When one thinks of lurid greens, one must recall Ford’s Grabber colors or Mopar’s High-Impact colors of the early 1970s (or today). Few would think of mid-1970s General Motors as the sort of corporation that would offer two different shades of lime green, but there they were, hanging out as a 1976 option on every Chevy model except for the Corvette. Which one wore it best?
Finding myself in a Nova frame of mind as of late, I thumbed through my files to find this 1976 Nova in Code 40 “Lime Green Metallic.” I took this picture at the Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum back in 2012, and the car’s attitude is totally changed by being painted such a fun color. It’s not for everybody, but it would have had to brighten your day to see it in the parking lot.
We tend to think of the 1970s as an era of golds, browns, and avocado greens, but that’s not totally true. The Chevy lineup in that bicentennial year of 1976 was a lot wider reaching than any automaker offers today.
Look at this selection: There’s something for everybody, including reds, yellows, and blues. And right in the middle are Lime Green Metallic and the Chevette-only Code 45 “Lime Green,” which was an even limier lime.
This handy brochure (that I just went ahead and bought for safe keeping) shows which colors were available on which models, and as I mentioned, Lime Green Metallic was available on almost everything. (But can you imagine a Corvette painted this color? It would be the best 1976 Corvette ever made.)
Unsurprisingly, such a vibrant color didn’t seem to make much of a dent on the marketplace, and there are few examples of some models to be found on the internet. This Impala Landau Custom Coupe was pictured in the 1976 Impala/Caprice brochure, and it wears matching lime green wheel covers. I have a real thing for big Chevrolets of 1971-76, and although the earlier examples look a little better to me, this color and this model almost makes me change my mind.
The Monte Carlo seems like the preferred home of Lime Green Metallic; Chris Clark even wrote about his personal car on Curbside Classic back in 2012. This beautiful example sold on Bring a Trailer for $29,000 in November 2025.
The interior is white with a lime green carpet and dashboard that nearly match the exterior paint. This should not work, but it really does.
The still-muscular (at least in appearance) Laguna Type S-3 wore Lime Green Metallic well, especially with its white stripes.
The interior in this case looks even brighter than the Monte Carlo’s, and the optional Chevy sport steering wheel is also trimmed in green.
The 1976 Camaro was a few years removed from the days of Z28s and SSs, but the second-generation models still looked good in colors that one is more likely to associate with the muscle car era.
As I mentioned above, the workaday Nova was given a little extra pizazz by ordering Lime Green Metallic. I’ve seen these in brown, as I’m sure you have, and they are far less exciting.
My H-Body promo car collection includes this Code 40 Vega Hatchback with a green interior.
This Vega Kammback sold on Bring a Trailer back in August 2020 for $10,000. For all its flaws, the Vega made for a great-looking little wagon.
Unfortunately, this example had a Buckskin interior, which is nowhere near as cheery as the interiors in the Monte Carlo and Laguna S-3 pictured above, but it might not be as overwhelming either.
Unfortunately, my promo car collection doesn’t include a Lime Green Metallic Monza, but this example is on eBay (as of January 10, 2026). I’ve been unable to find a good example of a real Lime Green Monza online, so this might be as good as it gets.
There are few Chevettes remaining in any color, but this nice Code 45 Lime Green Chevette is even brighter than Code 40, and it would make passing the time in a Chevette a little more whimsical.
I know from my time driving my Sublime Challenger that bright green is not a color that everyone wants to be seen in every day, and that’s OK. But it’s nice to find bright, cheery colors on everyday transportation where (and when) you least expect it, and I think the 1976 Chevrolet color palette would qualify.
Related CC Reading
My Curbside Classic: 1976 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Landau – Hope You Like Green (by Chris Green)
I do miss the bright colors.
Today, most cars are silver/gray like my RAV4. Some prevalent, that I’ve walked up to other RAV4’s only to hear the beeping sound three cars over.
What a great selection of 1970s green to see first thing in the morning when there’s 8″ of new snow outside. 🙂
It’s funny, I’ve spent considerable time over the past week looking for lime green metallic Vega hatchback pictures to go with an article I’m desperately trying to finish. Your H-body model is pretty much what I’m looking for. When it comes to Vegas at least, the unmolested ones (ones that someone hasn’t jacked up and/or put a V8 where none existed before) are very thin on the ground. Add the fact that it needs to be color code 40, and well, it’s hard.
I agree entirely with your comment about the Code 45 Chevette!
I’m curious about any Vega article, but especially a green Vega – and looking forward to seeing this. My own ‘73 Vega was slightly darker, a Color Code 41. Not Lime Green but there’s a picture of it here https://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/IMG_3620.jpeg
The mid 70s was great for bright colors, and this green is perfect for that era. I loved those GM white interiors that gave you multiple color choices for the dash and carpet. I am not normally a bright green car guy, but that Monte Carlo really is about perfect.
FWIW, the green dash/carpet in the Monte looks perfect. The one in the Malibu looks painted on in a too-bright color.
I thought so too, JP. Someone must have dyed it or something.
I agree about the Malibu. When I first saw it, with that big expanse in front of the passenger I thought of a green jellybean. Needs something to break it up a bit. The Monte Carlo struck me just the opposite and I wouldn’t mind sitting in that car. Green isn’t lost on me with four green vehicles.
Reminds me of those polyester suits with the white stitching guys wore to church back then. Of course one had to have the white patent leather shoes and belt to match.
That look is referred to as the “Full Cleveland”.
This is a nice theme for an article, especially as the color is a happy one. I remember this color being fairly common on Chevys of the era back in the late 70s to mid 80s when most of those cars were still on the road. I’m sure other brands had a similar hue available, but I do associate it with Chevy. It suited the cars well and made the somewhat dour models seem a little more optimistic.
A few observations:
-I agree the Monte Carlo is the best looking of the bunch. It looks great in that color and the interior colors are fantastic. I’m a fan of the white interior with body-color-coordinated dash and carpet.
-I also agree the Vega was styled nicely, including the neat 2-door wagon. That interior, though, doesn’t look comfortable at all. A real penalty box, and you don’t even get an 85mph speedo. It stops at 80 (probably accurately depicts car’s true limits, though)
-I actually like the 75-76 full size the best from the 71-76 generation, mainly because of the front end. I also dig the painted wheelcovers they used.
-You have an H-body promo car collection?!?!
My Vega with the GT seats was very comfortable. I had injured my back at some point when I owned it, and a long drive in the Vega was very therapeutic. More comfortable than the Volvo that preceded it or the Alfa and then Fiesta that followed.
That is interesting that Chevy made the GT seats well. That kind of fits with them going for a mini-Camaro feel, at least with the GT. Perhaps they used the actual Camaro seats?
Granted we can only see the seat bottoms in the picture, but they don’t look inviting (I assume these are the standard seats, not GT.)
I think I agree. Monte just looks right wearing the green. I do love green, and I do Love Big Chevys. The BIG Chev Looks Great, and I would drive it. But it ‘looks’ different, vs the Monte.
Laguna also Looks great.
They all looked good in ways, I think the Camaro was least favorite, no fault of the color, but it looks REALLY Busy somehow.. like there’s too much “flair all over it, the roof looks odd, the Wires, skinny WW, even the aluminum strip on the rear. (the strip may work fine, but lose the other accessories, the color should be all over, NO vinyl on a Camaro).
Wish my Pontiac T-1000 had wore the “Chevette’s green, as shown. Of course, my T1000 was Tan. 🙁
“You have an H-body promo car collection?!?!”
I do, but it’s not that big. I have three or four Monzas and the green Vega. I also have probably 10ish 1:64 diecast Monzas and Vegas.
But I’m missing an opportunity to branch out into Skyhawks and Starfires. Maybe that’s next.
Perfect match for my lighted bowtie.
I found an extremely well-kept green Nova coupe in Eugene back in 2014 and wrote it up here:
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/cc-capsule-1976-1977-nova-the-colorful-world-of-novas-part-3/
The interior was like new too.
There was a similar color offered on the trucks called Spring Green. It was even available on the medium duty C-50/60/65 models
The closest (modern day cars) that you may get to that Chevette in green would be a 2014 to 2016 Chevy Spark EV in that strange green color. Not sure what it’s called, but it’s close.
It looks like Fresh Lime Metallic, not a bad color on a little car. Good call, Dan.
I really like these lime green beauties, and while I don’t think I’d want to live with one, they really do brighten up a gray winter day. Of these, I think the Monte Carlo looks best, especially with the white landau top and the lime green dash and carpet inside. I should note that I’m on record as one who strongly dislikes the Monte Carlo, but if you’re into over the top excess, this one would be hard to beat.
I was in middle school when these were new and remember seeing a number of Malibus, Montes, Novas, Vegas and Chevettes in this color, but rarely (if ever) an Impala or Caprice, and never a Monza. I did collect a full-line Chevrolet brochure from the 1976 Chicago Auto Show and remember that picture of the lime green Impala, but I’m not sure I ever saw one with a white landau top; unfortunately, all of my brochures were lost decades ago when my parents’ basement flooded.
Regarding more recent green cars made by Chrysler, I love them all. You extroverts must have a lot of fun driving around in something that will never be lost in today’s grayscale parking lots.
It is nice being able to spot my car anywhere I go, but I always park in the middle of nowhere anyway, so it’s not hard to find the car.
Same here. Always park way out in left field. Sorry, honey, but you will have to walk some. Then there is her dark gray car which, last time at Costco, took her walking three rows of packed cars, ear to ear, to find it.
My lovely bride has gotten used to it too, although her patience is surely tested on days like today. It is currently 2 degrees Fahrenheit. Brrr!
So sorry to hear of 2 degrees. To rub it in I was in San Francisco, yesterday, to shoot some pictures for a future story here. It was sunny and 64 degrees.
Yeah, yeah. We’re in for at least a week and a half of pretty frigid temperatures around here.
Great colour! Of course I owned a Mazda 2 in a similar “Spirited Green”. That Monte Carlo wears it really well disproving my theory that this shade mostly works on smaller cars.
My Dad bought a new 75 GMC Sierra Classic pickup, in a lighter shade of green (Willoway Green) that most people would call mint green. GM trucks also used a green metallic, GMC called it Willow Green, that’s more of an olive shade. They offered this in a two tone with the Willoway Green on the top and side panels inside the trim, with the darker color on the rest of the body. I have actually seen a few of these…. Dad’s truck was also the deluxe two tone, but with white as the secondary color. It had a green interior with the leather look vinyl bench seat. One winter we got four of us on that seat for a road trip from Austin to Amarillo… everyone fit but we had to take our coats off and put them behind the seat back!
I actually have a 76 3/4 ton Chevy that’s a two-tone green don’t know what the colors are called but it’s a very very light green on top and middle and dark green on the hood and the bottom it is factory it was my father-in-law’s truck from brand new
That Vega was the best color offered. I tried to get my Dad to get our ’75 in that green, but they special ordered the Covert Tan.
A precursor to all these limes, my Grandmother bought one of the last ’69 Corvairs in a very similar frost green. When they ordered it, there were only two colors left, I don’t know what the other was.
She didn’t need to replace her ’60 Corvair Monza at the time, but it was the only car she knew how to drive, so she grabbed it when she could.
How did your grandma’s ’69 Corvair hold up? They were built on a separate line in Willow Run that year and I’ve read that the quality wasn’t always that great. I think buyers also got a coupon for a certain amount off another Chevy if they bought one within the next few years.
Now that you mention it, I recall something about them being offered a discount to trade.
Not really sure how the ’69 Corvair held up in the real world. I do remember everyone said it was awful compared to the ’60, ’62 and ’65 convertible we had (yep, we were a Monza family). My Grandma would be pushing it to put 1000 miles on a vehicle in a year, and she died in 1971, so this might have been a collectors item.
After she died, my Grandfather garaged it and kept it running until he died in ’76. His last ride was a ’65 New Yorker 4 door HT. He preferred to drive over 100 mph. and kept his cars spotless. He didn’t want any family fighting over the cars, and stipulated that they be sold.
But, my Mom had the ’62 and the ’65 convertible (my Dad had bought her a ’64 Chevelle convertible which they traded in under a year).
We kept the ’65 as the kids’ car until the Vega in ’75. Suffered from some healthy rust (expected in a never garaged ragtop in the Northeast) and, eventually burned out some wiring in the dash, but it always ran as long as you didn’t let the gas attendant top off the oil). Held up a lot better than the ’72 Audi 100LS my Mom replaced it with.
I can relate! This is my ’65 Monza…
A real beauty and a treat to see. Thanks!
Like that color. Painted my 1st car a 67 Camaro that color, heavy metal flakes. Wish I still had it. However I still own my 1976 Cosworth Vega I bought in 1978? Medium blue!
Wonder if the “Nova” was the uber thin, vinyl. or the hounds tooth patterned interior?