Car guys dread long-term storage for a reason.
Hibernation for a car is like a human laying on a couch for a year because things go wrong with inert cars and inert people.
That is essentially the story behind this 1967 Impala convertible.
Jerry Sutherland
Ian Lochie bought this Chevy convertible 40 years ago and started its life as what he calls a “garage queen”. This is one of those used-to-have-one stories because Ian said he owned a ’67 Impala when he was eighteen years old.
Ian’s Impala came with a classic 327 four-barrel V-8 and a few other options, but it’s not a fully-loaded car. He did like the glass rear window on the convertible top because Ian explained how “many of them were plastic”. This was a big factor in why he bought the car because he said the plastic versions “clouded up so badly you didn’t need a rear-view mirror”.
This car was bought new in New Norway, Alberta and Ian is the third owner. He was very happy about the condition of this car, because he knows the Impala had two good former owners. Ian used the car regularly and had fun with the top-down experience of a ’67 Impala.
Ian said the Chevy drives like a typical 60s car, but it’s comfortable on the road and it tracks down the road well. He thought the light power steering took away some of the road feel, but that car makes up for it with a couch-like ride.
This car was a part of the family because Ian’s son Trevor used it as daily driver to his job at a GM dealership until 2014. Ian’s only request was “he parked it in the showroom” because he didn’t want people “messing with it on the lot”.
Unfortunately, Trevor passed away and the Impala ended up in hibernation until recently. Ian thought it was time for the Impala to hit the road, and he said it “fired up right away”, so he drove it to a local show where it captured the interest of several onlookers.
The Impala had a starter problem at the show, so Ian had to diagnose the problem on the spot. He knew it wasn’t a fuel delivery issue, so Ian checked the wiring on the old Chevy, and he was sure he could find the problem. Ian knew he’d have a checklist after ten years off the road—he hoped it would be later.
Ian was certain the gas was good enough to run the car because he’d added fresh fuel to the mix and he drove it to town without a problem. He was confident the Impala would do what he wanted with a few tweaks.
There’s a lesson in this story and it’s one Ian freely admitted to learning. Ten years of storage added some drama to his car because wiring always has a bad day after a decade of not functioning.
Ian had some issues when he fired up the Impala, but he’s confident about its future. The car delivered reliability for Ian and his son Derek over many years, and he fully expects to have more good years behind the wheel.
The rescue from hibernation was the biggest step.
Jerry Sutherland
By: Jerry Sutherland
Jerry Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer with a primary focus on the collector car hobby. His work has been published in many outlets and publications, including the National Post, Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Regina Leader-Post, Vancouver Sun and The Truth About Cars. He is also a regular contributor to Auto Roundup Publications.
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