Reader's Ride: Charles McClendon's 1971 Chevy Chevelle

February 10, 2019

Charles (left) and his son, Nick (right), with their Chevelles.

We’d not done a Reader’s Ride feature in a while, and then this beautiful piece of work came along. This beauty belongs to one Charles McClendon of Woodland Hills, California, and is the third restomod completed by Charles: it follows a 1959 Corvette and a 1957 Bel Air. Charles is, as you might have guessed, a Chevy fan. These previous cars are not without their plaudits. After it was restomodded by Safe and Sound of Woodland Hills, the Bel Air won awards at 17 shows, including seven best of show awards, within its first year. We have no doubt that the Chevelle will follow suit.

Charles’ previous award-winning project, a 1957 Chevy Bel Air.

Although still the co-owner of a business, Charles is semi-retired, with his son, Nick, now running it. It is with this dynamic father and son duo that we begin the story of the Chevelle. Nick owned one before his father, with the pair of them voyaging out to Iowa to buy a sleek and gorgeous Tuxedo Black 1970 Chevelle that boasts an LSX engine under its hood. As a young man, Charles would take his first car, a 1965 Mustang convertible, and cruise up and down Van Nuys Boulevard on Wednesday and Satuday nights. It was there that he first fell in love with Chevys, and he tells me that looking at his son’s Chevelle, he got “that same feeling of desire I used to get back in high school.” Although he’d promised his wife he was done with restomodding after his Bel Air, he knew that he needed just one more car in his collection.

“I just had to have one more, a ’70 or ’71 Chevelle SS 454. Plus, I thought about how cool it would be to cruise with Nick and go to shows together in our Chevelles. So after coming to a mutually beneficial agreement with my wife (and that’s another story for another day!) the search began.”

Luckily for Charles, just months later, he found exactly what he was looking for. The Chevelle had already been restored beautifully. Finished in Ferrari’s Rosso Corsa paint with white SS stripes, it packed a 454 and a Tremec TKO five-speed transmission. Though fit and finish were fantastic, it was not without its problems. Most significantly, its brakes didn’t work, with the mighty 454 producing no vacuum while it was idling. After a “very scary and thankfully short drive,” Charles got it (and him) to Safe and Sound in one piece. Work could finally begin on the car that Charles had wanted since those days back in high school.

At Safe and Sound, Stefan and his crew quickly snapped into action. The existing headers were replaced with Sanderson ceramic-coated ones, and the brake problems were fixed with a CPP Show Stopper Hydra Boost. Next up, Charles and Stefan wanted to make the engine bay show quality. As you can see from these pictures, they succeeded. The chrome of the March Ultra Drive front runner system, Sanden compressor, alternator, polished power steering pump, and the polished March PS reservoir put paid to that. Other additions include the Edelbrock polished hi-flo water pump, chromed March Style Track air cleaner and Billet Specialties valve covers. To improve the looks further, seven engine compartment panels were fabricated and repainted to match the smoothed firewall. These hide the hoses and wiper mounting plate, as well as closing up gaps by the fenders and headlights.

Next up, it was the turn of suspension to get a thorough sprucing. Up front, the stock suspension was replaced with Global West’s KT423 Ultimate Handling Package, which Charles thanks for the car’s incredible handling. This package includes such delights as a sway bar, modular forged spindles, and tubular upper and lower control arms. All of the package’s components come together to form a negative roll system that changes the car’s geometry curve, meaning negative camber is induced when the tire goes up into the fender. The rear brakes were replaced with Wilwood four-piston Big Brakes, and the steering runs through a Borgeson ST45 12.7:1 steering box.

Inside, the combination of classic design and electronic goodies make up a truly incredible cabin. Up on the dash, there are Dakota Digital HDX gauges, while the power windows, alarm, and locks are by Nu Relics. The original interior has been torn out, with the new one featuring sound proofing by Dynamat, custom cut and stitched German square-weave charcoal carpet, and factory SS seats and door panels in ivory. Charles and Stefan opted to leave this alone, as “the original Chevelle SS interiors were a beautiful design and the white interior just looked so awesome with the red paint and white SS stripes.” New chrome window cranks have been added, which remain functional. The center console has been fabricated to fit the seven inch reversing camera screen, with other console accoutrements including a four-way switch for the windows, a Pioneer AVH-3300 receiver with a flip-out touchscreen, a nav system, and Apple CarPlay. All this media is fed through a 1000 watt JL Audio amp, a pair of 10″ JL subwoofers, and six JBL speakers, which rest in custom kick panels and a package tray, featuring steel speaker grilles. All the electronics are powered by a pair of Optima Red Top batteries mounted in the trunk. The trunk features new panels too, finished in red and white, as well as a cover for the underside of the deck lid, also in red and white and featuring the SS emblem.

The beautiful exterior hasn’t been given the same level of treatment, but it didn’t need it: the Chevelle was pretty much perfect in its stock form. Peterson LED headlights and Digitails LED rear lights have been added for better visibility, but that’s about it. This beauty rides on US MAGS Rambler 18″ wheels and Michelin Super Sport 225/40 ZR18s up front and 275/45 ZR18s at the back. The car was completed just last month, and Charles says he “can’t wait for summer to go cruising with my son and showing it at all of the cars shows we have in sunny So. Cal.” If you’re in the area, be sure to keep an eye out for this wonderful car at nearby shows! We’ve included Charles’ build sheet below, as well as a gallery of pictures for you to feast your eyes upon. If you’ve got a beautiful restomod, get in touch with us. We always love hearing from our readers and looking at their incredible projects!