My name is thomas, I have a family ride that i have recently become interested in restoring, dont laugh but it is a 1980 chevy malibu, 4 door wagon.
i love the body and the only problem is the whole interior is shot, it needs all new door panels., carpet, window seals and such.. i know this will be gradual but im 19, and work 2 fairly decent jobs.. if i spend 500 dollars a month on this thing, and put my heart into it, it should start shaping up for future mods.

any helpfull hints and pointers on where i should start would be appreciated. iill have to try to get photos available.

some quick questions....

1. did my 1980 4 door cevy malibu come with a 6 or 8 cylnder it has a 350 in it currently, runs like a kitten and purrs but the interior is shot.


thanks for any help at all and i look foreward to bieng a member of this forum as i fix up this car.

 

I aint laughin'. I love those wagons, I got a 78 El Camino, same frame and front end. How bad are your interior pieces? I took mine out and cleaned them with soap and water and repainted them with interior paint. You can order carpet, or rubber floor mats for that. I swapped in some seat from a Grand Prix(93 model) and was rollin'! Good luck with the resto!

 

First. Parts for this car can be realitivly easy to get a hold of. Malibus and Caprices were almost exaclty identicle. So you can swap out pretty much anything to or from either speciemen. Or simply cut your own pieces.

Now. Your engine is most likely stock. Chevy had a 3.8Liter V6 229Ci 5.7 liter 350. And believe it or not a 350 diesel. There are like two other V6 sizes you could get but im not 100% on them. I have a 4 door 1980 Malibu sedan.

Also note the condition of yur chasis. These cars have G bodies and are well known for the *** ends to rust right off.
and my advice would be to get the easier things done first like window seal and such so it doesnt leak when it rains or whatever. do the things that will make the car perfect to drive safely and efficently and then worry about the seat the panels and things. i would reccomend stripping out the carpet and laying in new by yourself have a custom interior and then have your seats upolstered to match the carpet.

 

The other 2 engines were a 231 and a 305. They have a big enough engine bay to put a BBC in. Also to answer the question of interior kits. Visit OPGI's website they have a lot of stuff for G body's Also, El Camino's from 78-88 were the same as the Malibu from 78-81. Hope this helps