'66 Malibu N/SA
 

Hi All.

I started this project last year but I'm finally building up enough momentum to have some pictures to post. I've been bracket racing off and on for a long time but this is my first venture into class racing. For 30 years I've wanted to race in Stock, but really never thought I would. Last summer I decided it was now or never, and now won out.

I was originally looking to buy a complete car, but I had this '66 Malibu partially built that was intended to be a Saturday night cruise car with a big block and a four speed. Pure nostalgia. But then I realized that with my limited amount of room bringing in another race car would probably mean selling the Malibu. I guess I just couldn't quite bring myself to do that, plus I like building things anyway. Though at 62 years old I don't put in the long hours like I used to, so it's going to take quite a while to finish this.

The car was a basket case when I got it, but the body was pretty straight and solid with very little rust. I had already re-done pretty much all the suspension, steering and brakes already.

So here's a few pictures, starting with how the car looked when I got it. I can't show much about the engine, as most of it I've never seen myself. Mark Yacavone is building that, and he also built the transmission and torque converter.

http://i.imgur.com/KmW13Bx.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/i5AHgQz.jpg

Yeah, not pretty!

http://i.imgur.com/vOGcP48.jpg

Here's the reworked front end suspension and such. Sadly, those big block springs will have to come out.

http://i.imgur.com/wpiPl2K.jpg

The dash is done, including welding up the holes for the A/C vents. What looks like scratches on the dash pad is really just some dirt.

http://i.imgur.com/ra8WwLh.jpg

I have epoxy primer on everything that needs it now. It's also been 30 years since I've done any painting, but I'm getting the hang of it and I'm hopeful the paint will not be so stripey by the time I get to the base coat. If it's still an issue I may have to give up on the idea of using metallic paint.

http://i.imgur.com/GTi6qA5.jpg

The car already had a 12 bolt in it, but for a variety of reasons I elected to pull that and replace it with a new Moser.

http://i.imgur.com/bPODMpN.jpg

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Looks like you're well on your way, Dave. Good luck with your project. I'll be 62 in a couple weeks myself, so go at your own pace, you'll do fine. Keep us updated, this will be a fun build to follow along. Take care.
Danny Durham

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

So this is the first time I've seen the car !
But I do have a few pics to add.
Here's the trans and converter .
I'll have pics of the heads from Kadar Performance next.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Thanks, Danny, I'll keep plugging away. I'll get there eventually.

And Mark, it'll be great to see the heads. They were rather unimpressive the last time I saw them. I all but needed a tetanus shot after dropping them off!

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Hey Dave, glad to see you finally getting to work on the Malibu. Did you sell the Camaro?

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Okay, here they are..Look better?
I've still got to fit the split guide plates later on.
See Kadar Performance, LLC on F/B

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Here's the carb, which was a swap meet special, now with lots of new parts from Larry Fulton.
Not a 100 pt. restoration but I think it looks alright.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Yeah, those heads look a world of better!

Rob, I still haven't put the Camaro up for sale. It's been running better than ever lately making it hard to part with it. I think I'll take up my neighbor's offer of a free 283 for the Chevelle to use as a bracket motor and once that's sorted out the Camaro may go. But that will take quite a while. Hopefully I'll see you Saturday?

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

It does look great. Is that a flare fitting on the front?

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Yeah , It's just a 3/8 flare fitting I stuck in there.
I think that's enough line from the regulator.
Bigger is not always better if it loses speed of delivery.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Lest anyone think there's been no progress at all lately, here are a few new pictures.

Here the fuel cell is in.

http://i.imgur.com/DrAyuo7.jpg

Here's the underside, with the fuel pump and filter. The main fuel line is installed, but it's clear that I need a 90 degree AN fitting to run to the fuel cell, so that will be a few more days before that's done.

http://i.imgur.com/GYzjLg7.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/Aqq2wxs.jpg

Next I'll be putting the axles in and checking tire clearance prior to buying the wheels and tires for the back.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

I'm inching along a little further, the vent tube is ready once I get the correct fitting, and the line from the fuel cell is in. I will trim off the vent tube so that about 1/2" protrudes, then the four bolts hanging there will attach straps that capture a rectangular piece of foam to protect the vent from any debris going in. Probably overkill, but I prefer it that way.
http://i.imgur.com/I6RsQqo.jpg

I also measured for tire clearance. It looks to me like either 5" or 5.5" backspacing would work for a 10" wheel (assuming a 9 x 30 tire), but I think 5" will center the tire better. On the other hand if I start with 5.5" backspace I can always use spacers to adjust. So I'm still on the fence a bit there.

I tried installing the rear sway bar, it's a 1" bar of the general sort the factory used. It's a UMI Performance piece, same company as made the control arms I'm using. But it doesn't seem to quite fit, it appears to be about 5/16" too wide. I'm leaning towards just returning it and getting the H and R Parts sway bar. It's more expensive (that's why I originally went with the stock type) but it should circumvent the current problem, and it sounds like they work better anyway.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

After three weekends with races, plus getting sick in the midst of it, not a lot has gotten done the last few weeks.

I did send back the stock-style rear sway bar that didn't quite fit. I plan to use an H&R Parts bar.

This weekend my schedule was finally clear enough, and I felt well enough, to dig back in. So here we go with my first attempt at a proper rust repair.

Here's what I'm starting with:
http://i.imgur.com/s9yE0Pc.jpg

This is what I found behind it:
http://i.imgur.com/kTNuzAq.jpg

Here's the quarter panel after some wire brushing:
http://i.imgur.com/j7rbxyq.jpg

Here's a first fitting, with some trimming still needed:
http://i.imgur.com/adCeZ5E.jpg


I think I have the trimming very nearly done (not as seen in that picture, I worked on it more after that). It fits well enough that I could go with it, but I'll tweak it a little better before trying to weld it in.

It should be better than the fix I did on my first drag race car. It was a rusty '69 Camaro that I got for next to nothing in 1979. It had several small rust holes, but I just sanded them down, covered them with aluminum tape and bondo. It actually looked really good, and still did several years later when I sold it. But I'm sure when it was re-done later they got a laugh at the hack job some idiot (me!) did.

Meanwhile I should get my backing plates back momentarily, modified to fit the Moser rear, and I should be able to put the axles in and install the drum brakes in the rear.

I also have three more very small holes to fill in the body, just a few square inches total. It looks like someone drilled a bunch of holes very close together to try to pull out a small dent in the front of the hood. There's also a very small square missing from the bottom of one fender where I'm guessing there used to be a rust hole. What's left seems clean and solid though. Plus there's the hole for the antenna. Front there it's just bondo, primer and block sanding. It won't be close to being a show car, but it should look okay on the track.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

http://classracer.com/classforum/att...4&d=1428604718

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

At this point I have it trimmed about the best I can, so I went ahead and welded it in:

http://i.imgur.com/lri34qx.jpg

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Dave, You might want to consider using Aluma Lead filler in that area.
It's harder to sand and gummier on your paper, but it resists water better than regular Bondo.
Not that you'll be driving in the rain, but on the burnout you know...Might not hurt.
Comes in quarts too.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

I'll check into it, wouldn't hurt to give it a try.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

You can probably borrow some wheels/tires of both backspacing to test fit. These will be pretty common to find. I really like the '66 body style. :)

http://i434.photobucket.com/albums/q...ManCave008.jpg

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

That looks gorgeous!

I have always thought that 66s were the best looking Chevelles.

I already have the tires and wheels. I took enough measurements to convince myself that 5.5" backspacing was the way to go. Still don't have the backing plates back, and I won't be verifying the tire clearance until then, but I'm pretty sure it'll work. May or may not take a little persuasion. The fact that the same size works for Mark Faul helped convince me as well. The wheels I used for taking measurements were close to that offset as well.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

If you need backing plates Dave we may have some lying around.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

I have them but they need to have the holes opened up to fit the larger bearings in the axles on the Moser rear. With a little luck I'll have them back Friday.

But I'll keep you in mind if I have something along those lines that comes up.

Actually, I am missing the kick panel vent for the right-hand side. The one that's controlled by a knob via cable. The car only came with the left one. But I'm sure I'll track one down somewhere.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

At this point I have the patch panel welded in with one of my usual ugly welds, and I'm most of the way through grinding the welds down. Of course if I were a better welder I'd be done with that now! And damn, MIG welds are hard!

But this morning I test fit the slicks. Later today I'll put the jack under the rear to move the tire up into the wheel well in case that results in a tight spot I haven't seen yet, but so far it looks pretty good. The front bottom corner is a little tight. I am considering trimming that back a bit:

http://i.imgur.com/5t1WTGs.jpg

It looks like I'm a bit limited to how much I can lower the rear but I think I'll be okay here too:

http://i.imgur.com/P5eSmRf.jpg

Finally the inside looks like about 3/8" minimum clearance. I might consider a very thin spacer to move it out just a bit depending on how the outside looks when I jack up the rear:

http://i.imgur.com/5Lii5JF.jpg

I also might have to tweak that body mount behind the tire just a bit, but I suspect that will not be necessary either.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Dave,,, as I'm scrolling down looking at the pictures, I was thinking about your inside clearance, since we have to run a spacer behind the wheels on my son's '72 Malibu. You look to be a little tight there as well, so I guess a '66-67 inner well is no different. By the way, which engine combo are you leaning towards?
Nice project,, good luck with it.
Danny Durham

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

You're probably right. I'll see how the outside is when I raise the rear, if there's more clearance there than the inside that will settle the issue.

It'll be a 283/200 engine.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

This is the minimum ride height that I could imagine running. Clearance starts to disappear pretty quickly as it goes lower. Inside clearance looks to be about 1/2", outside clearance about 3/8". Front and rear are the tightest here as well, with 3/4" in front and 1/2" at the rear.

http://i.imgur.com/8mbtr6I.jpg

The picture below shows the tire at approximately the ride height I would expect to use. The inside clearance here is still about 1/2", all other clearances improve substantially.

http://i.imgur.com/WUUKyMT.jpg

I think the body mount itself is fine, but I may have to do a little work on the lower inside corner of the inner wheel well.

As the body comes up further all clearances except the inside improve. The inside drops to 3/8" in some cases. Overall I think I like the wheel and tire exactly where it is, I don't think I'll use a spacer. If I do try one it'll be the thinnest one I can find.

And finally, here's the rear anti-roll bar that I just got. This should take care of that issue once and for all.

http://i.imgur.com/FIKBcqc.jpg

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

David, That first picture is plenty low. It appears that the center line of the axle is above the top of rocker panel (bottom of door) which is where the factory intended it to be.
If it was me, I'd make a little curved pie cut in the front and push the lip forward to meet the quarter.
Oh boy..More migging.
You can probably get away with what you've got , with radials.
I'd grind away a bit of that body mount, and then a generous application of a Ford tool will fix it all right up.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Ball peen or dead blow?

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Okay Dave as a Person who has Been There Done that WITH a Stocker with suspension You DO NOT Need to cut outer Body. The Front INNER wheel house MUST BE TRIMMED or it will chew it up on launch and leave. Also Roll the inner Rear to be safe because it can rub. 30 X9 Hoosier Radials and tested with 96" M/T too as well as 29.5 x9 M/T Bias. I have already covered ALL the options you are mulling over. You will like that bar Too. ;)

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Thanks for the info. I'll look at the front inside again, it makes sense it would be tight there. And I was definitely going to buy myself some clearance on the rear inside corner.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

I think my Ranger and Mustang take exception to that!

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Sorry, I meant to say it's a 283/220.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Nice. Back in the 70s I ran a 66 Malibu SS 283/220 4 speed car. I had a lot of fun with it. :)

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

This weekend I got (possibly) all of the welding on the sheet metal done. Just a bunch of small jobs; welding up a patch on the hood, patching the antenna hole in the fender, replacing a missing mounting tab on a fender and welding up some cracks I hadn't even noticed before in the front of one fender.

Here's the front of the hood after cutting out the worst of it.

http://i.imgur.com/WBoCeB3.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/kCeOtH4.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/fhl06hN.jpg

There's still a ways to go with this. In fact I'm still not certain that I can get this good enough, I may yet just buy another hood. We'll see how it comes out in the end.

Here's the mounting tab and crack that I welded up:
http://i.imgur.com/qaB1aLN.jpg

The anti-roll bar is also partially mounted, but I have to work out the details of mounting to the frame cross-member before completing it.

http://i.imgur.com/aGTt0k0.jpg

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

It looks like I have a complete engine!

http://i.imgur.com/Wh2YJmq.jpg

This weekend I hope to complete the anti-roll bar install and do a substantial amount of body work.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

For a while I thought I might have to do some real fabrication to mount the brackets on the cross-member, since it's not a straight, even surface I'm mounting to. But I was able to persuade the brackets to fit in.

http://i.imgur.com/uPI3H9f.jpg

Now back to "Fun with body filler".

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

There's not really a lot to show for this weekend, I was mostly doing the drudgery of body work. That is coming along pretty well though.

I did get the axles and drum brakes in. And I now remember why I never liked dealing with drum brakes!

http://i.imgur.com/yFHhVl6.jpg

I should be making the templates and then the panels to block off the rear seat area very soon.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Years ago, I bought a Camaro from a guy that was a pretty clever, home builder.
I asked him why he hadn't removed the self adjusters from his drum brakes.
His reply was "Why ?..They never work anyway"
My reply was something to the effect of..It would just be my luck that they would start working all of a sudden, the week I had a heads up run with a guy I only had covered by a few hun.
Just sayin'

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Hey Mark, I learned something new from that last post. Yea I have those self adjusters still on brakes and i will remove them. Something that seems so obvious needs to be pointed out to a "newbie" like me. Thanks!

Will Lamprecht I/SA 65 Impala in progress.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

Actually, one wouldn't need the equalizer for the e-brake either, seeing the lever is not there.

Re: '66 Malibu N/SA
 

I thought about leaving the self-adjuster off, but the way everything ties together it wan't clear to me that doing so wouldn't cause a problem.

It makes sense to not have it, but I've never had an issue either.