[Welcome another new CC Contributor, David Kehl, also known as Davo around the curbstones here]
Traditional station wagons are not as common a sight on the roads as they used to be. The family station wagon market has largely been ceded to the SUV and minivan makers, yet some companies continue to produce them for what is now a niche market. It’s pretty rare these days to see a genuine station wagon, let alone a mid-1960s wagon, so when I spotted this Chevelle Malibu wagon in a parking lot, I had to get a closer look. At first glance, which was from the rear, this Chevelle Malibu wagon looked like a well used survivor. The paint appeared original, apart from the tell tale rust that is breaking through.
The profile view revealed something missing, evidence of major front-end sheet metal damage. The owner has obviously gone to extra-ordinary and unusual lengths to get this car back on the road. Let’s take a closer look.
Here’s the view of the front-left fender, or where it should be. The owner replaced some of the original sheet metal with a home-made welded steel frame that is bolted onto the chassis. This frame supports the radiator, hood, and the light assembly. I think I can say without any hesitation that when all her skirts are removed, this Chevelle Malibu isn’t a pretty sight.
The front view gives a different angle of the owner’s custom repairs. It doesn’t look pretty, but it works.
I was pretty shocked when I first saw the front of this car; however, the more I looked at it, the more I appreciated the owner’s efforts to keep it on the road. I like the rough cut metal frame, the less than perfect welds, the broken non-standard headlight, the non-standard front and side turn signals, and the coolant/antifreeze overflow container that hangs out there for all to see like an automotive colostomy bag. The car seems to have a good set of Michelin tires. The owner appears to spend money on what really counts, rather than appearances.
My favorite part of this car is the new hood, a cut-down sheet of plywood bolted to the homemade steel sub frame. Does that make this car a Chevelle Malibu Plywoody? The plywood has been aged by a combination of wet weather, sunlight and heat from the V-8 engine it covers.
I applaud anyone who can keep a 45 year old car on the road for use as a daily driver. I also admire the lengths to which this owner has gone to keep this particular damaged car on the road. For many people, cars are an obsession, or an object of desire. This car, however, demonstrates a different view, namely that cars are still just transportation, and it doesn’t matter how old it is, or how ugly it is, whether its been beaten up and kept on the road with parts from Home Depot, as long as it get the driver safely from A to B, it’s a perfectly adequate form of transportation.
My God! How hard is it to get a front clip? I know it’s 45 years old but they weren’t made of unobtanium
In principle I agree with you, but it can be pretty hard to find old sheet metal. When I worked for my Dad’s body shop, we got a lot of jobs on older cars because he kept his prices down. We used to peruse the local junkyards; read the Parts and Accessories column in the local paper; and whenever out and about, check out the sides of the road. My dad would even detour through the poorer neighborhoods to see if anybody had a junker they wanted out of their yard.
The Internet makes things a lot easier now, but then you may run into the other problem–the owner thinks it should sell for a price similar to that of unobtanium.
That kills a lot of projects, too.
Or maybe it’s just that the owner is not dealing with a full deck.
“Sometimes a cigar is just…”.
Maybe he just likes easy access to the engine compartment; well, actually the front shocks. I guess he can get at most of what one would need to do without removing all those bolts.
This by American standards is road legal?
Yikes.
Certainly is an interesting counterpoint to all that talk (on ,a href=”http://www.ttac.com”>certain other sites) about how hard it is to federalize non-US designs though 😀
Depends on the state. While vehicle safety standards are mostly standardized, there’s wide variation in stipulations of body perforations and in how stringent is enforcement.
In Pennsylvania such a car would be impounded. In some other states, as long as it’s got brakes and lights, it’s okay. Some states will even allow non-standard vehicles, such as golf carts, to be issued plates and driven on the highways.
No Kiwi traffic cop could resist this it wou;ld fix any monthly quota all the lethal projections we aren tallowed sharp edges never mind bolts hanging out evrywhere pedestrian safety is paramount some how I reckon this would fail a warrent of fitness check
“The owner appears to spend money on what really counts, rather than appearances.”
Lights don’t count? It’s good of him to have some tread on his tires…but as someone who’s trafficked in junkers in the past, I can tell you that when anything happens, law enforcement is going to look at the beater first and foremost. Better have all your “I”s dotted and “T”s crossed – because they’ll cite you and impound your wreck in a heartbeat, if they can find half an excuse.
I personally suspect the owner here is a few bricks short of a load. For the time he spent building that Mickey-Mouse frame, he could have contacted wrecking yards all across the country – and found SOME working front clip. And not have had to deal with the flexing, splintering plywood hood; or the endless fun in adding oil to the engine blind, through a two-inch gap.
This has some potential. Perhaps the owner really doesn’t care what it looks like but I find the farmyard fix aesthetic a little too ugly and the wrong kind of ugly.
Presumably the plywood hood is functional, perhaps keeping rain off the ignition so the beast is reliable and maybe providing additional bracing to the angle iron front clip to keep it all square, otherwise why bother? So, I propose finding a suitable metal hood to keep the rain off and weld some proper gussets and cross bracing to the frame to keep things square so the hood isn’t a stressed piece of the structure anymore and so you can open it easily for service.
Next, find the biggest, ugliest, battering ram of a pitted, chipped and rusted chrome bumper you can find at the junkyard to replace that pitiful piece of angle iron.
Now find the biggest, gaudiest grille you can to place in front of the radiator – probably anything off a fullsized American car from the 70’s would work. Trim the hood so that it’s even with the grill in the front.
I love the bolt-on headlamps and turn signals – keep those.
Under the hood, an effort should be made to hide anything that distracts the eye from those glorious, rusty exhaust manifolds, like that coolant overflow bottle.
Excuse me, I’m off to the junkyard to find a ratty old station wagon.
I like to dwell on the positives. Unparallelled engine cooling. Fabulous tire and wheel clearance. Incredibly easy access to the engine. Starter in one hand and a ham sandwich in the other. Could this be a test of new lightweight composites for automotive use? Or maybe this is a prototype of a new lifestyle vehicle – some railings and this would make for a nice heated deck for football tailgate parties.
Some shingles on the plywood would have been a nice touch, provided they were oriented properly in relationship to airflow over the hood. On the downside, though, an engine fire would be really dramatic.
“Or maybe this is a prototype of a new lifestyle vehicle – some railings and this would make for a nice heated deck for football tailgate parties.”
Why choose between a car and a picnic table when you can have both in one handy, um, vehicle?
+1 jpcavanaugh!
It’s a road warrior! He’s obviously preparing for the apocalypse, and this work in progress will ensure his transportation needs are met long after the last of the infrastructure has been reclaimed by nature.
Don’t laugh, he could be right…
Mad Max, Thunderdome, Third Time’s A Charm.
Geeze, at least he could have used some pressure treated ply!