Randy found his Chevelle on an Internet search in August 2017. It was located in New Mexico!
He and his cousin drove 1,700 miles in 28 hours round trip to pick the car up from Santa Fe, New Mexico.
They left on a Friday after working all day, drove through the night, and picked up a trailer. Once they arrived Randy took the car for a test drive and that’s all he needed, they loaded it up and drove back to Southern California. They arrived back in Cali that Saturday so his cousin could be at work that morning to start his shift as a police officer.
It had around 90K original miles when he picked up the car. Having the original starter, water pump, power booster, brake cylinder, and radiator helped verify the mileage. The car is 95% stock and a numbers matching, 396/350 HP, Turbo 400 with a shift kit, 3:31 Posi, and 12 bolt rear. It has black bucket seats, power steering, power brakes, and cowl induction.
Randy has changed some parts out for safety but has the original cores and plans on getting them rebuilt. The car came with LS6/L78 heads! Someone changed out the original cast iron intake and carb to a Holley and aluminum intake. (GM parts).
The car came with its “Protect-o-plate” and the dealer pre-delivery checklist. The best thing about that was he was able to use those items to track down the original owner. The original owner got the car after he got out of Vietnam. He had a hitch welded on and would pull a small camping trailer with it. He sent Randy some pictures and they kept in touch. Having some history from the original owner is awesome.
Randy is slowly replacing things that are getting old and restoring the car a little at a time, doing his best to keep it stock and original looking. Next, he would like to rebuild the front and rear suspension. The interior needs a new headliner and a few other small items. He enjoys taking it to car shows and short drives to “stretch” its legs.
