The Chevelle was an all-new car for 1964, Chevy’s entry into the “new” intermediate market Ford started with the downsizing of the Fairlane two years earlier. The Chevelle was about the same size as a ’57 Bel Air as the big Chevies had gotten bigger year after year. This ’64 Malibu, a Super Sport, looks like a barn find and one that sat outdoors in the desert sun for quite some time. It will require a total restoration, but there may be a mostly solid foundation here to start with. Located with a dealer in Escondido, California, this Chevrolet is available here on eBay where the first bid is $1,000 and likely to go “a-ways” before triggering the reserve.

First-year Chevelle sales were impressive at 370,834 units, including the revival of the El Camino pick-up which was now based on the 300 2-door station wagon. Just as there was a Super Sport version of the Impala, that option was also extended to the new Chevelle and sold well at 65,669 copies (of which 57,445 had a V8 engine). Besides the tell-tale SS badging, the Super Sports came with bucket instead of bench seats.

This Malibu SS wears ancient Arizona plates and looks well-baked for being out in the sun. The mileage is said to be just 37,402, but unless it had a mechanical failure that put it out of commission early on, the odometer may have turned over at least once. While you could get any Chevy engine up to a 327 V8 in the car that first year, so it’s not surprising to see a 283 tucked into the engine compartment. It’s been doctored with a 4-barrel carburetor and dual exhaust and has a floor shifter for the 2-speed Powerglide automatic.

There is no indication what it might take to get this old Chevy going again, but it looks like it would be fun to try. While this car is a patina lover’s delight, there is some rust to be found, principally in the passenger side floorboards. We’re told the car is complete except for the passenger side window. The condition of the interior is a mirror image of the exterior, i.e., it will need a lot of work, so prepare to have to source nearly everything.

A standard Malibu can be a $25-30,000 car (according to NADA). The Super Sport package should add a premium as that places the car into another stratosphere with collectors, though the auto was two years away from formally becoming a muscle car when the SS 396 was introduced as a series. I always preferred the styling of the 1964-65 models as opposed to 1966-67.