[tanner07]

I am restoring a 1972 Chevelle Malibu, and I need to ask some advice.

It is the L-65 350 with a TH350, and I want to put in a standard tranny instead. Which would be the best to put in, the Muncie M-20 4-speed?

Now, if I were to do that, the car wouldn't be original anymore, but the thing is, I can't figure out how numbers matching it already is. I can't seem to find the code which should be above the passenger's side head, at the front end of the engine, which would determine if it truly is the L-65, or just something else that has been swapped in. Anyways, say it did turn out to be an L-65, and I put in the M-20, would it knock down the value alot?

But, I don't want to build the car for value, I want to build it so that it is fun to drive, so swapping in a 4-speed doesn't seem like a bad idea to me. Is this stupid?

Finally, if I did all of that, and it wasn't original anymore, would it be stupid to make an SS clone? Although I just said I'm not building it for value, let's face it, one day I will have to sell the car, and I think maybe making it into an SS clone will up the price, but then it will contradict with the numbers even more than before.

Sorry for such a long post, but some input would really be appreciated.

Thanks,
Tanner