For those that wanted V8 power but did not want to get up to the 396 engines, there was the 307 CID V8.Īpparently the restyle worked, because after a sales drop the previous year, total production was up to 41,791. The base engine was a 230 CID six-cylinder engine, and a 250 CID six also was available. Other engine options for the year also were carryovers from the previous year. The grille, which featured the SS emblem, was blacked out, and the tailgate featured a unique narrow black band. In addition to their SS396 emblems, they also included simulated hood scoops and louvered hood ports. The SS models also were visually distinctive from other El Caminos. But the modified 396 at the top of the line provided 375 horsepower, the most ever available in an El Camino.
There were three 396 engines available for the SS model, and the first two (which were rated at 325 and 350 horsepower) were carryovers from the previous year. When looking at specifications, the car wasn’t that much more powerful than the top performance option offered in 1967, but giving the SS label as an option to El Camino showed that Chevy did view the truck/car as somewhat of a performance machine in addition to it being a practical hauling vehicle. The hood also was noticeably longer and the rear of the cab featured a recessed window.īut perhaps the most noticeable addition to the car was the new SS396 model. Among the changes was a longer, 116-inch wheelbase, which subsequently provided a longer El Camino that measured 208-inches. Almost all of the changes echo the changes made in the Chevy Chevelle sedan and wagon, which had provided the platform for the El Camino since 1964.
With that said, the changes that distinguished the third-generation El Camino weren’t all that drastic upon first glance – which still, of course, presented a car/truck hybrid that many car buyers had found both attractive and practical. So the introduction of the 1968 car may have been somewhat of a shock to those not accustomed to Chevy changing the El Camino. Sales had been impressive for almost every model year, but did slip a bit in 1967.
Since the second-generation El Camino had been introduced in 1964 (following a three year break from the end of the first generation of the car), the car/truck hybrid had been changed very little, with any alterations made as part of a slow evolution process of improving the car.
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