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Chevelle (Right-Hand Drive)

15K views 22 replies 10 participants last post by  billywilly92 
#1 ·
Hey guys, I'm from Australia. I have been interested in Chevelles for a long time and think it may be time to buy one. First I have a few questions.

1) Roughly how much would a restored 1970 Chevelle cost? In Australia they are about 60,000, however from what I've seen America is ALOT cheaper.

2) Is it possible to convert it to right-wheel drive? If so how much money am I looking at? And where could I do this?

3) How are the Chevelles on fuel efficiency? I have ready about 12mpg, however I was looking for ways to increase fuel efficiency while keeping the engine of the Chevelle.

Thanks guys.

All help is appreciated.
 
#4 ·
I will look at those links. I saw that car earlier, it is honestly my dream car. Same colour and all. Absolutely beautiful. How much did that cost you? And I noticed you didn't convert the steering wheel side. Do you plan to?

Beauiful car my friend.
 
#5 ·
I would say the cost would be about half of that. If you want an orig. will be more. Lots of details to consider. If you want a driver you could save a lot by getting a SS Clone. Not sure about the right drive but I would guess anything is possible. Good Luck on your search and I feel the Mkt. is perfect to make the buy of a lifetime.
 
#6 ·
Some Chevelles up til 1969 were exported as right hand drive models. 1970 and later would have to be a total custom modification.

You can get a show quality Chevelle for $30,000 here in the USA, as long as you don't want an all original SS big block.

Gas expensive in Australia? Not much you can do for fuel efficiency without a bunch of engine modifications. You can do a few things to maybe squeeze out a couple more mpg, that's about it. Could do an overdrive transmission swap, rear gear change, ignition tune-up with properly adjusted vacuum advance, carb tuning, etc.
 
#7 ·
I know this is shallow, but I really only like them for the sound, looks and acceleration. I don't mind if it's original or not. Other than the fact it is not original parts, what are the disadvantages of a ss clone?

Are the clones made brand new? Any Idea here to get them made?
 
#10 ·
I saw this last week at a swap meet....... :p

 
#11 ·
If you take a look at the link aus posted, the nice shiny black chevelle, how much would I be looking at to get a car like that as a clone. It is exactly what I want mine to look like like. How much am I looking at to buy a clone like that?

And that dashboard, that's perfect. Is the dash the only thing that needs replacing when converting? The issue is living in Australia. These everyday chevelle items are rare here.

So how much am I looking at for a chevelle clone? And approximately how much is a conversion?

Thanks guys!
 
#12 ·
Hi all

Interesting comments. I visited the US three times looking for the car I wanted. It was not easy but I was fussy. The last time I went I was determined to make a decision and really looked hard. Believe me, when you have limited time its not easy. The car you want to look at might be on the other side of the country for a start.

I never saw a show level SS clone for around 30 grand?? Yes around 40 and a bit more sometimes. If you live in the US and have some contacts and importantly the time to look then maybe less. (thats just my opinion). Keep in mind Im talking about a show level clone that has been properly done with all the gear including dash, suspension properly badged and maybe other options like cowl induction etc.. I saw a lot of very ordinary clones that people wanted top dollar for.eg sweep speedo

I ended up at Barratt Jackson because I knew that I had a good chance to find the car I wanted. The lots are advertised before the auction so you can see whats coming. I paid $46 000 total. The competition and bidding on this car was strong so I wasn't the only one who liked it. Also Im thinking this car will be worth a whole lot more than that in Australia.

I went into the auction with my eyes open knowing I would pay a premium. I think everyone knows this about auctions especially BJ! Keep a few things in mind though. Firstly strong Aussie dollar on the exchange (so I paid less that that). A squillion awesome cars to choose from, actually overwhelming when you see 2500 pristine cars being auctioned where you can basically take your pick all in the one place (budget allowing of course). Its a car enthusiast dream. You also pay a 10% buyers premium which adds to the cost. (Incidently, the seller pays 8% I think so the real winner is BJ!) I thought my car was worth low 40"s so I was happy to wear the extra to get what I wanted. Lastly, as an Australian, money can't buy the experience of being at Barratt Jackson and buying a car there. AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME!!. My ticker never went below 150bpm nearly had a heart attack. Something Ill never forget and whats that worth? Only in the US as they say.

Its worth keeping in mind as well that I have not yet totally established whether the car I bought is a clone or not. I do not have any documentation so I can't prove anything one way or another. I had an American friend with me to check it out and he couldn't tell. The point is that the car has been restored to a high standard and a lot of money, time and a bit of love has been put into it. If it is a clone it has been done to a high standard so Im happy with that. If the car was a genuine SS396 with matching number and documentation then it would be worth more than 46 grand anyway.

There are many pitfalls to be wary of so be careful. Anything can be forged including reproduction documents and engine numbers. Even experts get caught out as many on this forum will agree with. The bottom line is just look at whats in front of you and make a judgement. Buy something that doesn't need anything done to it because the cost of importing parts to oz will hurt. You might be better buying a pristine clone than a genuine that needs work!!(even better fill your boot with spare parts before you import like I did)

You will get a car cheaper in the US no doubt, but for reasons just explained you won't save as much as you think. Go and have a holiday and the money you save buying a car pays for the holiday.

You may have to bite the bullet and pay a bit more when you find what you want. Also why convert? In my opinion you are driving an American car..leave it as is. You don't have to change it.
Happy to answer any other questions you have.. I have all the info on importing and associated rules. What part of oz do you live?
 
#13 ·
Wow! Thanks for all the information! I'm from NSW. And honestly, for ease of driving it is necessary to switch wheel sides. So I can overtake, and see everything I normally would be able to. I will drive it often so it is best for it to be on the right side. Also how is yours on petrol. Once again thanks for info!!!!
 
#17 ·
Why convert to right drive? It only takes a couple of days driving around to get the hang of it. I'm in NSW and my car is left drive, as long as its over 30 years old, there is no legal requirement to convert to right drive. Plus its fun at the McDonalds drive thru.:D

At a guess I would think at least $8000 for a conversion done properly if you can't do any of the work yourself. When you convert them it also makes buying spare parts much more difficult.

If your looking for fuel economy these cars are not the best, they are heavy and most have much larger cubic inch engines than our production cars. A fuel injection conversion is very expensive, but there are some cars available in the USA that have has LS engine transplants. These engine offer great performance and decent fuel economy too.
Just a few ideas to fill your head, and like Terry said. Make a holiday of it and go see whats available, you will have fun for sure.

Col.
 
#18 ·
LS engine implant? Are they just more modern versions of the big block engines? Are these cars more expensive than the normal chevelle engines? And where could I find Chevelles with LS implants?

McDonalds drive through does sound interesting! :) where abouts in NSW are you? And also what about overtaking? I do a lot of open road driving. How will I see oncoming cars without getting the entire car in the other lane of oncoming cars?

Also can that 8000 dollar conversion be done in Australia? I've never heard of anyone who can do that. Also, what parts will be hard to replace? What parts will need to be changed? I thought only the dash needed changing.

Thanks for the info Col!
 
#19 ·
The right mix of an overdrive transmission and rear end gearing will help you get reasonable mileage. In my 68 Chevelle wagon, I had a 454 with the 3-sp on the column and factory overdrive with a high 3 rear. It got around 13 mpg on the road. When I went to NP 440/OD trans, I picked up about 2 more mpg. Either the modern OD manual or automatic transmissions with a lower numerical rear, a 3:31, 3:08 or 2:73 will still give you acceptable low gear performance with high gear MPGs for cruising on the open road.
 
#20 ·
I haven't seen the conversion done, but would think it would be very expensive. I would thing that you would have to change the whole firewall cowl to do this, if you could find a donor car. Seems like you would also have to change all under dash parts as well. In my opinion unless you changed out the firewall nothing would bolt up and work correctly. I mean the brake pedals, steering column, brake booster, and wiper motor all bolt to it and need to be aligned to work correctly. It is not just as simple as moving everything over to the right side. Just my thoughts though
 
#21 ·
Exactly. The conversions I have seen done properly have the firewall removed and remade as a mirror image. Don't forget all the little things like the wipers have to sweep the other way on the screen, heater demister relocated,park brake brackets fabricated along with cables and linkages for throttle,clutch etc.
It's a big job when you consider all the little details.

I'm in the outer west of Sydney. No shops around here that specialise in this type of work. There are a number of businesses in Brisbane that do this type of work I believe.
And yes LS engine are the later model EFI Chevy engines, plenty of info on this site on them.
 
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