1970 Chevrolet El Camino SS 454

When is a truck not just a truck and a muscle car much more than a muscle car? When they're an El Camino, of course. Chevrolet's third-generation "personal truck" mirrored the A-body Chevelle upon which it was based and shared engines and equipment, and when fitted with ultra high-performance SS454 equipment, the 1970-1972 El Camino could run rings around many conventional muscle cars while retaining a semblance of truck utility. Like Chevelles, El Caminos are blessed with an amazing availability of restoration and performance parts, and they appeal to folks who love big-block power, who need utility beyond what a coupe or convertible can offer, who appreciate the El Camino's "neither here nor there" style, and who don't like to see their doppelgängers at every stoplight. The Chevrolet El Camino SS454 truly inspires bowtie pride while hauling from both ends.

The El Camino had been completely restyled for 1968 along with its platform-mate Chevelle; this early "crossover" vehicle's airy greenhouse and slim B-pillars were made sportier with thick B-pillars that curved down as flying buttresses to meet and envelop the leading edge of the bed, which now measured 79 1/4 inches long and 59 to 64 1/2 inches wide behind the cab and at the tailgate, respectively. The truck had a handy storage area inside the rear of the passenger compartment that enthusiasts have dubbed the "smuggler's compartment." A plastic toolkit box was stored in this area, and behind that, under the bed, was an unutilized area where the Chevelle wagon's rear seat footwells remained in the shared floorpan; the El Camino's spare tire was stored upright behind the passenger seat for easy access.

This truck's front-end styling was modified when the 1970-1972 models arrived, although the new trucks were identical to the 1968-1969 models from the firewall back, save for minor trim. The 1970 restyle brought quad headlamps set in a body-colored surround panel, which framed a bold horizontal grille split by a body-colored bar. Circular parking lamp/turn signals were mounted in the front bumpers, and SS grille and fender badges and a standard domed or optional cowl-induction hood were part of the Super Sport package. The $2,850 V-8-powered El Camino Custom was the basis for RPO Z15/LS5 and RPO Z15/LS6, which translated to the new SS454 and eclipsed the previous top-performing SS396. This $503.45 Z15/LS5 package brought a 360hp 454-cu.in. V-8, chrome engine accents, dual exhausts, power front disc brakes, a black painted grille, chrome wheel-arch moldings and 14 x 7-inch styled steel wheels. Adding the $263.30 Z15/LS6 package netted the famed 450hp LS6 V-8, making the 1970 El Camino the hands-down fastest truck on the planet. The aforementioned cowl-induction hood was part of the $147.45 ZL2 package, which included a sport-striped, pin-secured hood with a vacuum-operated flap that ducted low-pressure cold air to the carburetor when the accelerator was floored.

As was typical of Detroit in the muscle car heyday, the El Camino SS454 received some changes each year; new for 1971 were fender-mounted two-part turn signals flanking single round headlamps, and the grille was restyled with a single thin chrome center bar. Hood pins became standard, and sporty new dark gray 15 x 7-inch road wheels with chrome trim rings were shared with the Camaro; revised vinyl upholstery patterns enlivened the interior. This year, a subtly retrimmed GMC version of the El Camino called the Sprint was a fresh offering, and the hottest Sprint SP-454 was a virtual clone of the SS454. In 1972, the El Camino received one-piece front turn signals and a grille with two slim horizontal chrome bars. Despite being only 200 miles from new, an LS5 El Camino SS454 was a lively performer, as noted by Drag Racing USA in February 1971: "The quarter-mile performance was frankly better than we'd expected with this new low-compression version of what had been a high-compression engine. Our e.t.s averaged 14.7 seconds at speeds of 96 to 97 mph.... Given a few hundred more miles and sharp tuning, we see no reason why two or three tenths, at least, wouldn't come off the e.t."

Because Chevrolet lumped all of their A-body vehicle build numbers together in the early 1970s, the high-performance El Caminos and Chevelles were merely separated by the engines under their hoods. Of the 8,773 SS454 El Caminos and Chevelles built in 1970, 4,298 featured the LS5, and 4,475 had the LS6 engines. In 1971, SS454s in both models featured the LS5 V-8, and 9,502 were built; 5,333 LS5-equipped SS454s came off the line in 1972. The aforementioned GMC Sprint SP-454 was considerably rarer, with 25 built in 1971 and 114 in 1972. As with red-hot and valuable Chevelle SS454s, the El Camino SS454 invites cloning; be sure to authenticate a potential purchase by cross checking VINs on cowl tags, Protect-o-Plates and other engine and body stampings.