The 1972 Chevelle Is Beautiful Enough to Make a Grown Man Cry
The 1972 Chevelle was a stunner in its day, and it is still drop-dead gorgeous. Let's take a closer look.
Written by Lisa Steuer McArdle
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
The mid-1900s was a great time for
Chevrolet
. The brand was associated with the American Dream, and many of its best cars, such as the 1969 Chevelle SS,
aged well. One of the most beautiful examples of Chevrolet's mid-century cars is the 1972 Chevelle. This baby was a stunner in its day, and it is still drop-dead gorgeous.
Making the 1972 Chevelle pretty
Motorious
says the base car was a four-door sedan and a sport coupe, though Chevy made a convertible version for its luxurious Malibu. All the cars had a streamlined, elegant design.It sported a long front hood and a gently sloping trunk. Coupled with a wide body and widely spaced wheels, you have the classic muscle look.
Adding to the sleek look was an antenna built into the windshield. This feature prevented the device from snapping off in a car wash.
The Chevelle looked beautiful on the inside, too. You could get a vinyl-and-cloth interior with a matching vinyl trim, and an all-vinyl option was available for convertibles and their more luxurious models. The cars even came with deep-twist carpeting and optional bucket seats.
Your color choice for the interior depended on the model, but you could generally find tan, black, white, green, and blue. This complemented the 15 colors you could pick for your Chevelle, which ranged from the rich cranberry red to the muted cream yellow.
The Chevelle had pretty specs, too
A pretty appearance doesn't mean much if it comes with a lackluster driving experience, so Chevrolet ramped up its performance with a choice of V8, C8, and I-6 engines. The weakest I-6 engine had 145 hp, and the most powerful V8 had 270 hp.
Naturally, they had plenty of torque too, with the V8 1x4bbl getting 390 pounds per foot. That engine went into the sportiest model, and that let it go from 0 to 60 in eight seconds.
You controlled this with your choice of four transmissions. There was a three-speed manual, four-speed manual, powerglide, and Turbo Hydro-Matic to choose from.
It boasted full coil suspension and a pack of rear axles that could be geared for economy or acceleration. A host of other features, such as an all-welded steel structure, made it smooth and quiet to ride.
What was new about the 1972 Chevelle?
The Chevelle model itself changed little from 1971 to 1972. However, the 1972 model did replace the hinged accelerator with a suspended one, add a new grille, and mount new parking lights on the edges of the fenders.
The Heavy Chevy model also came out in late 1971, which was advertised as the more economical version of the Chevelle SS. You could also call it the sporty version of its basic four-door sedan.
Its versatility set it apart. The 1972 Chevelle came with one of the widest ranges of engines and transmissions, and it could boast of both performance and economy.
These qualities did so well by the 1972 Chevelle that you can buy one for $54,999 today. Since
Sportscarmarket.com
gives the original list price as $3,216.20 for a Heavy Chevy, it's apparent that these cars have kept their value.Beautiful cars need cheap insurance
Buying a classic always comes with some work, and you will want to save money so you can invest in it.
This is why you will want the cheapest car insurance that
Jerry
can find for you. The top-rated app
saves customers an average of over $800 a year.
4.7
