A Family Affair: 1966 Chevy Impala Restomod
This is the kind of restomod story we love: a 1966 Chevy Impala that has never left the same family. Steve Preister’s dad bought it brand-new in Fremont, Nebraska, in 1965. He and Steve’s mom drove it for ten solid years before parking it away for safekeeping. Decades later, with a little encouragement from his friend Eric Sorenson, Steve pulled it out of hibernation and gave it a second life.
When it finally saw daylight again (Steve was 14 at the time), the car was a rusty mess. But these ’66 Impalas are tough. New tires, a battery, and fresh gas, and it fired right up like nothing had happened. Years later, Steve came back to it with the same result: another battery, plugs, fuel — and it ran. The body was fully sandblasted, patched with new quarters, fender wells, and trunk pan, then finished in a gorgeous pearl white.
Power now comes from a stout 502 ci big-block V8 breathing through a FAST throttle body and kept cool by a Be Cool radiator. A 4L85E 4-speed automatic handles shifting duties, upgraded sway bars sharpen the handling, and Halibrand-style alloys wrapped in modern rubber are stopped by Baer discs at all four corners. The interior is clean, classic, and ready for long cruises — exactly what a family-heirloom restomod should be.
