1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS
This 1970 Chevelle SS is far more than a restored muscle car—it is the preservation of a family’s racing history and a father’s legacy.
The Chevelle was originally modified and raced by my father, Tommy Sozzi, throughout the 1990s at Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey. Some of my earliest and most cherished memories are tied to this car and to those weekends at the track, where I watched my father race and also work as a crew chief for a Pro Street team of which he was part owner. He sadly passed away when I was young, making the Chevelle one of the most tangible connections I have to him and to that period of my childhood.
After I inherited the car, it remained stored and largely untouched for more than 20 years. When I was finally in a position to bring it back to life, the objective was never simply to restore an old race car. The goal was to honor the way my father built and raced it while transforming it into a car that could be enjoyed on the street and preserved for generations to come.
It was particularly important to retain the car’s original blue-and-gray racing color scheme, creating a direct visual connection between the Chevelle of my father’s era and the car it is today.
The restoration was entrusted to Blue Sky Performance and Restoration in Andover, New Jersey. Their approach centered on an OEM-plus philosophy: preserve the timeless character and appearance of a 1970 Chevelle while incorporating modern performance, reliability, handling, braking, comfort, and drivability.
The car now rides on a Roadster Shop SPEC chassis with Fox coilovers, Wilwood components, a parallel four-link rear suspension, and a Ford 9-inch rearend. Baer six-piston brakes provide modern stopping power, while a BluePrint Engines 376ci LS-compatible crate engine produces more than 430 horsepower at the rear wheels through a 4L60E automatic transmission.
The exterior retains the unmistakable character of the original Chevelle, while the interior was completely reimagined in black leather with Sparco front seats, Dakota Digital instrumentation, Vintage Air climate control, and custom components by Bux Customs. Forgeline wheels and modern Continental tires complete the combination of classic design and contemporary performance.
Every major decision throughout the build was guided by one principle: the car should look and feel like a natural evolution of the Chevelle my father raced, not a replacement for it. The goal was to preserve its identity and history while giving it a new chapter on the street.
Ultimately, this car is being preserved as a family heirloom. My hope is that it will remain in our family for generations—allowing us to experience not only a remarkable piece of American automotive history, but also the story of the man who gave this car its meaning in the first place.