What I wouldn’t give for a nice, big storage building like the one this 1979 Pontiac Bonneville Coupe is parked in. High and dry, with more than enough room for all kinds of toys. This Bonneville Coupe is listed here on Facebook Marketplace in Milaca, Minnesota, and they’re asking $4,500. Here is the original listing. I couldn’t pass this one up when I saw it. Hopefully, it leads to some good discussions and memories about GM’s smaller B-body cars.
We’ve only seen four 1979 Pontiac Bonnevilles here on Barn Finds over the years: a Safari Wagon, a four-door Brougham, a Brougham Coupe, and a Bonneville sedan. This is the first “regular” (non-Brougham) Coupe version, and it looked so Barn Find’y that I couldn’t pass it up. I agree about the front tires needing to be white walls to match the rear, but the next owner can tackle that. It doesn’t appear that there’s a lot of work to do otherwise, at least cosmetically.
The seller gives us more photos than a lot of sellers do, so thanks to them for that. We know that it’s sometimes not too convenient to drag a vehicle out of storage to take photos, even though this one appears to have its battery, but maybe it isn’t charged, or who knows the reason. As always, more is better, and it would have been great to see inside the trunk and see a couple of underside photos, if this is really a Minnesota car.
The sixth-generation Bonneville was made for model years 1977 through 1981, and they were part of GM’s B-body redesign. Much smaller and lighter, they were still arguably nice, luxurious, quiet cars, and this one looks nice overall. Not seeing power windows on a luxury car still draws my eye, but this was the era when people could somehow still summon up the strength to roll up their own windows. The velour seats look good both front and rear, with maybe some wear on the driver’s side. I’m assuming the steering wheel cover is preserving a nice wheel rather than covering up any issues, but we don’t know.
This Bonneville has 108,000 miles, or just 2,300 miles a year. The engine is a 301-cu.in. OHV V8 with 130 horsepower and 245 lb-ft of torque, and it passes through a Turbo-Hydramatic transmission to the rear wheels. They say there is “NO RUST” (best words ever), and there haven’t been any accidents involving this two-door beauty. I can’t imagine going wrong with this Bonneville Coupe for $4,500. Have any of you owned one from this era?
Wow. A ’79 Bonneville coupe like this is very few and far between. I’d probably go for all 4 white walls if it were mine. I went to school with a kid with a 4 door Bonneville the same age as this, also with a 301. I remember the 301 did a bit better than the Olds 260 in my Delta 88. Hope this gets preserved. Its a good price.
The crushed velour interiors they put in these GM full size models were very comfortable. ( I was looking a second time at the interior photos and that popped into my head).
Comfortable is the middle name of these cars Dave. 👍 👍
Many people will consider it blasphemy, but in addition to whitewalls all the way around, it also needs the fender skirts this car would have come with.
The dealership I worked for 47 years ago sold lots of Bonnevilles and Catalinas with the 301. The two-tone paint adds a bit of class to it too. I miss Pontiac!
I completely agree rmward, it needs the fender skirts. I’d be willing to bet they’re around there somewhere.
Count me as someone who’d put on chrome wheelarch moldings to match the front ones. The fender skirts worked on the fat ’71-6s but ruin the design here.
I had a ’77 Catalina also with the 301.I miss it,rode really good!
I’ll go the other direction and say 4 black walls would look cool as. For some reason this era and style has really grown on me. I blame Coldwar Motors and the GCFCE. I do love a skirt too.
That looks very much like the Bonneville my wife drove. I gave that car to my dad after I bought a Buick Park Ave, and he drove it for a while, then it was traded to Fred Beans in Doylestown when he bought a Buick Regal. It could be the same car, but I doubt it. If it is the same car, the fender skirts were in the trunk because I found them to be a PIA during inspections.
Our car had been hit in a satellite college campus, and the whole car was repainted, which would have been about 1994. The painter used high quality paint, so it wouldn’t surprise me that it still looks good or that this is even the same car. Possible, not probable.
’77 (no posi-offered) & ’78 (final year) B09-optioned Catalina Freeway Enforcer police vehicles were WAY under-represented in law enforcement. They deserved many more accolades than they were given…whether they were powered by Pontiac’s own 400 or equipped w/the Olds 403. In the LeMans A-body B09 package they were a VERY respected & well-liked cop car for Milwaukee, WI.’s PD.
pass pig 301 engine
This is the second Pontiac here from Milaca, Mn. The first one was a Lemans at a dealer. Scotty knows that’s some pretty good recreation country.
Kind of odd that there’s a power seat but other than steering & brakes, that’s it. Also the rear skirts appear to be missing if what I’m seeing inside the rear fender well is a bracket for them. I thought maybe the non-Brougham Pontiacs didn’t have them, but pics are a little confusing; some non-Broughams have them, some don’t.
Not a bad car, otherwise.
This is the second Pontiac here from Milaca, Mn. The first one was a Lemans at a dealer. Scotty knows that’s some pretty good recreation country.
Kind of odd that there’s a power seat but other than steering & brakes, that’s it. Also the rear skirts appear to be missing if what I’m seeing inside the rear fender well is a bracket for them. I thought maybe the non-Brougham Pontiacs didn’t have them, but pics are a little confusing; some non-Broughams have them, some don’t.
Not a bad car, otherwise.
That color scheme must have been popular in ’79. My parents had a Plymouth Horizon painted exactly the same way.
Listing update: this one has been removed, so someone must have grabbed it.