Then
NOW
ALL IN THE FAMILY
By: Bill "Bono" Bonaguidi, NICC member #406
On August 8, 1969, Bono's Grandparents, Ruth and Marnell, drove their 1964 Malibu Sport Coupe to Mattingly-Rapier Chevrolet in Danville, Kentucky. When they arrived, they traded it in and subtracted its $725.00 value from the $3,025.00 price of their brand new 1969 Chevrolet Malibu. The new Malibu was Butternut yellow with a black vinyl top. The Baltimore factory installed optional equipment and accessories were: door edge guards, vinyl roof cover, 307 c.i. V-8, powerglide transmission, power steering, full wheel covers, electric clock and parchment / black vinyl trim. The dealer installed the $51.50 AM radio for a $9.00 installation fee.
Ruth and Marnell drove the Malibu home to Illinois where it served as Grammy Ruth's car. Grammy Ruth rarely drove the car since she walked to work as a teacher around the block from her house. Over the years, Grammy and Grandpa took excellent care of the Malibu. They painted the sides of the car and applied a vinyl top renewer making it look like new. In 1983, Bono became interested in the Malibu. Grandpa Marnell began teaching Bono how to drive using the Malibu. He would drive the car around the block to the school parking lot where he would let Bono practice parking, stopping, backing in a straight line and other driving skills. Grandpa Marnell also began teaching Bono how to maintain the Malibu. Bono did his first oil change at Grammy and Grandpa's house. Grandpa told Bono that he would give him the Malibu when he turned sixteen if he maintained it for Grandpa. Bono did so and couldn't wait to get the car. Unfortunately, Grandpa Marnell passed away in February of 1984. Grammy Ruth continued where Grandpa left off and took Bono for his practice drives. Bono kept maintaining the Malibu.
On October 18, 1985, Grammy Ruth gave Bono the Malibu with only had 46,000 miles on it. Bono only had a learner's driving permit as he was only fifteen years old. Bono drove the car home with his Mom. He could barely sleep that night and kept looking out his bedroom window at the Malibu. He felt guilty that it was outside since Grammy and Grandpa kept it in their garage.
When Bono turned sixteen, he began driving the car to school and
work. It served him faithfully with no problems.
Grandpa Dan was kind enough to allow Bono to park the Malibu in his office
garage three blocks from Bono's home. Bono did not mind the three block
walk every day to keep the car out of the weather. Over the next
year Bono did some minor performance modifications with the help of his friend
Kurt Kohl and Kurt's Dad, Roy. They installed headers with dual exhaust.
They also installed an Edlebrock Performer aluminum intake manifold with a
Holley 600 cfm carburetor. The performance increase of the little 307 was
very noticeable.
Kurt and Bono took the Malibu to the High School drag races where it ran in the low sixteens. Prior to the modifications it ran in the mid seventeens. They also used to "Go for a cruise" to Town and Country Mall or Cuba Road. Kurt would usually be asleep by the time they returned home. In 1988 Bono decided that he wanted to make the Malibu faster. He pulled the 307 and powerglide. The 307 was rebuilt and it replaced the in-line six cylinder in his 1976 Cutlass. The front clip was removed from the Malibu and the frame, suspension, and firewall were stripped and painted. The front suspension was rebuilt with big block springs. Bono purchased a 600 horse power 496 c.i.d. big block Chevy from John Lingenfelter Racing Engines and a TH400 transmission from Fairbanks Racing Automatics. The new engine and transmission were installed by Bono with the help of his friends Kurt, Roy Fiedler, Kenny Moore, Warren Smith, and Karl Howard. The motto back then was "Performance before looks". Since the budget of eighteen year old Bono was limited body work and much needed rear end upgrades and tires were put off until later. The new motor ran great and much stronger than anticipated. With the factory open ten bolt rear end, the Malibu could spin the fourteen inch passenger tire at any speed. It was impressive to spin the tire at a sixty mph roll but tires were going bald quick. After only 1,500 miles with the new motor and trans, the trans blew. Bono pulled the motor and trans and decided that he would not drive the Malibu again until it was completely restored. It was parked with 63,000 original miles in Grandpa Dan's garage.
In 1991, Bono was working for S&D Development and Prototype. S&D's specialty was building race cars. The owners, Dave and Jody, offered to let Bono install ladder bars and a roll bar in the Malibu. Bono custom bent the six point roll bar which was welded to the frame. He also made crome-moly ladder bars which were used to secure the 12 bolt rear end with a 4.10 gear. A drive shaft loop and fuel cell trunk mount were also fabricated and installed at that time. When the work was finished at S&D, the Malibu was towed back to Grandpa Dan's garage where it was parked again due to lack of funds.
In October of 1995, Bono married Kim. Bono showed Kim the once proud Malibu stored in Grandpa Dan's garage. Kim was not impressed as she felt that any car over two years old was junk. In the summer of 1996 Bono's friend Jerry Cameron took Kim and Bono for a ride in his perfectly restored 1970 Chevelle SS. After the ride, Kim realized the potential of the old Malibu sitting in the garage. In September of 1996 Bono decided that it was time to dig the Malibu out of storage and fully restore it. He put his 1992 Pontiac Formula in the paper and planned on using the money from the sale to get the restoration under way. Unfortunately, it took a full year before the Formula finally sold and once it did the Chevelle was towed home from Grandpa Dan's garage. Grandpa Dan was kind enough to store the Malibu for twelve years rent free. He teases Bono and tells him that he has $14,000.00 rent money invested in the Malibu.
Once home, the Malibu was completely stripped of everything. The only thing that wasn't removed was the body off the frame since the roll bar was welded through the body to the frame. After being stripped Bono's Father-in-law, Jerry got a flat bed from Ernie's Towing and the Malibu was towed to Bono's friend, Tom Shawkee's, where the underneath, frame and firewall were sandblasted. The bare metal was then coated with PPG DP-90 primer. From there the car was towed the VRN Welding and Fabrication where the owner, Vince Nannini, a friend of Bono's, was kind enough to allow Bono to use his shop. Bono welded in new rear floor boards and the brace underneath. The front tubes of the roll bar were modifed to allow the arm rests to be put back on the doors.
After the visit to VRN the Malibu went to Shepard Chevrolet in November of 1997 where Body Shop Manager Ed Wagner supervised the body work. Frank hung two NOS quarter panels a fixed the dreaded A body rear window rust under the vinyl top. When Frank finished the car was passed to Eddie who did the prep work and paint. Eddie removed the doors, deck lid and hood and gave them to Bono for acid dipping. Eddie and Frank smoothed them out after the acid bath while Eddie painted the NOS fenders as well. The body work was completed in January of 1998 and the now Daytona Yellow Malibu was brought home to be assembled as a repo COPO. Kim's 1997 Monte Carlo was parked outside and the Malibu / COPO got the middle of our small two car garage. The many enjoyable hours of assembly began.
The first thing Kim and Bono did was install the NOS "Chevelle by Chevrolet" emblem on the deck lid. Bono taped off the body and undercoated the floorboards, fenders, and rear wheel wells. The trunk was painted with original spatter paint. Once the touch-up work was done the 496 was taken off the stand it had been resting on for the last ten years. New Chevrolet valve covers were purchased from Jerry Cameron and taken to MPG Racing Engines. Owner Rick Roshto helped install the valve cover breathers and oil fill bung. An eight quart oil pan was also installed. The TH400 tranny was taken to Andrew Volt in Des Plaines, IL for a rebuild where a couple of things wrong and the trans was made "bullet proof". A manual shift, reverse pattern, TCI valve body with trans brake was installed. After the engine and trans were updated a Stainless Steel Brakes disc brake conversion was installed along with stainless steel brake lines from The Right Stuff. The engine and trans were given a fresh coat of paint and installed with a TCI 4000 RPM stall speed torque converter.
It was decided to change the interior from parchment to black.
The seats were re-covered by Ken's Custom Corner using PUI seat covers.
All the old parchment interior pieces were replaced with black. Jerry Cameron
and Warren Smith helped install the new headliner. A reconditioned
dash bezel was purchased and installed. The original dash pad was
reconditioned by Just Dashes. The instrument panel was converted to
factory gauges found at a swap meet. H&H Auto Electrical reconditioned the
gauges and converted the factory clock to quartz. Mechanical Auto Meter
water temp. and oil pressure gages were installed for added insurance.
A tilt steering column was installed to ease entry and exit with the roll bar.
A Hurst Quarter Stick was mounted on the floor. The original seat belts
were dry cleaned and reinstalled. A fifteen gallon fuel cell was installed
in the trunk. A Mallory fuel pump with a Barry Grant filter and regulator,
connected by stainless steel braided line, were used to get the gas to the
Holley 850 cfm double pumper. Every nut and bolt (except body
mounts) was either replaced or replated. Most parts were replaced with NOS
from Ken Weber at Shepard Chevrolet or reproduction parts from Rob at Tamraz's
Parts Discount Warehouse. Any high performance parts, such as the MSD
ignition, were purchased from Wayne at MPG.
The week prior to Memorial Day 1998 the motor was ready to be started. The core support, radiator, and inner fender wells were in place but the front sheet metal was left off just in case something went wrong. Kim was the designated starter and the engine was warmed up for twenty minutes and sounded great with the open headers. The neighbors were cooperative and didn't complain about the noise. Some even came to watch. The timing was set and the fluids were topped off. When the trans fluid was topped off the front seal of the trans failed so we shut the motor off. The next day the trans was taken out and Andrew fixed it in no time. The trans back in the next day and there were no leaks. The next three days were spent bolting on the sheet metal and remaining parts. By Memorial day 1998 Kim and Bono went for their first ride and everything was working like clockwork. The car was driven to McHenry Muffler where Dana installed three inch aluminized pipe to the Flowmaster mufflers and two and one half inch pipe over the axles.
On the Fourth of July weekend of 1998, Bono and Kim entered the Malibu / COPO in the National Chevelle Owner's Association Chevelle Showdown in Schaumburg, IL. The Malibu / COPO was entered in the Modified class and scored 976 points of a possible 1001. The score earned 2nd place in the Modified class and missed 1st place by just three points. The Chevelle provided a summer of great enjoyment with trips to the local McDonald's where all the local car enthusiasts take their pride and joy on Friday nights. Jerry Cameron provided the finishing touch for the restoration in mid-summer.......... A 1969 Des Plaines city sticker. Toward the end of October 1998, Kim and Bono took the Chevelle out for a long end of the season drive. They had been driving for almost two hours and were about a mile from home when something went wrong. The motor started making a noise that sounded like the beginning of a header leak. They stopped for a red light when the motor began backfiring violently through the carb and it was shut off and was debating what to do. The stoplight turned green and Bono decided it would be best to go for the Target parking lot and get off the three lane highway. The motor did not want to start but finally did and the backfiring did not get worse so he decided to drive the last mile home. The car was pulled in the garage where the valve covers where removed and broken roller lifter was found.
After seeking advice from the knowledgeable Rick Roshto of MPG
Racing Engines it was decided that it would be best to pull the motor and check
the internals. The engine was taken to MPG; the lifters were shot and the
cam needed to be re-ground. The bearings and oil pump also needed to be
replaced. While it was apart it was decided to upgrade to 7/16 Eagle rods
from the 3/8 Chevy rods, replace the cam with a new one that would allow for a
cast iron distributor gear instead of the bronze one that was razor blade sharp.
Rick checked the heads and found that one was a 1974 casting and the other was a
1978 casting. Thanks Lingenfelter! The problem with the different
model year castings was that one was .050" to tight in valve spring height.
That was the side that the lifter broke on. What a coincidence.
Lingenfelter's shop could not explain why they used two different heads and
wouldn't correct the problem because they built the motor in 1988.
Unfortunately, the motor only had 3,000 miles on it when it failed.
The new engine sounded great! The hood was put back on and the Malibu /
COPO only suffered one small paint chip in the process. Andy Skic of
Skic's Bike Refinishing provided the instructions and supplies to fix the chip
which no longer can be seen.
