Becoming its Own: A 1978 Chevrolet Malibu

Becoming its own model in 1978, the Chevrolet Malibu began as a trim level of the Chevrolet Chevelle. In addition to the nameplate change, the 1978 Malibu model was over a foot shorter, which cut down the vehicle’s weight by several hundred pounds. Another notable change for the new model was the chrome-plated plastic grille with ‘Chevrolet’ block lettering, both available at Original Parts Group.

With big plans in mind, Kelly Bensene from Fairview Oregon purchased a 1978 Chevrolet Malibu Classic Landau 2-door for $4,400 that came with over $1,500.00 worth of brand-new red interior parts and pieces still in their boxes.

It was Burgundy with an all-original body that had zero rust (not even surface rust in the trunk). The second owner installed a 350″ 4-bolt main motor with an Edelbrock 4 barrel and rebuilt the Turbo 350 transmission with a stage II shift kit and 2400-stall aftermarket torque converter. With only 62,450 original miles, only 2500 miles on the new drivetrain, “18 Boss Motorsports wheels all around, and a new wood steering wheel, Kelly found himself a steal.

Since the purchase, Kelly put his big plans into action removing the rear seat and replacing it with an aluminum bulkhead, gutting the red interior, installing an Auto Custom Carpet kit from OPGI, and painting the rest of the “all-inclusive” brand-new interior parts and pieces black to match.

Wrapping it in a Satin Gray over a Metalic Burgandy, Kelly removed the “Malibu Classic” emblems from the rear quarter panels and added Chevy cross-flag emblems on the front fenders. He also added “Hurst Equipped” emblems on the trunk lid that received a modification with a 1984 Monte Carlo SS rear wing added to it.

Autometer gauges and Monster Tach/shift light were installed, along with 3″ 40 series twin-chamber Flowmaster mufflers, B&M stage ll shift kit with a 10″ 2800 stall Corvette torque converter, a 15-gallon RCI fuel cell, Holley Blue Max electric fuel pump, canister style inline fuel filter and Trick Flow adjustable fuel pressure regulator and gauge, Comp Cams full hydraulic roller camshaft (.510″ – .520″ lift, XR282HR), Smith Brothers pushrods, Canton 7 quart oil pan, roughly 10:1 compression for pump gas, MSD Digital 6AL box, B&M Promatic shifter, aluminum racing pedals, Doug’s ceramic coated two-piece headers, all ARP hardware and billet aluminum fabricated valve covers.

Shall we mention the welded-in 6-point roll cage, fiberglass racing bucket seats with 4-point harnesses, recently added wheelie bars, and the $16k 383″ Stroker Motor Kelly just dropped in his Malibu?

With a history in drag-racing and plans to go to the drag strip for some Friday night 1/4 mile street legal drag, Kelly’s “big plans” aka modifications to the ’78 Malibu are no surprise. However though he is hoping to run in the high 10’s on the motor and 9’s on the Nitrous bottle at around 140mph on the strip, Kelly says that the Malibu will see mostly street use, local shows, and sunny day driving. To prepare his Malibu for shows Kelly made some restoration purchases from opgi.com.

1968-1988 Window Crank Handle, GM A-Body, G-Body, Riviera, Grand Prix

Download our digital 2023 G-Body Parts Catalog to view our selection of restoration, performance, and aftermarket parts & accessories available for your Late Model Malibu.