FAQ |
Members List |
Social Groups |
Calendar |
Search |
Today's Posts |
|
#1
|
||||
|
||||
1973 SD455 TA - Finally Rescued This One
Been chasing this car for years. Finally was able to make a deal on it a couple of months ago. It's going to need lots of work.
|
The Following User Says Thank You to 74SDformula For This Useful Post: | ||
#2
|
||||
|
||||
Nice car. Congratulations
Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
That does look like a lot of work but nice car to work on!
|
#4
|
||||
|
||||
CONGRATS that's the 2nd red with beige cloth SD to surface in the last month. tell us all the details
|
#5
|
||||
|
||||
Quote:
I had a co-worker, John, that was a Chevrolet guy. However he always told me he wanted a early 2nd generation firebird. He had placed an ad in The Atlanta Advertiser for some Chevrolet parts he was selling. A guy named Scott happened to call about some of these parts and during their conversation John asked Scott if he knew of any Firebird's for sale. Scott happened to mention a red TA that had SD455 on the hood scoop. Apparently it was known to a few people at the time but no one had been able to purchase it. Scott did not know if it was a real SD455 car or not. Scott lived in the Athens, GA area. John's brother, Edward, also lived in the same area. Shortly after this conversation John and Edward were able to locate the car and also made contact with the owner. John pursued the car for some time but eventually lost interest. Finally I was on the hunt. Mike was the owner of the car. However the car sat on his friends, Larry, property. I could never get Mike on the phone. Larry was also very difficult to reach by phone and to be honest I was probably a nuisance to him. Over the years I made dozens of trips out there. Keep in mind it was usually a 4 hour round trip from where I live. Eventually I was able to make contact with Larry's son, James. James became an ally in my quest for this car. I almost gave up on this car a couple of times over the years. Seems there were too many obstacles in the way. However I got back on track after missing out on another car I had always wanted. Earlier this year James happened to reach out to me. His father Larry had recently passed away. He had been in touch with Mike and thought he was ready to part with the car. Within a few days the deal was made. Sometimes persistence pays off. |
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to 74SDformula For This Useful Post: | ||
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Great effort and happy ending.
How deep are you going to tackle the car ? Do you plan to sell it at some point |
#7
|
||||
|
||||
No plans to do anything with the car in the near future. Have too many projects as it is. It will just enjoy hanging out in my building with a few other Firebirds for now. Selling in the future is a distinct possibility as there is one more firebird I am pursuing. If that deal ever happens something would have to go. Where did your old '73 SD455 car end up?
|
#8
|
||||
|
||||
Lots of options on that car.
|
#9
|
||||
|
||||
Very cool!
Know any history on it? The Individual and the zone 50 is interesting. Possibly a high ranking Pontiac employee ordered it? (like Toth did on his) EDIT: looks like Rocky treed me!
__________________
John Wallace - johnta1 Pontiac Power RULES !!! www.wallaceracing.com Winner of Top Class at Pontiac Nationals, 2004 Cordova Winner of Quick 16 At Ames 2004 Pontiac Tripower Nats KRE's MR-1 - 1st 5 second Pontiac block ever! "Every man has a right to his own opinion, but no man has a right to be wrong in his facts." "People demand freedom of speech to make up for the freedom of thought which they avoid." – Socrates |
#10
|
||||
|
||||
A few more photos.
|
#11
|
||||
|
||||
Do you know it’s history? Or who Richard Hanson is?
Based on the invoice discount, it seems that it may have been used as a company car of some sort. Based on the ship date, it was released for sale after the 1974 model year production began. |
#12
|
||||
|
||||
Nicely optioned...
__________________
1978 Black & Gold T/A [complete 70 Ram Air III (carb to pan) PQ and 12 bolt], fully loaded, deluxe, WS6, T-Top car - 1972 Formula 455HO Ram Air numbers matching Julep Green - 1971 T/A 455, 320 CFM Eheads, RP cam, Doug's headers, Fuel injection, TKX 5 Spd. 12 Bolt 3.73, 4 wheel disc. All A/C cars |
#13
|
||||
|
||||
Either extended stay at the unfinished car lot, or a Pontiac internal car somehow, Zone car most likely to show off options.
Brass hat car no longer needed after the '74's were out. I am betting this car was NOT shipped. It was invoiced out at the last dealership it landed at, and they got to sell it. Have seen this before. Our dealership got a "overloaded " '78 T/A with miles on it from the Zone manager just as the '79's showed up. He left in a brand new overloaded "red bird" with the bill of lading so we wouldn't be billed. The Red Bird had a gold dash I remember as it was different for an Esprit. That car got a lot of attention after we set it up and it was out on the lawn for one day. The Dealer owner bought the used '78 and I never saw it again. |
#14
|
|||
|
|||
Very nice
|
#15
|
|||
|
|||
LOL! "Lots of work"??? In the northeast that would be considered "buff & wax".
Persistence definitely paid off for you. Nice piece. |
#16
|
||||
|
||||
Great you finally got it! I've been trying to get a car for about 16 years now.
|
#17
|
||||
|
||||
As opposed to a brass-hat car for Zone use, I'd guess that "ENG 3547" suggests that it was assigned to Pontiac engineering and assigned ID 3547. It's not uncommon to have such cars loaded with options. I'd love to learn more about its history.
|
#18
|
||||
|
||||
That is going to be a sweet car when done. Congrats!
__________________
1969 Judge, 4-speed, CR/Parchment, Quasi-Survivor, #'s match - under restoration |
#19
|
||||
|
||||
Love that day 2 look w/ Wheels & Tires. !!
|
#20
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
These SD cars didn't start leaving Norwood until mid-to-late June. October would be in-line after its 3 month tenure in Michigan. All the 50-001 cars so far have had PMD tie-ins in some capacity. Enoch Eley for example, was high up in accounting dept. There was also Toth and Goad What happened a lot was these guys were smart enough to get deep double discounts on basically new cars after some light departmental use. And had the pull or shoulder rub to get it done in harmony. To pull off a limited production car like the 73 SD, Hanson was probably deep in the know and well heeled in the chain of command. This invoice reflects discount for its use. For a PMD employee it would have had even an additional discount on top of that. Being from engineering doesn't exactly mean it was brutalized or anything. It could have just been a daily driver for a higher up in engineering. And they would just keep a log book on its drive-ability and behavior patterns etc. Hanson most likely picked the colors and content and dictated that info to the department ahead of time. There was a short window on these cars. Engineering would have been the best department to go through to have full flexibility of eligibility when the window was opened. That would be my best guess-timate overall right now. Not a concrete take it to the bank deal without more potential info. |
Reply |
|
|