1968 Chevrolet Chevelle 300/327 L79

1968 was a great year to be into Chevrolet. You had the Camaro, refined in its second year, Corvette was restyled, and the Chevelle was a new semi-fastback design with more-pronounced coke-bottle styling that looked like it was carved from one piece.

But hidden from the 350 and 396 GM V8's of the day was a small block that once gave the late Drag Racing Superstar Grumpy Jenkins the firepower to beat Chrysler’s King Kong Hemi. That motor was the L79 327. Unfortunately, by 1968, the muscle car landscape had evolved into such a way that big blocks were now ruling the roost. Buyers were looking for torque and image, and the L79 had neither because it wasn’t a 396 and it wasn’t available in either the Chevelle or Nova Super Sports. Not good...

To look at it, it wasn't setting hearts on fire. The 1968 Chevelle 300 itself was a plain Jane. It had rubber floor mats where others had deluxe carpeting. It had very little trim, where other models had gobs of gleaming chrome. It had steel wheels with poverty "dog dish" hubcaps. But, what made the 1968 Chevelle 300/327 L79 V8 so special was it's 11.0:1 Compression ratio, 325 horsepower/360 lbs. ft of torque, .4472-inch valve lift, 78 degree overlap, 306/306 degrees duration, forged steel crankshaft, 4-barrel Rochester carb, which was mated to an optional close ratio M21 4-speed transmission. Yep. It's in there.

Honestly, a 1968 L79 Chevelle 300 is not on most people’s radar, but they do offer performance, good looks, and rarity. In fact, it’d be tough to find one at a Chevrolet-only show. Certain collectors already have been sniffing out L79 equipped Chevelle 300 and 300 Deluxe models due to the bare-bones approach that was missing from the SS 396, which was trimmed more like an upmarket Malibu. You can think of the L79 as a poor man’s version of a Yenko because they both had high-winding small blocks that could put the hurt on their bigger brethren. No doubt a sleeper in the market but with proper documentation, they’re valuable cars.

Sometimes, less is more...