Inspired by his family’s heritage of building some seriously cool and stunningly beautiful hot rods, Zack Havlik kept the tradition alive by rebuilding a prime 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu for Pro Street use.

Over the years, Zack learned the ins and outs of racing and hot rodding from his father, Russ Havlik, brother Jes Havlik, cousin Brian Havlik, and uncle Gary Havlik. “I always liked Pro Street builds, and this car fits the bill exactly,” noted Zack, whose lifelong vision became a reality thanks in part to his brother Jesse’s shop, HotRods by Havliks, a custom automotive and restoration specialist in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Zack Havlik’s beautiful blue 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu is more than meets the eye as it features several components carefully chosen by his three children.

Zack had previously owned both a 1967 RS Camaro and a 1966 Chevelle Malibu, but sold the latter years ago to focus on his family’s needs instead. “I have missed it ever since,” lamented the 36-year-old sheet metal worker and father of three from Ely, Iowa. “So, I decided to build a car with my kids and bought this in early 2019 as a replacement for the old one.”

A love of working on cars runs deep in the Havlik family bloodline, and Zack is no different. He enjoys turning wrenches in his home-based shop just as much as he appreciates driving the results of his labor. Always learning and always trying something new to find ways to improve, Zack cut his teeth on the track at local test-n-tunes where he kept pushing forward to progress his cars’ performances.

After purchasing his new-to-him 1966 Chevy Malibu, though, Zack hurriedly got to work putting together his second chance at owning his dream car. Over the course of a year and a half, Zack built the bowtie beauty with a discerning eye and was careful not to cut any corners.

Given that the formerly green car was in pretty rough shape with some bad rust patches when he picked it up, Zack went all-in with a full, frame-off restoration in his three-car garage. He tackled the bodywork, then installed a fiberglass hood from Glasstek before spraying four coats each of PPG Shop-Line base and clear in an eye-catching blue hue.

The full frame-off restoration was done in Havlik’s home garage and took 1.5 years from start to finish, with help from his hot rod-loving family and the team at HotRods by Havliks.

Inside, Zack maintained the original black upholstery look and accented the Chevy’s equipment with a set of Autometer gauges and blue harnesses for both driver and passenger. “I kept the back seat so my three kids can always ride together with me,” shared Zack, who let each pick out something special to include in the build. “Charlei, my 9-year-old daughter, picked out the sound system and stereo… there’s even a 12-inch subwoofer behind the back seat.”

Fortified by a 12-point roll cage, the refreshed chassis was given the gift of naturally aspirated power in the form of a 1978-era big-block Chevrolet engine. Bumped up to 496 cubic inches from its original 454 cubic-inch size, Rob Adler of the A-Team Speed Shop outfitted the 13.5:1 compression engine with an upgraded rotating assembly, complete with Eagle pistons atop Eagle connecting rods and swinging around a forged Eagle crankshaft.

Although naturally aspirated at first, the 700-plus horsepower, 13.5:1 compression ratio big-block Chevrolet engine has since been replaced with a blown version featuring a superhero-sized supercharger.

Adler also installed a COMP solid camshaft along with COMP rocker arms inside the Dart Pro 1 aluminum cylinder heads, then added a Moroso oil pan and pump to keep all the components appropriately lubricated.

Next, a 1,050 cfm Quick Fuel Q-1050 carburetor was paired with an Edelbrock Performer intake manifold and a complete MSD ignition system with NGK V-power spark plugs. After combustion, the spent exhaust gasses were routed through a set of 2-1/8-inch Hooker headers, X-pipe, 4-inch exhaust pipe, and finally out to the atmosphere via a set of Borla mufflers.

To round out the drivetrain and handle the power transfer honors, Zack selected a Turbo 400 transmission he built himself and a torque converter with a 5,500-rpm stall speed from 501 Performance/Perfect Converter Company.

The power transfer process terminates with the Ford 9-inch rearend with a Moser spool and matching Moser axles. Helping the beautiful vintage muscle car use that power and put it to the pavement effectively, the rear suspension has been upgraded with a set of ladder bars from TRZ and a panhard bar, while the front received a set of QA1 coilovers and tubular control arms.

Although he built it to race in Pro Street N/A, Zack Havlik also opted to keep the Malibu’s back seat in place specifically so that he can take his kids out to enjoy cruising around town, too.

Finally, it was time to finish up the year-and-a-half restoration process. “I’m running Wilwood brakes at all four corners, Hoosier tires all around with 22×18.5-inch rears, and RC Components wheels in front and rear,” Zack added. “My 12-year-old son, Tucker, even picked out the hot pink lug nuts!”

Serving as his own tuner, Zack got the engine running with 708 horsepower and 686 pound-feet of torque on tap. Ready to test his handiwork in the real world instead of on the dyno, he headed to the track where he ripped off a best 1/4-mile elapsed time of 10.91 seconds and top speed of 123 mph, clocking a 1.42 second 60-foot time along the way.

“The car is an exact vision of what I wanted to build. It sits just right and everything fits in its own way,” proclaimed the man who targeted Pro Street N/A as his competition category of choice.

Since completing the car, however, Zack has replaced the all-motor combination with something bigger and better. “My 7-year-old son, Walker, said he wanted a ‘huge’ blower motor,” explained the doting father, who delivered the young boy’s dream. “I got an obnoxious-looking scoop and the blower is on top of a tunnel-ram intake. Along with that, to make the motor look bigger, I made taller valve covers.”

Similar to the previous engine, Zack’s 6:71 large-bore supercharged setup is also based on a big-block Chevrolet platform and was installed over the winter between 2022-23. Running at 9.5:1 compression, the 496 cubic-inch powerplant also features a complete Eagle rotating assembly with Sportsman Racing Products (SRP) pistons, an Isky solid roller cam with a .714” lift, Pro-Filer Performance 174-X 324 cc cylinder heads with matching Pro-Filer tunnel ram intake, Alkydigger manifold-to-blower adapter, dual Competition Carburetion 800 cfm carburetors, and more.

Zack got the new engine running just right in June of 2023, and, fittingly, the amped-up 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu’s very first cruise took place on Father’s Day.

Whatever the future has in store for Zack, whether its Pro Street racing or updating his 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu to satisfy his three kids’ requests, he’s happy hanging out with his huge, hot rod-loving Havlik family and helping pass on the hobby to the next generation. With Tucker, Charlei, and Walker by his side, and always along for the ride in the blue Malibu, Zack knows he’s scored an indelible win on the road of life.