[OneStopRestoration]

After getting the car I wanted to know for sure it was a real L78 so the documentation and owner search started.

3rd Owner (Dennis ..)
Got ahold of Dennis and was told that he had never messed with the radiator or tach and that they were original to the car when he bought it in the 70s. Dennis got the car pretty much as you saw above with everything with the car except the original big block. He rebuilt a small block that he got with the car in the trunk and his wife drove the car for many years taking it on long trips in the winter to florida. The car was repainted soon after Dennis took ownership but he kept it as close to the original silver as he could. He did change the bearings in the transmssion as well as the syncros but left the gears and everything else as is(this will be important later). Dennis actually found the car becuase of his cousin who was an insurance agent and one of his customers owned the car and wanted to get rid of it. Dennis owned the car for almost 40 years with no knowledge of what the car original was.

2nd Owner (Bill ...)
I was lucky and taked to Dennis and is cousin and was able to find Bills phone number who was the 2nd owner of the car. In talking to Bill he bought the car from the original owners who were two brothers as he put it. When we bought the car in the early 70s it was all original with solid lifter motor. From memory Bill could remember the 375hp crest that adorned the air cleaner. Bill carted his family around it for a few years before encountering an engine miss. Ultimately he did not want to tackle the rebuild and ultimately sold the car. Sadly at this point in the story I have two guys with stories that dont match. Bill claims the car was sold as is with the original motor, but Dennis claims the car never came with the motor. I plan to revisit this part of the story with each owner but I think its safe to say the original motor is gone. One other thing Bill taked about was racing the car on slicks up at the Terrea Haute drag strip int he 70s. Said the car ran from 9.05 down to 8.00 in the eight mile which I think even by todays standards is a pretty stought car.

1st Owner(Ron and Don ...)
I was actually able to track Ron down via some internet searches. I actually at first found his brothers wife. In getting ahold of her I found that Don had passed away in the early 2000s but Ron his twin brother could help me verify the car. I was a nervous person making that phone call to Ron. Ultimately it came down to asking what motor did the car come with. Ron didnt miss beat and explained that he and his brother bought the car off the showroom floor of a chevy dealer in Riley Indiana. Both the brothers were farmers and had worked hard to save enough money to buy a car. At first they had eyed up a 65 vette but the insurance for them would have been 1000/year. They ended up going with the Chevelle because of the insurance. Ron remembered the car being silver with a 4 speed and vinyl top. Ron also commented the car sounded and ran really good.