Do you ever really need a valid reason to buy a cool muscle car? The year was 1993. I was on a year-long break from my college studies in Arizona (because I needed more money to continue funding my education), and my brother Chris had been searching for a daily driver, because his truck used too much fuel. Coincidentally, Chris didn’t have to look too far, as our aunt and uncle had a 1965 Chevelle 300 Deluxe that wasn’t being used because they had purchased a new car. Equipped with a straight-six and a 2-speed Powerglide transmission, the Chevelle had just been sitting in their garage for years.
When we headed over to see the Chevelle, Chris joked that if the cigarette lighter worked, that we would buy it! Not only did the cigarette lighter work, but the car fired right up. For $500, Chris and I acquired another muscle car. We both shared the car and drove it for our daily commutes.
Within a year, I had bought Chris out of the car and ended up putting a 305 V8 in it and took it back with me to Arizona on my return to college. During my studies, I started doing bodywork on it; but, as it was my only car, the process was slow. One weekend, I decided to do a little motor work to it, which included a hotter cam and a 4-barrel intake and carburetor.
Of course, it didn’t stop there. Us muscle car guys always want more horsepower. Eventually, I dropped in a 383 stroker, rebuilt the tranny with a higher stall converter, finished the bodywork, and had to get it ready for paint. I primed and sanded the car on weekends outside at my place of employment. When it was time to paint the Chevelle, a friend of a friend had a barn that was converted into a paint booth, and he was willing to rent it to me for $50/day. The color I chose for the Chevelle was Chrome Yellow. I had seen this color on a Ford Ranger and thought it really popped.
I then tackled the interior with a friend of mine. We used tweed material and switched out the front bench seat for some low-back bucket seats out of a Chevy pickup. This became my NEW college vehicle. After graduating college, I kept the Chevelle for several years, but had to sell it for financial reasons…I was embarking on buying my first house in Arizona.
By Jim Ochs
