Here is a list of Pontiac musclecars I found and didn't buy since 1988 when I started the hobby and I am still kicking myself over it ! -1974 Pontiac Transam Super Duty 455 for 2500$ !!! I still have the old car trader where it was listed in my possession, if I only knew what they are worth now and how good these engines were. -1966 Pontiac GTO 389 Tripower convertible for 3500$ in 1989. -1968 Pontiac GTO Ram Air I in 1996 for 1500$ needing restoration. -1971 Pontiac Gto Judge 455HO (very rare) in Moosejaw 1995 for $7500, one owner and very good shape ! Now they are worth 75000$. -1970 Pontiac Transam RA IV !!! One made (or sold ?) in Canada. It's in the Pete McCarthy's Pontiac bible, It was rough without an engine and I assume it was a Ram Air III, shoulda looked it up in my book with all 70 RA 4 TA's vin # and that one specified: ONE IN CANADA. That was back in 2000 in Courtenay BC Vancouver Island, 2500$. I knew the guy who bought it and told me about it, now it's in NY...a collector purchased it for 15000$ as is...my buddy sure made a good profit. -1972 Pontiac Transam 455HO on the island too, for 3000$ same year...a guy from Vancouver beat me to it and resold it right away for 13000$. -1970 Pontiac Transam RA III 400 4 speed, 3.55 posi 12 bolt, Lucerne Blue, here in Winnipeg in 2005 for 6500$, It was rough and the owner was a hard head and didn't want me to do a thorough inspection. Some local guy who already has a 72 TA 455HO Lucy blue bought it and resold it for more ??. That one ended up in the states too and a man from Performanceyears forum purchased it. There is alot more but I thought I'd list the most sought after ones. Pascal...Slap me !
i turned down it seems countless 70-73 trans ams when i was young,always wanted one but they were always beat,lol,i wish i hadda bought one,i remember looking at a red 74 sd455 once for 2500 bucks ,doh
i remember in 96 going to look at a 69 gto rag in toronto,it was 20,000 dollars,i had the money and didnt buy it,remember it being one of the first cars i saw over $20,ooo,oh well
When I was in high school a girl drove a 69 firebird with a small block chev, it had blue stripes on a white car with blue interior but firebird front end (clone 69 TA), the car later sat in a driveway with four flats (1990), dog running over the hood, hole in windsheild, I got thinking white with blue plus the TA spoiler and fender vents couldn't have been available aftermarket- I went over got the vin # it had 14 x 7 rallys, the owner said $500 and had turned down $400-I called George Zapora it was friday-he called me monday morning first thing, ram air L74 400 auto 69 Trans Am ! I ran all the way there with $500 cash-he sold it saturday to the other guy ! no bull **** this is a true storey I have the GM documents-that car sat there in that driveway at least eight years. this car was on river road in Welland almost behind the Pontiac dealer's. I passed it almost daily just one day I thought white with blue interior lets try its free (documentation was free then)
after high school I worked pumping gas, the other guy there had an early Trans Am with H.O 455 on the shaker, I quit, he married, then his brother in law was driving this red bird into the ground, I was working in a factory late 1990's there was a TA for sale by the brother in law for $800 several guys went to look but it was beat-I told someone it was an H.O. 455 they went over and bought it, said it had SD manifolds, guess what GM documents said it was an SD ! this was only 10 or 12 years ago ! $800 ! The car got parted !
I bought a monte Carlo SS off a guy in the Falls back in 1995, he had a red 70 Judge in the garage said he wanted $25,000 for it, remember thinking man he's dreamn, Black tie classics bought that car and sold it for $50,000 U.S. in the 1990's ! Anybody here of the guy that scheduled his 02 TA to get a corvette engine at GM that was him,
There was a real good blue 70 Judge here in town back in 97 for $10,000 I just appraised his 65 Lemans says he sold that 70 Judge for $7000 nobody wanted it ! and this was a good one !
Heres a Chevy storey-A childhood friend settled large for a bike accident in 1996, he wanted an LS5 chevelle, almost bought a 396 4-speed 21,000 miles for $22,000 his budget was $25,000-I located him a 26,000 mile LS6 auto for $25,000 U.S. ($34,000 CDN at the time) this was overbudget, everyone in town was giving me **** for talking him into blowing all this money on an SS Chevelle everyone seen a $15,000 car, he sold it three years later for $41,000 then it went to Legendary ( the car was on the credits of Dream car garage at Cayuga dragway) who sold it the same year for $60,000 then took it back in on trade in 02 and sold it for $90,000, now everyone says " I should have bought that car "
Those are some great stories. I really don't have many myself. But lack of money did prevent me from buying an 84 Trans Am used from a garage in Mt. Brydges. I was 18 and had no dough! I forget how much it was but too much for me. It was in nice shape. But looking back it just wasn't the right time. I grew up in Stratford and my dad and i went and had a look. Ironic thing...i can see that garage anytime now since that's where my wife is from and her parents still live in Mt. Brydges...small world. Don't know whatever happened to the car.
I missed two cars that would be worth some money today. The first was a 1970 Buick GS Stage 1 from Texas. It was solid but the engine was blown. Had factory AC, buckets, console etc. Also had the super rare rally wheels that looked like Chevy rallys with buick centers. The price $1500. I was 18 and broke.. The other was a 1970 Dodge Challenger "Western Sport Special". These cars were sold in Arizona and I believe Nevada only. They all were a pukey beige colour and this one was from Arizona. It had a non running 340 and a 4 speed pistol grip. Price was $3500.
there has been alot of cars i turned down but these are the ones that i really regret, 56 vette for $25,000 in (92) 67 GTX convertible $6,000 (79) 68 charger $6,000 (87) 69 charger that my mom turned down instead she got a 73 4dr dart sport (we won't go there)(77) Model T (called a doctor T) from a relative but i turned it down because i would have hot rodded it. (97)
Four regrets on ones I didn't buy: 1.a white on red 62 Catalina 2 dr ht for $5K back in 91 in Simcoe Ontario area; those cars are commanding $20-30K now in decent shape. 2. a 64 Catalina 2 dr post in 91 for $3500. 3. a one owner 69 GTO for $2500 back in 89. 4. a maroon 62 Strato Chief 2 door post, 6 cyl, standard trans, low miles, rust free car that sold at the R&M Fawcett movie car auction last fall. I and one other person were bidding on it. I bailed at $9K because even if I had gotten it for $10K, once I figured in the fees, taxes and the huge shipping costs from Ontario, I would have had $15K into a car valued at about $8K. Thinking back though, the car was so good that I should have kept it going for a while longer.
Regrets on one I sold: my white on red 65 Parisienne convt. It had 37K miles on it when I got it, 67K when I sold it 9 years later. 283, PG, PW, PS, PB, mint interior, rust free. It went to northern Ontario. Buyer bought it sight unseen & was very happy with the car. He drove it home over 2500 miles with no problems other than a flat on one of the bias ply tires, and mailed me back the license plates. Wish I'd kept it.
Blacktransam-I used to own a 65 Corvette coupe black/black 327/350hp 4-speed, outsiders/knock offs-I put goldlines on it that I bought in MT. Brydges
Know the car
can't rember his name-just that he had the same name as an 1800's writer, the car was right on the highway coming into town from the 402-he has a white LT1 72 corvette coupe now and he's a truck driver.
In the mid 80's, I was a couple of weeks too late in Nebraska for a Z16 Chevelle for $1800.....
Didn't have the money for a nice 72 Hurst Olds coupe, factory sliding sunroof, about 35,000 miles, slight bubbles in the quarters but came with a pair of NOS GM quarters---$3800 US.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
Blacktransam-I used to own a 65 Corvette coupe black/black 327/350hp 4-speed, outsiders/knock offs-I put goldlines on it that I bought in MT. Brydges
Know the car
can't rember his name-just that he had the same name as an 1800's writer, the car was right on the highway coming into town from the 402-he has a white LT1 72 corvette coupe now and he's a truck driver.
I'll have to ask my in-laws. I don't know the town well but my father-in-law has lived in the area all his life.
I also forgot about The old lady in her eighties, blue 69 Grandprix 400 in Victoria BC ( True old lady storie, no bull ) her husband past away and she was selling (buysell) the car for 1200$ around 2001. They were the original owners and she even knew a little bit of mechanics, told me her hubby had changed the cam...the speedo wasn't working and the bottom lip of the quarter panels had a little bit of rust that's all was wrong. I even had a complete 69 GP 428 engine 4 bolt mains, code XF core for that car in my possession. A dealership in Nanaimo bought the car for 800$ !!! and resold it for $5000 ! The guy who bought the car ended up buying my 428 and drove the GP to pick it up ( motor was in pieces ) at least, he took me for a ride and I showed him where was another 69 GP parts car...Happy camper he was !
Back in '97 or '98 I was living on a little side street in St.Thomas Ontario. At the end of the street was a garage always closed. My '70 GTO sat in the driveway but the guy never came over. One day when he was renovating he pushed his black '70 Judge outside. I will never forget rounding the corner with the stripes reflecting at night. I was rough but complete. I talked to him and he said he probably woudn't sell . ONE WEEK LATER....... a real weasel he worked with at a "bearing company" in town talked him out of it for $2500. After all he told the owner "its just an old car". 4 years later it was listed in the Triad for $14000. Sold to a guy Toronto way. I should have jumped on it harder but engaged, mortgage... old story. Thats my fish tale.
The hardest lesson I learned was when I borrowed $2500 off of my Dad in '84 to buy a pair of '65 GTO's. 6 mo. later I had every excuse why I couldn't pay him back....... and he foreclosed on my loan !........Had to sell 'em..........
Yep, Bench seat, 4spd and no options. Would have been sold missing the RH fender but an NOS one in its place. ....and the engine painted Ford blue. You know the car ?
Yes, I guess thats true. It is a numbers matching R/A 3, 4spd. Cardinal red,
black bench interior. It has a mile of paperwork but needs a ton of work.
My guess is 5yrs it will be done..... if something else doesn't follow me home ! You know you have your family brainwashed when your 4yr old son tells his daycare teacher "he got a new Judge" , and a sign of the times when she had no clue what he was talking about !
God I wish I could own some of the cars I saw for sale in the late '70's early '80's. My friend bought a 1970 Chevelle SS396 L-78 M-22 4 gear for $3200 in 1981. I bet he wishes he still had that puppy now..... $1500 for a '70 Monte SS454. Hell, I didn't even know they MADE a Monte SS454 until we went to see it. (My friend bought that one, too. I had no money then. I was still in college).
