when I lived on Vashon Island (mid-60s) I had a 59 T-bird coupe with 3/tree. Red with red/white interior. Clunkiest linkage ever.... Years ago, I looked at a 65 Stingray at an acquaintances place (he's a classic Packard nut). Coupe, 250hp 327, radio delete, knockoffs, side pipes, and a 3spd tranny (on the floor, of course). Pretty weird combo in my mind - I passed on it.
ss was just an interior + emblems package, nieghbor bought an ss impala with a six because he wanted the bucket seats
I sold new Ford products for about 25 years . In the early 90's a guy comes in wanting a Ranger , 4X4 , 4cyl , stick ....asks me to do a dealer search for one . Not one in the whole country ! No shit ! So he orders one from the factory . I ask him about that combo and mention that , while he didn't buy the truck with the next guy in mind , it might be a tough sell down the road . Nope , that's what he wants ....gonna keep it forever . "Forever" lasts 3 years . He's in the door complaining about the " lack of power " . D'ya think ? Wants to trade it in but then bitches about the $$ he's getting on trade in . Sigh . T
1962 to 1967 (no sure about 1961 or 68) Impala SS --> Bucket seats/console were standard equipment. I've seen six or eight 3-speed/console w/shifter delete Impala SSs over the years. 1966 and newer Malibu SS --> Bench seat standard, buckets/console optional. And I've seen many bench seat 1983-88 Monte Carlo SSs. My cousin has a 1969 GTO he bought new. I was shocked to find out it has 4 wheel DRUM brakes.
remember people orderd what they wanted and gladly waited for it . . I had a 70 sport fury ,440 a/t in the floor console ,buckets .. no big deal except it was a four door,the buckets did not fold.....,only fourdoor ply.with factory buckets I ever saw
My grandfather managed a Dodge dealership in Irving throughout the '60s. When the GTX came out in 1967, he ordered himself one to use as a demo, a bright red one. It was pretty basic as far as GTXs go, with the standard black bucket interior, floor shift 727 auto, and the standard 375hp 440. As it was being delivered, the dealership owner took one look at the car, and told my grandfather he couldn't have it - "MY dealership manager isn't gonna be seen around town in some TWO DOOR HOT ROD!" So my grandfather went back inside and ordered up the next best thing, a bright red Coronet 500 with heavy duty suspension and brakes, dual exhaust, floor shift auto, black bucket seat interior, and a 375hp 440. Except this one was a four door. He only had it a little while, but said it was one of the more fun cars he ever had as a demo.
worked at a buick dealer in the 80s. a guy used to come in with a early 802 regal wagon. v6, 4spd, hurst shifter, all factory ordered.
Back in the early 90's, I met a guy at a St.Paul car show who had brought a '69 Plymouth Belvedere 4-door slant 6 that he had recently bought from an estate sale. The only options were the automatic trans and a heavy duty battery. The car had almost no miles on it and the only flaw (other than the "extra" doors) was a small nick on the hood caused by something in the garage falling on it. The current owner pointed out that a factory inspector's crayon mark was still visible on the right tailight lens. I always thought these "stripper" cars were sort of a Midwest old guy farmer thing: cars should be utilitarian, not showy and usually painted some flavor of beige or washed out seafoam green ("won't show the dirt"). What was ironic was that a number of farm kids went to the state college that I attended and dad usually sent them off to school in a new car (Malibus, Impalas, Fairlanes, Sport Furies, etc.) and heavy on the options. All I got from my old man was a suitcase and a road map !!
My boss's newly-acquired '63 Riviera must have been a "price leader" - it has crank windows, manual antenna, no A/C and regular Buick wheelcovers.
I'm sure you remember what that USED TO mean. It meant a bare shell in "pickled" metal, ready to build that racer from scratch. When we were getting Ford bodies in "white", some numbskull must have changed the standard. They were in white paint, all of them for a few years. I have to wonder who the dipshit was that just didn't know and decided to change an industry standard. I was told GM does that now too, but I'd like to know for sure before I bash them as well. Just another symbol of modern times that makes us pine for the old days.
Zykote Post #43 : OT but , that Road Runner must have been a `68 as they were only avalible with a bench seat near as I know. At one point I had an orig. "J" code `68 RR cpe., no options; but torque flight and hemi...taxi type bench seat.
Yeah, it must have been a 68 or 69, it's been a while since I saw the ad. Right now there's a 69 for sale with a 383 and M/T and a bench seat though
I've seen a triple white convertible 67 GTO with a gold pin stripe. Also had a front bench seat, column shift automatic and a 2 barrel.
One of my 55 Belairs is a 6 cylinder powerglide without the optional AM radio, but with the electric clock. When I bought it from the original owner he told me that it was sitting on Luby Chevrolet's lot well into the 56 selling season. Most people wanted the new V8, and they made him a heck of a deal. My Chevelle Super Sport convertible is one of about 2300 made. Most ragtops in 1967 were loaded out with buckets, auto, console, electric top, AC, and promoted for dealer's wives. Mine only has a 350 hp 396, four-speed, guage package, and a single speaker AM radio.
A few years back, at the end of the model year, I was looking for a new Chevy pickup. Wanted 4x4, z71 package, towing package, red with a tan interior. Looked everywhere, no luck. One dealer I checked had 3 of them! Checking the window sticker, they were all cheaper than what I had seen before, but I couldn't figure out why. 4x4 check, z1 check, towing package check, why cheaper? Then I saw it - they were all 6 cylinders! Why would anybody order the towing package with a 6. Salesman came out asking if I was interested in one of the trucks, so I asked him why? He said that he was on vacation when the dealership had to submit their truck order, and rather than call him for advice, one of the car salesmen submitted the order. He had been stuck with 6 trucks just like these 3, and had worked all year trying to sell them!
In town here in the 60's THE ambulance was a '62 BelAir wagon with a 409 and 3-speed column shift. Of course the young guys driving it blew the motor but it was replaced by a 375/327. I got to ride in that in about '65 and when he got into it a bit it musta got my heart rate up and the guy says "better hurry, this guy's really bleedin'", my first ride in a really fast car. I once rode in an early 60's pontiac wagon that had the 2+2 option, complete with buckets seats, red with black naugahyde.
Yeah , SedanBob , that happened a lot if the manager was too lazy to double-check an order . They probably forgot to tick a box on the order ( for a V-8 ) and computers don't think....GM just grabs the order and schedules a build . Back when A/C was always an option , dealers would forget to tick the box , ...very common mistake . T
In the fall of 1968, I bought a '67 Malibu coupe off the lot at a local Pontiac dealer in Minneapolis (trade-in on a new GTO). Nice little car that I wish I still had, but an odd way to order a car ... vinyl top, bucket seats w/console, tinted glass, wider stock wheels w/ F70 tires and dog dish caps, AM radio and no power options. Drive train was a 275 hp 327, 10 bolt posi dif with a 3 speed w/ factory floor shifter. The transmission was a Borg-Warner T-16, which was the factory spec. 3-speed behind big blocks. I had no complaints with the 3-speed, but why the original owner didn't pop for a 4-speed remains a mystery to me.
Awww man this is really getting waaaay off topic, but I had one of those. They had the Enhanced Vortec V-6 which had 195 horse.
My Mom and Dad had a 64 ,9passenger,Country Squire ,white ,red interior, bucketseats console,with a 390 ,4 speed. Ive often wondered where that car went.
Full size cars with 6 cyl were common in Canada in the fifties and sixties. From 1955 on you could buy a full size Pontiac with a six which was not available in the US. If they made 80% V8 and 20% six cylinder in the US, in Canada it was the other way around. I have seen plenty of them but an Impala with six, 3 on the tree would be pretty rare. They were mostly the base model sedan. The last 3 on the tree I remember was a 6 cyl Chev pickup, 1986, ordered by a local farmer. Speaking of tight... I remember one old farmer who ordered the cheapest Dodge pickup you could get. He even had them leave off the box and ordered just a cab and chassis. When it arrived he took a hammer and saw and made his own wooden flat bed. This was about 1974. He drove it around, slowly, for at least 10 years. I remember seeing it in the grocery store parking lot when he came into town on Saturday afternoon, even after 10 years it looked new, not a scratch on it, washed every week for its trip to town Saturday afternoon and to church on Sunday.
Rusty ....remember when most Canadian Pontiacs had Chevy motors in them ( 60's )? ....pull in to a gas station in Detroit , lift the hood and have 'em scratching their heads . T
In the early 80's my dd was a plain jane 73 Cutlass S buckets and consul, 350 4bbl a/c roll up windows with a factory Hurst shifted 4 speed which sounded like a Muncie but I never confirmed. I've been to a few Olds nationals and never seen one like it.
My parents bought a non-SS Chevelle convertible with the same chrome package. Mom compensated for the lost two cylinders by adding some lead to her right foot!
A couple oddballs up Alberta way. 67 pontiac laurentian 327 4 speed buckets no console 4 door and a towing pkg to pull the boat to the lake. 67 malibu 250 3 speed on the floor buckets no console. 64 pontiac parrisiene 409 dual quad powerglide and 4.56 gear.
I love the 409 chevrolet powered pontiac parisiennes 63 and 64 a freind of mine has two one convert 4spd and a hardtop auto...... stock and super rare!
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