1965 Chevrolet Malibu SS 396 Z16 Muscle Car Of The Week Video #4

[@NewtonWashinton]

In 1969 i bought a 1965 Chevelle Malibu SS, 327ci. 300 hp, 4 speed, very nice car. always wanted the 396/375 thanks for the memories.

[@TheGeil8500]

I had a friend that had a "65 Malibu back in the early 70's that had a 283 with a 4 speed. Got a 327 out of the wrecking yard and sent it to a high performance speed shop that bored it over .30 over, mechanical lifters and radical cam ,202 fuely heads, balanced crankshaft and would turn quarter mile in the 13's.

[@zooba1974]

These videos are absolute treasures.

[@TopG800]

I agree, I love the Malibu, and these videos always bring back classic car areas

[@joeblow1942]

When I was a kid my neighbors bought two brand new His and Hers Malibu SS’s just like this. His was black and hers was white. Man, did I admire those two beautiful cars. GREAT VIDEO. Thanks!

[@MuscleCarOfTheWeek]

That must have been cool to see them parked at their house!

[@orange70383]

My grandma back in the 80's drove a 65' Malibu SS 327 4bbl, it was an automatic with console shift. It was really a good car, she sold it for $100, at the time I just bought a 70' Cuda and wasn't into Chevy's.

[@AlejandroP1980s]

Hey is this the same as Chevelle

[@jonlennon3348]

I cant help it but I would love to have one. I am Ford blue in my veins but love chevys.

[@brucedeerhaven]

Chevrolet back when they were sponsoring Bonanza on TV, gave Dan Blocker (Hoss) one of these Chevelles (think it was a yellow one, but could have been a red one). Always wondered how Dan Blocker (who was huge) was able to sit in the drivers seat!!

[@LonnySelf]

One of my all-time favorites from the day I saw my first one, I say it was right up there with the 67 fast back hemi barracuda and Dart as a surprise.

[@rede2use]

I owned a 1965 Chevelle Malibu SS 283cu.in. 4 speed convertible Blue w/ white top, while attending High School as a Senior 1969

[@jerryjyrkinen8148]

I love this one.

[@audieconrad8995]

Although GM was sharing somewhat similar body styles through the various divisions, the intermediate '65 GTO (imo) was waaaaay better looking. That being said, the Malibu SS 396's were real studs. Good times....

[@stuartfitzsimons2786]

I was graduating high school when this era was in full swing. I never saw the 396 in a 65 Chevelle. Now I know why. The 200 and something production numbers. I agree with those who are touting the L-79 (327ci. 350Horse) in the Chevelles, they were all over the place. And very fast and great street cars due to the high output with a hydraulic lifter cam.

[@brucedeerhaven]

Stuart Fitzsimons That particular engine was rare in the 65 Chevelle (was a Corvette engine) & rated at 365 horsepower.

[@Bartonovich52]

Remember.. 365 gross horsepower. Probably less than 300 net after you put on an air cleaner, exhaust system, accessories, and water pump.

[@1965l88]

@@brucedeerhaven Wrong, it was 350 horsepower. The L79 had a milder hydraulic cam. The 365 horse version had the hotter solid lifter cam.

[@martytruelove5026]

"My Cousin,Vinny"brought the posi knowledge out.My mother's first car was a '65 Chevelle(not ss)...and we toured.

[@brucedeerhaven]

I met a guy at a car show some years ago that said he had 5 (yes 5) of these Chevelles & brought 3 to the car show. He had a huge multi car enclosed trailer & I asked if I could see them. He opened the trailer & Wow!!!!

[@niterockerone]

I had a 65 L-78 Vette roadster..Awesome car

[@stevethomas760]

Years ago I was a "Worlds of Wheels" here in Atlanta and saw the Dan Blocker car. I'd never seen one and I promptly went nuts. My girlfriend thought I had lost my mind. The owner said "you want to sit in it"? Not sure if I felt that cool since I got my first bicycle.

[@brucedeerhaven]

steve thomas Yes, I remember W of W & also went to the car show & show his car. Chevrolet gave him that car during the time they were sponsoring Bonanza. Always wondered if he actually drove the car because he was so huge & probably would have had trouble sitting in the drivers seat. That car was sold at auction years ago & I think it went for roughly $250,000!!

[@stevethomas760]

@@brucedeerhaven The owner was supposed to have quite a collection. Couple years ago I did some research to find the guy and see if I could take a look at his cars. Found a article about him selling most of his cars, including the Chevelle. He made my day just letting me sit in the seat and do some mock shifting. In hindsight I should have made some burning rubber sounds.

[@brucedeerhaven]

steve thomas Yes, those were the good old days - was a teenager in the mid 60s & young adult in the early 70’s. Had a 64 Chevelle Malibu SS & a 70 Chevelle SS 396/350 hp (& that car was fast). Later in life (10 years ago) purchased a 64 GTO (& sold it 3 years ago). I grew up in the perfect time. Now kids & young adults just sit around on their I phones or protest over things they know nothing about!

[@mcinkyt]

This is a great series.

[@gocubsgo7609]

I love this car!

[@c130comm]

What a machine

[@colinkennedy4646]

My dad owned one back in the day. It was white with a black vinyl top. I don't remember much of it as I was born in 65, but it had to be in the late 60s that he had it. But my brother remembers it, and he was born a year before me...werid... I vaguely remember dad saying it had the 327 engine with automatic trans, though.

[@albertonavarrofigueroa1493]

This car is very very nice....

[@rdmanone]

Multiplex stereo awesome.

I'd love to see a yellow one.

[@hendrickyee522]

Yes. Like a sudden fluke in life I've seen someone inside a retail parking lot with one like the video description model except it being in a yellow color. She quiz him about this Malibu SS hard top she drove and gained ownership from a public auction for $3900.00 in 1980. The individual drove off demonstrating from a starting point had them rear tires doing a smoke burning spin out which was more pronounced than the momentary emissions from the tailpipe. It really seem like a steal period at the cost.

[@timothywyant5337]

love the z16..

[@GlassTopRX7]

Didn't realize the 65 had round speedo, that my one knock on the perfection that was 66 SS 396.

[@ZEZERBING]

it has a nice designed dash

[@brokedonkeygarage6017]

I have a 1965 El Camino with a 12 bolt rear L79 engine and it also has 331 open diff

[@TheGeil8500]

I want one!!! I will kill for one!!!!

I remember burning the tires off my Chevelle,a '64 with a 283 4bbl.Open 10 bolt rear and the biggest tires possible were puny F-78s.Otherwise you ripped the hell out of them unless you opened the wheelhouse up and tubbed them. Wasn't many that could beat that car.It was a 210 sedan no frills car with a 4.10 6 cylinder rear A real sleeper, and could get to 120 fast.Scary.Cool.Noisy. Yeah.Then gas went to 50 cents a gallon.Panic.

[@brucedeerhaven]

molson12oz I also had one with same engine & installed El Camino springs under it to set it up higher & then installed mags. And gas was 25 cents a gallon!

[@grumpydan1]

This is the one I had, sold new in Johnson City, Tennessee. I knew the original owner, the second owner and the 5th owner. So sad I sold it, but the money got too high and I let it go....regret that big time now..

[@davidjones9518]

Kickass

[@gregbarhorst3986]

How could they not have a posi with that power

[@Bartonovich52]

Because it was SAE gross not SAE net and you had a sloppy torque converter, a two speed slush box, and a mile of driveshaft between you and the diff.

[@goldoverblack]

SAE?...Torque converter?...2 speed slush box?... Whaa?... All 201 of these Z-16 Chevelles came standard with M20 Muncie 4-speed Manual Transmissions.

[@Robert-q7q6m]

Awesome bowtie

[@Slimjim260]

A terrible mistake by GM, not installing a posi traction rear end????

[@jeremythompson9122]

If I was buying a brand new car in 1965...it would be either this car or a 396-425/4 speed Impala SS

[@Choochatthanto]

I liked the film "Crime Story 1986" and like "Classic car" their are format together .

[@tedh.8356]

I was lucky enough to get a ride in one and it was a "Ride" I also know for a fact that the "Fool" who owned it destroyed it as was the fate of too many muscle cars in the 60's and 70's.

[@wendellworth353]

I wonder if in 1965, you could have done a COPO and got the 409/425hp in that Chevelle?

[@davidjones9518]

Kick ass

[@tostentwo]

First things that would happen would have been to get rid of the throw away wheels and cheesey hub caps, put on some traction bars, and change the also throw away stock shifter. Everyone wanted the black interior also. White interiors were for convertibles and convertibles were for nerdy magazine ads. I remember when I was a kid a farmer named Lee had a 396 Chevelle that was a year newer than this one. It was known as fast but he used it as a regular driver and installed a bumper hitch. Kind of funny to see him pulling a trailer full of grain to town on our way to school. Those were the times when this stuff was just about everywhere and if you were into cars you had a pile of cast iron exhaust manifolds in the corner and spent most of your repair time trying to stop header and air shock line leaks. (for all I know that chevelle is still on that farm, .let your imagination run with that for awhile).

[@audieconrad8995]

Parked over by the John Deere...

[@bradfordeaton6558]

Hot Rod did a dyno test on the 425 motor at the time and got 540 HP out of the stock motor.

[@GlassTopRX7]

That seems way high even for a gross HP number and the numbers at the track don't support that claim either. With that kind of power they would have been running in the 12's even with those crap tires.

[@bradfordeaton6558]

It was the cover story in, I don't remember what month, of 1965. I suppose you could find it if you have access to an archive. It was a crate motor they got from GM, I don't know how they tuned it. If you put good tires on them, a number of cars of that era could have run in the 12s.

[@GlassTopRX7]

Bradford Eaton If a dyno said the L78 396 was 540 HP an LS3 on that same dyno would be make well over 600. On a modern chassis dyno most muscle car era cars can't even break 300 hp to the wheel in stock form that includes the LS6 454 and L72 427.

[@bradfordeaton6558]

I'm not going to argue with you; read the article.

[@jeremythompson9895]

@@bradfordeaton6558 you're dreaming if you think a stock L78 396 is 540 horsepower. I've seen a bone stock 1966 L78 396 engine on a dyno in person, and it put out 425 gross horsepower at 6000rpm. Even the Chrysler 426 Hemi and Ford R-Code 427 didn't make 540 horsepower, and they were both much more radical solid lifter engines than an L78 396

[@a.k.a.A.E.1]

is the hubcap not the same how by the 67 camaro ???

[@rogerodle8750]

I heard there was only one '65 Z16 convertible -- custom made for Chevrolet's general manager Bunky Knudsen. Had it for a couple of years and then had it crushed.

[@goldoverblack]

Hearsay. However, all 200, or 201, 1965 Z16 Chevelle SS396's did have the convertible frame as standard equipment.

[@Jgeneraledger23]

OMG, I'd want to burn the tires off that car ;)

[@christolbert4628]

Low 14's stock? Just think what it could do with posi traction! !

[@montanaplease]

Whatever Horse power they claimed back then just divide it in half and that might be what you actually had and that’s being generous.

[@amandaevenl6857]

Dustless blasting

[@erickort1987]

only 1 convertable was built for and a one-off convertible for GM Executive Vice President Bunkie Knudsen

[@elvispresley2803]

Apparently,there was only 1 convertible made and it still hasn't been found...$$$$

[@mgn5667]

zooooooooom::::::::::::

[@howabouthetruth2157]

This is one of your rare videos where the engine & car is shown NOT running. Why???

[@willgregg1076]

My grandpa has one of these but it doesn’t run and all the interior seats are gone

[@BrandonLeeBrown]

Typically, a rear sway bar doesn't help traction much at all on a leaf spring car, but on the coil spring Chevelle, the rear sway bar, surprisingly does help traction.

[@goldoverblack]

Doesn't matter if you have leaf springs, coil springs, no springs, or any type of rear sway bar. You will not get reliable traction from both rear tires on road surfaces without a positraction rear axle. Go where there is street or no-prep drag racing and you find every car has either a positive traction rear axle or a locked rear differential. Try accelerating on a slippery surface with a rear drive car without positraction but having a sway bar...only one rear wheel will be working.

[@TheRoguelement]

Hey guy's let's try and put that in perspective ok .... So a care that you me the kid across the street could go down and buy for like what 3500 bucks maybe 4 grand .. today can get like a few hundred thousand ? WTF ... Really and why ? Because I recall pulling up to the pumps with my GTO in the early 80s or was it late 70s and pulling up to the pumps got my balls broke for having a quote Gas Guzzler ? during the fuel embargo and shit .. These car's WERE NOT favored in fact Cali hated them so they gave Cash for what they called Clunkers with the Clunker law it was NOT popular to own these cars anywhere .. I always got sour look's ..and now today a car we used to pound the crap out of 2 nights a week is worth a few hundred grand ...

[@terrysellers6712]

It's not a hubcap! It's a wheel cover!!!!🤬

[@frequencyfluxfandango8504]

Mulabu ..Mabalu.. I can't pronounce 'Mabalu'.

[@frequencyfluxfandango8504]

@Matrox One Lol. Yes. That was my take on The Barracudas fake 1966 Barracuda advertisement (at the start of their album.) The voice says, "Babba-ra-ra -cu-cu-Dada.. -Well.it aint 'Barracuda' man, but I think we got a hit record !" ... I can't pronounce Baccaruda.

[@beloglavisup2]

Try like "Maui"

[@happyfreeliferc]

How come you didn't fire it up and do some driving?

[@garyblanchard1084]

Would leave any stock tri power GTO far behind in the dust!

[@goldoverblack]

Motor Trend magazine July 1965 tested new totally stock Z16 Chevelle. Acceleration tests showed 1/4 mi. time of 15.3 sec at 96 mph. Car Life magazine, Roger Huntington, in 1965, tested new totally stock 1965 Pontiac GTO Tri-power 360hp. Acceleration test showed 1/4 mi. time of 14.4 sec at 100 mph.

[@Ghost915A1]

Great car but compared to a 1965 Buick Gran Sport, it was a joke.

[@goldoverblack]

In what way??

[@Ghost915A1]

@@goldoverblack Torque.

[@goldoverblack]

​@@Ghost915A1 Torque and Horsepower figures for the Muscle Car era were all over the place, not real numbers, due to AMA regulations and insurance companies denying policies to cars with high power numbers. 1/4 mi numbers and passing accelerating figures by automotive testing firms back in 1965 reveal the true story on torque, especially the acceleration/passing times. Comparing the "A" body muscle cars - Buick GS, Chevy Malibu SS, Olds 442 and GTO's were made on the same assembly line. Frames were nearly identical in construction/size or else you couldn't load them all on the same identical carriers on the moving assembly lines. The convertibles were the only frames different in appearance and weight. I worked on the assembly lines for GM for 12.5 years. The weights of the A body are about the same for vehicles with the same optional equipment. The Chevys were a little lighter in weight than the B-O-P's due to variations of interior components, sound deadening, and other options. Rear axles, driveshafts, suspension parts all about the same weight. The engine weight is more for the big block cars, of course. So, for which A-body car has more torque?... can only be determined, in the age before widespread use of hub dynos, etc., by comparison of real world testing on the tarmac. The following figures for the 1965 Buick Gran Sport and the 1965 Chevrolet Mallibu SS396 (RPO Z16) are provided by the May and July 1965 issues of Motor Trend magazine for the GS and the SS396, respectively. Both cars, stock as delivered by the factory. Both had nearly same rear axle ratios. GS had 3.36:1 non-positraction... SS396 has 3.31:1 non-positraction. GS had the ST300 auto trans... SS396 had the manual M20 Muncie 4-spd trans.They both use the same heavier convertible re-inforced frame. Here we have what may be the major difference between the two, the actual real power of the engines under the hood: 65 Buick GS: 1/4 mi - 16.6sec and 86mph 0-60mph time is 7.8 sec 40-60mph time is 4.0sec 50-70mph time is 4.7sec 65 Malibu Z16 1/4mi - 15.3sec and 96mph 0-60mph time is 6.7 sec 40-60mph time is 2.7sec 50-70mph time is 3.7sec

[@deandee8082]

Z16 should be 425 hp...

[@user-cm9uh6sj7n]

375hp on one tire good thing it had that clock L79 was better

[@BuzzLOLOL]

Yeah, 160 MPH speedo... but no posi... no posi was prolly intentional to slow it down in the 1/4...

[@davidh1249]

If you think the L79 327 is better than the L37 396 you must be insane.The L79 is a good small block,but that Mark IV 396 would outperform it--every time,in any situation,and by a large margin.

[@markturley9542]

What, just “ a 1- wheel peel”? That’s pathetic - couldn’t Chevrolet spring for a posi-unit for that beast? :€(

[@howabouthetruth2157]

Do you call low 14's factory stock "pathetic"??? Because that's how fast these Z16 Malibu's were.........even without a posi rear end.

[@jasonmoskowitz246]

Blablabla no engine sound