1965 Impala SS 409 Convertible Evening Orchid

bloks039

New Member
Hello, I'm From Sacramento California, My Name is Chris. I have been into Chevy 348 and 409s since I was born 42 years ago.
I was brought home from the hospital when I was born in a 61 Impala 348 in 1977 which has stuck with me my entire life. thanks to my dad I have been trained to spot Impalas and 409s from miles away lol. these cars were in bedded into my brain at a very young age and my earliest memories of me and my dad are wrenching on Impalas and 409s. in 1982 my dad found a 65 convertible Impala ss 409 which he traded for a paint job and we began to fix it up and bringing it back to life. we rebuilt the entire car as we didn't have the internet so parts were not easy to find as we spent lots of time in junkyards and swap meets digging for parts, we finished the car about 90% and enjoyed it for many years. skip to 2000 my dad was going through a divorce with my mom. my mom wanted to sell the car so my dad gave it to me so we could keep it in the family and not lose it in the divorce. with me becoming a dad myself around the same time I did not have a lot of money or time to give the car the attention that it deserved, I maintained it but it definitely needed more than I could give it at the time. so fast forward to 2 years ago, I began fixing up the car getting it back on the road, and putting some cash back into it. its almost 100% stock except for flow master 3" exhaust and an Edelbrock carb as I went through a ton of Rochester 3gc's and could not get it to run right and finally gave up and went with an Edelbrock. I just put a new top on it which took me some time as I never did a convertible top before and have been slowly fixing parts and items that needed to be replaced and fixed due to age. it's slowly coming along but its more of a driver than a show car as this car gets driven ofter multiple times a week because I just simply enjoy these cars and feel they need to be driven and maintained and not just sit in a garage. people seem to love this car and its always a conversation starter even with its 35-year-old paint job and motor build. its a 400 horse automatic car. still, has a long way to go but that's half the fun right?
 

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bobs409

 
Administrator
Welcome to the asylum. I love the car, the history, and the color. That was a one year only color, and I have no idea why.

If I recall correctly, the paint had a problem, I think durability? Something like that. :p
 

bobs409

 
Administrator
A very quick search indicates it may have had a high oxidation rate due to the metals in the paint. Supposedly it was not a very popular color in it's day and had low sales. (not 100% sure on that one, just because it's on the internet doesn't make it true)

Also note that Pontiac had the same color but it was called Iris mist. (that's your fun factoid for the day) :p
 

bloks039

New Member
A very quick search indicates it may have had a high oxidation rate due to the metals in the paint. Supposedly it was not a very popular color in it's day and had low sales. (not 100% sure on that one, just because it's on the internet doesn't make it true)

Also note that Pontiac had the same color but it was called Iris mist. (that's your fun factoid for the day) :p

yeah I've heard the original paint didn't last long and it was marketed towards women in the era. it might not have been popular then but I tell you what I cant drive this car anywhere without someone asking about the color and telling me how much they love it.. mostly women lol
 
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