36k Original Miles: 1977 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu Classic
During the late-seventies, the downsizing of automobiles played a pivotal role in the quest for better fuel economy, with both the Chevrolet Impala and Caprice getting a mass reduction for the ‘77 models. However, the Chevelle soldiered on for one more year before it too got chopped, with the fourth-generation Malibu shedding hundreds of pounds for the following 1978 offering and losing more than a foot in overall length. If you’ve been looking for a nice driver that’s the last hurrah for the beautiful Chevy Colonnade styling, this 1977 Malibu Classic just might be the one you’ve been waiting for. Tony Primo, thanks for your great tip here!
Located in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, this one is said to have gotten a fresh paint job at some point before the seller purchased it back in 2018. The body appears to be well-preserved for the most part, with the only specific blunder pointed out being a couple of minor rust issues under the finish on the right rear quarter. It’s too bad these weren’t addressed prior to the respray, but as good as the rest of the exterior presents, I’d probably try to live with it rather than start over, at least for a while. The red half-vinyl top complements the white panels nicely, as do the rally wheels and whitewall tires.
There’s no word on whether or not anything inside has also been cosmetically refreshed, but the seller claims this Chevelle has only been on the road for 36,000 miles, so it hasn’t been occupied as often as many cars with this sort of age. The interior shares the same Firethorn Red color as the roof and seems to remain in excellent shape, with the vinyl seats showing no obvious issues to speak of. The headliner checks out OK, and I’m hoping that the laced steering wheel cover is for protection only instead of hiding something.
If there’s one demerit to consider here, it’s that there’s a 305 V8 under the hood and not the 350. However, the base engine for ’77 was an inline-six, so this one’s middle-of-the-road in terms of performance. The seller says his 1977 Chevrolet Malibu Classic is a great cruiser and a joy to drive, so if you’re ready to get behind the wheel, this Chevelle can be found here on Craigslist, with the asking price set at $12,000. Considering the mileage and condition, this sounds like a fairly reasonable cost for what you’re getting here. What are your thoughts?
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Comments
Beautiful car, I wish I could buy it. They looked nice and rode nice. The 305 instead of the 350 is only a slight disappointment, a 4bbl and dual exhaust could be added without too much fuss for a little more power. I hope it finds a good home. I don’t think it’s unreasonably priced.
Looks like after market A/C with a serpentine belt……interesting?
Unsure, I had a 74 and what I remember that looks like what mine had including the V-belt drive on it
Id repower w 350ci. Even a 2 barrel. Add the cam, good exhaust, gears ⚙️ and have a sweet cruiser. Great lines on the cars of this era. Love em. Especially the GMs
Had a 77 like this except white on white
With white top. 305 was way under powered. It did ride nice though. Gas gage wandered if u took any kind of turn
My 74 did the same thing lol. My 74 had a 350 and wasn’t much better in the power department. There were nice rides just under powered. love the red on red would buy it just for that. Drank gas but the ride was excellent.
Beautiful Chevy collanade. Enough 305 bashing already. Almost predictable. Remove the cat from that car and see how different it will run. Would scoop this up at 12k in a heartbeat if I had the room.
One of the few that weren’t pulverized in the local Saturday night bullrings, back in the 80’s. Sweet car.
Interesting it has a Chevy orange engine. 1977 was the first year for GM blue. Btw, I happen to own a 1977 Monte Carlo in the same white/firerhorne color scheme w/ an otherwise stock 305 no cat/headers and duals and runs real nice.
‘77 was a shift in painting the Chevy engines from Orange to Corporate Blue. From what I understand, the early ‘77’s still had the Orange engines.
Interesting. Must have been very early. My car has a Nov 1976 manufacture date and was indeed corporate blue.
I could never figure out why the put an extra elongated MB grille on the front of this thing. What were they (GM) thinking?
My grandmother bought a 77 Malibu Classic new, same red interior but dark metallic red with gold pinstripes outside & the ubiquitous landau vinyl top, also red. It almost became my first car in ’84, but I talked my way into a 79 Cutlass w T-tops, console and buckets. I knew Granny’s car was cool, but i didnt want the bench seat and column shift. A close female friend ended up with my Granny’s car, and the car guys in our high school were impressed. The Malibu had the 350, but my 305 Cutlass was quicker due to lighter weight, 4 barrel carb and the test pipe we installed.
I had one with the 305 and got it real cheap because it took a couple lobes off the cam. I put a 1970 Vette LT1 cam in it and a bone yard 4 barrel intake/carb combo and woke that little mouse right up! The bore/stroke combo on the 305 made it rev up pretty quickly and they were a great little engine if you kept the tach in the black and replaced the weak link in them (the soft camshaft) and made it breathe with a good cam, carb, and exhaust you’ll be surprised how good those little mighty mouse 305’s can run.
Yep. Nothing wrong with a 305. Complete myth that they are not capable of good performance. I have seen a 305 make over 400 HP, rev like a Ford 302 and do so on a very street friendly 220 degrees of intake cam duration and 10:1 compression. The key to that kind of power out of them is using the right heads.
Beautifully preserved in the classic white and red. The air is definitely factory. I can’t explain the compressor
I own the vehicle. Thanks for the nice comments. The 305 gets up and goes pretty good. Cruises nicely down the highway. As for the orange colored engine, the engine is date K08 05 CRA. It was made in Ontario Canada on August 5, 1976. Was told the early engines for the ‘77 Chevys were orange before transitioning to corporate blue. The AC system was replaced with system running R134a including new compressor. That is not a serpentine belt but a V-belt. Thanks for the positive feedback. Been a great car to drive.