The snarky answer would be No! Nothing to see here, just move along. But it’s never that simple with an old car, there are always mitigating factors. This particular Chevy looks rode hard and put away wet but maybe there’s something more to it than immediately meets the eye. Up for review is this 1972 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu, located in Linden, New Jersey, and available, here on eBay for a current bid of $3,550, twelve bids tendered so far.

Talk about a knock-out, Chevrolet produced 631K Chevelles of all stripes in ’72. Narrowing it down a bit, there were 207K Malibu V8 hardtops like this example that rolled off of five different Chevrolet assembly plants that year. Rarity is not an attribute! And this is not a big-block powered version or the more desirable SS variant, so what do we really have here? (Yellow tape? Leak prevention maybe?)

The body of this Chevelle is mostly straight though it appears to have had some sort of rust repair performed on the rear left, over the wheel, and along the lower quarter. The back bumper (supposedly included in the sale), taillights, and roll pan are missing and the passenger side has something going on in the rear portion of the lower door. This Chevy is in New Jersey, a rust belt state, and GM “A” bodies like this Chevelle rust; it’s impossible to avoid unless a car has been garaged its entire life and never driven in road salt-induced situations. This one could be a lot worse, however. The finish is immaterial as it has either been sanded off or is peeling away on its own. The applied-at-home racing stripes are disappearing too. This Chevelle would have had wheel opening moldings at one-time, they’ve probably been gone for years, though the addition of the American Racing wheels perks things up a bit; they appear to be in good shape.

The biggest problem with this Chevy seems to be underneath, the floors are letting go. It’s typical and replacement pans are available but it is quite a chore to replace them properly. The frame itself looks OK other than a heavy coating of surface rust but a thorough inspection is definitely in order.

No word regarding the engine or this Chevelle’s running aptitude. The listing references a small-block engine being in place and the VIN indicates that this Chevelle originally claimed a 350 CI, 165 net HP V8 engine as its prime mover. What’s in place now is fed by a Quadrajet carburetor so that’s not in keeping with the original engine’s specifications. Without better images or a detailed description, there’s no telling what small-block motor it is. And it seems unlikely that this one is a runner. While A/C is partially in place, there is no sign of the compressor.  The dash shift lever indicator is correct for a Turbo-Hydramatic, three-speed, automatic transmission.

The interior is not useable, it’s pretty well destroyed and shows all of the evidence of a car being parked outdoors for an extended period of time with open windows. Or it may have something to do with the missing rear window. Upholstery, door cards, dash, instrument panel, steering wheel, all of it is in need of a complete do-over.

The seller states that this “car is in need of complete restoration”. Well, he ain’t lyin’. I guess the question then goes back to the opening, is this example worth restoring? It’s a trade-off between how much money would one want to spend on top of the acquisition price of the car vs. either finding a better example or coming across one that has already had a lot of work performed. Chevelle values have been ascendent for years and unfortunately, everyone who owns one, regardless of condition, has dollar signs in their eyes. I’d pass on this one and look for something better, it’s not like they’re rare, how about you?