Yes, I know, muscle cars were pretty much extinct by the time the Laguna Type S-3 arrived in 1974 due to strict emission and fuel economy regulations.
The regular Chevelle Laguna had already been successful during the 1973 season, winning seven races, but the introduction of the Type S-3 turned the Chevelle into a dominant force. The Laguna scored 12 wins in 1974, 10 of them with Cale Yarborough behind the steering wheel.
The 1975 season wasn’t as successful with only six wins, but the Laguna fought back with 13 victories in 1976 and 15 more wins in 1977.
Overall, the Chevelle Laguna brought Chevrolet a total of 53 NASCAR wins and four manufacturers’ championships over five seasons. Cale Yarborough also won the first two of his three consecutive Winston Cup championships driving the Laguna.
Of course, the road-spec Laguna Type S-3 wasn’t equipped with NASCAR-spec gear, but it had quite a few extra features that set it apart from the regular Colonnade hardtop.
The list included a vinyl roof, opera-type rear quarter windows, body-side stripes, front bucket seats, and a six-dial instrument cluster. It was also equipped with Rally wheels, a front stabilizer bar, and stiffer shocks and springs.
The aero package that made the S-3 the car to beat in NASCAR arrived in 1975 and included the slanted, urethane-covered nose and louvered opera quarter windows. The beautiful metallic blue example you see here is one of those cars.
A wonderfully restored and maintained example, it’s one of only 7,500 Laguna Type S-3 cars built in 1975 and it boasts all the cool features that made it the aerodynamic monster of that era.
An all-original classic, it still rocks its numbers-matching V8 engine, but it doesn’t rock the range-topping 454 V8 that generated 215 horsepower that year. This coupe was ordered with the smaller 400 four-barrel V8, which came with 175 horsepower on tap.
Yes, it’s far from impressive nowadays, but it wasn’t bad for an era when the Corvette barely exceeded 200 horsepower and the Ford Mustang delivered less than 150 horses with a V8 under the hood.
All told, the Chevelle Laguna Type S-3 is one of the coolest coupes from the Malaise Era and one of the very few that comes close to being a muscle car. Check it out in the video below.
