The 1976-80 Sunbird was Pontiac’s version of the Chevrolet Monza. It used the same GM H-body platform which had roots in the 1970s ill-fated Chevy Vega. The seller offers a 1980 notchback coupe, though a hatchback/fastback version was also available which I happened to purchase new in the same color. Located in Burnaby, British Columbia, this project Pontiac has been off the road for 10 years and is available at the cheap wheels price of $1,000 here on craigslist. Barn Finder Tony Primo dug this tip up for us.
Over five model years, Pontiac produced nearly a half-million first-generation Sunbirds. But when was the last time you saw one of these tooling around? They were cheap cars but without many of the problems that haunted Vega owners. For one, the aluminum-block inline-4 was replaced by Pontiac’s “Iron Duke” 151 cubic inch I-4 which was a decent motor, at least in the Sunbird I had for six years. Mine had an automatic transmission like the seller’s car, meaning it was as slow as a snail off the line but got decent gas mileage for the day.
We’re told this sub-compact was running when it was parked a decade ago. But it likely doesn’t move now, and the missing gas cap suggests things may be afoul within the fuel delivery system. The body and paint look okay for the surroundings, though the seller had floor pans he/she intended to install but declining health prevented that effort (we don’t know if they’re still around to go with the sale).
The seller is moving, so the car has to go. A Sunbird like this is not at the top of most folks’ restoration lists. If you can get it going again, maybe it would be a decent car for short hops. Or serve as a parts car as the seller suggests. For $1,000, can you really go wrong? Many of the parts should be interchangeable with its GM siblings like the Monza or Buick Skyhawk.
Dixon have you got any pics of your Bird when it was brand new ?
These were sharp looking cars in notchback or hatch.
The original, 1976 Sunbird used the Vega 140. The brochure seemed almost apologetic, detailing the extended warranty that applied to these engines.
I bought a new 1980 Sunbird fastback, blue with black interior, V6 4speed. I put on the back and side window louvers which looked very cool in black. Was a great car for me and gave no problems. The V6 was a peppy little thing and with the 4 speed was a blast to drive. Its one of those ” I wish I still had it”.
I bought a ’79 Sunbird Sport new in’79. IRON DUKE with a 4 speed. It was a great commuting auto, great gas mileage and had an 18 gallon tank. I sort of miss it.
I don’t know what scrap value is in Canada but that’s what I say you should do with it. Or give it to Bad Chad and let him turn it into something cool if didn’t run away poking his eyes out with a fork
We had one almost identical to this except ours had the 4-speed manual. I took my drivers test in it. Parked outside in Chicago winters, it never failed to start right up, great on gas, fantastic getting in and around the city. We had it for ten years and I don’t remember my folks having anything done besides basic maintenance. I played upright bass and could fit it in there if I put the seat back and stuck the neck out the passenger window.
The only thing that started happening was that the doors, which were pretty heavy, started sagging and not closing properly. We went from this to a Mercury Sable. I kinda miss this car!
Years ago went on a road trip in one of these that a friend owned. It was my turn to drive during the night. Was in the Great Smokey Mountains in Tennessee. I was pretty sleepy and accidentally pushed my right foot between the brake pedal and the gas pedal. Started trying to brake while heading downhill. Of course it didn’t work as my foot was pushing down on the floor board doing nothing. Thought the brakes had failed until the fog in my head cleared and I realized my foot was between the pedals. Thankfully I didn’t fall completely asleep at the wheel.
Stop driving…please then see a doctor and have your fog removed!
Most of these were eaten by the dreaded “tin worm” and exist only in our memories. The notchback was supposed to compete with the Ford Mustang II “Ghia” trim level, while the fastback was the competitor to the Mustang II fastback. I like the styling of the fastback versions better, but the notchback offers more rear seat headroom.
This one looks like the paint might come back after a good “cut & buff” with some polishing compound, but the fact that the previous owner bought new floorpans to install is a cause for concern. Despite this, for one kilobuck ($1k), how can you go wrong? Especially if the new floorpans come with it, LOL! Spend another $1k on the brakes, suspension and fuel system, and drive the wheels off of it! Add a modern multi-valve four cylinder, a V6 or V8, and make it a restomod!
That would have been the “Durabilt 140.” (2300 cc is 140 cubic inches)
The heads were modified for better cooling. A reingineered head gasket, which I believe was stainless steel as originally specified for Job 1, was installed, and a proper radiator that could maintain coolant temperatures in the specified range was installed. Lots of upgrades that should have been present in the 1971 Vega.
Originally, only a fastback version was planned, powered by GM’s Wankel. It was to compete with the Mustang II, Toyota Celica, and even the Datsun 240Z. After the fuel crisis of 1973, the Wankel was cancelled because of poor fuel economy and difficulty meeting emissions regulations.
When the Vega program became toxic, the two door coupés were quickly rushed into production to fill a gap in Chevrolet’s line up. The program was expanded to include all of GM’s divisions except Cadillac in order to put more small, fuel efficient cars into the showrooms
These were decent cars, finally.
They make engine swap kits for these for SBC. It could be a FUN car!
I had a 76 Sunbird that I put a 283 out of a 64 Chevy Impala in it. Doing the math, it would do 165 mph.
Perfect candidate for a 350. Bolts right in.
According to Wikipedia,these came from the factory with up to a 305, so I’m not surprised a 350 is a bolt-in swap. If a 350 will fit, why not a 383, which is just a 350 with a stroker crank in it! I’m from the Tim “The Tool Man” Taylor school of Engineering: “More Power!”, LOL!
If you put the V8 in it, don’t forget to get the recall kit with the rubber plugs to plug the holes in the wheel wells you’ll have to drill to access the rear spark plugs, especially if don’t want to unbolt the motor mounts and jack up the engine to change the back two (2) spark plugs, LOL!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac_Sunbird
I’m with everyone on the 350 swap and I’ve always likes the styling. I read the craigslist ad twice and didn’t see any mention of a rotted floorpan?
CT Dave
From the original Craigslist ad: “Collector item. I had pans to restore it, but didn’t happen due to health reasons.”. At first glance, one could think the seller meant he had replacement floor pans, but upon further reflection, it could just be a typo, and he meant he had “PLANS to restore it…”. I’m guessing that a typo is the more logical explanation, but either way, some pictures of the underside would be nice.
If criminals were sentenced to driving Sunbirds,we would see a tremendous decrease in crime