This 1970 Chevy Chevelle has been souped up, but it’s not on its way to becoming yet another SS clone. It’s a Malibu V8 that the seller has tweaked for more action on (or off) the track. It needs some mechanical fine-tuning and cosmetic detailing. And many of our readers who follow Chevelles will recognize that the car has a 1971/72 rear clip. Located in Raleigh, North Carolina, this almost-complete project (we think) is available here on eBay where $9,000 is the current bid, reserve unmet.
Without a doubt, the Malibu Sport Coupe continued as Chevelle’s most popular body model/body style in 1970. Out of more than 300 000 copies built, 96% left the factory with a V8 engine. A 307 cubic inch V8 would have been the starting point, and this car has the optional 350. The seller says the whole drivetrain has been rebuilt with the engine block, automatic transmission, and rear end being original.
Aftermarket parts (for more speed) include the heads, manifold intake, valve covers, carburetor, MSD ignition, and other items including sway bars fore and aft. The brakes have all been converted to discs with a new power booster. The rims are the Torque Thrust brand sporting Mickey Thompson tires. The list of mods goes on and on.
It will take 93 octane fuel for this car to run, and we’re told only the installation of a new power steering belt is needed in that arena. The interior appears to be dirty (at least the back seat) and the bronze paint may be older and lacking luster. But the taillight assemblies are not from a 1970 Chevelle, though the front clip and VIN say otherwise. The seller does not indicate why this is the case (was the car previously hit in the rear and the only available replacement was from a later model year?).
It costs less than $5.00 for a power steering belt at Rock Auto. Definitely something fishy going on with this seller.
Ha! This ‘Mutt’ shows us the differences between the ’71 & ’72 Chevelle tail lights. The left? ’71. Right? ’72. ’71 has larger “beauty ring”. Backup lens are both 1972…
After dealing with this tail light dilemma for a long time I learned that part way through 71 they changed so you can get a later made 71 with 72 lenses.
I had a 1970 Malibu. Of course it was jacked up by Gabriel hi jackets. I was stopped. Got hit by a 1971 Camaro doing around. 30 MPH. It mangled the back end. Body shop had a 1971 bumper etc. I said NO. So this car was probably hit in rear. Might be why it has a racing gas tank. Car needs to be cleaned up. It has good bones. It would be a good one to start on.
It looks to be a stock gas tank, he says it’s aftermarket, not racing. You can buy a new replacement tank for a 1970 Chevelle with sending unit and straps from Jegs for less than $200.
Steve R
Rock Auto carries 9 brands of replacement gas tanks for a 1970 Chevelle. None of them are specifically for racing.
Rear bumper is NOT 1970
You are correct Daral 1970 had square tail lamps and 1971 and 1972 had dual round tail lamps I should know because i have a 1971 Chevelle
Most of the replacement gas tanks come from the same china gulag… just sayin’. They come boxed with a soft soldered filler neck sticking out thats prone to breaking the solder joint. I ordered two and got the same thing on even the third. They replaced them for free and I kept the tanks. Return shipping wasnt worth it for them. Lined all the stuff up and TIG’d the necks on for keeps.
A bit $$$ but a decent starting point for a father/son project. I had a rag top 300/350 auto with headers and a 3:73 12 bolt (Chevies all had 12 bolts that came with a 4 barrel) and it was a steamer! FWIW… thats a moldy mess in the back seat.
My 1st ’72 Chevelle was the opposite, I had a ’70 front nose on it, I only paid $800 for it so i diddn’t care at the time.
While I will admit that the seller (or I someone) has put some pretty good quality performance parts into this thing, the car itself is not only fairly rough, it doesn’t appear to have been very well taken care of. Putting a car up for sale that needs a $6 belt doesn’t exactly instill a ton of confidence that this car has been properly maintained. If the final price doesn’t go much higher, it might not be a bad jumping off point, but I would strongly suggest a real close inspection prior to plunking down any spending money.