Article by:
Johnny Hunkins
The prior version of the intermediate platform, known as the A-body, had been built between 1973 and 1977 and was designed just prior to the wholesale economic fallout of the oil embargo. Too heavy and fuel thirsty for Americans, the GM intermediates were redesigned for 1978, with Chevy reducing the Malibu's mass by at least 500 pounds. The change was fortuitous as the new Malibu lost none of its useable interior volume, its rear-drive layout, or its optional V-8.
At the time, few people if any were complaining about the death of performance other than hardcore hot rodders. The top engine option in the G-body Malibu's six-year run between 1978 and 1983 was the 170-hp 350-ci small-block—barely enough to peel the skin off butterscotch pudding. Nevertheless, it was the powertrain layout and engine bay's size—not the actual engine inside—that would make the 1978 to 1983 Malibu so relevant today. When the Malibu's light weight and powertrain layout is combined with today's hot rod engine and suspension technology, it makes an unbeatable platform on which to build a muscle car. Read the full article here.
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