This 1974 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu Classic has only been driven around 18,000 miles over the last 45 years, that’s about 400 miles a year. I have a few vehicles that I drive less than that every year and I would guess that a lot of you do, but none of mine have only 18,000 miles. This one can be found here on eBay in Moorhead, Minnesota. The current bid price is $4,150 and there are still three days left on the auction. Thanks to local_sheriff for sending in this tip!
The Malibu Classic was an upscale model that debuted in 1974 and it was a little more upscale version, although the Laguna had been available since 1973 and it may be the most collectible model of this era Chevelle. This Malibu Classic really looks like a nice car and that mud/gumbo on the left front wheel really brings back memories of my college years in the Red River Valley area of North Dakota / Minnesota (Fargo/Moorhead).
As is almost always the case, the 5 mph bumper regulation seemed to come on so quickly that most car makers could do nothing more than to just bolt on huge bumpers, and rarely did they help the looks of a vehicle. This car looks great no matter what bumpers are on it. The seller says that it’s almost all original other than having a new battery. That’s original as in, paint, belts, and even the tires! It has been kept in a garage its whole life and rarely driven. Since I drive over double the miles that are on this car every year, I would say that it has really low miles on it.
Oddly enough, there are no overall interior photos, I’m still scratching my head on that one. They do show a few detail photos and it looks great in those photos. They also show a few areas with some light rust rearing its ugly head. Being in Minnesota, it would be almost impossible for any vehicle to not have some surface rust on it unless it was parked in someone’s living room for 45 years. Check out the underside, though, it appears to be rock solid.
Other than what looks like a bit of overspray around the valve covers, and that could be a reflection, this engine looks whistle clean. The engine is Chevy’s 350 cubic-inch V8 with a two-barrel carb and it would have had 145 hp and 250 ft-lb of torque. A 0-60 time of 12.4 seconds isn’t exactly the stuff of legends, but it looks great and it sounds like it also runs great. If there is a survivor car show in your area, this would be a fun car to show off. There can’t be many original cars left in this condition.
Definitely whistle clean, but wow, no options on this car either. Yes it has the vinyl top… but no AC, no power brakes? No power steering?
Wow. Currently at 8k reserve not met
Hey guys I live just outside of Fargo and the concerned I would have for this vehicle would be rust, we get a lot of salted roads here all winter. This car looks pretty darned nice and I’d someone is really interested I would be willing to go take a look at it for you and give you my observations. By the pics provided it is a boring car but looks pretty nice! BY THE PICS!
I see this all the time…..if there is an interesting classic with low low miles…..they usually have no options. I wonder why….
Had one, bought new. Brown with Beige interior, 350 3 on the tree. Drove like a lazy dog when new. I spent some time working on it once the warranty ran out, a little live vacuum, recurved the distributor and redid the carb. It was no speed demon but sure ran a whole lot better than it had.
1973 and 74 were the early years of smog pumps and many cars just didn’t run right (hesitation and stalling ). Like 86 Vette said, you had to do some tweaking. Many, my father included, just had the smog junk disconnected. At least it should be unleaded fuel friendly.
Couldn’t adjust the jets until you pulled the carb off and chipped out the cover caps. Surprise Surprise, couldn’t just start the car up to move it. You had to have the clutch in and the seatbelts buckled before the starter would engage. Found the plug under the seat and disabled that quickly so didn’t have to buckle the belts to start it.
No cat on it, but all the smog crap really hurt mileage – 10 mpg on the highway as delivered. About 17-18 mpg once all the junk was gone.
Had a 10K mile ’74. Stripped. 454-4bbl-4sp w/10-bolt positraction. Swivel-bucket seats. No rugs (rubber), no gauges, no AC, no undercoat, radio-delete, heater-delete, insulation delete…local guy bracket-raced it. I bought it for $2100. Drop it 3″. Remove the heavy bumper and supports and hood and replace with fiberglass replacements or the better-looking S-3 parts, 265’s on 8″ Vette wheels, Addco sway bars, Koni’s, Quick ratio, high-effort Steering box, steering damper and front-alignment specs from a ’73 Monte Carlo and go have fun. These cars CAN handle quite well. I gave mine the NASCAR look. I had a blast in mine for along time.
This car is another reason I am glad I am not wealthy. I would buy this one too in a heart beat. I would have had to purchased an old warehouse by now to store all of the cars I wanted off this website. Then I would have to decide which one I wanted to drive for the day. As much as I wish I were Jay Leno, I am also glad I am not him lol.
Stevie, I have wanted that same problem for a while.
I figured I would have a bowl of garage door openers by the door and grab one on the way out. You would never know which car you would be driving that day.
For most of my life I have been driving multiple cars per day so I carry everything with me in my pockets. I never leave anything in a car and it bothers me when I see my friend leave stuff in his.
I always wondered why Mercedes-Benz did not have a law suit over the theft of their grille?
Mmm…tower clamps!