans, no P/S or brake, is going to be a deal breaker for many. Here’s a “LS” swap a waiting to happen.
Howard, I can’t address the rust issue on Asian vehicles, but the fender rust, usually the bottoms of the fenders behind the front wheels is attributed to the cowl design. Air and road debris, pine needles, leaves, dirt, water, etc enter at the cowl vent below the windshield and pile up in the bottoms of the fenders and hold moisture. It is almost expected that an average GM (and others) will rust in these areas.
1977 drove to Baltimore to buy my first car from a friend of my parents. Elderly lady. Pulled this exact color 1965 Sport Coupe out of a tiny garage. 33000 miles, 283 powerglide. $300. Great car for a young guy who knew nothing about motors to buy. Radiator, starter, fuel pump, water pump all went out in the next 2 years. How I figured out how to replace them with no internet and a family who never worked on cars is beyond me. Didn’t appreciate the car at the time, friends had bigger motors, faster muscle cars. Was the best car I’ve ever driven in the snow, could not get it stuck, and PA had horrible snow late 70’s. Wish I could afford one now! Amazed how much more they cost than my current 69 Cutlass S.
18K? About 13K too high
Agreed, this car is priced way too high. Also, I don’t for a second believe this car has only 10K miles on it. Under the hood says it’s been around the clock once. The body and trim look good and the interior looks OK, but it has pretty much zero options and a puny straight six. Nowhere near worth $18K.
I usually like ’em original, but that driveline would have to go.
Turbo straight 6 would be cooler than LS swap
How about a straight six with a turbo?
Uh, no, it wouldn’t. It would also get its doors blown off by the LS and get way worse mileage. So, except for originality, there’s no good argument for the weak, sick 250.
I’ll just leave this right here…
https://youtu.be/WfyofaN0j3g
I had a white 65 Impala given to me by a great aunt, who won rhe car new in a church raffle here in the Poconos. I got it in 2001 and drove it every day for 10 years. It rotted out. Sold it for $500. Stupid. One of the most reliable cars ever and good in the snow. I love this Calif Chevy but not $18,000.
The stated mileage here is more believable than the stated mileage of yesterdays 1967 Chevelle wagon. Why? No attempts appear to have been made to ‘convince’ an interested buyer.
My thoughts exactly. So much more to believe here than the one you mention.
Did someone get shot in the passenger seat ? This car should be restored to original . Or at least hang on to the drivetrain .
Bud Lee …. That’s 57 years of farts, not making it to the bathroom, throw up stains, food spills, etc.. hahaha🤪🤪
Y’all must be breathing too much “SUMP’IN”.
jUST FOR THE FACT THAT IT is original, patina and a 2-door??? If you can even find one anymore??? $18K is a VERY VERY VERY good buy indeed! I for one love it, and so would my pals at our Cars and Coffee.
This is how I feel. I bought my father’s new 1965 Impala in 1971 for Jr. College. After school I took a job that provided me with a company vehicle so I parked the 65. After retiring, in 2018, I wanted to do something with the Impala. It’s an all original 2 door, Sport coupe, black over black, 29,000 K, automatic 2 speed power glide transmission with no power steering or breaks and a 230 6 cylender engine. The body has the original Tecsedo Balck paint. The only visible rust is by the bottom corners of the rear window. This was a common place because of the design. My father was a
Police officer in the early 60’s and could not afford the SS. So he ordered this base modle. He asked my Mom, 6 or 8 cylender? She said, save on gas, go with the 6. He then asked, buckets seats or bench? She said, I can’t sit close to you if you get buckets. He also did not order a AM Radio. In its place is a plastic plate that says, ” Chevrolet” on it that covers the radio whole. I don’t know if you can find another plate like this one. I remember giving my Dad $ 1,500 dollars in 71 for the car. I told him I thought the price might be a little high for a 6 year old car that you paid 2 grand for. He said, Son this car has only 18,000 miles on it and garage kept. It’s like a new car. So I bought it and now you know the rest if the story.
Sounds like a cool car to me, even cooler that it has been in your family since it was new.
Have you had it running recently?
I hope you keep it, and you keep it stock. If you ever decide you want to sell it, I would love to be the next caretaker of a cool old original car…just sayin!
Unless the previous owner had a baby on the front seat, there is no way this is a 10k miles car. I agree not worth the price. Now if it was a 327 car with buckets and floor shifter maybe.
James – If you consider that the front passenger door has a wind wing and the inside (center) front corner of the seat cover is not stained, it seems pretty obvious to me that somebody (could have) simply left the window down during a sudden thunderstorm, when either the car and/or the air was dusty and Voila’ there you have it – dirty seat (having a baby in the car jokes notwithstanding).
This might also account for the seat covering seam splitting on a car with low miles/light usage, and it could also explain the surface “patina” of rust on only the roof and back deck – in agricultural Sacramento, CA there’s no telling what was in the air back then. It evaporated off the engine compartment hood, bit into the roof and back deck paint. No mention of chrome condition – it must have been/maybe was garaged or barned.
Typical leaky windshield water stains with the seat pulled the way up to the most forward position.
The car obviously has at least 110,000 miles on it. The flipper is too dumb to write the ad properly.
My parents had the 65 Biscayne version, 2 door post, 6 cyl, 3 on the tree, radio and heater. Made many trips from Missouri to Arizona and back. It was a hot car in AZ. Dad rebuilt the motor at 100,000 miles in 1969, traded it in on a 74 LTD then bought it back the next day as he missed it. The 6 had more power then you would think. Pulled a fully loaded large U-Haul trailer to AZ
Regardless of options and the stated miles, (we all know is far more). I would love to have it as an original just the paint would be my issue. Heck I took my D L test at Troop B in NOLA in a 58 Dodge Wagon with a V 8 and three on the tree AND NO power anything or Air so “memories”. Hey that is the way it was and that is how this one is just the Paint and Price are an issue. I can fix the paint issue along with the interior. Hey and that is coming from a Ford afficionado Thank You.
interesting how these over priced cars you feature on this site are listed at 10n
times the value you are getting on your own site. As someone who’s looking to sell five cars I’m not encouraged to list them on BF. Something to think about.
I have sold a lot of cars through Barn Finds. It is up to the seller to list the price, some are more realistic than others lol.
A lot of us here might think this is overpriced but the seller only has to find one guy willing to pay it.
Nothing wrong with a 6 cylinder Chevy engine. At least it can be built up more easily than a Ford 6 with the intake a part of the head.
I had a 1967 Chevelle 4 door with the 230 six and it had much more power than my 61 Falcon that my Dad put a 1967 200 in it. It had a column shift 3 speed abd the Chevelle had a power glide.
If more power is what the next owner wants that little 230 with a stick would be alright with some performance up grades.
I would step up to a 250 6 banger if I was looking for more power. Leave the 230 in the corner for the next owner. These guys can hook you up with camshafts, intakes and headers.
https://www.12bolt.com/inline-6.html
The car is worth whatever the market decides the car is worth. Currently, the market for these rare cars has decided they have tremendous value due to the fact they are almost gone..you pay for rarity, regardless of the product! If you do not agree with the price, do not purchase. However, anyone who has one of these rare cars and wanted to sell ..especially on this site would also be looking to get what the going
Market price would support..get real here!
The first sentence in your comment is dead on. The rest is horse crap. Rarity on a 1 to 10 scale is about 8. There are more surviving 65 Impalas than Yugos. Which one is worth more?
The only horses that we need on BarnFinds is horsepower.
Hey nuts, if you had a little more imagination on perspective, you actually could be dangerous in the Market Place. I was talking about the entire market within the classic
Car industry, not just one rare car, if you had any working knowledge of any
market you would
understand, every product from top to bottom of a hot market gains in value
So, please stow your crap until you take at the very least a Econ 101 class!
Looks like a solid candidate for a new chassis and monster engine swap but asking price seems a bit rich……….
Sure would look nice with a fresh coat of the original green. Funny its kind of a contradiction–the more expensive impala with a bottom of the line six and stick, no ps. My father always got cheap everything, never even a whitewall tire!
Cheers
GPC
That Willow Green is a beautiful color new. It is a code HH on the Chevy, my ’65 Pontiac goat is the same color but called Palmetto Green. I sure like this year Impala, wish I had room for this, probably a good thing since I am too old for a divorce at this point in my life.
My first car was a 65 Impala with a 327 with three on the tree. Mine was dark blue and it was a great car. My mother bought one the same day it was lite blue with a 283 it didn’t last long before it was stolen.
Has anyone checked this listing lately? It’s showing a 1968 Impala 2 Door Hardtop now.
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/cto/d/sacramento-1965-impala-door-hardtop/7575242625.html
Kinda weird huh?
The third owner of the house next door here, had a new white Impala Sport Coupe with red cloth interior. I met someone a few years later with a white 1966 Impala SS convertible, with a six in it. Inside was black, with bucket seats. If this green Impala hasn’t been snapped up by someone who wants to completely renovate it, it should be just cleaned, painted, and necessary reupholstering.
I would get front seat recovered ; turbo & rebuild the original 6 cyl & move the (three on the tree speed tranny to floor!! : I don t like column shifting ; weird!?) either sand Repaint original color or sand clear coat patina on the car as is !?
Throw a interior kit in it. Do full service mechanically and ride….BUT 18k is to me way out in some field. I know times have changed. But most will get bored with this unit quickly. Cars like this need to be in collections. One day is slow day you hop in this or fo me it’s a 59 version of this and on fast days…well there are more…5.0s ,Hyabusa and so on. None the less a very neat survivor that is not a bare bones, beige, burlaped seated bizquick 4 door. I love it but not the $$$$.
This would be a great car for a big block swap, the word rare gets thrown around a lot in the car collecting world, Bubonic plague is rare , doesn’t mean it’s desirable.
This car in it’s current state, six cylinder three speed would very quickly become something that would be maddening to drive much .
Too much money for this version.
Being a charter member of the 6566 full size Chevy club, I’ve had plenty of these Chevys and this one here a solid body is worth its weight and gold.
Across the street from my old girl friends house back when I was 16 the neighbor had a 65 impala ss 6 cylinder with buckets console and a glide.no flags on the fenders.They junked it after it got a little rusty.It was fathom blue metallic.It was 17 years old.
Good to see some perspective on the Mustang hype. And for the Mustang’s sales, ’65 was the year the General had just under 50% of the market. So where did the Mustang’s sales come from? It wasn’t GM’s lunch being eaten.