Chevrolet Caprice
The Chevrolet Caprice is a full-size car produced by Chevrolet in North America from 1965 through the 1996 model years. All versions of the full-size Chevrolet models reached their peak in 1965, with over a million units sold. It was the most popular car in the U.S. in the 1960s and early 1970s, during a time when its production also included the Biscayne, Bel Air, and Impala trims.
Introduced in mid-1965 as a luxury trim package for the Impala four-door hardtop, Chevrolet offered a complete line of Caprice body style versions for the 1966 and subsequent model years, including a "formal hardtop" coupe and a station wagon. The 1971 through 1976 models are the largest Chevrolets built. The downsized 1977 and restyled 1991 models were awarded Motor Trend Car of the Year. Production ended in 1996.
From 2011 until 2017, the Caprice nameplate returned to North America as a full-size, rear wheel drive police vehicle, a captive import from Australia, built by General Motors' subsidiary Holden. The police vehicle is a rebadged version of the Holden WM/WN Caprice. The nameplate also had a civilian and police presence in the Middle East from 1999 until 2017, where the imported Holden Statesman/Caprice built by Holden was marketed as the Chevrolet Caprice in markets that included Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Early history
Differing accounts explain the origin of the Caprice name, including that the nameplate was given by Bob Lund, Chevrolet's General Sales Manager, after a classy restaurant he frequented in New York City. Another says the car was named after Caprice Chapman, the daughter of auto executive James P. Chapman.A Caprice Custom Sedan option package was offered on the 1965 Chevrolet Impala 4-door hardtop, adding to the price tag. The Caprice option included a heavier frame, suspension changes, black-accented front grille and rear trim panel with Caprice nameplate, slender body sill moldings, Fleur-de-lis roof quarter emblems, color-keyed bodyside stripes and Caprice hood and dash emblems. Full wheel covers were the same as that year's Super Sport, but a Chevy bowtie emblem replaced the "SS" emblem in the spinner's center. The Super Sport's blackout rear trim panel was also used, but without the "Impala SS" nameplate. The interior featured a higher-grade cloth and vinyl seat and door trim, faux walnut trim on the dashboard and door panels, pull straps on the doors, and extra convenience lights. A full vinyl roof was optional. A, V8 engine was standard, as was a column-mounted shifter for the three-speed manual transmission.
The Caprice was intended to compete with the Ford LTD, Plymouth VIP, and AMC's Ambassador DPL. These models included luxuriously upholstered interiors with simulated wood dashboard and door-panel trim, thicker carpeting, sound insulation, courtesy lighting, and more upscale exterior trims.
First generation (1966–1970)
1966
Caprice gained series status for the 1966 model year and was positioned as the top-line full-size Chevrolet. It included a four-door hardtop, six- or nine-passenger station wagon, and a two-door hardtop with a squared-off formal roofline in contrast to the Impala/SS Sport Coupe's fastback roof styling. All four Caprice models were marketed as "Caprice Custom."The Caprice Custom Estate, a new station wagon model with simulated woodgrain exterior trim was the first Chevrolet with such a design since its real woodie wagon was offered in 1954 on the Chevrolet Bel Air. All wagons included an all-vinyl upholstered two-row bench seat interior with an optional third rear-facing seat for two. The Custom Estate became the full-sized station wagon when the Buick LeSabre Estate was discontinued in 1964. The V8 engine was standard for Caprice models with the, "Turbo Jet" V8 optional. It was possible to have Regular Production Option L72, 427 cu in Turbo Jet V8 with solid lifters, special camshaft and carburetor, and 11 to 1 compression. An automatic transmission, power steering, white sidewall tires, and a vinyl top were extra-cost options, but most were built with them. Additionally, air conditioning, power windows, Cruise-Master speed control, power seats, an automatic headlight dimmer and stereo radios were available. The standard transmission was a Synchro-Mesh three-speed manual, mounted on the steering column. It remained standard throughout this generation.
The 1966 Caprice featured a revised grille and front bumper, and new rectangular taillights which replaced the Chevrolet-traditional triple round taillights used on Impalas since 1958, with the exception of the 1959 model. Lenses and silver trim on Caprices differed slightly from the other full-sized models. Sedans and coupe models included luxurious cloth and vinyl bench seats with a folding center armrest in the rear seat. Optional on both was a "Strato bench" seat which combined bucket-style seat backs and a center armrest with a bench cushion for six-passenger seating. Caprices had unique standard wheel covers, although some of the optional wheels and wheel covers on full-sized models were optional.
New options included the "Comfortron" air conditioning system where the driver could set a constant year-round temperature. A "Tilt/Telescopic" steering wheel option could be adjusted vertically in six positions, as well as be telescoped farther out from the steering column. Coupes could also be ordered with an all-vinyl interior featuring Strato bucket seats and center console with floor shifter, storage compartment, courtesy lighting, and full instrumentation at the front end of the console that was integrated with the lower instrument panel.
The 1965-70 GM B platform is the fourth best-selling automobile platform in history after the Volkswagen Beetle, Ford Model T, and the Lada Riva.
1967–1968
The 1967 Caprice received a restyling with more rounded body lines and revised grilles and taillights, optional front fender corner lamps which illuminated with the headlamps, as well as a revised instrument panel with round instruments and a new steering wheel. Taillamp lenses were all red as the backup lamps were relocated into the rear bumper, unlike in the lesser full-size models that had their backup lamps in the center of the taillamps. A dual-master brake cylinder was now included, while front disc brakes were optional. Other new options included a stereo 8-track tape player, power door locks, and a fiber optic exterior light monitoring system. The same seating selections continued as before with revisions to trim patterns plus the new addition of all-vinyl upholstery as a no-cost option for conventional and Strato bench seats in sedans and coupes. Engines and transmission offerings were carried over from the previous year. The exception was that the optional, Turbo Jet V8 was no longer listed, leaving the 427 as the top engine. The three-speed Turbo Hydramatic transmission that previously only available with the and 427 V8s was now optional with the Turbo Fire V8. As with all 1967 cars sold in the U.S., Caprices featured occupant protection safety features that included an energy-absorbing steering column, soft or recessed interior control knobs, and front outboard shoulder belt anchors.The "100 millionth GM car" was a light blue metallic 1967 Caprice coupe. It was assembled on April 21, 1967, at the Janesville, Wisconsin plant. It was actually the 100 millionth GM car built in the United States; production including Canadian plants had actually passed the 100 million mark in March 1966, with an Oldsmobile Toronado being the car in question.
The 1968 Caprice received a minor facelift that included a new grille with taillights set into the bumper and optional hidden headlamps. Caprice coupes now came standard with the new Astro Ventilation system, which included extra vents in the dash, and the removal of vent windows. Side marker lamps became standard on all U.S. cars and the Caprice carried over the optional white corner marker lamps at the forward edge of the fenders in addition to the amber parking lamps which were illuminated with the headlights. All 1968 Chevrolets got front side marker lamps on the fender; cars with an optional engine were identified with its cubic inch displacement listed on half the bezel; the lamp itself occupied the other half. The fiber optics monitoring system was offered again as an option. The Caprice Coupe got serious competition when Chevrolet offered the car's formal roofline in the Impala series as well. The Impala Custom Coupe became the best-selling model in the line. The L72 Turbo-Jet V8 returned to the option list after a one-year hiatus. A new Turbo Fire V8 rated at replaced the small block as the standard engine. Inside, the instrument panel was revised with a return to the horizontal sweep speedometer and a revised three-spoke steering wheel. An optional instrument cluster had a narrow speedometer within its opening and flanking it with engine-turned instruments in the place of warning lamps. The fuel gauge, placed next to the speedometer within its own pod in the base models, was moved to its new place next to the speedometer. A tachometer took the place of the fuel gauge in the large opening left by the fuel gauge.
1969–1970
The 1969 Caprice and other full-sized Chevrolets were restyled with new body lines and front bumpers that wrapped around the grille along with ventless front windows on all models. The wheelbase, inner bodyshell and framework were carried over from the 1965 model. The station wagon was renamed the Kingswood Estate and continued to use exterior wood grain trim along with the interior trim of the Caprice sedans and coupes. Front seat headrests were now standard equipment to meet federal safety standards and the ignition switch moved from the dashboard to the steering column and also locked the steering wheel when the key was removed. This was part of a Federal mandate for the 1970 models, but introduced a year earlier on all General Motors cars except the Corvair.The 1969 Caprice also offered a new GM-designed variable-ratio power steering unit as optional equipment along with a seldom-ordered "Liquid Tire Chain" option, which was a vacuum activated button that would spray ice melt on the rear tires. The standard engine was enlarged to a V8 with optional engine choices including a new Turbo Fire V8 in versions, a cubic-inch Turbo Jet V8, as well as a Turbo Jet V8s rated at or. All V8 engines were now available with the three-speed Turbo Hydramatic transmission for the first time though the two-speed Powerglide was still offered with the 327 and 350 V8s.
The 1970 Caprice received a minor facelift featuring a more conventional under the grille bumper replacing the wrap-around unit used in 1969, along with new triple vertical taillamps in the rear bumper. Power front disc brakes and fiberglass-belted tires on 15-inch wheels were made standard equipment along with a, 350 cubic-inch Turbo Fire V8. Optional V8s included a 350 and a new Turbo Fire V8. The top engine was a new Turbo Jet V8 offered in or versions. Both the 250- and 265-hp Turbo Fire engines were designed to use regular gasoline while the 350 Turbo Fire and both 454 Turbo Jet engines required premium fuel. A three-speed manual transmission with column shift was standard equipment as in previous years but the floor-mounted four-speed manual with Hurst shifter was dropped from the option list for 1970 as were the Strato bucket seats and center console previously offered on coupes. Automatic transmission options included the two-speed Powerglide on 350 V8s and Turbo Hydra-Matic with all engines.