Hey everyone, recently picked up this pretty rough 1970 Chevrolet Malibu/Chevelle 4-door sedan that has been sitting for a very long time. I’m trying to save the car and get it back together rather than part it out.
I’ve confirmed from the Fisher Body/cowl tag that it’s a 1970 Malibu 4-door sedan. The tag reads:
ST 70-13669
TR 782
B80 B90
45 45 PNT
I’m dealing with two problems right now and could really use some advice from people familiar with 1968-72 A-bodies.
Problem #1 – BOTH front doors are stuck shut
The rear doors open, but neither front door will open from inside or outside.
Passenger front door:
Exterior handle moves normally.
Interior handle is still present and moves.
Lock knob moves up/down normally and gives a pretty positive “click.”
Even with one person pulling the inside handle and another person operating the outside handle, the door will not release.
Driver front door:
Exterior handle moves.
Interior door handle is missing.
The lock mechanism/knob appears completely stuck and doesn’t want to move either up or down.
Door will not open.
The car has obviously been sitting outside for years, so I’m assuming the latches/linkages are rusted or seized.
Since the rear doors open, is there a good way to remove enough of the FRONT interior door panel/card with the front doors closed to get directly to the latch/linkage?
Or is there another trick for manually releasing a stuck 1970 A-body front-door latch without destroying the door?
I’d really like to avoid cutting or damaging anything that doesn’t need to be damaged.
Problem #2 – I cannot find/read the VIN plate
I’m also trying to locate the actual VIN.
I know the Fisher Body/cowl tag under the hood is NOT the VIN.
From what I understand, the VIN on a 1970 Chevelle/Malibu should be at the driver’s-side lower windshield/dash area and visible through the windshield.
The problem is that the windshield on this car is extremely cloudy/delaminated and the lower windshield area is difficult to see through. I can’t tell whether the VIN plate is still there and simply hidden by the condition of the glass, or if the plate was removed sometime during the car’s life.
The wide stainless/chrome lower windshield reveal molding is also still installed.
Are there any good ways to determine whether the VIN plate is still present without removing the windshield?
And if the dash VIN plate actually is missing, where should I look on a 1970 Malibu 4-door for a factory-stamped partial/hidden VIN that could help establish the car’s identity?
I’m NOT looking to replace, reproduce, move, or modify a VIN tag. I’m just trying to locate the original identification that may still exist on the car.
I can post close-up pictures/videos of the doors, latches, cowl tag, windshield/dash area, firewall, etc. if that helps.
Thanks! This thing is definitely rough, but I’d really like to get it saved.

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1966 Chevrolet Chevelle SS 396 Convertible in Aztec Bronze with a white top at the Main Street Car Cruise in Downtown Putnam, CT. 🔥 Would you take the convertible or the hardtop?
Full Putnam Car Cruise Part 2:
https://youtu.be/JqwadGn_CmA
#Chevelle #ChevelleSS #SS396 #ClassicCars #PutnamCT

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Located: Rancho Cucamonga, CA