1985 Chevrolet Caprice Classic review from North America

Normal wear and tear. With the exception of a wheel cylinder bursting 100 miles from home, the car has never had any major problems.

This is the 7th full size Chevy I have owned. It is a part of a dynasty that includes a 78 4dr. Impala, a 78 Impala wagon, a 79 Impala wagon, an 83 Caprice wagon, a 72 Impala 4dr hardtop, and 78 4 dr Caprice.

I bought the car from my brother for $200 6 months after he bought it for $200. The black paint was badly cracked from sitting in the scorching NJ sun and humidity. Other than that the car looked like a 210,000 mile car. Used, but not badly abused.

I chose to remove the original (and still running) 305 and 700R-4 transmission to replace them with a 350/TH350 combo.

At that time, I also installed a gauge cluster (with tachometer), dual Flowmaster exhaust and Corvette Rally wheels.

I can't leave well enough alone, so I also installed an oversize alternator (for headlight brightness), a transmission cooler, an oversize radiator a performance carb and did a few other tricks to the car that I'm not willing to share. Oh yeah, I also shaved a few pounds off the car when the emissions system was mysteriously misplaced at engine-swap time.

The old battle wagon is for sale minus its engine and transmission for the right price. If it doesn't sell, I have my eye on a rusty old 4x4 Silverado that would make an excellent mate that just happens to have the same wheelbase as the Caprice. Do you remember Stompers from your childhood?