It took three owners from the same family to help this Chevelle restoration project get underway.

Way back in early 1984, Mike Downing and his then-girlfriend Sue were serving this great country as stationed members at the now-decommissioned Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda, Michigan. When August of that year rolled around, the newly-married couple were on their way to Saginaw, Michigan, to do some shopping, when Michael saw this Chevelle parked in a driveway. He immediately pulled the Firebird they were driving onto the shoulder and made a U-turn. He felt compelled to take a closer look at the car. Mike tells us, “I asked Suzy, ‘Did you see that?’ She had no idea what I was talking about.” He continues, “I said that was a ‘70 Chevelle convertible. I was so excited, and she couldn’t understand why.”  Mike pulled into the driveway and knocked on the door, hoping to speak with the owner. Luckily, someone answered.

After talking with the car owner for a few minutes, he queried the owner to see if he ever thought about selling the car. Mike commented, “He said ‘not really’, but that he did need some money to pay his bail bondsman.” At that moment, Mike knew that there was a very good possibility he could soon own the Chevelle. “I told him I would give him $2,500 for it. He thought about it for a few seconds and said ‘Yes, he would do that’.”  Mike was surprised, there were no negotiations at all. The entire conversation only lasted about 15 minutes.

A couple of days later, he and his wife went back to where they found the drop top, and finalized the transaction. The car was in decent shape and became their daily driver for the next two years. Unfortunately, the original engine was long gone, and the previous owner had installed a 350 cubic-inch small-block between the fenders. Not long after the couple purchased the car, Michael located and acquired a 454 cubic-inch big-block to put back under the hood. But, like happens so many times, life intervened, and family took precedence.

Mike tells us, “We soon started to build a family, and didn’t have a lot of money to put into the car. It needed a little body work and a paint job, and the top also had a small tear.” With disgust in his voice, he went on, “We hit a few rough spots when someone stole the emblems off of it. Then someone — probably the same jerk — stole the cowl-induction hood. I still get mad when I think about it.”

Eventually, the couple reluctantly decided it was time to sell the car, and it ended up with Sue’s brother. He had great intentions of restoring the car and began taking it apart. But, like many good-intentioned owners, that was as far as he got with the restoration process. Fortunately for the Downing’s, a few years later they were able to buy it back. What’s more, the brother had never changed title ownership and gave the couple the unsigned title since he had never registered the car in his name.

Although the Downing’s wanted to start the restoration immediately, several years went by with the car remaining untouched, and the addition of four children solidified a priority centered on family. Since Mike was focused on taking care of the family, the Chevelle once again went up for sale. This is when Sue’s other brother comes into the picture, he also bought it with plans to restore it. We’ll try to not sound redundant, but after spending several years in the second brother’s garage. Sue bought the car back from him, so she could give to Mike for their 29th wedding anniversary. And just like before, the second brother never titled the car in his name. For the next two years, the car patiently waited for the inevitable. After the Downing family reached a point of stability, they decided they were finally at a point where they could restore it.

Mike tells us, “I contacted a couple of local Chevelle experts, Ron Raney and Emmet Williams, and together, we began the process of restoring the car. The process has gone fairly smooth so far.” Mike is still locating parts to complete the restoration and laughs when he says, “Finding an original AM/FM/eight-track stereo was a challenge. I finally found one for $1,000. If someone told me a year ago that I would be paying that much for an eight-track, I would have said they were crazy. But since that’s what the build sheet says it should have, now I’m the crazy one.”

Finding and restoring a car like this should only be done correctly, and that’s why Mike is glad that the first brother found and kept the build sheet for the car when he took it apart. Now he can restore it by using the correct parts.

Acquired years before the restoration process began, the new 454 cubic-inch big-block waits to reside under the new hood.

A few other interesting facts about the car are that it was built with a lot of options, like power windows, cruise control, rear window defroster, and deluxe seat belts with rear shoulder straps, which are very rare — especially in a convertible. Mike tells us that according to his research, his car is recognized as the earliest-known built LS5 Chevelle. That is according to Dale Macintosh, the owner of the LS5 and LS6 registries.

We are looking forward to seeing Mike’s progress, and when the car is done, we hope to show readers the finished product.