This is familiar territory for anyone who has ever ridden in a fullsize American
sedan. A pair of bench seats carries six people in stretch-out comfort. The wagon adds
a small third seat for two children or flexible adults, and the Impala has individual
front seats--we make this distinction, because it's hard to think of the Impala's front
seats as sporty buckets.
Individual though they are, the Impala's front chairs lack sufficient lateral
support to encourage the kind of fun and games the chassis can indulge. Like the
standard bench, they are fine for extended travel, however.
Luggage space is more than adequate. The sedan's trunk holds over 20 cu.ft of
luggage, a figure that the wagon more than doubles at 54.7 cu. ft.
The large dashboard holds a digital speedometer (Impala has analog speedometer and
tachometer dials) and analog readouts for fuel level and coolant temperature, a
standard AM/FM/cassette audio system--which can be upgraded with a CD player--plus
standard air conditioning. There's still room for a good-sized glovebox and passenger
airbag.
What there's not much room for is options. All the basic comfort features are
included, from a tilt steering wheel to power door locks to attractive cloth
upholstery. Leather seat surfaces are available (standard in the Impala), as are power
front seats.
All Caprices have automatic transmissions, column-controlled on sedan and wagon
and operated via a floor-mounted shifter in the Impala. Like every GM automatic on the
market, our test car's 4-speed was smooth and positive, an excellent representative of
its breed.
Buyers looking for long-distance smoothness and civility will find it in Caprice
sedans and wagons. That's always been their attraction, and that's what they still
deliver.
Lazy V8 engines, slick-shifting transmissions, light steering and a soft (though
well-controlled) ride are major elements in the full-size sedan mystique, and they're
executed well in the Caprice.
These are the last of GM's old-style body-on-frame cars. Body-on-frame
construction means that the chassis and bodywork are assembled separately, meeting
only in the final assembly process. Most cars today are unitbody, which means the
chassis and body are assembled as one unit.
Although unitbody construction saves a lot of weight, body-on-frame is rugged and
can take more of a pounding, which is why it's favored by New York taxi drivers and
also in truck manufacturing.
The Caprice's separate chassis does a good job of isolating passengers from road
noise, and squeaks and rattles are conspicuous by their absence. And we know from
decades of experience that long-term durability goes with this territory.
Caprice's standard engine is a 4.3-liter V8 rated at 200 bp. It operates in an
unstressed manner that few V6s can match, delivering seamless performance and
reasonable fuel economy, although progress away from stoplights is leisurely.
Once again, the Impala SS presents a different picture. Thanks to its 260-hp
engine (also standard in the wagon and available in the base sedan) the SS has plenty
of scoot, and its uprated suspension--essentially the same one used in police
cars--gives it agility and responsiveness one would not expect in a two-ton sedan.
The standard car's feather-light steering wouldn't be appropriate in the SS, so a
faster-ratio, higher-effort steering rack is supplied. Four-wheel disc brakes (with
ABS) are standard on the SS, replacing the Caprice's disc/drum setup.
Caprice buyers who want to bridge the gap between the standard car's soft ride and
the responsiveness of the SS can order a Sport suspension package of larger tires,
limited-slip rear axle, the trailer package's firmer springs and heavy-duty cooling
system, an engine oil cooler and a leather-wrapped steering wheel.
Most of these elements are also present in the Law Enforcement Package, which also
includes the SS's 4-wheel disc brakes. Surprisingly, the relatively anemic 200-hp
engine is standard for police use.