You are all in for a real treat this month. Bob and Carol Crocker's 1966 Pontiac Parisienne Custom Sport has to be one of (if not THE) nicest unrestored examples in existence! I had the pleasure of viewing this car in person a few weeks ago and I have to say I was blown away by it's condition. It felt like I was looking at this car in 1967, not 2013! The original paint, chrome and interior are remarkable. Once you read Bob's account on how he found this car (and the fact news of the availability of the Custom Sport came to Bob via Florida!) you will come to the same conclusion I did. Bob was meant to own this Parisienne!

"The history of this car started out on May 13^th 1966, the GM Oshawa plant build date. Then on Sept. 20^th, 1966 the original owners took delivery of their 1966 Pontiac Parisienne Custom Sport Coupe, in a tu-tone paint combo of Candlelight Cream lower and Cameo Ivory top. Interior is black vinyl bucket seats with a floor console. It was sold thru Sudbury Motors Limited when back in 1966 they were a Pontiac, Buick, Cadillac, GMC truck dealer. Bill of sale for car shows total price including 5% PST to be $3537.45. As we have the fleet price sheets for 1966 Pontiac's and the General Motors Vintage Service options sheet, we decided to cost out the car comparing what the original owner paid. It turned out that he received a discount of $776, likely since there was no trade in and the car had been in inventory for about five months (the 1967 models were arriving soon!). The full retail price including PST should have been $4313.45!

The car was never driven in the winter. The original owners had another vehicle that was their principal driver, so the Parisienne was only used for special occasions. It was owned for 40 years and when the original owner turned eighty, it was sold to a friend who had just turned sixty, had taken an early retirement and needed a hobby! Previously many folks had approached the original owners about purchasing the Parisienne but were always turned away. The story goes that the original owners had “baby sat” the second owner and had promised him the car after he retired.

Well, retirement time came on April 27^th, 2006 and the car was sold with only 36549 original miles. The car needed nothing however since the new owner was a retired mechanic he decided to go over the mechanics and restore any areas that needed attention. He took the heads off the 283 and had the valve seats hardened for unleaded gas. At the same time he replaced the valves, lifters etc.

 He enjoyed the car during the summers, going to the local car shows , cruise nights etc. Unfortunately in early 2012 he was diagnosed with cancer and the car sat for most of that summer. When it was used it was the owner's best friend who did the driving. . The second owner passed away October 2012.

The second owner's wife asked his best friend if he could help her in selling the Parisienne, as there were no family members who wanted it. He agreed and placed the car in climate controlled storage. He had planned to advertise the car in the spring when he returned from wintering in Florida. While in Florida he mentioned this car to a couple of folks at the park. Those folks are our next door neighbors! Once they had details and photos of the car they emailed me and asked if I had any interest. Since we were content with our 1958 Parisienne (Ed Note:Bob's '58 Parisienne was featured Feb 2011 and can be viewed HERE) and not really sure we could maintain two collector cars we showed little interest. However when 2^nd owners friend returned to Ontario over Christmas we decided to call him to find out more about the car. He was kind enough to send us more photos and told us the history of the car. We thought it over and decided to make an offer with the condition that it be certified and either we saw the car in person or an agent we authorized could inspect the car. Our offer was accepted on those terms.

Close to the time the car was coming out of storage we hired a 25 year veteran classic car appraiser out of Sudbury to inspect the car. He did a full inspection emailing us 100 detailed photos and followed up with an extensive phone conversation outlining every detail about the car. He ended by saying “Bob and Carol, you really should buy this car because it will be a long time before you find another one this nice!”. With that funds were quickly transferred to my wife's account. Ross Wood was contacted to deliver the car in his new enclosed trailer. Before we knew it the car was in our garage, right beside the '58!

Mileage on the car is 44106. It is a true survivor with 100% original paint, chrome and interior. It has never had any body work. Under our care the Parisienne will lead a pampered life, just as it has for the last 47 years!

Bob and Carol Crocker"