Chevrolet Muscle: Greenlight 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS and Johnny Lightning 1968 Chevrolet Impala coupe and convertible

Here's a few recent Chevrolet muscle castings from Greenlight and Johnny Lightning.  The Greenlight version is a first of many variations using the 1970 and 1972 body style Chevelle's to their lineup, while Johnny Lightning resurrects the 1968 Impala in coupe form first and then with a convertible this year.

Greenlight 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS

If there's no denying I like Chevelle's and I have every model year and almost every brand, but sometimes it can be downright boring to the point that so many are out there it's pretty much not that exciting when a new one comes along.  That's what Greenlight faces with the aplenty 1970 and 1972 Chevelle's running around out there in small scale.  The reason why Greenlight went for this Chevelle is not only to fill another missing Chevelle hole but also there's plenty of TV and Film action for this car (evident by the majority of this casting's release so far is in the Hollywood line).  I wanted to see how well Greenlight did this casting so I got the hobby exclusive 1970 454 SS in blue with white stripes.  At first glance Greenlight did an excellent job with the exterior detailing getting the stance and the look just right on this car.  The front has round headlights that cove out, not flat, with a detailed split grille in silver with SS logo and Chevelle on the lower grille.  The chrome bumper has the black SS 454 plate to show what you've got under the hood.  The hood has nicely done stripes with Cowl Induction on the hood scoop and the two hood release pins.

From the sides the beltline is nicely done with the appropriate SS badges and chrome trim, and the 5-spoke mags with Goodyear rubber tires look great on this car.  At the rear the stripes end at the trunklid, the chrome bumper has detailed taillights and a black stripe across the bumper, and even the dual exhausts is visible from here.  The base underneath has the correct depth of the exhaust and drivetrain components, while the hood opens up to reveal 454 CID V8 with an orange block and black round air cleaner, pretty much on par with other 1:64 Chevelle's with opening hoods.  The interior has the appropriate look with front bucket seats and rear seats adorning the appropriate pattern, detailed door panels, and a dashboard with the appropriate driver-oriented layout with detailed gauges and radio controls.  The shifter is in the correct shape and spot, but the major downside of this casting is the two-spoke steering wheel in the school bus position; really kills it for an otherwise beautifully done casting.

Johnny Lightning 1968 Chevrolet Impala SS coupe and convertible

If there's another Chevrolet that I like collecting it's the Impala and most of these Impala's come from Johnny Lightning.  The Johnny Lightning brand is responsible for making me reach more into the Impala landscale where I have the 1959 convertible, 1963 coupe (the oldest Johnny Lightning Impala casting), 1965 coupe, 1969 convertible, and now these 1968 coupe and convertible pairs.  Both wear the same red color and the same tooling design, but differ in top design and wheels.  The coupe was part of last year's unsuccessful Muscle Cars USA line release two, unsuccessful because the wheels were plastic compared to the Classic Gold that had rubber tires and one store in particular, Wal-mart, stocked too much of one release and not enough of the other colors or release so they languished and eventually Wal-mart cut them loose, leaving the release two seen here to show up in a new blister pack design at Toys-R-Us.  The 5-spoke mag wheels look great here, though they do look odd sitting higher than they should be.  The top in red is plastic showing the casting's universal design, much like the 2000 Mustang and 1998-2002 Camaro toolings from Johnny Lightning.

The convertible was released in the Classic Gold third release line now with rubber tires and dog dish hubcaps, plus the convertible looks better without the top.  The front has round quad headlights that are recessed and separate from the grille (optional was hideaway headlights that made the grille look uniform).  The grille continues down below the bumper with integrated signal lights and the side marker lights are on the tips of the front fenders and contour with the bumper.  Both cars have the same side profile with the coupe having a more boxy look and the Coke bottle rear fenders showing off here.  The Impala name on front fenders and black stripe is shared among the two.  At the rear the tri-taillights are now incorporated into the rear bumper along with the rear license plate.  The coupe has California plates, while the convertible has Indiana plates.  The metal base has the nice assortment of drivetrain and exhaust details, while the hood opens to reveal the 396 CID V8 with a red block and black air cleaner cover to a three-speed automatic transmission to the rear wheels.  The coupe has an all-black interior, while the convertible has a white and black two-tone look with a white tonneau cover for the top.  The front has bucket seats while the rear has a bench and both have detailed patterns, door panel details, and a black dashboard wtih 3-spoke steering wheel, column-mounted shifter, and driver-oriented layout of controls.  While not as stylish as other Impala models it has a unique look and Johnny Lightning is so far the only diecast manufacturer of this 1968 Impala, not to mention a whole fleet of Impala models to choose from.

Update 12/19/17: Here's the Greenlight 1970 Chevelle in SS COPO trim from the Mecum auction series.  The Daytona Yellow looks impressive on this car, and it also has Mecum rear plates and a SOLD sticker on the windshield.  The idea of an COPO on an SS car sounds ridiculous since you can get the largest engine Chevrolet offers, the 454 CID V8, in a 1970 Chevelle SS.  If this was a non-SS trim it would make more sense of being a special order COPO model.

Update 1/20/18: And if that's not bad enough here's another 1970 Chevelle from Greenlight that is just as spectacular as the first two above.  This dark green version is part of the Hollywood series reflecting the car used in the movie "John Wick II."  The color is deep and gorgeous and comes with a matching-colored interior.  Combine the color with spectacular detailing of this casting and you can see why getting another recolor was worth it!  Also note the New York license plates, SS396 badging, and the steering wheel has tilted down slightly even though it still has that school bus position.

Update 12/1/19:  The Greenlight Chevelle casting is also flexible as the 1971 Chevelle is also part of the lineup, though it is rarely seen compared to the 1970 casting by far.  This hugger orange with white stripes version is part of a Sta-Bil fuel system advertisement and more than just a new chrome split grille, round single headlights, split signal lights now relocated to the corners of the front fenders, and a new rear bumper with quad round taillights, it also features unique pro-stock wheels with skinny tires up front and wide rear tires for extra traction.  The wheels are 5-spoke with nice details of the many bead lock pattern on the rim of the wheels.  Except for the tires, though, this Chevelle still remains stock: