The new Colonnade styling was all the rage at GM back in 1973, with the Chevrolet Chevelle getting a fresh body to begin its third generation of production. This is one of those cars that got a bit sleeker-looking as the years went on, but for me, it’s hard to beat that simple grille and those cool round lights in the back. This 1973 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu looks pretty good on the outside, and while it could use some work, I’m guessing this one already gets quite a bit of attention out on the streets. It’s located in Jellico, Tennessee, and can be spotted here on Craigslist, with the seller hoping for $5,000. Barn Finds reader Tony Primo spotted this Chevy and brought it to our attention, and we’d like to thank him for the tip!
The seller lists the good points here along with the bad, with the paint quality stated as among the positives. The exterior appears complete and seems to live up to the seller’s proclamation that the body is overall solid, with the panels also remaining straight for the most part. Unfortunately, it’s sort of hard to tell if there’s minor rust behind the wheel on the passenger side quarter, or if that’s just the result of leaves on the ground reflecting on the finish. However, even if there is some corrosion on this panel, the good news is it appears to be minimal.
On the list of day-one tasks for the future owner is giving attention to the carburetor, or maybe replacing it all together with a new unit. The 350 will start and run, but it doesn’t want to idle, plus the choke is not functioning properly. Another fuel-related issue is the factory gas tank, which is described as bad and leaking around the bands. This problem has already been addressed, as the seller has placed a Flowmaster cell in the trunk and ran new gas lines, but it would probably be time well spent to go ahead and remove this and install a better tank down below. That view also exposes the holes in the trunk, with rust also said to be present in the rear floor area.
We only get to see this one photo from the interior, but the green bench seat up front appears to be in surprisingly good condition. An aftermarket steering wheel has been added along with a trio of gauges under the dash, with the seller thinking it wouldn’t take much work to bring this 1973 Chevrolet Chevelle up to a daily driver or weekend cruiser. I’d be inclined to start with a new carb and just drive this one for a while, but it also seems ripe for taking up a few notches, or maybe even a full restoration at some point in the future. What would you do here?
I really liked these cars back in the day, my first one I bought in October of 1980 was a 73 SS 454 automatic and surprisingly now that I think of it, it was the only I sold. The rest I ran into the ground and junked. There was a 76 malibu classic I bought and fixed up in 1983 that my sister crashed, not her fault, somebody left turned in front of her on her first time driving in St Joseph. I went thru 8 or 9 of them when I was in my late teens and early 20’s. Cars did not last me long in those days, too much youthful antics and sorry to say alcohol. Not really sorry as there is a phrase I learned, we will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. Cars do last me a lot longer now tho, just had a conversation with my daughter an hour ago about the pickup I have now I have been driving for 10 years and the previous one I drove for 11
Borrowed my brother-in-law’s ’73 SS to take my girl to Prom in ’76. One day at a time!
I let my little brother drive my SS to school once, he got in trouble for doing burnouts in the parking lot. I was told not to let him drive it anymore
Assuming everything works like they should and the car runs and drives safely under its own power, I’d buy it and drive it, keeping everything original what needs to be kept original while also upgrading what needs to be upgraded. This is my favourite of the Colonnade style Chevy Chevelle. If only more pictures were posted.
I too love this year and had one for a brief moment as a kid. I would get rid of the fuel cell and fix a that situation and then just drive the heck out of it.
My dad bought his first new car, a 1972 Malibu 4 door, from our local Chevy dealer. When 1973 rolled around, he was curious just to see what the new ones looked like, so we took a ride back to the dealer. The minute he saw those bumpers, he said “I’m glad I bought last year’s!” Nowadays, they actually look somewhat stylish.
Should have seen the 74’s. They added the girder to the rear too. This is why the ’73 Collonades look the best.
“at the car wash, at the car wash, yeah.
Work & work, oh those cars never seem to stop comin.
Mom wouldn’t buy one of these – complained about the size of the doors.
This was my first real car in high school (late 80’s) and was perfect for learning how to drive (and sometimes be a jacka$$) as this car was essentially indestructible. I hit multiple deer, trees, a bus, broadsided a station wagon and never felt a thing. Damage was always very minimal as well. The issue that drove the worst of those accidents I feel was a super light rear end and a limited slip. As soon as it was wet outside, the car would spinout so easily, no matter how light I was in the petal.
I loved this car because of how much of a pain in the a$$ it was, but also how forgiving it was when I would sometimes ignore a law of physics or two. Had a strong connection to my “$hitbox from hell” as a result and was sad when she finally bit the bullet. Whenever I see one, I relive all of the wet road spinouts and smile. I nearly died sooo many times..
how does replacing floor pans and a trunk floor classify as TLC? restore this and your upside down. it’s not a ss454. leave in the car wash
TLC is politically-correct speak for, “this thing needs a ton of work” So yes needing floor pans replaced qualifies as TLC, most likely the tip of the iceberg.
Looks like it’s “double your comments” day at Barn Finds!
Twice as much fun!
Replace that carburetor with throttle body fuel injection. Carburetors with their *#!$ chokes were the worst. Electronic ignition while you’re at it. Life is too short to put up with stone age technology. Drive it.
Any good mechanic can make that carburetor work perfect with a $20 kit.
33 years ago, I got a rebuilt late ’60s rochester monojet carb for $35 at a chain autoparts store that has since gone out of business, & the choke & fast idle still works perfectly & it has never been rebuilt – every so often you spray the linkage, but u also have to spray the area of the mass flow sensor on modern vehicles which is not ez to get at. Driving the chevy strait 6, you would swear it’s fuel injected – idles so smooth & no hesitation whatsoever.
Same with my ’74 firebird 400’s original 1974 quadrajet which has only been rebuilt once for about $175 – it has 250k miles.
No check engine lites, sensors, computers or fault codes to have to worry about. & both cars use $15-$25 very long lasting mechanical fuel pumps that a 12 yr old could change! & the same $2 gas filter from autozone.
My friend’s S10 with throttle body fuel injection & pump IN THE TANK died on a florida highway & he had to get it towed. Too bad it didnt have a carb, & mechanical fuel pump on the side of the motor.
2-door Collonades are the best-looking of the lot, considering 4-doors are ugly..While this Chevy looks nice, Pontiac pulled the look off the best, at least in ’73.
I still say the 73s ruined the look of all the chevelles and caminos made before them! And I’m stricken to my story.
The 73 chevelle rear design with the same lights as corvette was a one year only best of colonnade , as for the 73 front bumper…I wonder what a redesign would like ?
A late friend of mine had a Tuxedo Black ’73 SS454 El Camino w/a T400. By then, the LS4 had only 245hp, but he had that sucker tuned to perfection…& it scooted like a scalded cat!
Rust bucket.
I did own a 73 Malibu and it looked just like this one, green. I tried to improve the performance by adding dual exhausts, an Edelbrok manifold and 4 bbl carb. Didn’t improve performance that much but what did I know. I did enjoy that car and liked its looks. Wouldn’t mind having this car.
I’d drive a 1973 Chevy Malibu. Whatever the body style.
Depending on how much rust there is in addition to the rear floor plans and trunk, it might be a lot of fun to drive this and repair it as you go along provided you don’t live somewhere with road salt.
Always like the looks of these, although I wish they would have had thinner front bumpers like the Oldsmobiles and Buicks did that year. So many of these ended up as street stocks or late models at local speedways. There are still a few running at tracks even 50 years later.
As expensive as many collector cars are today, where can you find a RWD two door with a V-8 this cheap? Great car for a budget
TLC to me means minor work or tender loving care not major metal replacement
I love the color. Does anyone know the name of it? I want it for accent, wheel, dash, tailgate lettering, etc for my truck.
Why a tank in the trunk? A new proper 1 is dirt cheap from Rockauto
My son had a car with a fuel cell strapped in like this had crashed the car the cell slipped away under the straps and a big fire ensued. Luckily he got out ok without injury.
This Chevelle is a rare bird, as it has not succumbed to tail light rot and some of the other Rust Belt maladies. It would be a good project to get it rust free and solid, since these don’t show up as much as the other years of this model. Good luck to the new owner : )
I had a 73 like this one, only mine was hunter green. Pulled the original 307 out and replaced it with a 66 327 out of an earlier chevelle. Ran that car all through high school, loved that car, wish I had hung onto it. 73’s were the nicest looking of all the colonnade models, the round taillights is what made it.
You don’t find many 73’s around, wish this one was closer.
My son had a car with a fuel cell strapped in like this had crashed the car the cell slipped away under the straps and a big fire ensued. Luckily he got out ok without injury.
If only more pictures were posted of the car.
Hey, ik it’s been a while since this post has been made but, I would just like to state that I was happily the buyer of this car. It’s currently being daily driven, with new fuel pump, spark plugs, and distributor.
I would also state I am a very young man who has been interested in old school cars since I was very young and now happily own two. The reason I say I am young is that with all respect the previous owner highly neglected the car leaving the electrical to be eaten by squirrels, and the plugs look like they had never been changed. Left me stranded on my way home, with no spark.. I towed it home with some help, and the inside of the distributor cap is completely fried. I replace the cap and the notorious carbon button, still no spark. Use a multimeter to check the ignition control module (it has an aftermarket HEI distributor from the previous owner) and no current so I replaced it with a spare from my oldsmobile that I am rebuilding. Ran fine for a month until again, no spark. Pickup coil inside distributor is wasted. Replaced the distributor, runs amazing.
Moral of the story: check for all of the above, fuel, spark and air. And always oil.