First Look: Revell’s 1962 Chevrolet Impala Hardtop

Topics:  Chevrolet Impala, Revell

John Walczak
July 5, 2010

On a recent trip to Model Empire in West Allis, Wisconsin I came upon this kit that was selling for $19.99, so I bought one and here’s a first look at this brand new tooling from Revell!

The kit is molded in white with clear, transparent red and chrome-plated parts as well as black vinyl tires. This is a replication of the straight Impala Hardtop, not a Super Sport. It has a bench front seat instead up buckets, hats off to Revell for that.

The only engine in the kit is a dual quad 409, which is a bit of a disappointment to me as I see an Impala with a 283 or 327 but this can be easily modified to suit my personal taste. Also the trans is a four-speed, I will probably go with a Power glide and a column shift. The chassis is nicely detailed with many separate parts and the decal sheet looks fantastic. There are separate decals to detail the dash, as well as the engine and compartment and for the emblems and side trim on the body. Also noted were decals for the thin whitewalls on the stock tires and wide whitewalls for the slicks as well as decals for the “stock” fabric on the seats. Other things noted on the first look were separate sun visors for the interior, the interior roof has a nicely engraved headliner, a separate chrome Hood Edge Molding, an authentic looking side view mirror, dog dish hubcaps and “steelies” as a tire/wheel option and of course, the ‘convertible” look hardtop and “C” pillar! There are also plenty of “drag” options and I can see a short track car in my future as well.

Overall impression is great, a must have kit for Chevy lovers and kudos to Revell on a job well done! Most modelers of my age look for quality of new releases, not quantity and this one appears to be right on target.

	View photo, 4,204KB
	View photo, 4,204KB
	View photo, 4,204KB