In the 1960s and 1970s, the Chevelle was one of Chevrolet’s best-selling automobiles. And, of those cars, the Malibu Sport Coupe was the most popular, representing nearly one-half of all Chevelle production in 1970. This survivor-quality automobile was parked in a warehouse for ages waiting for a restoration that never came, so it’s been made roadworthy so the buyer can take care of the cosmetic details. Located in College Point, New York, this turquoise Chevy is available here on eBay where $12,600 isn’t enough to satisfy the seller’s reserve.
This Chevelle looks like one of those we drove during Driver’s Ed back in high school. A mostly basic car with just enough options to satisfy the average family. Under the hood resides a run-of-the-mill entry-level 307 cubic inch V8 paired with a 2-speed Powerglide automatic transmission. Add power steering, power brakes, and factory air conditioning and this car probably had a very common MRSP for these cars at that time.
From what we know, this Chevy was driven 50,000 miles before ending up being in storage for a considerable period of time. Enough time to need a new gas tank, fuel lines, radiator, and brakes. As a result of this work, we’re told the car is now roadworthy and everything works, even the A/C! The paint is original (except on the passenger fender which was replaced at one time), and the body has a few little scars, but there’s no evidence of rust being an issue. The interior is certainly passable for its age with only a small tear or hole here and there.
There are probably a lot of people who would buy this Chevelle to transform it into yet another SS clone. I hope that’s not the case as this automobile is nice enough to be left as original as possible and still be worthy of a trip to Cars & Coffee every now and then. Leave those transformations to cars that are in worse condition.
What a find! I hope it finds a good home where it’s preserved and enjoyed for what it is, a nice, mostly original car. That drivetrain is bulletproof. We don’t need anymore ridiculous, tubbed hotrods or SS clones with an engine from a Tahoe or Yukon.
Thought these 307’s had chromed oil rings that would start failing/burning oil long before 100,000 miles.
While driving my 1969 Chevelle with a 307 in the year 1979, it burned a quart of oil every 100-200 miles. I recall the car and engine had less than 100,000 miles on it at the time. Total Tailpipe Smoker!
My 69 Camaro had a 307 and burned oil at 80K. Back then, it was thought of as normal. My sister had the same Chevelle and it too burned oil before 100K.
Nice original car! What’s with the Nissan floor mats though?
Oh no! Nissan floormats. Who knows what else could be wrong? Better find another, with say, Kmart floor mats. Phew..
I would make this a sleeper. Do the body work fresh paint same color and new vinyl top. Re chrome the bumpers. New springs and shocks fix up the interior bench seat in the front. Remove the drivetrain and put in a stroker 383 four speed transmission automatic and positive rear end with 3.73 gears. Make the 383 look stock except it’s going to have headers and leave the 307 on both fenders. The dual exhaust system with turn down tips out back. That would be a really fun ride. Nice to dream here. 😊🐻🇺🇸
Looks pretty straight and solid. This would be nice if restored with a mild small block. Enough to feel good driving but not announcing your arrival blocks in advance.
SS clones are a dime a dozen and you’ll run into many at the shows.Regular Malibu’s on the other hand are a rarer sight which makes them..in my eyes much more desirable.
Just like the 67 from earlier. A little horsepower to the original motor. Dual exhaust. A 4 speed and buckets with a center console. Leave the wheels on this one. Bodywork and the original color paint. Would be nice.
Onwg, the door gaps are enormous.
Can this just be kept original? Like already said a clean original like this would stand out from the ridiculous amount of clones out there.
It looks a little used to be 50k miles and people might know better but it looks patched. It’s still nice for the age, but for 50k miles, it seems a bit rough.
I’d enjoy this one as is, they’re only original once and I think it’s worthy of preserving as a survivor.
Back in the 80s I bought one exactly like this except it had a white vinyl top and interior for $300. It was in much better condition with about 50k miles and was a Christmas gift for my wife (we were in our twenties). It was a great car but every time my wife would accelerate onto the highway from an on ramp, the rear end would break loose and send her spinning around. Very scary so I sold it for about $700. The badging indicated 307 ci but that car would move… I mean really scoot way faster than my 62 chevy II running a hopped up 327 vette motor. Wish id kept it. Actually wish id kept both.
Since yours had a white vinyl top.. it wasn’t EXACTLY like this one.. but similar.
Soon to be an original SS 454…
I’m not sure if the rings were chromed or not but I know firsthand in stock form they did tend to burn some oil after awhile. The kid part of me couldn’t resist doing some old school sbc stuff to it. I would keep the 307 and rebuild it with better than original parts. Probably a mild cam in the process and an aluminum dual plane manifold and a Q-jet. I freely admit to having a thing for finned M/T valve covers so they’d go on. Decent dual exhaust and grin and cruise.
In 1970 just before I went into the Army, I bought a brand new Chevelle SS. It had a 396/325 hp, with a 4 speed manual transmission. White vinyl top, white interior and bucket seats. It was a dark 🔵 body. The list price was $4,400!
That same year my grandmother bought a 1970 Chevelle with a 307 ci motor. The body was the same color as mine, and it also had a white vinyl top and had an auto transmission and a bench seat.
WISH I COULD HAVE KEPT THEM BOTH!