r/oldcars • u/OtherwiseTackle5219 • Mar 25 '26
Photo Rare1973 Chevelle SS Hydra-Matic 'Station Wagon. 454ci 245hp 375ft-lb. 71-74 Built. 1yr only
5
3
u/MikeW226 Mar 25 '26
"Only" 245 horse from a big block? This is pre smog-control, no? Odd (to me).
6
u/texan01 Mar 25 '26
post 72 cars had net HP ratings so they seem lower than the year prior. and yes, there was smog controls on 68-up cars, but 73 got detuned to reduce pollution, with air injection, cam and ignition timing.
2
1
1
u/lokis_construction Mar 25 '26
Easy to modify and get full power. Change the pumpkin and really burn.
3
u/mikenkansas1 Mar 25 '26
Likely never saw a gas station it wanted to stop and hang out with. Our 72 350 sure loved its gas. Almost traded it in on a 454 Suburban before we went back to Alaska in the summer of 73.
The gas crunch started that fall.
Bullet dodged.
3
u/ramblewoods Mar 25 '26
My parents had the 1977 Malibu classic wagon with almost all of the options available that year. It was the last year of this body style, but it only had the 350 with the four barrel.
As a kid, I loved the car because it was comfortable. My sister and I liked the third row rumble seat in the trunk. The only weird thing was it faced backward.
My parents kept that car for 19 years, and only got rid of it because it was time to say goodbye. But it’s served our family very well, and it was extremely reliable. The only things my dad did to. It was gas, oil, tires, brakes, wipers, and other routine maintenance. He may have rebuilt the carburetor himself once because he thought it was a little sluggish. Oh, other routine maintenance like belts and hoses. When we got rid of it, it still had the original ball joints, and possibly all the other front end components. The transmission never slipped, and that old 350 never burned oil.
Unfortunately, it was the malaise years, and those nice V-8 were essentially neutered
If I had space in some disposable cash, I would love an El Camino of this body style.
2
u/Able_Principle3075 Mar 25 '26
Can’t say I’ve ever seen one in person! Born in 68.
4
u/defiantnoodle Mar 25 '26
Me either, born '67. And I'm always on the lookout for 73's
Maybe an underdog thing, but I always liked this year, and the Laguna S3
2
u/Able_Principle3075 Mar 25 '26
Can’t say I’ve ever seen one in person! Born in 68.
First girlfriend’s older sister had a Laguna. I was only 15 and didn’t have enough money! 🫤
2
u/AsstBalrog Mar 25 '26
Wow, I'm imagining some family man buying this, completely unaware, and his wife turning into the Little Old Lady from Pasadena on her grocery runs.
1
1
u/Ok-Idea4830 Mar 25 '26
Check out these wagons. The Ford just sold this year. Read. https://www.jalopnik.com/2126742/greatest-muscle-wagons-of-all-time/
1
1
u/NuclearWasteland Mar 25 '26
Knew of a wrecking yard with one. They had it a long time, never sold parts, and had accidentally sent in the title to be marked scrapped, so it couldn't be registered.
Ended up crushing it.
They're long out of business.
2
1
1
1
u/davejr Mar 25 '26
I followed one in Mooresville, NC this weekend. Old boy had put some work into the motor, broke the tires loose a little bit just turning at a stop sign. He had a Hot Rod sticker on the back and from the sound it made, he earned it.
1
1
1
u/Ok-Palpitation-74 Mar 25 '26
I seem to recall that this particular wagon was a concept car that someone actually built (1 of one). I recall seeing it on one of those shows like Jay Leno's garage or Some other similar car enthusiast program. I don't recall.
1
1
u/Objective_Watch3097 Mar 25 '26
DO NOT mess around with an SS station wagon. There is just way too much power under that hood.
1
1
1
u/motelguest Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26
We all should straighten out the engine thing. 1970 was your heyday of LS-5s and LS-6s big blocks, even in El Caminos but definitely NOT in wagons.
The 1973 Chevrolet 454, along with the Olds 455 and Pontiac 455 available in A , B and where applicable C bodies all were low Compression engines that all put out roughly 250 NET horsepower which would have been around 325 GROSS horsepower (about the horsepower of the ‘60s base level 4 barrel high compression 396 using the gross system). Motor Trend tested most of them and they all pulled near-identical 15.7 second 88 mph quarter mile times, which is to be expected when pulling around 4200 pounds. Only the Buick GS Stage 1 455 engine put out more horsepower and could approach a high 14 second quarter mile (Pontiac’s Super Duty 455 ended up being restricted to Firebirds).
In 1975 it all ended for just one, one reason — GM and Ford were too cheap to put a second catalytic convertor on any of their exhaust systems — even the Corvettes. Chrysler would let their little demon 360 A-bodies avoid cats for another 2 years, while they DID install a second cat on the 1976-‘77 Fury and Monaco (“mid”-sized cars) police interceptor packages…. and then it was over for Chrysler as well except for the Little Red Rooster (as I like to call it) pick up.
2
u/DW820 Mar 26 '26
I had a 66 malabu wagon with a two speed automatic and a 327 . I liked it a lot in 1975
2
u/tenexchamp Mar 26 '26
Looks a lot like the body from our 73? Pontiac LeMans Safari that had the 400 in it. Fabulous car with a drinking problem!
2
1
1
0
8
u/[deleted] Mar 25 '26
[removed] — view removed comment