Chevrolet Impala

The Chevrolet Impala was, through 1996, a full-sized automobile built by General Motors for their Chevrolet division. The Impala was reintroduced in 2000 as a mid-sized front-wheel-drive car. Ed Cole, Chevrolet's chief engineer in the late 1950s, defined the Impala as a "prestige car within the reach of the average American citizen."

From 1958 until 1965, the Impala was Chevrolet's most expensive full-size car. In 1965, Chevrolet introduced the more-expensive Caprice.

In the late sixties, the Impala was typically positioned just below the top luxury trim, the Caprice, and above the more economical models like the Biscayne or the Bel Air. The Impala, named for a southern African antelope, is most readily distinguished by a pair of three rather than two taillights at its rear. It competed in the market against other full-size cars such as the Ford Galaxie 500 and the Plymouth Fury.

One of both General Motors' and America's most successful auto nameplates, the Impala was often the best-selling automobile in its formative years when full-sized cars dominated sales. The 1965 sales of over one million units[clarify] still stands as a record.[citation needed] The current version of the Impala is the 8th best selling vehicle (of any kind) and 5th best selling car in the United States and has the distinction of being the top selling American nameplate sedan, according to Reuters Top 20 Best-selling Vehicles Scorecard for the calendar year of 2007.

Impala showcar

The Impala name was first used for the Corvette-based show car at the 1956 General Motors Motorama. Painted emerald green metallic, with a white interior, the Impala featured hardtop styling.

1958–1961

The Impala was introduced in 1958 as a new, upmarket, sporty trim package created for Bel Air coupes and convertibles. Unique to the model were its six taillights, which set it apart from lower trim levels with only two lights on a side. This classic styling cue would become its trademark. The Impala became a separate model in 1959 in both two- and four-door versions and became the best-selling car in the Chevrolet lineup. For 1960, it became the best-selling automobile in the United States and held that position for the next decade. From 1958 until 1966, Impala sales were in excess of 13 million units, more than any other full-size car in the history of the automobile.[citation needed]