For Sale: 1996 Chevrolet Impala in Cleveland, Ohio

95,561 miles. Desirable color. Mostly stock except for exhaust. Runs and drives well, still fast and fun. Beautiful gray leather interior in excellent condition. Only year for buckets and console. Own an icon for not a lot of cash!No automaker has ever managed to quite duplicate the success of the mid-90s Impala SS. Full-sized, body-on-frame construction with a Corvette-derived V8 under the hood. And in 1996, they perfected the recipe by adding bucket seats and a center console with shifter, making it a true muscle car. The highest praise one can pay to the Impala SS is that they never really depreciated, always trading hands for a premium because everyone loves them, even 30 years later. This particular 1996 Chevrolet Impala SS offers a great color combination, with many sources arguing that the Dark Green-Gray Metallic paint is both the rarest and most desirable. It's certainly handsome on the big Impala's bodywork, which was trimmer and leaner than its Caprice siblings. It appears that the paint is entirely original on this car, which means no surprises hiding underneath, and it still fits together with the quality that the full-sized GM sedans seemed to emulate--solid doors, good gaps, and a sturdy feeling on the road. Badges, emblems, and other details are still in excellent condition, as is the glass, which is a bit of a surprise on a 30-year-old GM car. The only visual deviations from stock are some color-matched back-up lights, clear front marker lights, and a pair of stainless exhaust tips on each side of the rear bumper. This car still cuts through traffic like a shark.The gray leather interior was a great selling point for the SS, offering full-sized comfort with plenty of performance. As I mentioned, 1996 is the only year for bucket seats and a center console with T-handle shifter, so it feels a bit more sporting than its older siblings. The leather is in excellent condition with only modest comfort marks on the driver's seat. Likewise, the steering wheel, dash pad, and other perishable bits are still in great shape, along with the leather-wrapped steering wheel. The gauges are all operational and spring to life when you turn the key--they're simple but effective. Of note, all the power windows work, the power locks are operational, the antenna powers up when you turn on the radio, and all the interior lights are online. Demerits include a ventilation fan that's a little noisy and the digital odometer display is very dim, which is a known issue with these cars. And like everything on these cars, the trunk is massive, offering plenty of storage space and the original spare tire under its own matching cover.The Impala uses a version of the Corvette's LT1 V8, slightly de-tuned but still more potent than any other 4-door sedan in 1996. It's also bulletproof reliable and runs great, making awesome muscle car sounds and giving you that big hit of low-end torque that makes American V8s so much fun. Mechanically, this car remains almost entirely stock save for a modestly modified air intake and the aforementioned exhaust system, so reliability is not compromised. It starts easily, idles with a muscular burble, and generally works the way it should. The 700R4 4-speed automatic transmission snaps through the gears and offers a tall overdrive that makes the SS a fantastic high-speed cruiser that just eats up highway miles with ease. The suspension was re-tuned for the SS, offering improved handling, and there's a massive disc brake at each corner. The undercarriage is a bit grungy, but there's no structural rust or other issues in the floors or rockers, so the car has led an easy life. The original cats are in place on the exhaust, as are those expensive DeCarbon shocks that GM was so proud of in the 1990s. The 17-inch aluminum wheels still look fantastic and are wrapped with fat 255/50/17 performance radials that are probably due for replacement at this point.Documentation includes the original owner's manuals, booklets, factory window sticker, and some invoices for service. It also includes a few spare parts like a fan belt, oil filter, and thermostat.These big cruisers are still desirable machines simply because there will never be anything like it ever again. Body-on-frame construction does deliver a different feel, and the power of a big American V8 up front makes for one of the most enjoyable driving experiences of the 1990s. With a great color combination, minimal modifications, and those bucket seats, this is a great opportunity to own a legend at a very reasonable price. Call today!Harwood Motors always recommends and welcomes personal or professional inspections of any vehicle in our inventory prior to purchase.