I have a 67 Malibu, really close to completion as far as a nice daily driver. I have every single Malibu piece needed to complete. a friend that has a true SS 67 Chevelle (unassembled) he want to sell me. I could merge the two cars a nd make one super-nice, true SS car. What do you think? What should I look out for. I cchecked VIN, it is trus SS. Thank you.

Kinda reminds me of splitting a pair in Blackjack: Why take one good hand and turn it into two bad ones?

These cars should remain seperate.

Do the Malibu and the SS super nice.

OK. Sorry for not being clear. I was going to take my 454 out of my Malibu and put it in to the SS. My Malibu is not frame-off restoration, but the SS is (will be). I would add any small pieces of chrome, etc that would fit the SS to make it more complete, but get only SS stuff for whatever is missing. Thus I would have two complete cars (after putting alternate engine in Malibu). Then I could sell Malibu and keep SS? Guess I'm just asking does it matter that much that my 67 is SS or not. I can already outrun almost all cars in my area. Just didn;t want to pass up the chance for an SS car. He want's 3K for whole SS, complete engine, and two t-400 trans. Deal or just be hapy with what I am. Thanks again, T.

$3K is a hell of a deal! I grab and build two cars. Perhaps sell the Malibu to a worthy buyer and use the funds to build a super nice SS?

Good deal....maybe. Most people don't know the true cost of restoring a car and think that a $8K running car is a good restoration candidate. $3K is a good number. It gives you the basic car to start with and you may not be "upside down", price wise, when you are done. The two most important things are that the car is complete and all the parts are there (even if in a box, like mine was) and that the car is not a rust bucket. Check behind the 45 degree metal that runs down both sides of the rear window and even pop the chrome off if you can and check for rust. Check inside the rear fender wells. There are other places to check for rust but those will usually tell the tale.

If the SS is OK, $3K is a good starter price. Drop the 454 in it, or better yet, a 396 and put a small block in the Malibu or leave the 454 in there. You have lots of options and lost of parts. Remember, the small block price is really added on to the total cost of the SS since it was the cost of an available engine for the SS. You need to buy a small block to get a big block.

If this sounds a little "anul" just try to remember that while this is a hobby, the car will still only be worth market value when you are done. Try to add up the total cost to do the resto and see if you can restore the SS for the market price or less. You'll have two great cars and not regret you decision.

Best of luck,
Chuck

As Randy has just stated, 3K restored cars (at least Cars that have gone through a restoration; partial restoration) dont come around all that often. If this SS cars is not a numbers car, but in fact a true SS, then I would definatly throw that 454 in there and finish the SS off. For 3k more, you could have a smokin SS. All you have to do is part with you Malibu and your on your way!

Great thanks you for all the advice. Definitely parting with the Malibu after two years of tinkering with it is tough, but I have learned so much - making the SS resto hopefully even that much better. Thanks.

What do you mean by "numbers car" (vs a true SS)?

Numbers means that the engine, trans and driveline all match and were in the car from the factory. There are cars out htere that are numbers matching, but not from the factory.

A true SS that is non numbers matching means that the body and chassis are factory original SS, and that the car as a whole can be considered a genuine Super Sport.

If the budget and garage space allows, keep the Malibu to drive around to cruise-ins & wherever else, for the couple of years or more it will take to do the SS right.

The thing I like about Malibus is that you can modify them any which way you want, including modernization and upgrading of brakes, drive train, interior etc. .....and nobody can say a thing..you did it like you want. Of course, you can do that with an SS, but I hear those guys catch heck at shows?

The SS will be worth a lot of money done right, but don't underestimate what it will cost to do a good frame-off. I am going to have well over 20,K into my Malibu when done, and maybe close to 30K by the time it gets on the road, and that's with me doing most of the work. I also saved a lot of money on parts, putting in what I want, instead of "the correct" part.

Steve