Wagon Snippet: The Other Malibu

Mention selling your Chevelle and some people turn into a quivering bowl of Jell-O while they ponder two-door anything (hardtop, convertible) possibilities – or so some others claim. Honestly, we appreciate the devotion to the fabled badge: attractive lines, easy to get parts (all things relative) and often equipped with an ample supply of horses; or so it seems. So when we spotted this 1964 Chevelle at the Charlotte Auto Fair in the rain back in 2008, we took notice.

The signage on the front glass of the Malibu four-door wagon was simple:

V-8, automatic; runs and you can drive it; $3,975 o.b.o.

We’ll skip over the basic history of the car in general, but we will mention that aside from a base 195hp, 283-cu.in. V-8, the base economy version of the car was a 120hp, 194-cu.in. straight-six. Customers could have optioned up for more power, while a few transmissions were on the selection sheet as well.

Given the conditions at the time, it was fair to say that there was little foot traffic around the six- or nine- (we didn’t hang around to look) passenger car. Overall, its condition was rather presentable, if not for a lack of wax for several years, with only slight traces of rust in a couple spots; tops. If the claims held up, then someone could have easily driven it home for cheap coin.  Book values for one equipped with a 283 V-8 in average condition (#3) hover around $10,000; concours condition (#1) is at or above $21,000.

Maybe we should have canceled that flight after all…