The 396 cubic-inch big-block came with a Quadrajet four-barrel carburetor, and delivered 325 horsepower.

After the boom in sales of the 1965 Impala (239,500), the Chevrolet Impala for 1966 saw a surprising drop in sales (more than 50-percent to just 119,314). Some think that the reason for the drop is because of the release of the Caprice as a stand-alone model with its new upscale image. Some even speculate that the subtle restyling of the Impala, which took away some of its signature items — such as the six round taillights is to blame.

The venerable 327 cubic-inch small-block.

After nine years of offering multiple sub-models under the Impala line, 1966 marked the end of the Caprice as one of them. Initially introduced in 1965 as a four-door hardtop, in 1966, the Caprice Custom was reintroduced as the Chevrolet Caprice, and would become the top of the line Chevy. As evidenced by declining sales, the 1966 Impala may have featured more chrome — both inside and out, but the Impala line up was slowly losing its popularity to other Chevrolet models.

The 1966 Chevy Impala was offered in a four-door sedan, four-door hardtop, two-door hardtop, convertible, and two different versions of the four-door station wagon. While most models could seat a maximum of six people. One version of the station wagon could seat nine people. The least expensive model was the four-door sedan, with a base sticker price of $2,678, and the most expensive was the four-door station wagon, which sold for $3,083.

The chrome pieces on this engine were not factory offered. The only big-block-powered car to get chrome valve covers and air cleaner lid for 1966 was the Chevelle.

Leading the charge when it came to powering the ’66 Impala, was the 155 horsepower 250 cubic-inch six-cylinder engine. While not a powerhouse, this inline six did deliver reliability for daily driving.

Next up is the first standard V8, the 195 horsepower 283 cubic-inch small-block. This base V8 was equipped with a two-barrel carburetor. Next up are the 220 horsepower (four-barrel), 283 cubic-inch V8, and the 275 horsepower 327 cubic-inch small-block engines. Not only were the small-blocks also very reliable, they were very powerful for the time as well.

390 horsepower 427 cubic-inch big-block.

Once again, the big-block V8 was available in the Impala, and the starting lineup featured the 325 horsepower 396 cubic-inch engine. But, an added big-block would take the automotive world by storm this year when Chevrolet introduced the 427 cubic-inch engine. The Mark IV engine was introduced this year as a production engine option for full-sized Chevrolets and Corvettes. Power ratings varying widely depending on the application, and in regards to the Impala, you could get the 390 horsepower smooth-running version with hydraulic lifters, as well as rough idling, high-revving solid-lifter camshaft model with the 425 horsepower.

not many Impala’s came equipped with the factory console, and even fewer saw the optional gauge package installed.

A four-speed manual transmission was an option that could be bolted behind all V8 engines, but the two-speed Powerglide was the only automatic transmission that was offered with the six-cylinder engine, and the 283 and 327-cubic-inch Turbo Fire V8s. Finally, the three-speed Turbo Hydramatic was limited to the 396 cubic-inch engine,  and 390-horsepower version of the 427 cubic-inch V8.