Into the Blue

A Love for Classic Cars

This 59-year-old locksmith from Corona, California, has had a lot of pretty cool vehicles over the years, including a ’67 Corvette, a ’68 Camaro RS/SS and both a ’69 and ’70 Nova SS L78. While definitely a Chevy lover, Bernd has also had a few Mopar products, including a ’69 Road Runner and a ’70 ’Cuda, so when he saw this Chevy sitting on the side of the road, it reminded him of the ’62 Impala SS that a buddy of his had when he was younger. According to Bernd, “At the time I saw it, I thought, ‘What a cool car.’”

The Unexpected Purchase

Though he initially saw the car near his home, when it popped up for sale on the Internet, it had moved to Northern California. Since Bernd had already seen the car and liked it, he made the purchase just in time to go to the Goodguys show in Scottsdale, Arizona. When the car was delivered, though, he could plainly see that the car was not quite what he had remembered. Bernd began to think that he had made a huge mistake in buying it. In fact, he didn’t even want to take it to the show, but his brother and friends told him to get over it and convinced him to go. So Bernd and his wife, Stephanie, jumped in the car, and off they drove to Scottsdale. Bernd says that he was surprised that the car got lots of attention at the Goodguys event, even though he thought it was a “50-footer” at best.

A Rude Awakening

It was when Bernd got home from Arizona that he began to take the Impala apart. Once he pulled the interior out, he saw just how badly rusted the floor pans and rocker panels were. He was a bit depressed and embarrassed that he’d bought the car, so he planned to get rid of the car, but his brother, wife and friends encouraged him to stick with it. And so, the project began.

Chassis and Suspension Upgrades

Once Bernd had pulled the body off of the frame, he sent the frame (a stock Chevrolet X-member-type unit) to Bear Alignment & Brake in Corona, California, where they installed all-new (though mostly all stock) suspension components, springs, bushings and so on. The rearend is a Posi unit, equipped with 3:36 gears, while the stock drum brakes also got all-new components. A set of Gabriel air shocks was installed for times when Bernd and his wife take long drives and need to bring enough clothes for the weekend.

Keeping the Front Stock

Up front, the stock anti-sway bars are mated with stock-height front springs while amazingly, the stock front drum brakes are still part of the package. Unlike the rearend, a set of KYB gas shocks have been included.

Wheels and Tires for the Period Look

In keeping with the resto/period look that Bernd was going for, a set of cool old-school 15-inch American Racing Torq-Thrust D wheels was chosen. The look is classic to say the least, and the wheels are perfect on the SS, especially when mated with the 70-series Kelly blackwall tires.

Crate Engine with Classic Vibes

Though not old, the GM 350 crate engine that has been installed into the Chevy is a classic in itself. Equipped with four-bolt mains, the 300hp engine has seen its share of upgrades, too. An Edelbrock carburetor shares intake duty with an Edelbrock Performer EnduraShine intake manifold while an Edelbrock air cleaner and valve covers complete the picture. Other non-stock items include the late-model fuelie heads that punch up the compression ratio to 9:1. Keeping things in the family, the engine buildup/modifications were done by Allen and Mac Bernd of Hotrodhappenings.com in Corona, California.

Exhaust and Cooling Mods

The period-perfect Hooker Headers have been mated to a Flowmaster exhaust system while a modern PerTronix Flame-Thrower electronic ignition system supplies plenty of spark for the plugs. When things get hot, a Be Cool aluminum radiator, equipped with a SPAL electric fan, keeps everything nice and cool. A Be Cool overflow tank is also utilized.

Transmission and Driveline Work

Getting the power to the ground requires that it first go through the transmission. In this case, it is a trans that was big back in the day, especially with the drag race guys: a two-gear Powerglide. The Powerglide has been enhanced, thanks to Larry’s Transmission of Corona, California, as Larry rebuilt the Powerglide with heavy-duty components and added a shift kit. Speaking of heavy-duty, the stock driveshaft was rebuilt and balanced by Driveline Services of Corona, California.

Body Restoration Efforts

While the frame and drivetrain were being rebuilt, the body was undergoing a rebuilding process of its own. As stated, the floor pan and other pieces were rusting away, so they were cut out and replaced with new pieces. In fact, it seems that most of the body was replaced as Larry Connor in Garden Grove, California, and Mike Face Auto Body in San Bernardino, California, must have been busy indeed. In all, the SS required new floor pans, new right inner and outer rocker panel, new right quarter panel, as well as two patch panels on both lower parts of the front fenders. So yes, we think that Bernd’s description of the car having “major rust issues” was dead on.

A High-Flying Paint Job

When the last of the welds had cooled, the car was shipped all the way to Straube Aircraft Services of Kingman, Arizona, where the DuPont silver blue paint was applied. Bernd says that Rick Straube is a longtime friend, and he figured a guy who could paint airplanes for a living could certainly handle a ’62 Impala. Though the color is stock, this time the paint featured a polyurethane basecoat as well as a clearcoat. The result is better than new while still appearing new, and by that we mean 1962-new.

Interior Details

Speaking of being new while still looking old, the interior that Ron Mangus of Ron Mangus Custom Interiors of Rialto, California, stitched for the SS is perfect. He covered the stock SS bucket seats and rear bench with stock-appearing blue vinyl upholstery. The dash and instruments are stock while Auto Meter oil and temperature gauges have been installed in old-school style below the dash. Two things that you won’t find in that dash are a stereo or an A/C unit. We are all for resto muscle cars, but honestly, Bernd may be going too far here. Another period piece is the Sun tach that has been attached to the steering column, while atop that column you will find a cool ’68 Camaro rosewood steering wheel.

Trials, Heat, and Rain

While most builds have their ups and downs, according to Bernd, this one has been steadily uphill to the finish. He and his wife drove the completely stripped car to Kingman for the finishing of the bodywork and paint. When the car was done six weeks later, they had to drive it home with no trim, bumpers or interior. During the journey, it was 125 degrees in Needles, California, and due to the fact that there was no firewall pad, carpet or insulation, the temperature inside the car was even hotter. Then, just outside of Barstow, California, there was a huge rainstorm. They had all the windows down and no windshield wipers, but Bernd says that they really didn’t care as the rain actually felt good, especially since it was raining inside the car and cooling them off.

The Joy of the Journey

Bernd also says that there’s a lot of history behind this car with all the help he had from his friends and brother. He has owned a lot of cars over the years that would be worth a pile of money today if he had kept them, but we all can say that, and now it doesn’t really matter because this car has actually been more fun than any of them for Bernd. Allen Bernd describes himself as a hot rodder and an old-school kind of guy who thoroughly enjoyed the two years it took to build this ’62 Impala SS.