Twin-Turbo Ford Coyote 1970 Chevelle Makes 800 HP
A Rhode Island teenager and his father picked out a 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle with a plan to build it together. According to the owner, his father passed away just 10 days after they bought it, leaving him to carry the project on his own.
More than two decades later, that same Chevelle runs a twin-turbo Ford Coyote V8 making around 800 hp. Chevy purists may not love the engine choice, but the car proved its worth by driving 2,700 miles to SEMA instead of riding there on a trailer.
Why A Ford V8 In A 1970 Chevelle Is Muscle Car Heresy
The 1970 model year was the Chevelle’s high point. That year, Chevrolet offered the SS 454 with two big-block options, the 360 hp LS5 and the LS6, rated at 450 hp and 500 lb-ft of torque. The LS6 Chevelle was the only production GM car with a higher power rating than the Corvette, and 4,475 were built.
That history is why dropping a Ford engine into one feels like crossing a line. The Coyote is a 5.0-liter DOHC V8 with four valves per cylinder, and it has powered the Mustang GT since 2011. It responds well to boost, and builders push it past 1,000 hp with turbos or superchargers.
Engine swaps usually go the other way, with GM’s LS V8 ending up in countless Fords. Ridetech made a fair point when covering this car: if an LS is welcome in a Ford, a Coyote deserves a shot in a Chevy.
Don Abenante’s Chevelle Was Supposed To Be A Father-Son Build
Don Abenante is best known as the fabricator on Netflix’s Resurrected Rides. He has also appeared on Below Deck and Horsepower Wars, but his main focus today is Retro Fabworks, the Rhode Island shop he has run since May 2020.
Don grew up working alongside his father, a diesel mechanic, and the two planned to build a car together. They settled on a 1970 Chevelle, and his father hoped Don would drive it to school once he got his learner’s permit. That plan ended when his father died suddenly, and Don says it happened just 10 days after they bought the car.
After his father’s death, Don worked at Burger King while the seller held the car, and his grandfather eventually covered the remaining balance. It became his first car, and he has owned it for more than two decades. In that time, he tried to rebuild it three separate times without ever getting it finished.
Don has said that finishing the Chevelle helped pull him through a dark stretch in his life. This time, he didn’t have to do it alone, as a group of friends rallied around him to get the car finished.
800 HP Of Twin-Turbo Ford Power, Driven 2,700 Miles To SEMA
Over the years, the Chevelle has gone through several engine setups, including a 383 with a Paxton supercharger and a boosted big-block Chevy. Its latest form swaps in a Ford Coyote V8 fed by a pair of HPT turbochargers and an intercooler. According to Ridetech, the combination makes around 800 hp at the rear wheels.
That number comes on just 11 psi of boost, which leaves plenty of room to grow. Don plans to replace this engine with a Coyote that has a built bottom end, which should handle far more boost without risking the internals.
To handle the power, the Chevelle rides on a Ridetech lowering system with four HQ Series rebound-adjustable coilovers, upper and lower front control arms, and a rear four-link. Front and rear sway bars keep body roll in check, giving the old muscle car much more modern handling.
Rather than trailer it, Don drove the Chevelle about 2,700 miles from Rhode Island to the 2025 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, where it appeared in the Road to SEMA booth. He then kept heading west to Los Angeles to film with Autotopia LA. Two decades after Don and his father first picked it out, their Chevelle is finally out on the road where it belongs.
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