Super Sonic CHEVELLE

How the Williams brothers transformed Mark Evans’ 1971 Chevy Chevelle into a red hot, state-of-the-art street rod…

- Geoff Carverhill

As with several other mid-Sixties GMintermediates, the Chevrolet Chevelle was always destined to be classified in the category ‘legendary American muscle car’. Introduced in 1964 as a ‘senior compact’, the Chevelle Malibu Super Sport became available with an SS396 engine option package in 1965, something which would mark its official entry into the muscle car arena. In 1966, the Chevelle SS396 was completely restyled, broke its ties with the Malibu nameplate and became an intermediate series in its own right. By 1968, the Chevelle SS had established itself as a true muscle car, alongside nameplates like the Pontiac GTO, Olds 4-4-2, Dodge Charger, Plymouth Road Runner and others, and it received another revision, which many aficionados regard as being the iconic Chevelle SS look: the long hood/short rear deck treatment was now seen on other GM brands, but the clean-looking, tapered front and rear profile of the ’68 and ’69 Chevelles was pure Chevrolet.

In 1970, the front and rear end of the Chevelle SS received a flatter, squarer look, and in 1971 large single headlamps, à la Monte Carlo, replaced twin headlamps, which is why Mark Evans’ Chevelle is a bit different from the previous models, but no less iconic. The penultimate year of the SS option, which offered a 454 V8 as well as the 396 engine, was 1971.