Pontiac Bonneville Owners: Meet the Members

Just because I've been too busy to post much recently (besides, now that I'm used to the car, I'm a little out of the "discovery" stage), it doesn't mean that I'm not still totally enamoured of this vehicle.

I have a few more links and I'll post a sequel one of these fine days - once I have a good 15-20 minutes to spare.

BTW, I liked the '58 page too - what a looker!

#148 of 346 Varoooooooom! by tpken

May 27, 2001 (8:04 pm)

Man that 58 is some beauty! And triple carbs! They certainly didn't spare the chrome back then and those bumpers must have weighed a ton. I noticed the similarity to the 58 Impala and see the two shared the pretty much the same body - 2 great looking cars in 58!

It's nice to own a car that has a heritage - can't say that for many cars anymore. It sure would be nice to go visit the Pontiac plant and museum sometime - bet they have some great cars there.

Take care all.

Ken

#149 of 346 Meeting Mark (Mfahey1 aka Ginman) by tpken

May 29, 2001 (12:54 pm)

Just as the name of this forum suggests - tonight at my house. He's bringing me the anti sway bar for my SE - off his SSEi. Can't wait to get home tonight and meet him. Too bad he's driving his old Dodge Caravan rather than his Bonneville - but still - we'll have a lot to discuss for sure. Going to print out a copy of my Bonneville Forum spreadsheet for him. If anyone else wants it - please give me an email shout and I'll be glad to send it Ken

#150 of 346 Bonnevilles and Camps by tpken

May 30, 2001 (8:03 am)

Mark came over for dinner last night and we had a great time talking cars and camps. We crawled under my Bonneville and found the holes for attachment of the stabilizer bar so it doesn't look too difficult to attach. Going to have to see if the local garage guy will put it up on his lift to install. We took a drive around the harbor and historic areas (I enjoy playing tour guide occasionally - we live in a beautiful area) in my Bonneville - naturally - and just enjoyed a nice evening. After meeting with 3 Bonneville and 2 Aurora owners now - it is apparent the drivers of these cars are definitely a cut above average!! Have a great day everyone. Ken

#151 of 346 My 2000 Bonny SE by davidchivo

Jun 07, 2001 (8:19 pm)

Life was going to be tough after my '94 V8 T-Bird, I thought to myself. The car's continuing stream of problems culminated with transmission slippage, and my wife started talking up the virtues of a minivan (we have 1 year old). I convinced her that a sedan would suit us better and told her that Pontiac makes an excellent and reliable full sized car. In November 2000, I unloaded the T-Bird and came home with a brand new Bonny. Its lightly loaded (aluminum wheels, spoiler, no leather or roof), but for $21K (and $5K trade in for the crappy Bird), who could complain. My wife was shocked at how "sporty" and "aggressive" the car looked...I was grinning from ear to ear.

7 months later (with only 4K on the odometer), I continue to be extremely happy with the car. Nary a problem to speak of.

I was interested to learn from TPKen that there are indeed, mounting holes for installing a rear sway bar. Does any know of aftermarket suppliers that sell performance bars? Addco did not list any on its site.

Also, I would be grateful to learn if anyone sells strut tower braces for the Bonny. I love crisp handling (I do miss the rear drive T-Bird, which I modified to be a real road hugger), and I think that the car could use additional stiffness upfront.

Glad to find such a great club. I will keep in touch.

#152 of 346 Applause for Davidchio (clap clap clap)!!! by tpken

Jun 08, 2001 (9:14 am)

Welcome to the club David. Your wife is to be congratulated for marrying someone with such excellent taste! The Bonneville is a fantastic car - we all agree - and a good family vehicle. What color is yours? It's great to have you here - we look forward to hearing of your experiences. BTW - where do you live? Best wishes for many years and miles of Bonnevillian enjoyment. Ken

#153 of 346 Yeah... no minivan for DAVIDCHIO by boosted1

Jun 08, 2001 (5:45 pm)

Glad to hear you chose the Bonne over a Minivan. We also bought our Bonneville so that we would have plenty of room for the kids etc.

#154 of 346 David Chivo by ginman3

Jun 19, 2001 (6:02 pm)

Saner Performance makes stabilizer bars that a number of us have installed on our SSEis. You can e-mail John at Sanerperf.com for more information. Last time I checked, their wedsite was of no help in providing you with any information on the Bonneville so that's why you have to e-mail. I have installed the rear bar on mine and gave Ken my original. At last report, Saner is having trouble producing the front bar possibly since it is such a large diameter. However, I would think that since an SE already has the front bar, the most noticable improvement in handling would come from installing the rear bar that they make. Replacing the front would presumably have a less dramatic effect and just be icing on the cake.
If you decide to go that route, you might consider asking him to supply the attaching bolts for the bracket that is bolted to the frame on either side. I'm sure they're hardened bolts so it might be safer to have Saner provide them.

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