We're rolling now. At least we're pushing now. With no engine and no trans we do a lot of pushing, but at least our stripped-down shell isn't heavy. Some very nice people at Goodmark and Year One rushed us the body parts we needed and that got our Muscle Malibu looking like a real car.
Luckily, the right door and quarters were solid and not banged up, and we could have spent hours and hours beating on the fenders and left door, but that didn't make a lot of sense when there are perfectly good replacement parts available for a reasonable price. We even took advantage of the Goodmark people and got a new hood and cowl support so the entire front body is new.
After we discovered a bit of handiwork on the frame that looked like someone was trying to straighten it with a torch, we had it tweaked on a frame machine. Not only will that assure us our body parts will bolt up right, but we're planning on some serious big-block horsepower, which could very well twist a weak or bent frame. We feel better now.
If you're looking for a ton of bodywork on this car we have to disappoint you a bit. For a car that's almost 40 years old Muscle Malibu has led a fairly good life. Maybe it's because it spent the last seven years in an underground parking garage, or maybe it's just been a California car most of its life, but there's no rot, very little rust, the floors are still solid, and except for a minor wreck that tweaked the front, this thing is a find. If you're looking for a tip, we say buy one like this.
Of course that isn't always possible so we're lucky to have Goodmark and Year One around to help when most of the old parts need to be new again. We're really getting anxious to get this Chevelle done and on the road. Follow along as we do just that, issue by issue.
 Doesn't look too bad, right?...  Doesn't look too bad, right? If you've done a project car, you know we're in for surprises. We got some, but it could have been worse. |  First thing that happens is...  First thing that happens is all the parts that come off with wrenches go off first. This is not going to be a body-off or rotisserie job as we're trying to do what a lot of readers will do at home, or with minimal pro-shop help. |  This door skin didn't look...  This door skin didn't look too bad until we really got a chance to run our hands over it, and look at the back. Fortunately, we were able to get a nicebrand new... |
 ...one from the gang at Goodmark....  ...one from the gang at Goodmark. The new Goodmark door skin went on easily and fit right. This saved us filling, sanding and smoothing for hours on a piece of metal that's almost 40 years old. |  We took the decklid down to...  We took the decklid down to bare metal and believe it or not, we found no filler and the gaps were already right. The trunk floor... |  ...was still solid, too. With...  ...was still solid, too. With this kind of luck, we ran out and bought a lottery ticket. We're still here so you know how that venture turned out. |
 Our elaborate booth kept the...  Our elaborate booth kept the neighbors from complaining about the sanding dust (here we're still on the top) and later the paint spray. We were lucky to have a spot in an industrial area, but home car builders often have problems at this stage. Just do what... |  ...is necessary to keep the...  ...is necessary to keep the fumes, dust and overspray inside or you might find yourself detailing (at least) all the neighborhood vehicles. That nice looking new front fender leaning up against the right rear is from Year One and we couldn't wait to get it installed. |  Okay, our secret is out. The...  Okay, our secret is out. The frame had a bit of a tweak in it from some secret collision long ago. Someone had tried to repair it by just heating and filling, but what are the chances of that working? We got lucky and a local noted restorer let our Malibu hang around the frame machine for a few days. Pulled everything right back into place and now the... |