Stored 38 Years: 1971 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu

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The first thing to cover is that this appears to be a 1971 model, not a 1972 as the seller has it listed. It also has an unusual feature in having a floor-mounted three-speed manual transmission. This 1971 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu Sedan has a low-spec drivetrain but has a white vinyl top, wheel covers, and white wall tires, things I would expect on a base Chevelle, not a Malibu. It’s posted here on craigslist in Longview, Texas and the seller is asking $5,500. Here is the original listing.

This Malibu has been in storage since 1987 and it has some needs as you can see. Thankfully, many companies offer replacement grilles on the cheap, so for $150 you’ll be set there again. There’s something about a four-door sedan with a manual transmission that gets to me as I drove a 2002 Saturn SL-1 sedan with a five-speed manual for many years. In Europe, it isn’t even thought of, but here in the U.S., it seems as if we expect cars with four doors to have automatics.

The second-generation Chevelle was made from 1967 for the 1968 model year until 1972 and there was a four-door sedan such as seen here, a four-door sport sedan, a two-door sedan and hardtop, a two-door convertible, and a four-door wagon. The seller says this car is originally from Texas and has no rust, the body looks fantastic as you can see from the photos

The interior appears to have suffered a bit from the Texas heat, the padded dash is cracked in several places, as is the cover over the gauges, and also the steering wheel is cracked in several spots. The carpet is faded, the armrests have seen better days, etc. You can see the manual gear shift sticking out of the hump/tunnel, and I believe this car would have had a three-speed manual on the column, so it must have been converted to a floor shift. That option wasn’t available on the six-cylinder engine. We don’t see the back seat at all, which is unfortunate, but the recovered front seat looks nice, as does the trunk.

The 250-cu.in. OHV inline-six is showing a lot of surface rust but it’s said to run well. It would have had 110 horsepower and 145 lb-ft of torque when new rolling through that Saginaw Muncie SM326 three-speed manual to the rear wheels. The seller has replaced the gas tank, gas lines, and the carb, gave it a tune-up, new brakes, and new tires, and this looks like a steal for this asking price to me. It would be fun to clean up the engine compartment, redo the interior, and have a unique three-speed manual sedan. Any thoughts on this Malibu sedan?

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Comments

  1. Driveinstile DriveinstileMember

    I’m with Scotty on this one. I like the 250 straight six and a 3 speed stick. I tried zooming in on the pictures showing thebsteering column. I may be wrong I’m looking on my phone ( I seriously need to update my bifocals) but I think the original shifter section of the column is gone. It may have been a 3 speed on the column originally, then converted to a floor shift. But again, I could be wrong. But either way if its solid and no rust issues, it would be fun to just run around in. I like it. I think it would be fun to drive.

    Like 13
    • Scotty GilbertsonAuthor

      Mornin’, sir. Ha, I also spent some time zooming in trying to see where the original column-mounted shifter would have been and didn’t see anything, but from looking at brochures from 1971, the only floor-mounted manual was in the 350 or 400 V8, the six-cylinder had a three-on-the-tree shifter.

      There is a powertrain chart on the second to the last page here:

      https://www.motorologist.com/wp-content/uploads/1971-Chevrolet-Chevelle-Brochure.pdf

      Like 5
      • Driveinstile DriveinstileMember

        Ah hah. Yep. Makes sense. Well. Instead of leaving the defunct column shift in place theybtook it out. I always thought that looked funny. 2 shifters. Hmmm which one to go with today? Thanks for the link Scotty and the time and research.

        Like 4
      • Bamapoppy

        I’m with you and Scottie, drivin. There’s a lot of space between the column section where the ignition is and the dash. I had a ‘59 Ford Fairlane Galaxie 500 that I had the 3-speed shifter moved from the column to the floor. The guy who did it left the cover on the column whereas this one is missing.

        Like 3
  2. Joseph A Crook

    The engine with no paint left is a sign of it got pretty hot once upon a time. I like the shifter on the floor. Lots of us did that with our 3 on the tree. This is a sound buy for someone on a budget. I would watch for a V8 to put in it. .

    Like 7
  3. Bud Lee

    Those 71,72 grills were not very durable. I see this car as what it was when new. Basic transportation. It is probably worth the asking price, but I wouldn’t invest a ton into it.

    Like 7
  4. CraigR

    If that car were near me it would be in my driveway now.

    Like 7
  5. Drock2020Member

    If you got money to throw at it, redo the engine and turbo it. Pretty near indestructible and possible 500hp. Complete sleeper.

    Like 3
  6. Steve R

    This car was featured on September 3rd of last year with an asking price of $6,500, though someone commented that the original posting had been taken down then reappeared with a $7,300 price. It’s not the most desirable car, being a 4dr and 6 cylinder, but it’s still surprising nobody could reach a deal. Anyone interested needs to go over the car with a fine tooth comb to make sure there are no surprises waiting for them when they get it home.

    Steve R

    Like 5
  7. Mark

    I agree with most all of the comments here. Having owned my 1971 Chevelle since 1988 I can tell everybody a few things that I can compare to my Chevelle. My 1971 Chevelle 2 door came with a 307/ 3 on the tree manual with power disc brakes and manual steering ordered by the original owner. The column shifter did not work right in 1990 and I converted it to a gm grate engine and a 4 on the floor which was easy to switch to.change to a 4speed since the pedals were there. I can see this car has had the column piece removed. By the way I still have my 1971 Chevelle after all these years!!

    Like 8
  8. Car Nut Tacoma

    Lovely looking car . I’ve seen plenty of 2 door Chevelle Malibu and SS, but I’ve never seen a 4 door Chevelle . It’s too bad they discontinued the station wagon . Those are my favourite vehicles .

    Like 3
  9. Les buchmann

    I would agree that it was a three speed on the column shift car. The floor shift doesn’t have the usual hump that is typical of a factory manual car. A good indicator that it’s been modified. Also because the driver side signal lamp chrome bezel appears to be broken it could easily be mistaken for a 72 especially if the owner is not a avid car enthusiasts who knows the subtle body style changes between the years 71 and 71. Overall it is a nicely preserved and looks to be rust free unit. I would agree that this unit would be a good candidate for a sleeper engine and even a LS swap.

    Like 3
  10. 454ratMember

    All you have to do is take the column shifter sleeve, cut and grind the hump off where the shifter sticks in, bondo the hole, smooth and paint it and you’re done. I have seen a hundred done like this on 55’s and on about everything. It has a 6, which is 100% better than a 307. Clean little car well worth the price.

    Like 1
  11. nlpnt

    Looks like the roof is white paint, not vinyl. Probably was vinyl originally and the moldings were there so 2-tone repaint it was.

    Like 0
    • 454ratMember

      Many 68 through 72 Chevelles came with different colored painted tops instead of vinyl. They used the same chrome as vinyl tops.

      Like 0
  12. Paul

    Several years back sitting outside of Findlay, Ohio was a 1969 Chevelle four door with a V8 (don’t remember if it was a 327 or a 350) that was equipped with a factory installed four speed transmission.

    Like 1

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