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1960's Pontiacs

278 messages,  Last post on Aug 05, 2012 at 9:10 AM

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Messages Page 25 of 28

#239 of 278 Bucket seats in full-size cars... by uplanderguy

Jan 26, 2012 (1:47 pm)

Someone earlier mentioned buckets and console going away in big Fords after '70. I'll have to look online, but I'm pretty certain I've seen pics of a '71 LTD convertible with buckets and console. I'll have to check the Old Car Manual Project online when I'm off work.

#240 of 278 Re: Bucket-seat full-sized cars ca. 1969-70 [uplanderguy] by fintail

Jan 26, 2012 (2:12 pm)

Replying to: uplanderguy (Jan 26, 2012 1:45 pm)
I drove the Corsica a few times, don't recall much but it seemed smooth and even a little plush. I always loathed the 2.8 and 3.1 exhaust note - I remember back in the day, someone in the neighborhood had a new 89 or so GP, and it sounded like a popcorn popper on steroids. An older lady my mom knew had a then-new Lumina which also sounded pretty rough. While an old guy (Pearl Harbor survivor even) my dad knew had a then new Accord wagon that seemed like it had an electric motor under the hood.

#241 of 278 Re: Bucket-seat full-sized cars ca. 1969-70 [fintail] by berri

Jan 26, 2012 (8:03 pm)

Replying to: fintail (Jan 26, 2012 2:12 pm)
I always found the Corsica and Baretta kind of cheap looking and feeling. I recall the bucket seats always moving around when I had them set all the way back. l know many may disagree, but I much preferred the earlier X cars as rentals. I thought, for the times, they road more comfortably and were nicer inside. I think Pontiac's undoing was when they went to all this chintzy gimmicky stuff like game console dashboards and red lights.

#242 of 278 Re: Bucket-seat full-sized cars ca. 1969-70 [berri] by fintail

Jan 26, 2012 (8:38 pm)

Replying to: berri (Jan 26, 2012 8:03 pm)
I don't recall ever riding in an X-car. I knew a jerky kid in high school who had one, and another kid in college who had a really neglected one.
 
I think Pontiac lost it with all the 90s body cladding.

#243 of 278 Re: Bucket-seat full-sized cars ca. 1969-70 [fintail] by blh7068

Jan 27, 2012 (1:14 am)

Replying to: fintail (Jan 26, 2012 8:38 pm)
All that body cladding was a GM thing as I remember. Also, all the hard plastic on the interior( that only over the last 5 or 6 MY's has gotten better).

#245 of 278 Re: Bucket-seat full-sized cars ca. 1969-70 [fintail] by andre1969

Jan 27, 2012 (6:17 am)

Replying to: fintail (Jan 26, 2012 8:38 pm)
I don't think I've ever ridden in an X-car, but I've sat in a few. Compared to the N (Grand Am, Corsica, Beretta, etc), I think they were roomier and more comfortable. But then, I guess that would make sense, as the X-car went on to become GM's intermediate (Celebrity et al), whereas the N-car was just a slightly enlarged version of the J-car (Cavalier etc)
 
Cars like the Celebrity were bigger overall than the Citation, as much as a foot longer, as I recall. But, most of that length went into the styling...longer front-end to make it look more impressive, and a longer rear, which did bump trunk space up from around 14 to 16 cubic feet. But interior-wise, I think they were close. I think the roof was a bit taller on the A-body from the B-pillar back, so perhaps there was a bit more head room in the back.
 
The X-body could also be trimmed out pretty nicely inside. The Citation was really cheap in entry-level trim, but I don't think the upper trim levels were bad. And the Phoenix, Omega, and especially the Skylark could be quite luxurious in the top trim levels.
 
In contrast, I don't think the Corsica, or Grand Am, ever looked that nice inside, no matter what the trim level. Just too much hard plastic, odd shapes, etc. But the Calais and Somerset Regal/N-body Skylark could be pretty nice.

#246 of 278 Re: Bucket-seat full-sized cars ca. 1969-70 [andre1969] by lemko

Jan 27, 2012 (7:35 am)

Replying to: andre1969 (Jan 27, 2012 6:17 am)
My best friend had a 1980 Chevrolet Citation that lasted from his junior year in high school, college, graduate school, and into the first year of his marriage. Not only have I ridden in this car, but drove it many times. I thought one of it's most unusual features was the vertical radio on the right side of the instrument panel. He later put an aftermarket unit in the car, but bypassed the vertical radio and mounted it in the glovebox.
 
His Citation was a rather dressed-up one with nice plush seats, full wheel covers, white stripe tires, and a two-tone green and cream paint job: cream on top with green below the side trim. He crimped the cream-colored hood in an accident at some point and replaced it with a green hood that matched the lower body making the car look like it was ordered with a deliberately weird two-tone scheme.
 
He managed to put 195K miles on this car over and it looked like a fugitive from a Mad Max movie by the time he got rid of it.
 
By the way, will you be at the Philly Auto Show this weekend? I heard back from grbeck, but he can't make it until the second Saturday. I think fezo will be there tomorrow.

#247 of 278 Re: Bucket-seat full-sized cars ca. 1969-70 [andre1969] by fintail

Jan 27, 2012 (9:13 am)

Replying to: andre1969 (Jan 27, 2012 6:17 am)
It's funny, those really base cars don't seem to exist anymore. I don't recall any friend of the family having an X-car either, which is surprising as they were popular. I do remember my friend's mom had a Cavalier fastback that I thought was pretty cool when I was in about 2nd grade though.
 
I remember when my grandmother's Olds got hit in 1996, the body shop that did the estimate had a dusty Citation sitting in it - the owner said the car had been sitting there since 1982 and had no miles on it. Just an oddity then, stuck in my mind.

#248 of 278 Re: Bucket-seat full-sized cars ca. 1969-70 [fintail] by andre1969

Jan 27, 2012 (9:28 am)

Replying to: fintail (Jan 27, 2012 9:13 am)
One of my relatives bought a new Citation in 1980 or '81, to replace her '73-74 Nova coupe. I'll never forget her freaking out one day, when one of my young cousins, who I guess was about 4 or 5 at the time, managed to drop the back seat, crawl into the hatch area, and pull the seat closed behind him. She hadn't seen him do it, so to her, one second she had put him in the car, and the next, he had disappeared!
 
I don't know how long she had the car for, or any of its history, though. She currently drives her elderly mother's old 2002 or so Impala.
 
The neighbors behind us bought a new Citation in 1981, a V-6 I think. However, they only had it a few months, until it was replaced by a 1981 Monte Carlo.
 
Their previous car was a 1969 or 1970 Sedan DeVille, so I'm sure going to that tiny Citation was a shock! Also, my neighbor worked on cars and liked to do a lot of stuff himself, but when he saw how complex this Citation was, I think he knew it would be nothing but trouble. This guy used to put 350's in Vegas and race them, among other things. Also helped me paint my two Darts, put a leaf spring on the DeSoto, and the door off of a '79 LeMans onto my buddy's '78 Malibu when he snagged a guardrail. I had tried to put the door on myself, but had trouble getting it to align correctly.
 
Every once in awhile, I'll see a Citation show up at a classic car show. They're old enough now that they're allowed in. Actually, at the fall show in Hershey PA, there's always a really nice white 1980 or so Skylark coupe that always shows up.

Messages Page 25 of 28

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