Golden Memories – Ricky Sanders Turns the Family Chevelle into a Tough and Timeless Street Machine
There’s always a reason behind a hot rod or vintage car build. Quite often, a person builds a hot rod based on being influenced from a parent or family member. It could be from the excitement of a first ride in a vintage car, watching someone wrench on one in the driveway, or maybe from a magazine feature. Ricky Sanders falls into the “parents” category with influence from both his mom and dad.
“My mom had an Autumn Gold ’70 and it was her favorite car,” Ricky says. “I have a Polaroid of her standing next to the car holding me when I was about three. That’s where the color on mine came from.”
Though that original car was long gone, Ricky’s dad bought another one, the car you see here, in 1988. It was a fresh build with a healthy 454 and Ricky, who had his license at that time, would get to cruise with his dad back then.
“I remember watching my dad race one of his close friends in Abilene one night. He smoked the tires off the line, and I mentioned to him that he really had to baby the car off the line to get it to hook,” Ricky said. “My dad turned as asked me, ‘how would you know that?’ I almost told on myself that I had been sneaking the car out and street racing it!”
So, you can see why after all these years Ricky decided the Chevelle was due for some updates and attention. His good friend Hunter Adams at Texas Born Performance introduced Ricky to Jay Riggs of Riggs Fabrication and Restoration in Justin, Texas, whom he entrusted to bring his Chevelle up to date as a tribute to his folks.
Growing up as a fan of big-block power, there was no way Ricky was going to put an LS engine under the iconic cowl induction hood of his Chevelle. A call was put into Edelbrock to learn more about their Pat Musi Racing crate engine program, and he ended up going with a 555c.i. big block. The engine is topped with Edelbrock’s E-CNC aluminum cylinder heads port matched to a Victor Jr. intake and fueled through a Pro-Flo 4XT EFI system to produce 676 horsepower and 649 lb-ft of torque on 91 octane pumps gas.
To handle that kind of torque, A Bowler-prepped Tremec T-56 trans and McLeod twin-disc clutch were put in place to transfer all that power to a 9-inch rearend assembly. Wilwood disc brakes were installed behind a meaty pair of Mickey Thompson ET Street SS tires, 305/45/R17s, mounted to Weld S82 wheels that are tasked with hooking all that power to the pavement. The rear rolling stock is paired with 20-inch diameter Weld wheels and Michelin tires up front – a reverse-stagger combo that works surprisingly well together.
Speaking of the chassis, once the car was stripped down, Riggs found the frame to be in terrific condition, so it was decided to upgrade the suspension to improve the comfort and overall handling. To achieve that goal, a complete Ridetech system with their StrongArms, coil-overs, and sway bars was installed. To beef up the chassis’ structural strength, a frame brace kit from Speedtech Performance was welded in place.
As for the body, Ricky felt there wasn’t much that could be done to improve a ’70 Chevelle, so Riggs made sure to massage and tighten the factory panels to perfection. During the teardown process they did discover that the hood had some damage and it would be best to replace it, which is when Ricky discovered Ultra-Carbon and their carbon fiber cowl induction-style hood and deck lid. The fit and light weight also led to Ricky choose a set of carbon fiber front inner fenders from Ironworks Speed & Kustom that add a modern flair to the subtle yet highly detailed engine compartment.
The interior remains stock appearing for the most part because Ricky wanted to make sure the car would be timeless.
“I grew up with tweed and tuned port injection,” Ricky jokes. “I wanted to make sure the Chevelle would never be dated, and original will always look right.”
The dash remains stock though it’s upgraded with Classic Instruments gauges and a control panel for the Vintage Air A/C system. The factory Strato bucket seats were refreshed by Falls Craft Upholstery along with the door panels, which flow into the detailed trunk with matching panels for a nice custom finish. A factory console displays six forward gear positions and completes the factory styling along with a classic three-spoke GM steering wheel mounted to an Ididit tilt column for comfort.
Like most projects, Ricky and Riggs took the Chevelle much further than originally planned, but the results speak volumes. Ricky’s Chevelle is a refined street machine with a touch of restomod comfort for the long hauls, backed with a serious boulevard bruiser attitude and the brawn to back it up! We’re sure his parents would approve.
Photos: Damon Lee, Terry Lysak
