Robert Mirabile
mirabile@optonline.net –
Green City Park, New York
Member #222
1967Malibu Convertible
Through
my teens I had always wanted a 67 Chevelle, it was my favourite car and
especially liked convertible 67’s. At age 17 I heard of a guy 2 towns
over selling a 67 cheap. I went to look at it and it was a real 67 SS
convertible. I really didn’t notice it much further than the 138 VIN so
it was mine for $400. That was about average for a totally rotted, real
SS in need of total restoration back in the 80’s.
After spending
several years and lots of money trying to restore it the project
slowed. I had a rolling chassis with all new suspension components but
when it came time to do the body the project really stopped. Every
piece of sheet metal had to be replaced with the exception of the cowl.
With the project stalled I came across another 67 Chevelle. A Malibu
model but it was a drivable car. I thought that if I bought this one it
would give me something to drive and enhance my motivation on the SS.
Well like a true gear head, I tore into the Malibu as well.
The Malibu was
supposed to get a budget makeover and was the birth of my moniker and
Team Chevelle screen name ‘On budget’ the problem was budget makeovers
while less than a true resto aren’t cheap either. A decision was made
back in 92 to combine the two Chevelles to make one good one. Being the
Malibu was the more solid foundation we decided to make that the car to
work on. AHHH if I only had a fortune teller. You see back in the
early 90’s the muscular market wasn’t booming like it is now and an SS
wasn’t worth that much more than a Malibu. I tried to sell the SS
complete with finished disc brake front and 12 bolt rear rolling chassis
along with the body shell for $200 and couldn’t!!!!! So we used all the
SS parts and turned the Malibu into a nice driver.
I used the
fenders, rear end & suspension, front suspension, bumpers, seats, and
many other parts from the SS to complete the Malibu. I then stripped
the body down to metal, did some homemade patch repair and a few buckets
of bondo and sprayed it outside in my driveway. The paint job cost $200
bucks in materials and start to finish took 7, 12-hour days.
Not perfect but
good enough for a budget driver, I moved on to a new top and gave it a
try recovering the interior. The engine compartment had an old 69 350
that I cleaned and dressed but mechanically left as it was. All in all
it came out good enough to take home a few trophies at local event in
the first year or 2.
The Malibu was
stored outdoors for the first several years and was driven about 10,000
miles each year in ANY weather including snow. This took a toll on the
paint and body but that $200 outdoor home job is still worn to this day.
Over the years
the engine was rebuilt, then rebuilt a second time, then freshened with
heads, intake and cam, then another cam, and a 3rd cam, then
several ignition swaps, headers and exhaust swaps, 3 or 4 different
carbs. The original power glide was then replaced with a TH350, another
TH350, then a 700R4, then a second 700, then another torque converter to
a best ¼ mile of 13.92 all while still putting about 6 to 10 thousand
street miles a year on it, even driving to Chevellabration 4 years in a
row at about a 2,250 mile round trip
In recent years I
don’t drive it nearly as much. All the trips I go on and all the
out-of-town shows we travel to almost always include my wife and
children. My family has grown large enough where we can no longer drive
the Chevelle on trips and now have to trailer it to most events.
Most recently,
the big cammed 350 didn’t really fit into how I was driving the car.
Mostly cursing and relaxed road trips with less track time. I wanted
something that ran smoother and idled easy but could be fun. I did a
budget 454 swap and dressed it to have a look of a 427, just for fun. So
now it’s got a mild 454 backed by a 700 OD trans and 4:10 12-bolt posi.
It’s a blast to drive and has great manners even getting 14.4 MPG on my
last 1000-mile trip (to the Cam Am 5th Gathering) on
87-octane fuel.
My future plans
are to keep driving. When the kids are older it will get the redo it
deserves, but for now I’m enjoying loading the old Malibu up full of
kids for a trip to the cruise in. They can eat and play in this
Chevelle, because it’s really all about the people, the Chevelles just
bring us together.
