Dezzy begins by showing off a photo album created by the owner showing her history with the machine, with images ranging from when she first purchased the vehicle in 1970 all the way through to the present day, illustrating the profound love she has for her Chevelle Malibu.
With this particular Malibu featuring a 350 cubic-inch V8 engine as well as the round tachometer and dials normally found on the legendary SS model, Dezzy dug deeper to find out with the owner how this rare specification of a car came into her possession.
1970 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu: A True Muscle Car Or A Pretender?
Dezzy, the host of the YouTube channel DezzysSpeedShop, modifies classic muscle cars with his young son. In this episode, he talks with the owner of a 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu at an undisclosed auto show.
He finds that this particular Chevelle was ordered by the owner well over 50 years ago with the 350 Chevrolet V8 motor and three-speed automatic gearbox. The owner states she was not able to source a vehicle with the four-speed transmission she originally wanted.
The most interesting part of the car though is the beautiful interior, with the round dials and tachometer normally featuring on the top-of-the-line SS version of the 1970 Chevelle being installed from stock.
The Chevelle Malibu was produced between 1963 and 1977, with Chevrolet opting to drop the Chevelle nameplate following this year and instead name its replacement simply the Malibu. The Malibu featured in Dezzy’s video is the second-generation Chevelle Malibu produced from 1968 to 1973.
The Malibu is essentially the top product line of the Chevelle which provides the owner with a more luxurious vehicle than the standard Chevelle model, while also featuring several different engine specifications such as a 230 ci straight-six powertrain. Chevy Hardcore states that the top-of-the-line 454 ci V8 SS model is actually the best-specification Malibu that you can purchase, though the traditional rule is that while every SS is a Malibu, not every Malibu is an SS.
As well as its larger V8 engine, the SS model also featured a chrome bar that stretched across the grille and the deletion of the side vent window according to H&H Classic. Later models in the early 1970s introduced the famous dual stripe decals and a large air scoop on the hood to further aid performance.
The Chevelle Malibu also provided the base for the much-loved El Camino pickup truck, a vehicle similar in nature to an Australian Ute that featured car-like styling twinned with a large truck bed. It essentially kept the front-end design of the Chevelle as well as its engine range, with the El Camino SS allowing owners to carry heavy loads at a blistering pace across the nation.
Is The Chevelle Malibu A Muscle Car?
The big question is whether the Malibu is a muscle car or not, and the answer is dependent on the engine that is fitted to the vehicle. The top-line SS with its 454 ci V8 is undeniably a cold-blooded muscle car, though the example featured in Dezzy’s video with its 350 ci V8 motor is arguably on the edge of being a muscle car by producing around 300 hp.
The vehicles fitted with the next largest V8 engine in the Malibu range though – the 402 ci unit – can also be clearly classed as muscle cars, with these examples producing anywhere from 330 hp to 375 hp. No matter what engine you have though, the Chevelle Malibu is one of the most iconic nameplates in Chevrolet’s history.
Source: H&H Classic, Hagerty, Chevy Hardcore
