By Ron Covell – Photography courtesy of Roadster Shop
In previous articles, we’ve covered many details of this exceptional 1970 Chevelle built by Roadster Shop. This time, we’ll focus on some of the finishing touches that add just the right amount of sparkle. Many exhaust systems end with a polished round tip or a commercially available rectangular profile. These can look good, but the goal was to elevate this detail in a unique way. The team decided to machine custom exhaust tips from solid stainless steel—no small feat.
The exhaust tips were designed in CAD, and a test piece was 3-D–printed in polymer to verify size, shape, and fit. After passing all tests, the final parts were produced in metal. The design’s complexity required that each tip be machined in two parts, allowing the inner section to be hollowed. Holding these thin-wall parts during machining is challenging, so bosses were added on the sides of each piece to securely attach them to a machining fixture. After the shapes were fully machined, the bosses were removed and smoothed.
The parts were welded along the centerline and, after smoothing the joints, they appear as a single solid piece of metal. Once the tips were positioned and mounted, the valence panel under the bumper was scalloped to match the shape, with the edge of the opening flared and radiused. As shown in the photos, this creates a very sleek look for the ends of the exhaust pipes that blends smoothly with the valence panel.
The rear doorjambs have a vent, originally covered by a plastic grille. A plan was developed to replace it with a machined, polished aluminum grille, using custom sheetmetal receivers to ensure the grille sits flush. This detail isn’t visible when the doors are closed, but it’s a nice little surprise that appears whenever the door opens.
The engine in this car is a 454ci LSX, and a special badge was applied with this designation. These badges were placed at key locations—both under the hood and on the exterior bodywork. They were CNC-machined from aluminum, then polished, and the recesses were carefully hand-painted. These look like factory-made badges and clearly signal that this build was done without compromise.
The photos reveal the details of how these were built, and we hope they inspire some ideas for your next project! MR
Check out this story in our digital edition here.
See the full feature on this Chevelle here.
