This No-Reserve 1970 Chevelle Custom Coupe Hides an LS1 Heart Under Dark Green Metallic Paint

Elizabeth Puckett Elizabeth Puckett |
2 min read
| Add Motorious

The collector car market, in your inbox

Classic car news, hand-picked vehicles, and auction coverage. Choose what lands in your inbox.

A heavily reworked 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle Custom Coupe is set to cross the block with no reserve at Barrett-Jackson's 2026 Las Vegas Auction, running September 10-12 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. According to the listing from Barrett-Jackson, the coupe wears a deep Dark Green Metallic finish with faint ghost stripes that only reveal themselves in direct light, giving it the look of an unmodified survivor until you notice what is underneath.

That impression falls apart the moment the hood comes up. Jeff Piper of Harvey's Automotive & Machine built the coupe's GM Performance LS1 around an aluminum block and Dart PRO1 aluminum heads, then added Eagle H-beam rods, Race Tech pistons, a Comp camshaft and a DM Performance main girdle. A Holley Terminator X Max EFI system handles fuel delivery, and power reaches the ground through a Tremec TKO 600 five-speed manual, a McLeod Racing twin-disc clutch and a Moser full-floating 9-inch rear axle with a Detroit Truetrac differential and 3.70 gears.

The drivetrain sits in a black-finished Schwartz Performance chassis with power rack-and-pinion steering, a four-link rear suspension and RideTech adjustable coilovers, so the Chevelle rides and handles closer to a modern platform than a 55-year-old unibody. Wilwood six-piston front and four-piston rear brakes clamp down on 13-inch rotors, and staggered 18-inch front and 19-inch rear Boze Forged Cruiser wheels wrapped in Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 tires fill out the stance.

Kindig-It Design flush-mounted door handles keep the exterior clean, while the cabin swaps in sixth-generation Camaro power seats trimmed in brown and dark green Brazilian leather that carries through the headliner, dashboard and center console. Power windows, keyless entry, Vintage Air climate control and an Alpine stereo round out a cockpit that reads more grand tourer than street brawler, backed by a 160-mph speedometer and an 8,000-rpm tachometer.

The build was finished in 2025, and the car has covered just 447 miles since, with more than $330,000 in documented receipts behind the work.

Hagerty's Valuation Tools give a sense of where the Chevelle nameplate sits in today's market. Factory-original 1970 Chevelle SS models in #3 (Good) condition currently range from around $64,000 for a 396/350hp Sport Coupe to roughly $269,000 for a 454/450hp LS6 convertible, depending on engine and body style. A heavily built restomod like this one does not fit neatly into that price guide, since its value leans more on the quality of the build and the paperwork behind it than on a factory build sheet. Motorious saw a similar dynamic play out with a 1968 Camaro Custom Coupe LS3 restomod that also crossed the Barrett-Jackson block, and with a Coyote-swapped 1974 Ford Bronco that tested just how much buyers will pay for a turnkey restomod when the execution holds up.

For a deeper look at how the Chevelle got here, Motorious' rundown of the 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle traces the nameplate back to the styling changes that set up the fourth-generation body this custom coupe is built on. Registration for Barrett-Jackson's 2026 Las Vegas Auction is open now, with this no-reserve Chevelle scheduled to cross the block September 10-12 at the Las Vegas Convention Center's West Hall.

Great! Next, complete checkout for full access to Motorious.
Welcome back! You've successfully signed in.
You've successfully subscribed to Motorious.
Success! Your account is fully activated, you now have access to all content.
Success! Your billing info has been updated.
Your billing was not updated.