A Straight Up Beast: The '69 Chevelle
Here's a look at the '69 Chevelle, which was a straight up beast that was completely road legal.
Written by Lisa Steuer McArdle
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
Classic cars
like the '69 Chevelle are a nice reminder about what life was like all those years ago, as well as what separates a muscle car
from other types of cars. This was the case with the '69 Chevelle, which boasted a lot of power at the time. Here's a look at the '69 Chevelle, which was a straight up beast that was completely road legal.
The great overall package of the '69 Chevelle
Like
HowStuffWorks
said, the '69 Chevelle was a muscle car for everyone. Since it was a muscle car, it obviously had power, but it was also an affordable, reliable, and stylish vehicle. That's because Chevy largely didn't make too many changes between the 1968 model year and the 1969 model year. The '69 Chevelle had a starting price tag of about $24,000 in today's dollars. It had some issues with its traction, but it was a reliable car overall. And, in terms of styling, the '69 Chevelle simply looked very nice.
The biggest change that Chevy gave to the '69 Chevelle, however, was in terms of its power.
What made the '69 Chevelle so powerful?
Folks who shelled out $3,000 in today's money would get access to the 396 SS trim of the car. This gave the Chevelle a 6.5-liter V8 which made about 325 brake horsepower. Folks who paid a little more could get a 375 brake horsepower engine.
That V8 engine was as powerful as other muscle cars at the time. For example, another
awesome muscle car
from 1969, the '69 Mustang, got 375 hp. However, the most exclusive option for the '69 Chevelle was a 7.0-liter V8 that got 425 brake horsepower. While not many people bought the 7.0-liter V8, a lot of people bought the SS 396 trim of the '69 Chevelle. In fact, Chevy sold just over 86,000 of them, which was a record for Chevy.
How the '69 Chevelle is doing today
One of the things that also made the '69 Chevelle popular was just how easily it could be modded, especially with simple mods. In fact, nowadays, the '69 Chevelle still sees some modding action. Unlike terrible mods that people have given the
Dodge Caliber SRT
, however, the '69 Chevelle's modern modding is largely focused on giving it more power.One of those mods showed up at the 2021 Hot Rod Drag Week, according to
autoevolution
. From the outside, it still looks like the classic '69 Chevelle that everyone loves. Under the hood, it also has that rare 7.0-liter V8 that was so powerful at the time. However, the modders gave it a pair of turbochargers, which boosts its output to a staggering 1,500 hp. That particular '69 Chevelle was still road-legal with those mods, and it was able to hit 161 mph at times. As such, it's safe to say that the '69 Chevelle is still as popular as ever. However, if you're thinking of buying one, you'll probably have to spend at least $40,000 on it.
Choose the best car insurance for your car
One of the best things about the '69 Chevelle was the options that Chevy gave customers, and folks can get a similar experience with their car insurance.
Jerry
is an insurance app that'll get quotes from over 50 of the country's top insurance companies.Not only can Jerry save the average customer about $879 a year on their car insurance, but Jerry can even help you cancel your old policy and switch to your new one.
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