1970-72 Chevrolet Monte Carlo: New, Adaptable
The Early Chevy Monte Carlo Could Be Optioned To Meet Various Tastes
Jun 18, 2009
Chevrolet had taken its time before introducing the 1970 Monte Carlo and the careful planning paid off well. Other General Motors divisions were by then well experienced with coupes built for that market, beginning with Buick’s Riviera that appeared in 1963.
The front-wheel-drive Olds Toronado and Cadillac Eldorado followed in 1966 and 1967 respectively and Pontiac moved its Grand Prix from a full-size model to a distinctive mid-size body in 1969.
The 350 Small Block Is Standard, But Monte Carlo SS 454 Is Among The Possibilities
Park a 1970 Grand Prix and a 1970 Monte Carlo side by side and the family ties become obvious, but each has its own personality; the Grand Prix may have provided the Monte Carlo’s essential platform, but that left plenty of room for Chevrolet to follow its own path. Chevy had been relentless in steadily building its performance image since the mid-1950s and thus found itself driven to ensure that a properly equipped Monte Carlo could rival a muscle car.
The result was the Monte Carlo SS 454, a package that combined the widely known and widely respected Super Sport name with the division’s biggest engine. The 454 that powered the Monte Carlo was the 360-horsepower version – not the most powerful, but certainly powerful enough – and it was available only in the SS and only with an automatic transmission. It added $420 to the Monte Carlo’s $3123 base price, but for those unwilling or unable to spend the extra money, even a base Monte Carlo was not a car to be taken lightly.
Its standard engine was the 350 Small Block V-8 capable of generating 250 horsepower and mated to a three-speed manual transmission. A four-speed was available, as it was for any engine but the 454, and any Monte Carlo could be equipped with an automatic.
Style And Comfort Aren’t Overlooked
Not everyone considering a Monte Carlo saw performance and speed as the car’s strongest selling points and those whose priorities were elsewhere didn’t find themselves forgotten by Chevy. Combining a long hood with a short deck was hardly a new idea for a coupe in 1970, but the Monte Carlo executed it well. The utility of the huge sail panels is debatable – rear-seat passengers’ side view was limited, even as their privacy was enhanced – but it’s difficult to criticize their aesthetics.
It’s hard to fault the Monte Carlo’s styling in general, as Chevrolet resisted temptation and instead gave the car an uncluttered look with minimal stamping to the sheet metal and the right amount of trim, but no more. With or without the optional vinyl top, the Monte Carlo’s lines succeeded, but a Monte Carlo lacking extras was an entirely acceptable car.
It used the 350 and three-speed mentioned above and power disc brakes while including such niceties as a clock, but it was the options sheet that offered the possibilities. Power steering, power seats, tinted glass, air conditioning and any of several radios were available, as were fender skirts, rally wheels and various wheel covers.
Opting for a factory radio meant that its antenna would be hidden in the windshield, something that proved an amusingly dubious tradeoff in that it helped to keep the exterior visually clean but didn’t work especially well when it came to picking up broadcasters’ signals.
The 1971 and 1972 Monte Carlo Barely Change
Chevrolet was smart enough to recognize that it had a winner and so it gave the 1971 Monte Carlo only minor updates. Engine specifications were shuffled a bit and while the manual three-speed remained the standard transmission for the base 350, engine-transmission combinations were rearranged. The most interesting option to return was the SS 454, but as in 1970, it was not a big seller.
SS 454 sales were low enough, in fact, that the package was dropped for 1972. The four-speed manual transmission was also deleted, as Chevrolet emphasized the Monte Carlo’s luxury and handling qualities above its all-out performance; an SS 454 could stand up admirably against many muscle cars of its day, but doing so was never really its purpose and so the focus was now narrowing.
Those who saw the car for what it was were in the majority and the SS 454's poor sales figures suggest that few missed the high-performance option, but to those who liked the car as a whole, 1972 was another good year for the Monte Carlo. It was the final edition of the original body and the mild updating did nothing to hurt the look that had been so right in 1970.
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