Cars come in all shapes and sizes, and that’s good, because so do people’s tastes. And often, you can get the same car in a few different versions, to make it even closer to what you really want. For some people, not even that goes far enough, and for them, there is the aftermarket. Today, we’re going to look at a couple of old American intermediate four-door sedans. One is as it left the factory, and the other has been jazzed up quite a bit.
We had another blowout yesterday; the Volvo 940 absolutely wiped the floor with that old Peugeot. Many of you confessed an appreciation for the Peugeot, but found the Volvo just too much of a draw. Peugeot being an orphan brand in the US didn’t help its case either, because parts could be hard to come by.
That Volvo is an awfully nice car, and it looks like a good deal, but it doesn’t do anything for me. The Peugeot, on the other hand, calls to me like a siren. Would I end up regretting it? Maybe, but I can’t resist. Someone said you could probably sell the wheels for the asking price of the Peugeot. Sounds like a deal to me.
When I was younger, I had a lot of friends who liked to modify cars. I never really got into it myself, after a few disappointing experiments, but I did help out with a few projects. Out goes the old perfectly-running six-cylinder, in goes a V8 of questionable quality, covered in chrome bric-a-brac. Scruffy interior parts are ignored, but shiny new wheels and tires worth more than the car get bolted on. And whole cases of spray cans of gray primer get applied over old faded paint.
The results of these endeavors was sometimes a lot of fun, but honestly, I never understood what was wrong with the cars in their original condition. I guess I’d rather maintain something and enjoy it as-is than put in a ton of effort to make it go a little faster. But I don’t hold anything against anyone who feels the need for speed. Today, we’ve got one car that has been hopped-up, and one that’s factory stock, so the choice is yours.
1965 Chevrolet Chevelle 300 – $7,500
Engine/drivetrain: 350 cubic inch OHV V8, four-speed manual, RWD
Location: Menifee, CA
Odometer reading: 99,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
American cars got a lot bigger over the course of the 1950s. Too big, in the eyes of some buyers, who embraced the smaller offerings from Nash, as well as imports like Volkswagen. The Big Three responded with small cars of their own, and those sold well, but there was space in the market for something in between. Ford was the first to offer an intermediate-sized car, the Fairlane, but Chevy wasn’t far behind with the Chevelle. This 1965 Chevelle is a base 300 model, which probably came originally with a four- or six-cylinder engine. It’s got a bit more than that now.
GM cars of this era are a lot like Lego sets: everything fits everything. You can mix and match parts to your heart’s content to get just the car you want. This Chevelle is now powered by a 350 cubic inch small-block V8, backed by a four-speed manual. It has a Positraction rear end, a quick-ratio steering box from a Trans Am, and power brakes with a disc conversion in the front. The whole suspension has been rebuilt, too. It “runs and drives and stops just fine,” according to the seller, and I bet it moves.
The interior doesn’t look bad, but it’s unfinished. It needs a new headliner, but the seller is including one. I can’t tell if the seat upholstery is original or if it has been redone, but it’s in nice shape. The blue sparkly steering wheel and shift knob are a choice, but they’re easy enough to change if you don’t like them.
It’s all in primer outside, “ready for paint” according to the seller, but all the trim has been reinstalled, so I have a feeling they meant to leave it like this. Painting cars isn’t cheap, but personally, I think it’s worth it in this case. Why put all that work into the mechanics, and then leave it looking like a high school kid’s car?
1970 AMC Rebel – $4,500
Engine/drivetrain: 232 cubic inch OHV inline 6, three-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Folsom, CA
Odometer reading: 305,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well, but needs a little tinkering
American Motors made its name building small and simple cars. But as the muscle car wars of the 1960s heated up, AMC wanted to shed its fuddy-duddy image and join in on the fun. Thus, in 1967, its Rambler Classic line was replaced with the Rebel, which was available with increasingly large V8 engines and increasingly flashy graphics. But most Rebels were more like this one: a simple, plain, no-nonsense four-door sedan.
This Rebel eschews V8 power in favor of AMC’s legendary inline six, displacing 232 cubic inches and making 145 horsepower by the old SAE gross measurement. It has a three-speed column-shifted automatic. This combination has served it well; its odometer has gone around three whole times, and it comes with service records going all the way back. It runs well, but the seller says it stalls on hard acceleration until it warms up, and it can run a little hot in stop-and-go traffic. The stalling issue is probably related to the choke, and the hot running could be a sticking thermostat. Both are easy fixes. It also has a small transmission fluid leak, which, if it’s not too serious, could probably just be lived with.
It’s very original inside, in an ugly but endearing shade of green. The upholstery is torn in a couple of places, and the dashboard top has some cracks, but it looks honest. The speedometer doesn’t work properly; it sits at 60 when the car is standing still and goes up from there. If you can’t do the math on the fly, better get a GPS speedometer.
It’s incredibly clean and original outside, with all four hubcaps even still present. It doesn’t have any rust, either. The seller says the left front fender was replaced at some point, but you sure can’t tell.
So many old cars from the 1960s and ’70s have been modified in some way that it’s almost cooler to see one that’s totally stock, at least to me. But a well-done project like that Chevelle is impressive, too. It all depends on your tastes. So what will it be: the modified Chevy, or the survivor AMC?
There is very little desire in me to buy somebody else’s project. Plus that Rebel just seems like the perfect weekend cruiser.
With a rebel yell, I guess?
My son daily’d a ‘65 Classic with the242 six, 3-speed and overdrive all over the US 2017-2020 while in high school and college. He wrote some great stories about it. Rhonda the Rambler was an amazing car. Reliable Rebel all day.
https://itisgood.org/auto-biography/#65Rambler
https://itisgood.org/around-the-southwest-in-15-days/
https://itisgood.org/rhondas-atlantic-adventure/
I’m surprised by how much I like the Rebel, especially its odd shade of green. I had a ’70 Mustang and if it wasn’t the same color, it was close. Depending on the light it could look green or yellow.
Chevelles and small-block Chevys are common fodder. They’re not usually that quick relative to a modern car. They have a cool burble, but painting it is just something I’m not really about. Then there’s the uncool 4-door aspect too.
Anyway, the AMC kind of fits the what I want out of an old cruiser. It’s a runner with patina, a car that just can be driven around without fear of something bad happening to it. It’s painted, so that nonsense doesn’t have to be dealt with. Slightly oddball for those in the know, a ‘maybe I do something cooler with it someday or maybe not’ car with the $3k I save versus the Chevelle.
If I’m going to do the boring 4-door, the AMC is my choice.
Rebel Rebel you’ve torn your dress…
Rebel Rebel your carb is a mess…
Rebel Rebel how could they know?
Overheating tramp, I love you so.
Damn, beat me to it!
These two cars remind me of why people who grew up in this era cringe at the idea of a four-door. For so long Detroit remade each car just about every year, and it began its life in the design cycle as a giant coupe. All the other variants they would sell on that platform – sedan, station wagon, etc. – were just backfit onto the coupe profile, which resulted in four-door models that looked acceptable at best. It was a deeply boneheaded way to design cars. Instead of “Let’s make things that are fit for purpose and release them when they’re done” we got “Here’s this year’s look (the coupe or convertible) and you can get it with as many doors as you’d like.”