Show Car Sunday returns with a Chevy Alright-Sport

RALLYE RAGTOP

I was out on the North Fork of Long Island at the end of summer when I found this beauty parked on the street:

 A 1968 Chevy Impala convertible in original Rallye Green! Not only that, but it happened to be a Super Sport as well.

The Impala was the top of the heap trim-wise for the full size Chevy lineup that included the Caprice & Bel Air. This is considered the 4th generation of the Impala/Caprice/Bel Air which was redesigned in 1965. That first year they sold an astonishing 1 million of them, which is a record that still stands!

To keep the styling looking fresh the front and rear were redesigned each year. The taillights were once again given the traditional treatment where the Impala had 3 on each side and the lesser models had 2, this time in a horseshoe shape. The 2 years previous featured a brief foray into a single rectangular taillight on each side.

This particular car is in spectacular shape throughout! 

By 1968 the fabled Super Sport package was really just a dress-up option for the Impala. The upgraded suspension, engine, and brakes of days gone by was now reduced to special emblems, striped interior, and that tiny SS in the middle of the steering wheel. I've seen different door panels on other '68 Super Sports where there was an SS badge inside those two slanted chrome strips leading from above the window crank up to the vent window, but not here. The owner actually came out and talked to me for a minute while I was snapping pics and he said he thought the car originally came from Canada. Maybe that's one of the differences?

The buckets seats with console and slapstick shifter are all options as you could've left the dealer with a huge bench seat if you wanted to save some money (or haul several extra people around).

So much junk in the trunk! These cars are crazy wide by todays standards.

To me the full size domestic convertibles of the late-'60s are some of the most perfect cruisers around. This is the sort of car you want to load up with 4 or 5 friends and roll down to the beach in.

That little side marker light/engine badge combo declares this as a 307 V8 car. Impala customers could also opt for the 327, 396. or even the mighty (and mighty rare) 427 if they were so inclined. If this were a Bel Air version the base engine was the 250 inline 6 cylinder which would be downright sedate in its performance. Full size 6 cylinder cars are still out there though, as the production numbers were so high overall.

This is the first year with the Super Sport option being spelled out as opposed to SS badges.

Well there we have it; a lovely beach cruiser for you on this lazy Sunday. I have so many cars waiting in the wings but the weather has been fantastic so the posts are few and far between. Soon enough the dark and cold will take over and there will once again be a glut of posts to this blog. For now go outside and enjoy this pleasant weather while you can!