79 Malibu stock suspension build

Todd Geisler · 02-13-2013, 11:42 PM

Hey all,

I know this is a class racer forum, but thought some here might find this rebuild of some interest.

The car is a 1979 Chevy Malibu that I've owned since 1993. Been raced all these years seeing many changes, the most recent and major change a complete rebuild started in the fall of 2010 and completed in May of 2012.

The car was running at the 8.50 limit for the mild steel 10 point cage, so the car was torn down to redo the cage as a 25.3 SFI cert, but the project snowballed into a complete rebuild top to bottom. Metal fabrication alone took me 600 hours to complete evenings and weekends over the 18 month period.

I'll let the pics tell most of the story, but I'll be glad to answer any questions.

Todd Geisler · 02-13-2013, 11:48 PM

some more...

Todd Geisler · 02-13-2013, 11:53 PM

some more...

Todd Geisler · 02-14-2013, 12:01 AM

A couple from the 2012 racing season following the completion of the rebuild.

Todd Geisler · 02-14-2013, 12:08 AM

Some basic information about the car.

The car is raced in a class called Ultra 275 which is run at Cecil Country Dragway during the street car shootout races on the first Saturday of each month. This is a heads up, pro tree 1/8 mile class requiring cars to run on a 275 drag radial tire.

The car weighs 2925 lbs with driver. The engine is a home built 582 bbc that made 1056hp/811 ft/lbs on VP C15 fuel. With a swap to Q16 in the fall the engine was making closer to 1080 hp. Trans is a Rossler 1.80 glide and one of Lenny's 8" Ultimate converters. Rear is a chromoly TRZ housing stuffed with Strange 40 spline light weight internals.

After some tweaking all season long the car ran an all time best of 5.09 @ 135 with a 1.129 60'. This combination is run naturally aspirated BTW.

Hope you enjoy the pics.
Todd G

Geerhead55 · 02-14-2013, 02:02 AM

Awesome car,,, Todd. Thanks for all the photos. What intake and carb are you using on your 582?
Danny Durham

02-13-2013, 11:42 PM	#1
Todd Geisler Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 328 Likes: 64 Liked 345 Times in 149 Posts	79 Malibu stock suspension build Hey all, I know this is a class racer forum, but thought some here might find this rebuild of some interest. The car is a 1979 Chevy Malibu that I've owned since 1993. Been raced all these years seeing many changes, the most recent and major change a complete rebuild started in the fall of 2010 and completed in May of 2012. The car was running at the 8.50 limit for the mild steel 10 point cage, so the car was torn down to redo the cage as a 25.3 SFI cert, but the project snowballed into a complete rebuild top to bottom. Metal fabrication alone took me 600 hours to complete evenings and weekends over the 18 month period. I'll let the pics tell most of the story, but I'll be glad to answer any questions. Attached Thumbnails

02-13-2013, 11:48 PM	#2
Todd Geisler Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 328 Likes: 64 Liked 345 Times in 149 Posts	Re: 79 Malibu stock suspension build some more... Attached Thumbnails

02-13-2013, 11:53 PM	#3
Todd Geisler Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 328 Likes: 64 Liked 345 Times in 149 Posts	Re: 79 Malibu stock suspension build some more... Attached Thumbnails

02-14-2013, 12:01 AM	#4
Todd Geisler Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 328 Likes: 64 Liked 345 Times in 149 Posts	Re: 79 Malibu stock suspension build A couple from the 2012 racing season following the completion of the rebuild. Attached Thumbnails

02-14-2013, 12:08 AM	#5
Todd Geisler Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 328 Likes: 64 Liked 345 Times in 149 Posts	Re: 79 Malibu stock suspension build Some basic information about the car. The car is raced in a class called Ultra 275 which is run at Cecil Country Dragway during the street car shootout races on the first Saturday of each month. This is a heads up, pro tree 1/8 mile class requiring cars to run on a 275 drag radial tire. The car weighs 2925 lbs with driver. The engine is a home built 582 bbc that made 1056hp/811 ft/lbs on VP C15 fuel. With a swap to Q16 in the fall the engine was making closer to 1080 hp. Trans is a Rossler 1.80 glide and one of Lenny's 8" Ultimate converters. Rear is a chromoly TRZ housing stuffed with Strange 40 spline light weight internals. After some tweaking all season long the car ran an all time best of 5.09 @ 135 with a 1.129 60'. This combination is run naturally aspirated BTW. Hope you enjoy the pics. Todd G

02-14-2013, 02:02 AM	#6
Geerhead55 VIP Member Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Tacoma, Washington Posts: 1,632 Likes: 0 Liked 5 Times in 5 Posts	Re: 79 Malibu stock suspension build Awesome car,,, Todd. Thanks for all the photos. What intake and carb are you using on your 582? Danny Durham