Bone Stock 64 Malibu Conv

[oldguy64malibu]

Hi,
From Fairfield Harbour, NC.
Recently bought an all original 64 Chevelle Malibu Convertible. It is in pretty good shape , no rust issues. It has a 283, Powerglide, power steering, standard brakes, 2 barrel and dual exhaust.
I don't like the 2 speed Powerglide and wouldn't mind a little more power and better fuel mileage that a newer engine/transmission could provide. I would appreciate your suggestions on what might be the best way and easiest way to go at this. I want to keep the bench seat. Also, I working on a retiree budget. Thank you.

[Ms Grumpy]

Welcome Oldguy (love it). We would love to see some pics of your car, not many 64 convertibles around here. Love the fact that it is all original.

[flash]

Welcome Oldguy ,the 283 is a great little motor ,I would suggest an overdrive transmission behind it .I personally like the 700R4 but that requires the driveshaft be shortened and the 200R is a direct bolt in .You being in North Carolina I would suggest you look into the Carolina Chevelle Association ,they are a great bunch of folks and Tommy Roberts is one of their members and he would be of great help to you with whatever you need .

[oldguy64malibu]

Thanks for the greeting Ms Grumpy and the info from John. I'll send photo of car soon.
Oldguy. Merry Christmas.

[flash]

Merry Christmas Oldguy and everyone else .

[shadowgray396]

Welcome to the site. I would say not many original 64 Chevelle Malibu Convertible out there. If it's a matching number car your value is in that. Nothing wrong with wanting to change the motor or trans, but keep all the original parts you change and don't make any mods to the car that can't be changed back if you every decide to sell it. A 350 would drop right in and give you plenty of power and like said an overdrive transmission.

Love to see some pic's and Merry Chrristmas to everyone.

[carpoor]

Those 283's can be a real gas sipper with the correct set up. I would put a TH350 in the car, direct bolt in. Then swap in an RV-type cam for more low end, a 4bbl intake, reworked Quadrajet, a set of Tri-Y headers, and a nice dual exhaust system (2.25") with an X crossover. Simple, low buck, and around 19-21 MPG easy.

If that won't cut it, look for a newer truck (99'-07') 4.8L V8 and overdrive automatic. I knock down 20 MPG mixed driving in my daily driver 2000 GMC Sierra. My truck is about 1000lbs heavier than your Malibu and less aerodynamic. I'm sure a 4.8 in a lighter vehicle could easily yield 25+ MPG, and it runs on regular gas. The 4.8's are rated 255-270 HP in stock trim, they make decent power for a "truck motor."

[oldguy64malibu]

Hello Carpoor.
What do you mean by "reworked Quadrajet'' ?
I plan on keeping the body completely stock, even down to the 14 inch rims. This car was a low rider before low riders were in.
Thanks again.
Oldguy.

[earthquake68]

"Reworked" just means properly tuned for the modifications that would be done to the 283. I personally like Holley carburetors, but that's my preference.

The only real change I would make is the auto trans. A TH700R4 or TH2004R would be the easiest. They have "TV" cables to make them shift and can be easily adapted to a carburetor. The later electronic transmissions would require a separate computer to make them shift. With a set of 3.55 gears in the rear and the over drive, the stock 283 should pull mid 20's for fuel mileage. Before anybody calls me a liar, my 307 powerglide with 3.08 gears in my first '64 Chevelle got 19-20 mpg.

....and yes. Let's see some pictures! I'm building a '64 SS myself.

[carpoor]

Yup, reworked = rebuilt & upgraded. I like the QJets for the small primary butterflies. Tuned correctly, they get better fuel mileage than the standard square bore carburetors. They perform just as well as a square bore IMO, many stock eliminator cars running them that set & hold national records. I used to hate QJets until I understood them and realized all the common mistakes people make when rebuilding them. Cliff Ruggles wrote an excellent book on rebuilding and tuning them. Well worth the money.

Overdrives are nice, but I like the simplicity of a TH350. This is coming from a guy who stepped away from "basic" Muscle Cars for nearly 15 years and did nothing but late model performance cars. I was a nut for true Muscle Cars up until I started driving. Then I started to want cars with EFI and overdrives. After spending a small fortune on that type of thing, I am back to my roots.
(Just wish I could find my old 1969 L78 SS 396 Chevelle from when I was 16)