I remember these as being a thing since day one. And with reason. After all, the model was a high-performance Caprice heavily based on the 9C1 police package, offering full-size BOF rear-drive power in an Old Skool way, carrying a retuned Corvette-derived 5.7L LT1 engine, reviving the Impala SS name, and with updated styling tweaks that turned the Caprice’s dullard whale-looks into a sharp-looking threatening creature. As such, the Impala SS was an offering that spoke to a faithful few who had been pining for something like it in those changing 1990s. And unlike previous occasions, the model delivered on its intended promises and sold beyond original projections. The SS became part of a cult then, and remains so to this day.
Appropriately, for a cult, from what I’ve seen online, most samples seem to have been given good care over the years. But today’s find belongs to a different species; it’s the “beater kind” of a desirable commodity. Someone had fun with this, wore it out, and now it sits in tempting yet stay-away condition. I may not like the outcome and worry about its prospects, but whatever else is said, it earned each and every mile it’s got on its body. A survivor that missed the preservation window?
Oddly, I have a soft spot for these; mainly because the SS fixed-up much of the 1991’s bathtub original design (that lost its skirts in 1993), and with a few touches, created this killer whale. Granted, Yuppies around me were not lining up for these, but they spoke to a different kind of buyer. No one was confused about that.
And well, I have a couple of short experiences with the model… Sort of. Late in the 1990s, in my SF days, a couple of coworkers took me out to lunch, and the ride? A resprayed-in-black fourth-generation ca. 1992 Caprice police car they had bought at an auction. Even in the city’s low speed limits, the V-8’s rumbling was addictive, and handling was quite tight and modern with the 9C1 package; far from the wallowing boats I associated older full-sizers with.
Needless to say, the back seat area was spacious. And also, needless to say, all plastics were pure GM-cheap, and the 1991-1993 dash harkened back to a lost automotive era, no matter its rounded surfaces. Then again, my coworkers didn’t give a rat’s ass about those latter traits. Similarly, those same traits would have kept my Yuppie neighbors away from the car as if it were some kind of disease. Two schools of thought that belonged to different automotive planets.
As said, the SS delivered on its promises; full-size traveling and power to go along with it, with rather good performance numbers at attainable costs. From William Stopford’s entry on the model, the SS: “pumped out 260 hp at 5000 rpm and 330 ft-lbs of torque at 3200 rpm… gas mileage was rated at an impressive 17/25 mpg.” Shifting, unlike the coupes, came in only one traditionalist recipe: a four-speed, column-shifted 4L60-E automatic. Then, 0-60 could be reached in about 7seconds, despite a curb weight of 4,218 pounds. A killer whale, as Stopford called it.
Even from this distance, quite a bit looks wrong with today’s sample, and my mechanical knowledge is not up to guessing what kind of effort it would require to bring this one back to a healthy condition. But I do know that a neglected exterior usually means that maintenance has suffered as well… So, unless your mechanical knowledge is up to the task and you have a good set of tools at hand, better keep away and admire this survivor as the oddity it is now; an unloved SS, out on the road after a life lived to the fullest.
Then again, one could try to squeeze what’s left of it while it lasts. After all, old-style fun beaters are becoming a rare thing.
Related CC reading:
Curbside Classic: 1994-1996 Chevrolet Impala SS – Killer Whale
1996 Chevrolet Impala SS – Three Reasons Darth Vader Was a Winner (M.E.S.S.#2)
Extremely cool. These are very warranted to be classics. I’d love a ratty example, nice ones are already fetching decent money!
Only ’96 had the console shift, which makes it the most desirable.
Oh, I’d say that it surely takes maintenance to get any car to still being driveable after 30 years, don’t let that exterior fool you! It could well be more reliable day to day than the garage queen version that only drives to the C+C the first Saturday of every month that never gets pressed to go any real distance. And, of course, there’s the old chestnut that a Chevy will run badly for longer than most cars run at all!
That looks like Arizona with the mesquite tree and the other landscaping, so for sure the AC works on that black car, being unliveable there otherwise…And nobody is going to mess with that thing in traffic in the condition it’s in, it gives out a strong FAFO vibe, although a 1″ or so drop would help even more.
Strong Arizona vibes in that picture. Can anyone confirm?
The weirdest and most unexpected sighting for one of those I had somewhere in 2009 travelling in Jordan. I think it was in Kerak, visiting the castle, when I saw one parked on the street. Never expected to see a real SS in a small desertown in Jordan.
Of all the company cars I drove somehow the SS escaped me.
Seems perfect to me, headlights are clean, tires have air in them. Has a few battle scars but it’s in a climate that rust isn’t a factor.
I’d feel guilty about daily driving that where I live but in AZ? Why would you drive anything else?
I always loved these Impalas.
It’ll buff right out. (And if it doesn’t, we’ll just call it “patina.” Sounds fair enough.)
Still quite a few of these rolling ’round Los Angeles .
Many are beaters like this, others, mosty the retired cop cars and ex taxis are the scruffier side of things but The Chevrolet Motor Division did very well on these .
Myself I prefer the previous Caprice’s because the L.A.P.D. got them with near unburstable 360 CID V-ates , thirsty yes but also handled like the tires had asphalt magnets in them =8-) .
-Nate
Somebody in my neighborhood had one of these up to a few years ago. I’d see it while walking my pup. I never saw the owner.
A very cool old school type muscle car.
The side profile has a BMW-like quality. It’s a shame GM didn’t bring it to Europe as an Opel Diplomat / Senator successor. Sales might not have been phenomenal, but it wouldn’t have cost them much either. Except perhaps for a few taillights with amber indicator lenses.
We did get them, they were common taxi cabs in Amsterdam.
Up until 5 – 10 years ago it wasnt unusual to come across 77 – 96 caprices as daily drivers in local traffic.
I had one whale SS Impala. It had a 6 speed conversion, 4.10 rear axle and a bunch of engine mods. I bought it cheap, fixed what needed fixing and sold at a nice profit. The rest were 9C1 Caprices of that vintage and I currently own a ’95 Caprice wagon with trailer tow package in mint condition. I’m thinking of some gears, a freer flowing exhaust and maybe a 383 rotating assembly for that one. I plan on making that one a good weather driver.
This was really the first modern American four door muscle car and it was surprising to me how well it was accepted. The 80’s had been all about Euro sports sedans, but the American faithful just couldn’t get that excited by more doors. These may have paved the way for the Dodge Charger and it’s different variants. From what I have observed the Charger has been enthusiastically embraced by the demographic. To give Mopar credit, they built some real stormers on the Charger platform.
I have quite a bit of familiarity with this platform and these handled quite well for their size and had good performance for the times. They were a lot of fun to drive. The interior appointments are strictly low rent, but it was just a Chevy, after all. Four door cars always make more sense than coupes for everyday driving. But practicality was never the main point. Old guys like me, still find them hard to accept as a muscle or speciality car. However younger folks don’t seem to have a problem with sedans. Compared to the much loved Panther Crown Victoria, the extra displacement of the 350 cid engine makes quite a bit of difference. Most of these are now pampered hobby cars.
The 4 door bodystyle of the models classic muscle cars were based shared never really looked all that fetching, even now when I occasionally see a custom Chevelle 4 door dressed up like a SS it really doesn’t work for me.
The whale body Caprice had an inherently sleek shape to it that the retailoring for the Impala really brought out. When Ford tried to repeat it with the Marauder they were saddled with the more boxy 98+ body it looked sinister in its own way but never as natural as the Impala SS. The LT1 engine itself was inherently cool at the time, I remember vividly guys talking about them at cruise nights when I was a kid saying they had the “Corvette engine”, which added a genuine mystique to them
Doesn’t look overly, shopworn. Anyone know where this pic was taken?
I don’t know for sure. Based on the style of the houses, the type of streetlights, sidewalks, and curbs, I would place it in Central Eastern Europe. Most likely in Hungary or Slovakia or even Romania (in that order).
Too cool to scrap! I’ve seen worse still driving around. At least this looks all original. I’ve seen many that have heavy urban modifications (huge wheels, stereos, strange grills, etc), many done on a low budget on a car that wasn’t nice to start with. I’d take this one any day over one of those. Plus it’s probably rust-free being in the southwest. It’s hard to replace a trashed interior, but the mechanicals are all relatively obtainable and affordable.