Chevrolet Impala 1967 images

The 1967 Chevrolet Impala SS pictured here now runs a 350-cubic-inch V8 and two-speed Powerglide automatic — a later swap, since Chevy didn’t offer the 350 in a full-size car until 1969 — wrapped in Chevy’s freshly redesigned Coke-bottle bodywork. It also carries newly mandated safety features like an energy-absorbing steering column and front shoulder straps, arriving the same year Detroit was forced to start engineering for survival, not just speed. Here’s what made this particular model year such a turning point for the Impala nameplate.

The 1967 Chevy Impala SS below is powered by a 350 and bolted to a two speed PowerGlide automatic transmission. The safety features incorporated into the ’67 ImpalaÂ models include side marker lights, front seat outboard shoulder straps and the energy absorbing steering column. This is a popular model- and one enthusiasts are on the lookout to find in fair condition Â or better condition.

Our thanks to Gateway Classic Cars for the images

⚑ Featured Gear

Start Car Conversations →

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

How do you build a full-size car that feels dangerous in the best way, yet somehow also pioneers the safety technology that would define the next decade of American driving? The 1967 Chevrolet Impala SS pictured here rolls today with a 350-cubic-inch V8 backed by a two-speed Powerglide automatic — worth flagging for the purists, since Chevrolet didn’t actually offer the 350 in a full-size car until 1969, which almost certainly means this small-block replaced whatever left the factory somewhere along the way. Either way, it’s still wrapped in the freshly redesigned “Coke bottle” bodywork that gave the fourth-generation Impala its unmistakable silhouette. Yet tucked inside that muscular sheet metal sits a fully collapsible energy-absorbing steering column, side marker lights, and front seat shoulder straps — federally mandated features that arrived just as the SS badge reached its performance peak. What was it like to buy a car built for speed the same year Detroit was forced to start building cars for survival?

The Year Detroit Had to Balance Muscle With Mandates

1967 marked a pivotal moment for full-size Chevrolets. The Impala Super Sport returned as its own distinct line, set apart from lesser Impalas by black grille accents and black-accented body-side and rear fender moldings. Underneath, buyers could choose from a range of engines starting with a 283 cubic-inch V8 making 195 horsepower, climbing through a 327 rated at 275 horsepower, a 396 big-block at 325 horsepower, and topping out with the legendary 427 cubic-inch V8 producing a claimed 385 horsepower for those willing to pay for the ultimate SS package.

The same model year also introduced new federal safety mandates that reshaped how every American automaker engineered its cars. Chevrolet answered with the energy-absorbing steering column and shoulder belts for closed models seen on this Impala, alongside new options like front disc brakes — standard equipment on the SS-427 — a stereo 8-track player, and a fiber-optic light monitoring system that let drivers check their exterior bulbs from the dashboard.

Why the ’67 SS Remains a Collector Favorite

This particular car’s 350-backed drivetrain and Powerglide automatic represent the more attainable end of the SS spectrum, a combination that prioritized smooth, confident cruising over stoplight drag racing. That approachability is part of why the 1967 Impala SS has held its popularity with collectors for decades — it delivers unmistakable late-1960s Chevrolet style and genuine V8 performance without demanding the maintenance headaches of the rarer big-block cars.

Finding one in genuinely fair or better condition has become a real challenge. Full-size Chevrolets from this era were driven hard, used as everyday family transportation, and eventually scrapped in numbers that make surviving, unmolested SS models increasingly scarce at auction. Enthusiasts actively hunt for cars like this one specifically because so few have survived with their original drivetrains and interiors intact.

The 1967 model year also sits at an interesting crossroads in Chevrolet’s history — the last year before the fifth-generation Impala arrived with even more aggressive styling in 1968. That makes this SS one of the final examples of the fourth-generation’s cleaner, more restrained design language, a look many collectors consider the high point of the Impala’s full-size era.

The Rise of the Caprice Overshadowed the SS Badge

By 1967, the Impala Super Sport was no longer the undisputed king of Chevrolet’s full-size lineup. Chevrolet had introduced the Caprice as a plusher, more formal trim level in 1965, and it steadily pulled buyers who wanted prestige and comfort away from the sportier SS package. That shift meant the 1967 SS increasingly appealed to a narrower, more performance-focused buyer, a positioning that makes surviving examples feel more special today than they may have seemed on a crowded showroom floor in 1967.

What the SS Badge Actually Bought You

Beyond the blacked-out trim, the SS package added specific SS wheel covers, an available center console, and a choice of all-vinyl bucket seats or a bench, letting buyers dial in how sporty the interior felt without changing the drivetrain underneath. Chevrolet kept the formula simple on purpose: the SS was fundamentally a trim and options package layered onto the standard Impala body rather than a mechanically distinct model, which is exactly why engine choices ranged so widely from mild sixes up through the 427.

A Body Style Choice That Mattered for Value Today

Buyers in 1967 could get the SS treatment on a two-door hardtop or a convertible, and decades of survivorship have not treated the two body styles equally. Convertibles were built in noticeably smaller numbers than hardtops across nearly every full-size Chevrolet line that year, and that production gap shows up directly in what collectors are willing to pay, with clean SS convertibles commanding a real premium over an equally well-optioned hardtop like the one pictured here.

The Last of a Certain Kind of Full-Size Muscle

Full-size performance cars like the Impala SS were already becoming a shrinking category by the late 1960s, as buyers chasing outright speed increasingly gravitated toward lighter mid-size muscle cars such as the Chevelle SS. The Impala SS badge would only survive a couple more model years in its traditional form before Chevrolet folded Super Sport branding into an appearance option, making 1967 one of the final seasons when ordering an SS meant a genuinely distinct performance-oriented Impala rather than a styling choice.

How the Powerglide Changed the Driving Experience

The two-speed Powerglide automatic backing this Impala’s 350 traded outright acceleration for smoothness and simplicity, a deliberate compromise Chevrolet offered alongside more aggressive three-speed automatics and manual gearboxes further up the SS options sheet. For buyers who wanted an effortless full-size cruiser rather than a stoplight competitor, that combination made the SS badge feel just as at home on a Sunday drive as it did lined up at a drag strip.

Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Republished by Blog Post Promoter