Your first Chevelle "experience", tell us!
 

Hopefully it was a good one,here is mine
It was about 1978 my dad was running our family owned tree service he hired
a 18 year old kid to help him out as the buisness was still pretty new.
During the summer I was employed too and Steve and I became friends and after a few paychecks Steve bought a '72 red chevelle that I was one of the first passengers,Needless to say a 14 year old kid getting to ride along with a older "dude" listening to Boston and a wild 120 mph ride kinda sealed my fate as a future Car Guy and Chevelle owner

My mom and older brother both had a 1970 chevelle while I was growing up so I grew up in one.

It was 1988 and I was a hod carrier for a plastering crew. One of the new guys showed up for his first day in a 1964 chevelle SS. It was rather ugly with faded paint and worn out interior, but it sounded amazing! I started talking to him about the car and he said it was for sale. I had been saving money for a while and already had a good amount saved up so the next day I came into work with my cash and bought the car off him for $700. To this day I still think it's the best $700 I've ever spent. 23 years later and I still have my chevelle and I love it more every year.

I was 16 and a guy I worked for gave me a 72 with rotted rear quarters. I saved up and purchased a set of replacement 1/4's. I had another buddy lined up to do the quarter replacement for me. Deal was I brought his family to the airport and pick them back up upon return from there trip. While during the week they wer gone I turned in to oncoming traffic (a Renault Alliance) and hit them head on. The left frame was kinked back to the firewall. I scrapped the car after that.
2010 I came in to some cash and decided I needed to try it again. I had some great times in the 30 or so days I owned that first Chevelle. I figure my 15 year old needs some inspuration as well. looking forward to that first ride in the Chevelle I'm working on now.

Does a '74 Laguna S-3 count as a Chevelle? Traded my '73 Z-28 in for that one.

Not many people remember the S3. I do!

I have always loved older cars. About 14 years ago, I knew my brother had a Chevelle, a Chevy II, and other cars at his house. David and I had talked about owning an older car. It didn't take long for the transaction to take place. And we had a Chevelle sitting in our driveway. It didn't have seats in it, but it had lots of coffee cans and boxes full of "stuff". I have loved that car since the day David brought it home for me.

If it had Chevelle in some form on some place on the body when it left the factory then yes! The laguna no matter what is a Chevelle ..Most everyone has a ugly younger brother

A friend just got back from Viet Nam and took me with him to buy a brand new 67 gold/black vinyl top ss 396 4sp ..... he drove it like he stole it.!!!


.... I guess you had to be there.

Bought my first chevelle July 2010, love it more and more everyday (even when I beat my head against the wall when I find the rigged things the previous owner has done). Have always owned older cars though, all MOPARS, so this is definitely the least expensive classic I've ever owned. Anyone who's bought, or priced, parts for a MOPAR knows what I'm talking about.

I bought a 1971 malibu that had a 327 and turbo 350 in it, I paid the guy $1,000.00 for the car and drove it home. It had roughly 1/4 tank of gas and I thought I could at least make it home. Well I never thought the car could move that fast, had my foot to the floor almost all the way home. It ran maybe 10 miles on the feeble amount in the tank it coasted into the gas station just barely. That car should have never been driven on the road till a majior brake job had been finished and well the bucket seats only had 2 bolts holding them in the car. Man was that ever a fun car to drive, looking back wish I had never cut it up.

My neighbor had a 72 SS Clone. At first I only got to stare in amazement with my tongue hanging out every time he started it and drove off. The sound made my body quiver! Finally years later after he had sold the 72 and replaced it with a true 69 SS, I got to use it on the weekends running errands for his mother. I was hooked. I have dreamed about owning one ever since. Two weeks ago I finally bought one...68 Malibu!!!

Growing up, I always wanted a muscle car; more specifically a Chevelle. I looked on craigslist and in every magazine I could get my hands on for about ten to twelve years dreaming of opening the garage door and having a Chevelle there to greet me.I was exposed to the chevelle by a good family friend who restored a malibu with his dad. I fell in love at first sight. In March of 2010, I received a nomination and appointment to the United States Merchant Marine Academy and my mom said I could get a muscle car. (She may regret this statement now. She may have been joking ;) )
Fast forward to April of 2010. My dad, two car gurus, and I got in the truck at 0330 and made the three hour drive to Portland, OR for the Northwest swap meet. I knew when I walked in the gates that that was going to be the day. After walking around the grounds from 0700 to about 1800 (6:00 PM) non-stop, I kept going back to the black Chev. It wasn't all tricked out like the Camaro rs/ss clone I also found myself looking at, but I liked that. It has bench seat (convenient for close rides with the girlfriend) and the column shift, etc. Originally a six cyl putt putt car. The seller was a great guy who poured his heart and soul into the restoration of the car. All paperwork from the factory came with it. Even the 30923rikjlsg During the deal, I had to make a run to the port-o-potty due to my excitement. All that was left was waiting for the swap meet to close so we could get out of there! On the way home, my dad and I thought we were doing the speed limit (70) but everyone was flying by us. The gurus behind us called and asked if everything was ok and we said yes. They were worried because we were going 50 in the 70. The speedometer is a little off, but with a quick mental calculation I can figure out how fast I'm going. Getting the car home in the cool black night and parking in the driveway to listen to it idle will be something I'll always remember. It was one of the greatest days of my life. After years of waiting and anticipation, I finally can open that garage to be greeted by a 72 Chevelle with a 402 and a turbo 350. Sorry about the length. It would be too easy to type all day about it!

Ignore the "Even the 30923rikjlsg " I forgot to fix that. :(

Now ya got me curious?

My father was (RIP Dad 4/4/50 - 2/7/04) into muscle cars in the 60s. He used to race a '63 Impala 283/powerglide in stock class. The Impala was replaced with a '68 Nova sporting a muncie 4 speed/4.10 gears and a hopped up 350. He tore up the streets of Syracuse, NY, Ionia, MI and all points in between with that Hugger Orange Nova. He was always a Chevy/GM guy. That naturally made me into the same thing. I always thought that my father would wind up later on in life with a 68-72 Nova. We would go to a car show here or there and I'd listen to stories about this car and that one, and these people my father used to run with when he worked on the railroad in the 60s/70s. We always remarked about how there were more chevelles than you could shake a stick at. Most of the shows we went to were filled with camaros and chevelles. If there were too many fords or mopars there, we'd leave. :D

When I was in college, one evening my father called me on the phone at my house and I guess he had my mother holding the phone by the rear end of the '72 Chevelle he just bought for $2500...while he revved the engine up so all I could hear through the phone were the sounds coming out of that thing. This was in 1997 or so. I think his business was doing well at the time, and it was an opportunity he couldn't pass up. I drove to my folk's house that weekend and my father and I stayed in the barn tinkering with his new old car. He was so happy. I remember turning in because my eyes were crossing, waaaaay late that night, and he was holding the alternator in one hand, scrubbing years of gunk off with steel wool in the other hand. I think he stayed out there messing around all night. He bought headers, an intake, a 390 4 barrel, an HEI, and some valve covers (all used) off a friend of his, and we installed those items the next weekend. He loved that car. The engine and trans were overhauled and mildly built up a few winters later. Then the body was redone and painted red/white sport stripes in around 2001 or so. My father passed suddenly in 2004 at age 53. A couple years after he passed my mother called and told me out of the blue that my father would have wanted me to have his Chevelle, so we made arrangements for me to take ownership of it. I have had it ever since. That is my Chevelle story and I'm sticking to it.

This is what it looked like when my father bought it...

http://www.chevelles.com/forums/atta...2&d=1214873818

I was talking about the authorized selling dealer plate imprint. I just forgot to go back and add that to the original post because I forgot what it was called. haha

Nate, what an awesome story.

Jake, what amazing memories of your dad.

What I like about most of the stories that most of us were "mesmerized" by the sight and and sound of our car. The dad factor is something that is also so close to my own heart.

Jake, your story really touched my heart. I'm sorry for the loss of your dad and I am happy that you are now the proud owner of that Chevelle! Great story and thanks for sharing it with us!

Uncle Hulka

Well growing up i spent a lot of time at my grandparents and i made friends with these two boys next door. their father was a mechanic and had atleast 8 cars in his back yard at a time he would fix and sell. Well there was a 48 chevy truck 69 rs/ss and a 72 chevelle in the way back and i always played in the chevelle and the two brothers in the other two cars. And this went on from the time i was 6 to 9. Then my grandparents moved and that was really the last i saw of them. Around the time i was 12 the house up the street from my parents was bought and one day on my way home from school i noticed the the ford truck in the drive way and went to see if what i thought was right and sure enough when i got to the house there was margaret their mom behind the wheel with mark and bobby helping their dad push the 48 in to the back yard next to the chevelle and the 69. About a year later margaret their mom had past and she was just as equally fond of the chevelle but henry never got around to getting it running again. The car was given to their older sister who then put it up for sale.......And ill never forget the feeling and the silence shared when the three of us were on our way home from school and we all noticed the car was gone. We just kinda stopped and looked at the empty spot between the 48 and the 69. And after what seemed like hours of looking at the empty spot we heard my dad yelling for us to and i quote "get our @sse$ down their so we could all go" because everyone was waiting for us to go out for my 14th birthday dinner. Well as we all walked up the drive way everyone came out of the house to leave and the garage opened and their it was. My dad handed me the keys, a bible, a picture of our family and my back pack that i dropped on the floor and said " these are the four things that you need to focus on and everything else will come in time." Needless to say at 14 i was confused but very excited. Well at 21 i am happy to say i graduated with a bs in science, i am happily married with a 2 year old son and a eight year old step daughter, i know the lord and so does my family and everyday when i come home the first thing i see is the blue and white license plate that reads "Marge" on the front of my 72 Chevelle. And when my son disappears which he is very good at we always find him laying in the garage next to Marge with a wrench in his hand and a smile. I think the good lord is tellin me something.

Pretty easy story for me. It was 1983 in high school. My first car was my dad's car that he bought new. A 69 Cutlass "S" Convert. My buddy who was the singer in the rock band I was in. He had a yellow 69 Chevelle. I cannot remember if it was an SS, a Malibu or what. I just remember that it was faster then my car. And I just like the styling. Of course he liked my car better because it was a convert. The girls loved to ride in my car. It was the old "Grass is always Greener" thing. Same thing took place with another friend of mine that had a yellow 69 Camaro. We would trade our cars all of the time. Everyone wanted mine. I wanted both of those cars bad. It was the case of the 3 interchangeable 69s.
Because of that Chevelle, I have always wanted a 68 or 69 but have never had one. That is what I really wanted in a wagon. But my 72 is close enough.
Soory no pics. I just was not that much of a picture taker back then. As odd as that is. I took photography. :confused:

Neat story Matt. I totally agree with the "grass is always greener" thing. I have seen so many cars that I would love to own. But then you start to think of things that you would change on that car. And in many cases, it is things that I have on mine, or things that I plan on doing.

About the pics, I found rolls of film that were never developed, and I am pretty sure that they are from past cars.

I created an entire page about mine.... :) Won't waste all sorts of space on here about it but owning this car has been a dream of mine since I was a young kid.

http://chevelle-obsession.weebly.com/

Growing up I had always wanted (and still want) a Mustang (1970 Grabber Orange Mach 1), but after going to look at a few that were too much money and work I didn't think I'd find anything I'd want. I had seen plenty of Chevelles around, but for some reason I never really cared to own one, then one day the local used car dealer got a '69 Malibu in on trade. It was Fathom Green with gray on the bottom and a dark green vinyl top, and it was a 1 owner grandma car with 69000 original miles (this was back in '92). I was hooked on Chevelles after I laid eyes on that one. Made a deal (with the help of my folks) and it was mine. Only had a 307/powerglide, but it was a sweet ride for a high school kid.

Only had it for about 5 years and had to get rid of it....it was a Michigan car so it wasn't in the greatest condition anyway, but definitely had a ton of fun in that car!

I would have to say my first experience was that my folks owned a triple black 76' that they bought brand new. It was a loaded car. I vaguely remember it, I was 3 when they sold it in 1982. After that, fast forward to 1992. I bought a black 69' SS 396 Chevelle from the owner of a local salvage yard. The engine was in pieces in the trunk, and the muncie was flapping in the breeze under the car. At 16, my mother felt it was way too much car for me. I was allowed to keep it, but only for weekend cruising. (supervised of course) I ended up with an 89' 5 liter mustang for a first car. I was in bad car accident with the mustang a few days before Christmas in 1995. I shattered my femur, and was doubtful I would ever be able to drive a manual tranmission again. I regretfully sold the Chevelle in the summer of 1996. In 2006, I had negotiated a deal to buy the car back from the guy I sold the car to in 96'. A few days before the transaction was supposed to take place, he dropped off the face of the earth. I have never heard from him since, and am still heartbroken over the ordeal. A few months later, a friend of my father's showed me my current 1972 Chevelle. I struck a deal, and it's been all uphill since. It was supposedly a real SS car, but without a buildsheet - it's just heresay. The 5th digit of the VIN identifies it as an L65 2bbl 350 car. It came with a round gauge dash, 12 bolt rear, upper control arm braces, 3/8" fuel line, a real GM domed hood, hood pins, and the fenders had SS emblems - I removed them and tried a template up against the holes, it matched up perfect. Not to say they couldn't have been drilled after it left the factory. But if so - it was very cleanly done. All of that could have been changed over the years though. The odometer showed a hair over 49K miles, and the car was nearly rust free.

I am in the process of building the car into a nice driver/racer for the Pure Stock Muscle Car Drags. I have built a correct LS5 shortblock, converted the car to a 4 speed, etc. It is Danbe Blue with White stripes, the body/paint/interior is all done. Basically just finishing up the drivetrain and detailing it real well.