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jcruz · 07-05-2005, 07:43 AM

I was looking over this 69 Firebird on e-Bay.

Two things I see very frequently:

1. 67-68 spoilers on a 69 (not wide enough)
2. Wrong dash vent balls (in the case of the bird above)
3. Missing p-o-n-t-i-a-c trunk letters on freshly painted cars

I'm not a stickler for being "correct" but why are these such common occurances? What other things like this do you notice?

Bjorn · 07-05-2005, 12:27 PM

I cannot get the pics onto my co. computer (IT dept.) but you say "wrong vent balls", ...you DO know that the early 69`s had the 68 balls (mine does), later models had the 'cross'...the spoilers you talk of are the Camaro spoilers , I assume...? yes,there are the 67,68 ones and 69s 69 `s being somewhat wider...i think , most people dont realize that and buy them fromEBay or such ,advertised as 67-69 spoilers, and think they are shorter just being Camaro spoilers...if you buy a TA spoiler it should be correct width , but some actually buy a later model TA spoiler and some are shorter...I actually had a TA (85 or so model)on my Volvo 740...

JimFB400HO · 07-05-2005, 01:19 PM

Are you referring to the car in the link you posted??? Spoiler?

Bjorn · 07-05-2005, 01:21 PM

Jim , I think he is referring to that one, and its one of those EBay listings where I only get red X`s , ...so i cant look at the pics except for the 'initial' one...

JimFB400HO · 07-05-2005, 01:22 PM

Bjorn, I get all the pictures fine but I think the car is the wrong one he is talking about.

Bjorn · 07-05-2005, 02:08 PM

hmmmm....

Hammered · 07-05-2005, 04:10 PM

The car in the add is certainly nice, not having some of the afflictions that John mentions, but.... it does have one that bugs me over and over. How hard can it be to properly adjust a rear bumper? Less than 10 minutes a side would be required to turn those bumper ends parallel to the body line. Almost every repainted Firebird I see has the droopy bumper syndrome.

Also, that driver's door is way off in color.

John

Bjorn · 07-05-2005, 04:53 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Less than 10 minutes a side would be required to turn those bumper ends parallel </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
hmmmm, I really doubt that, if so all those cars w that syndrome (mine included ) would be fixed...reason they are like that are that they were not designed strong enough for the bumper jacks, this is a result of using it , maybe over several times...
not sure if bumper gets twisted or where it goes thru body, the brackets....I have looked at that several times ,but not figured it out yet....of course if car was being re-painted it might be easily done....just a little tricky on a painted car...

JimFB400HO · 07-05-2005, 04:59 PM

I agree with John that it is a nice car but has a few non-factory items. In addition to John's comments:
- I didn't think 1st Gen converts had the quarter panel vents (door jam area). Mine doesn't. Thought it was on coupe quarters only.
- Rear dampener should be trunk spatter color not black.
- Wheels are after-market.
- Doesn't that engine paint look like the wrong shade of blue?
- I noticed the bumper but have seen that before too.

dave bolduc · 07-05-2005, 05:11 PM

Two things I see very frequently:

1. 67-68 spoilers on a 69 (not wide enough)
2. Wrong dash vent balls (in the case of the bird above)
3. Missing p-o-n-t-i-a-c trunk letters on freshly painted cars

lol.....just busting...but TWO things bother you, then 3 are listed!!
nice car, nice rims, door looks horrible, roof looks weird

amcmike · 07-05-2005, 06:01 PM

Hey, would you guys kick Jessica Simpson out of bed just because her lipstick is crooked and she has the wrong eye shadow color?

Hammered · 07-05-2005, 07:01 PM

As much as I like FGFs, I can't liken some of these cars to Jessica Simpson. Maybe Tammy Faye Baker would be more like it. Now for the car in question, it needs some work but I would definitely not turn it down. Blend the doors in and refurbish the interior and it would be very nice.

Bjorn,

Fixing that bumper is easy, but you may need to add 10 minutes for removing and replacing the cocktail shakers. Simply loosen the two bolts holding the bumper to the quarter panel and have a friend pull up on the bumper, then retighten. If it's really tough, you could use a block of wood and a floor jack. It really won't take much force to straighten and FWIW, I've mounted pristeen bumpers that want to droop.

Jim,

The '67 coupe and 67-68 converts did not have the vents. I'm not sure about 69 verts but believe they did have the vents. If you have a chance to compare them, you will see that the indentation in the jam changed from 67 to 68 to accomodate the cutout for the vent.

While we're at it, another peeve is reversing the T and I on the deck lid letters: PONITAC. I've seen this at least three times now.

John

JimFB400HO · 07-05-2005, 07:17 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Hammered:
The '67 coupe and 67-68 converts did not have the vents. I'm not sure about 69 verts but believe they did have the vents. If you have a chance to compare them, you will see that the indentation in the jam changed from 67 to 68 to accomodate the cutout for the vent.
John </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Thanks John. I'll have to have some owners open their doors at the next show so that I can compare them all. You seldom see that detail on the Ponitac.

Bjorn · 07-06-2005, 05:56 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Bjorn,

Fixing that bumper is easy, but you may need to add 10 minutes for removing and replacing the cocktail shakers. Simply loosen the two bolts holding the bumper to the quarter panel and have a friend pull up on the bumper, then retighten. If it's really tough, you could use a block of wood and a floor jack. It really won't take much force to straighten and FWIW, I've mounted pristeen bumpers that want to droop. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
John, thanks , I`ll try that....I`ve had the shakers out a few times before,no problem...I actually took the bumper bolts out too, had a water leak there...so I`ll try that trick, maybe in the fall, when it cools down some...lol

and , my 69 vert has the jamb vents , for whatever its worth...

jcruz · 07-06-2005, 11:59 AM

Yes, it looks like my counting skills could use improvement!

The link seems to work ok for me, but there is some funky music. Never seen that on an e-bay add before!

The car in the add is sweet. Over 21k and rising. My comments weren't so much about what was "correct" as to why you see the same (seemingly wrong) configurations on a lot of cars, over and over again.

Bjorn, I did not know that early 69's could have the horizontal dash ball vents. Learn something new every time I post....

Thanks,

John

Bjorn · 07-06-2005, 02:27 PM

John, I `m not sure how long they had horizontal vent balls ,but heard that the "early" ones did...mine did , its an october 68 car

Hammered · 07-06-2005, 05:04 PM

Bjorn,

If you're every up this way, I'd be glad to help you with the bumper.

John

steveK · 07-07-2005, 03:57 AM

John, my 69 convertible has them as well.... born on date was Nov 16th 68. looks like GM used up what they had in stock prior to using the cross hair vents.

Bjorn · 07-07-2005, 05:42 AM

John, I appreciate the offer....I was up there last summer , but not in the bird....drove thru from Houston/Washington,DC/Boston/Toronto,Canada to Canal Winchester on my way back thru Lexington to here ....but I doubt I`d be driving the bird up there...usually dont make trip over 2-300 miles in it..

Hammered · 07-07-2005, 02:24 PM

Bjorn,

I thought you might be up this way for the Firebird Nationals (about 20 miles from me). If you're ever through Dayton again, let me know and I'll by you a beer or two...or three..

John

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