Feature Vehicle
Mike King –
Kitchener Ontario Canada
1969Malbiu
Purchased October
2000 previous owner Dunneville Ontario.
Every one has a story
as to why they do the things they do sometimes they make sense sometimes
they don’t well -------
After several years of
owning a very special 1968 Camaro SS I decided to sell the car I was
really tired of the tire kicking critics who new everything about my car
but didn’t have one of there own, so I thought I would break a way from
the car scene. After a couple of weeks of not having a classic car to
work on or at least wash and polish in the peace and quiet of my garage
I started to go into what my wife called Old car withdrawal. I mean I
was getting bored to death. My wife suggested maybe I should get another
car; well she didn’t have to say it twice! While owning my Camaro I
always had a soft spot for the full body frame of a Chevelle, not just
any Chevelle but a 69. The search was on! Back many years ago I worked
at a garage in London Ontario. There was a customer who would on a
regular basis come in for fuel, you guessed it he had a brand new 1969
Chevelle SS Green on Green 396 4 speed. Every time he would leave the
lot the tires couldn’t help but make couple of chirps between gears, all
the time I was searching for my car, that brand new Green SS was in the
back of my mind. After many, many Tri Ad car newspapers and countless
drives to places that I can’t even remember going to I finally heard
about this car in Dunneville, near St. Catherines, near Niagara falls,
near Fort Erie, I say this because I swear the guy didn’t know where he
lived, his directions were terrible after making the journey and finding
the car, I wasn’t sure this was going to worth the effort, but after
considering what I had seen previously I realized this was not that bad
of a car, really all I was after was a car that I could go to the odd
cruise night with and be quick enough to be respected. (at least in my
circle of friends) I think I have achieved my goal, here’s the scoop on
my 69 Malibu.
Non-matching numbers -
Frame – Kentucky
excellent condition
Body – Atlanta (over
all not bad)
Hood Original flat
style
Doors needing
replacement
Engine very poor
running 350 2 bolt-main Q- jet carb
Transmission 350 turbo
Rear end 12 bolt 342
posi making funny crunching noise
Exhaust – duals very
small diameter pipe
Interior Green
Seats were in
excellent condition that’s the end of the good news.
The dash had been
totally butchered for a stereo and all the metal trim had been painted
dark metallic green, the sail panels were missing and the roof liner was
dropped, I guess you could say it was a restoration in progress when I
bought the car.
My first thought was
where do I start; remember I don’t want anything to special this is for
fun right?
I started on the
interior, ripping out the dash bezel and not labeling any wires
forgetting that you have constant power and keyed power so if you do
this swap label your wires, also when I tackled this job dash bezels for
the 69 were not available as a repop item, this was very hard to find,
Dales Muscle Car was able to locate one for me after a couple of weeks
in Manitoba,
It needed to be
detailed but was complete, so I made my first purchase of many. After a
little TLC on the rest of the interior
And putting in sail
panels, repairing the roof liner and changing carpet along with
repainting the trim it was time to move on. I then pulled the drive
train and sent the transmission out for a check up and install a B&M
shift kit, had the rear end checked out, put in new clutch packs and it
was good to go. I purchased a new 350 small block 30 over with 4-bolt
main and a steel crank with cast heads (nothing really to special).
After getting the car together over the winter, I took it to one of our
local performance machine shops in the spring and we chassis dyno tested
the car, it made 245 hp and 300 ft lb of torque @ 5000 RPM running a
performer intake and a 650 Holley double pump carb. After just a couple
of weeks I ordered a set of Edelbrock RPM aluminum heads and retested
the car .It made 303 hp and 360 ft lb of torque @ 5000 RPM. Note when
doing this head change you will need to buy different head bolts and
longer push rods, it is an added cost but needs to be done. After
driving the car that season I had the bumpers rechromed and changed all
the trim and grill. I then found a real nice set of southern doors, also
a real good original SS hood, and scratch free set of factory tint
glass. After driving the car that season I decided to install a 4 speed.
I had a Muncie M21 in my garage so I had it rebuilt. Food for thought,
when doing this swap make sure you have all the correct parts nothing
worse than getting near done and finding out you have the wrong bell
housing or incorrect bell crank stud, this can set you back a few days.
If you are doing this swap and you go from a counsel shift car to a
regular boot shift you will want to change your hump in the floor this
available, just a little cutting and welding required. You will then
need to change your carpet I know from experience. The car really was
more fun with the 4 speed remember this is all about fun right? While
attending the Northern Gathering in 2004 and walking through the lot I
realized I was missing something from my 69 ------ you guessed it a BIG
BLOCK. . Last winter while attending a car show \ swap meet I was able
to locate a freshly built 1971 454 cu in, it just so happened this guy
needed a strong running small block, so being the impulsive buyer that I
am we made a deal. Within the week I had my small block out and a big
old “Rat” sitting in my garage on the stand. Food for thought, before
starting this swap think it through, this is a big job for the average
do it yourselfer like most of us are. All brackets, pulleys, hoses and
fan shroud will need to be replaced, make sure your cooling system will
handle the extra heat, and you may have to change your engine mounts
there are a couple of different styles, also be sure to check your hood
clearance if you choose to an Edelbrock air gap intake manifold you
could have clearance issues, there are a couple of drop base air
cleaners on the market which may help. As far as exhaust if you run
headers spend the extra few bucks and buy Hooker they really do fit
nice. I was lucky enough that my front springs were strong enough to
carry the extra load, I did put on a 1.25” diameter front sway bar which
I got from a Monte Carlo, it works really sweet, the car corner much
nicer, I drove the car last year to the Northern Gathering and it drove
and ran awesome. I am currently rebuilding the steering this winter.
Remember I get bored pretty easy. Hope you guys enjoy driving you car as
much as I enjoy mine, remember, be safe, go fast, have fun!
1969 Malibu
Engine – before - 350
cu in
Now –
454 cu in
Carb – 770 street
avenger by Holley
Intake manifold –
Edelbrock RPM Performer
Transmission – before
3 speed 350 turbo
Now Muncie M 21 4 speed
Rear End - 12
bolt posi 342 gear ratio
Exhaust - 2.5
“ aluminized with Flow master mufflers
Hooker headers 2” primary
Brakes -
Front disk rear drum
New dyno specs to
follow --- NO GUESS WORK ALLOWED !!
