Chevelle SS 454 LS6
Photo: Vauxford, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Vehicles · Vintage American Muscle
Chevelle SS 454 LS6 · 1970
The LS6 is the 454-cubic-inch (7.4-litre) big-block, solid-lifter apex of the 1970 Chevelle SS — a forged-bottom-end V8 rated at 450 hp, the highest factory horsepower figure of the entire classic muscle-car era. That gross rating, arriving just as GM's corporate displacement cap lifted and insurance and emissions rules closed the window months later, makes a documented, numbers-matching M22 car the definitive high-water mark collectors chase.
The one to have: Documented LS6 · numbers-matching · M22 4-speed
Specification
Engine
7.4L LS6 V8
454-cu-in big-block, 11.25:1, solid-lifter cam, 800-cfm Holley
Output
450 hp
500 lb-ft @ 3,600 rpm · 5,600 rpm peak (gross)
0–60 mph
~6.0 s
quarter mile ~13.1–13.4 s at 107–108 mph
Built
4,475 LS6
engines produced for 1970; coupe/convertible/El Camino split unrecorded
The market
Verified sales on file
5
May 2024 – Jan 2026
Median sale
$396k
all tracked results
★ Documented LS6
$396k
median of 5 target-spec sales
Top result
$770k
Mecum · Jan 2026
Benchmarks: Tributes ~$50–130k · documented hardtops $220–400k · convertibles $600–770k · Trend: rising (record reset Jan 2026)
Know the real one
4,475 LS6s built, one year only; the 1970 VIN encodes no engine — a car is only an LS6 if paperwork proves it (build sheet, pad stamp CRV/CRR, casting 3963512)
More claimed LS6s exist today than Chevrolet built — undocumented cars are tribute money
450-hp rating was the era's highest; ~$4,500 as delivered
Verified sales · ★ = target spec · foreign results converted to USD as noted
| Date | Venue | Year | Spec | Miles | Price | Loc | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2026 | Mecum | 1970 | 4-spd conv. ★ | — | $770,000 | FL | numbers-matching M22 convertible, frame-off — all-time Chevelle record |
| Jan 2026 | Mecum | 1970 | 4-spd ★ | 61,000 | $335,500 | FL | hardtop, highly original, TMU |
| Jan 2025 | Barrett-Jackson | 1970 | 4-spd ★ | — | $220,000 | AZ | M22 hardtop, cataloged genuine |
| Sep 2024 | Mecum | 1970 | auto conv. ★ | — | $396,000 | IN | unrestored survivor, one family from new |
| May 2024 | Mecum | 1970 | 4-spd conv. ★ | 40,000 | $600,000 | IN | M22 convertible, highly original — then-record |
Where to hunt
Research file — market data verified through July 18, 2026.
Sources: individually observed results via Classic.com feeds, BaT, Cars & Bids, Mecum, RM Sotheby's,
Broad Arrow, Gooding, Collecting Cars, PCARMARKET and venue coverage, plus marque registries and factory press material.