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1970 (phs Authenticated) Pontiac Grand Prix Sj 455 Ho, 43,424 Original Miles on 2040-cars

Year:1970 Mileage:43424
Location:

Aliso Viejo, California, United States

Aliso Viejo, California, United States
Advertising:

1970 (PHS authenticated) Pontiac Grand Prix SJ 455 HO, 43,424 original miles.

Purchased by me from an 83 year old woman in June of 2003.

I’ve shown it many times and am a stickler for originality, but veered off on this one.  It was just too much fun to drive. Well, I pushed her too hard and blew the engine, but not so bad that I was able to drive it to the mechanic. The block is the original block and the transmission and rear end are assumed original as well, so I’m 99% certain it is numbers matching car.

I took the car to a hot rod / drag strip rebuilder and told him to put all the after market go fast(er) stuff into it, with the limit look original (e.g. Edelbrok stampings) be filed off or filled in.  The engine was to look as close to stock as possible. The exhaust was replaced with a high performance system and sounds the part without being obnoxious. The car is running on synthetic oil.

The car does not idle smoothly due to the aggressive cam lobes installed (for GO FAST), but immediately runs smooth as silk as soon as any gas is applied.  After 3 years in storage, a tune up would probably help it idle a little smoother, but it will never idle smooth (by design). She’s a sleeper!

$11,264.79 later, if it was fun to drive, now it’s almost scary! I have not had it dynode, but the mechanic guarantees me a minimum of 500 horses.

I’ve stored it for the last 3 year, in A/C, Heated, climate controlled garage.

All it took to recommision it was a new battery (August 2014). A/C flushed and recharged (August 2014), no parts needed, hoses need to be resnugged. It blows ICE COLD.

Protecto-Plate and original build sheet (in scorched condition), PHS reproduction window sticker reproduction and other PHS documentation included.

Equipped with driver’s power seat, passenger’s is manual. Tilt steering wheel. Soft ray tinted windshield, but the rest of the windows have been tinted by the previous (1st) owner. Correct T3 Headlamps. Cornering lights function. All Power windows work. Has original rally wheels with beauty rings. AM radio & Rally clock (both not working). Funny yesterday, someone asked me if I’ve checked the fuses. I have not. So could be a very easy fix, or not. Just never bothered me.

I have added NOS door edge guards and a period correct passenger side rear view mirror, driver’s side is remote control. Current tires purchased, June 2004, mileage 40,772. So less than 3k on the tires.

Additional Interesting History and description of the car’s condition

This SJ final assembly point was Fremont California & Sold new in San Diego as a 50th birthday present to a woman that would have nothing to-do with muscle cars. So, her husband snuck this one in on her; accounting for the low mileage. It was just too much car for her, at 500 lbs feet of torque off the assembly line. When the original owners retired they moved to Las Vegas, so the car has always been in a dry environment, free of salt. Then I brought it back to Orange County (Southern) California.

At some point before I purchased the car was freshened, repainted original Granada Gold, and White vinyl top replaced (with incorrect grain pattern that was & is easier to keep clean).

The interior is nearly flawless: Original seat covers, carpet may or my not be original, but with so low mileage, I assume it is. No cracks on the dash. The shifter surround’s crackle paint was pealing, typical for this car; but I had it blasted, re-chromed and refinished and looks brand new ($500.00). The headliner is flawless, hold that the trim has pulled back slightly at the top of the passenger’s side rear (top) window trim.

There is a scuff on the on the side of the drivers side rear bumper. No deformation.

Rust? Not atypical of a car of this era, there is slight bubbling under the vinyl top, at the lower corners of the rear window. And oddly enough, there is one 1 inch bubble on the drivers side fender. That’s it.

Paint is near show quality, but at some point, someone got a bit aggressive polishing the passenger’s side quarter panel, just behind the wheel. Also, to nit pic, there are some drip stains just behind the driver’s door from when the engine was being rebuilt/upgraded stored indoors below another car.  When I saw this, I immediately had the car towed 20 miles back to my climate controlled garage for storage until the engine was completed.

Notes, she was 50 in 1971, so was 82 in 2003, when I purchased the car. Meaning it averaged only 1,300 miles per year. This is the car from the little old lady from Pasadena.

 Bringing a car back to concourse condition is a very costly adventure. As my hard head has now experienced with 3 cars.  Total investment in this car by me exceeds $27,000.00. So I’ve taken the hit. If you want a concourse car, this car needs very little. If you want a driver, local show car, etc. This is it. (not to worry, I do not expect to recoup my investment) Reserve is reasonable as I’ve been watching Grand Prixs on Ebay. Haggerty Insurance agreed value, $18k, and my reserve is well below that.

Happy bidding and GOOD LUCK.

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Auto blog

6 car mashups that God never intended

Sat, May 17 2014

In the 2000s, the musical mashup genre saw a peak of popularity with releases like The Grey Album from Danger Mouse that mixed The Beatles and Jay-Z. UK artist James Pursey from Carwow decided to take the same concept of shoehorning two disparate things together but applied the concept to cars. Your opinion on the results will vary with your sense of humor. These creations are either some funny pieces of abstract art or absolute monstrosities that prove good design should be left alone. Likely the best of the bunch is the Lambotomic (pictured above), which combines a Lamborghini Miura and an Ariel Atom. Granted, the Ariel is little more than a skeleton to begin with, and the outcome looks like a slightly stretched Atom with the new nose and tail from one of the most beautiful vehicles ever. This could actually work. Though, not all of the mashups are quite so pleasant. The Porschiac WW RS (pictured right) is absolutely disgusting. It combines a Pontiac Aztek, which isn't a beauty queen to start with, and a Porsche 911 GT3 RS. Obviously, the 911 is an iconic shape in autonobolia, but that can't save it from the horror of the Aztek. Pursey fits the its nose, wheel, wing, roll cage and stripes onto the Pontiac. The outcome: A design that will show up in your nightmares. Check out the gallery for the rest of the mashups, including the Humi (a Humvee and a Mini), Aston Smartin (Aston Martin and Smart), Rangerini (Range Rover and Lamborghini Aventador) and the Mazdafenda (Mazda MX-5 Miata and Land Rover Defender). They might not all be beautiful (or even pretty), but it's fun to imagine these oddball creations actually driving down the road. Featured Gallery Car Mashups News Source: CarwowImage Credit: James Pursey Design/Style Humor Lamborghini Pontiac Porsche ariel atom lamborghini miura pontiac aztek mashup

Tony Stewart to star in Smoke Is The Bandit web series

Mon, 10 Mar 2014

NASCAR driver Tony Stewart is making good use of his nickname Smoke in new videos inspired by the 1970s classic Smokey and the Bandit. The original is one of the quintessential automotive movies of its era with a fantastic combination of slapstick comedy and great car stunts in a Pontiac Firebird Trans Am. If you've never seen it, check it out immediately.
In the new six-part Smoke IS the Bandit web series, Stewart takes on the role of Burt Reynolds' famous character complete with huge mustache. But instead of trying to smuggle cases of Coors beer it's Mobil 1 oil. The series promises to recreate many of the famous scenes from the movie and includes cameos from other NASCAR drivers.
To complete the look, future videos just need a quality replacement for a young Sally Field to ride shotgun. It would also be really cool if Reynolds could make a brief appearance at some point. Scroll down to check out the trailer and the first episode in the series.

This classic Firebird restomod swallowed a Prius

Tue, Apr 19 2016

It takes an unusual eye to look at a 1967 Pontiac Firebird and see the Toyota Prius hidden inside. But that's just the kind of eye that a creative mechanic known online as "Bill the Engineer" has. Bill is updating his old Firebird into a true classic for the 21st century and has documenting the changes over at Priuschat and EcoModder. The TL,DR version of the story: he's replacing the worn-out powertrain with the gas-electric hybrid one from a Prius V, because it turns out the two vehicles have almost exactly the same wheelbase. Bill, who's from Columbus, Ohio and doesn't want his full name used, said in his posts on the conversion project that he's made many memories with this vehicle since buying it back in 1979. Since then, a few moves, a few decades, and some time in storage meant that the car would no longer function as he wanted it to. As he wrote, "when it comes to mice in the vehicles IT IS WAR." His solution is to make new memories and making a greener vehicle, and so we wanted to ask him how things have been going. Bill's been traveling a bit recently, but told AutoblogGreen that he's now figuring out the next steps for this amazing and complicated project. "I always plan things out before I do them," he said. That's the only way something like this can work. ABG: I think we have to start with what gave you the inspiration for this project. Was it simply that you had the two cars and wanted to see them merged into one cool mashup, or was it something else? "One day my wife wondered out loud if the car could be converted into a hybrid... The rest is history." Bill: I have been the owner of my 1967 Firebird convertible since 1979 when I bought it for $750.00. I drove it for years and made many memories. Afterward it was in storage for many years during which time mice at their way into the car and trashed the interior and wiring. I started working on a conventional restoration but always ran into major problems with hidden corrosion, electrical issues and an engine on its last legs. The car was never going to be as nice as I wanted going the conventional route. One day my wife wondered out loud if the car could be converted into a hybrid like our two daily driver Prii. That got me thinking about how it could be done. The rest is history... ABG: It looks like you started in late 2014. Have things gone well since then, or has it been one hassle after another? What has been the biggest setback, and what were the biggest victories?