Swapping a Ford engine into a Chevrolet is pretty rare, but stuffing an Australian-made Ford engine into a classic Chevy is next-level rare. Well, that’s exactly what David Gallimore did when he stuck a Ford Barra into a 1971 Chevelle.

David purchased the Chevelle at a cheap price since it needed some work. After getting the Chevy running, David drove it around and modified it when he could. David had originally planned on putting the Barra in a Fairlane project car, but when the Chevelle’s big-block Chevy died, the Barra found a new home.

“I wanted to build something that was different. You don’t see many of these engines in vehicles here, so it seemed like it would be a cool swap. When I got the Chevelle, it just needed a fuel system, so I fixed it and just drove it as is. Things just kind of fell together to put this engine in the Chevelle and it worked out in the end. It’s funny to see people’s reaction to an Australian-made Ford engine in an iconic American muscle car.

The Barra is an inline six-cylinder engine that was made by Ford Australia. These engines in stock form don’t crack 300 cubic-inches, but they still pack plenty of punch when you feed them boosted air from a turbo. That’s exactly what David has done with a Precision Turbo & Engine 7675 turbo. A Haltech Elite 2500 ECU controls the Barra.

The Chevelle is still a street car and has run a best of 10.15 at 130 mph thanks to its Australian powerplant. David puts plenty of street miles on his Bara-powered Chevelle and even completed Drag Week in 2024 with the car. It’s always cool to see someone build a project like this and use some out-of-the-box thinking on what can be used to power a muscle car.