Bidding is quite active for this 1977 Chevy Monza Mirage, with the action bumping against $10K with the reserve unmet. The Monza Mirage is a rare bird, with just over 4,000 ever made and fewer than 30 remaining. They weren’t particularly fast but the custom bodykit, graphics and paint scheme definitely set it apart from other Monzas. This one is in North Carolina with not much time left in the listing here on eBay.
The flared rear fenders were a Mirage hallmark, created by Michigan Auto Techniques for GM. The body shows no damage of any kind, and this car looks shockingly similar to one that was sold out of my neck of the woods last year in North Smithfield, Rhode Island. The body panels are said to be hard to come by, so buying one without any damage to the kit is a wise move. The seller notes that the Monza has had one repaint since new.
The interior is the one sticking point from identifying this car as the one that sold last year. It had a red vinyl interior, but I suppose it’s possible the seats were re-done in the new owner’s care; they do appear quite fresh. Regardless, the Monza Mirage certainly tried to appear racy and performance-minded despite not adding much in the way of added equipment under the hood or in the suspension. Power came from a 305 V8, paired to an automatic transmission in this instance.
The engine bay is probably the biggest disappointment, looking quite tired with lots of visible surface rust. This always makes me wonder how often the car was stored wet, or whether the repaint ending up hiding some ugliness in the body. Regardless, the fan shroud and valve covers should absolutely be repainted by the next owner to keep with the appearances of the exterior. Would any of you throw down some cash for this rare Monza Mirage?
While I hate silly catch phrases (especially ones used by politicians) but, if there ever was a visual for the phrase, “lipstick on a pig”, this would have to be it. My ex-wife had a ’77 Monza just like this ( minus the Mirage part) so I remember when these came out.This was a so-so car, plenty of power, but miserable in all other respects, and these add-ons didn’t cut it. It’s rare, all right.
There’s a reason they were rare. How does the seller know there are only 30 left?
I was just about to ask that same question, haha! Where does that number come from? I would think with a car like this, which was exclusive, there’d be a hell of a lot more than 30 left.
If it’s based on DMV registration numbers, then that doesn’t mean anything as a lot of these cars were likely salted away at various points in time, some probably since new or near-new. I bet with this price, we will see about one third of the “remaining” cars come to market very soon.
It can’t be based on DMV registration numbers.
The VIN does not say which cars were Mirage models.
We know how many were manufactured and have good knowledge of many exist because there is a club and one of the club members has a registration site for the Monza Mirage. The cars also came with a Series number sticker.
Replace the 305 with a 350….I seem to recall that the 350 was available for these…’76,’77, as was a 4 speed. I’ve always liked them. It should sell for quite a bit. As for me, I might be able to afford the one on the dash…..maybe.
If I remember correctly the 350 was only available in California because it was a cleaner EPA engine. For the money I will keep my Cosworth
The 350 V8 was a “one-year” only engine that appeared ONLY on cars made for California. It was used because it was already approved to meet the CA smog regulations of the time and the 305 had not yet been CA smog certified. The 350 could also be ordered in CA with the optional 4-bbl carb. The Mirages also were also a “one-year” only car for 1977. Therefore, the car cannot be restored to period condition with a 350 engine. Otherwise, yes, a 350 or 400 will bolt right in and provide a ton of fun.
That’s what I thought but couldn’t remember what year the 350 was available. I would keep the car original or keep the numbers matching engine to replace later while having fun with a healthy 383 LOL
These IMSA or TransAm look cars are certainly classics of the era, and the Mirage is one of the better looking attempts of the kind. If this were a manual gearbox equipped example, without the A/C, it would be a worthwhile project. Extremely easy to install a proper performance SBC, some sidepipe headers, reupholster, and have a fun little car. Save the stock bits, just in case.
Why reupholster it?
The Monza Mirage could be ordered with Red, White or Black interiors.
Best looking Monza Chevy produced.The looks of the IMSA cars was great.Just keep stock and enjoy.
With all the barn finds we see coming out the the woodwork, how does anybody know how many of anything are left?
You can’t go by registration records anymore as a lot of people just have a car in the garage with no current registration on it.
Also, does the VIN on this car show it is in fact a Mirage?
Who is going to make a Mirage copy? The value is just not there. No financial incentive.
Miguel – We know how many were manufactured and have good knowledge of how many exist because there is a club and one of the club members has a registration site for the Monza Mirage. The cars also came with a Series number sticker. The history of these cars, as well as, most 1st and 2nd gen H-Body cars. (H-Body.org) (HBOA) (CVOA)
That’s what’s great about having a solid club support behind you. The CVOA keeps track of the dash numbers of the Cosworths and I was happy to find out only about 100 were painted code 78 orange like my survivor. With only a little more than 3500 made we think there are only around 700-800 left running.
So you know how many are registered with the club, not how many are left.
Thanks for clarifying that.
Every time a Cosworth is advertised, sold or found scrapped etc the club makes note of it. This has been going on for decades tracking them down. There are very few of the 3500 not accounted for so we know more than the ones registered with the club. The CVOA is a much more serious club than most car clubs. They even have companies do small runs of parts no longer available. This is a car that has a production number plate on the dash that makes it easier to keep track of them.
I prefer the Anglia he has for sale! Funny enough it also looks like one I saw for sale last year but with a different interior…
90% of what appears on this site is a mirage. The sellers see what no one else can.
I thought the Monza,s came with a 263 V8.
’75 and ’76 Monza’s had the 262 V8 (in Cal. apparently, you could get the 305 in ’76) In ’77, the 305 replaced the 262 for the rest of the country.
Gregory Mason – You were close. The Monza’s could be had with a 4, 6 or 8 cylinder engine. One of those in 1975 was a 262 c. i. v8 engine. It only lasted one or 2 years. It was replaced with a 305 c. i. V8 engine. In 1980, the last year for the 2nd gen H-Body cars, the 305 V8 engine option was dropped.
To my knowledge the Vega was never available from the factory with any V-8. Baldwin Motion Motors did offer a Vega with I think a sbc and bbc.
You are correct the Vega was 140 or 122 (Cosworth) but late Vega wagons 1978-80 came with V6 but were labeled as Monzas. The Monza was built on the same line and many parts were the same as the Vega/Astre cars. I stuffed a V8 in my 74 GT that had a complete IMSA style body package with much wider fenders than the Mirage
that looks like it may be the Hooker IMSA body kit i had on the alum Vega i had in the late 80’s/early 90’s.
sharp!
Paul, is that pic your old 74GT? Beautiful Vega if so! Do you by chance know the manufacturer/model of the wheels on it? I have a set that look like them I would like to restore and find centers for to put on my 83 Capri RS. They’re awesome looking wheels I love the 80’s custom vibe they give off.
I’ve got 17×9 Steeda 5 stars on the car now, and it just looks too 90’s. The ones I have are 15×8 4lug fox body pattern.
Now the monza! I have never seen this package on one before. When I was a little kid in the mid 80’s my uncle had a 76, and I thought it was the coolest car ever. My 6yr old mind saw it as a mini camaro. He was constantly tearing ass around the neighborhood with it peeling out everywhere which I thought was badass. I didn’t care that he was only taking it out when he was wasted mid day because he had more OUI’s than forward gears and almost ran me and my friends over several times. He was running from Buford T Justice and those glasspacks sounded awesome! It was dark green with a black interior and a 262 4 speed. Me and my brother would sit in it and take turns pretending we were race car drivers whenever he got the misfortune of having to watch us. Whenever he caught us he’d tell us to “go lay in the road and count mufflers”, but we kept doing it. He was a mopar guy, and we knew to stay away from those or ELSE! So it was between the monza, a gold 4dr granada, and some subie’s for us to play in. So obviously it was the monza when we weren’t throwing around asbestos tile or sniffing bondo.
There was one fine summer day he was haggling with a friend over his 76 I think granada. His friend needed an engine and tranny for his 69 mach 1, and the granada happened to have a 351w, a ford 9″ with discs, and I believe a C4. His buddy wasn’t real enthusiastic about it being it was a gold 4dr granada. So my uncle told him to jump in the monza and try to beat him around the block. So his buddy takes off in the monza sideways with a nice clutch drop, and my uncle pulls off the lawn in the granada with tires spinning and sparks flying [rear tires were way down to the steel belts]. I stand at the end of the driveway and hear tires squealing and that 262 roaring with the cherry bombs for a few mins until I see that grandma mobile come around a 90 degree corner sideways onto someones lawn, right rear tire flapping in the breeze, and then heading towards me! As he’s pulling onto his lawn I hear/see the monza coming around the corner right behind, and thankfully a lot more in control. As he’s pulling the monza in the driveway I see some smoke coming from the front of it and an awful stench. The damn front brakes were on fire! They both start pouring their beers on it and yell for my brother and I to go get a bucket of water from the hose. We eventually got the fire out, but the hoses melted or something. So it cost him his front brakes, but his buddy bought that granada!
A week or so later there was another monza in the side yard, but this one was baby blue, had buick emblems, and had been rolled. Apparently another friend had crashed it a few nights prior, and gave it to him for parts. He stripped that and it was gone shortly later. The green 76 monza sat up on cinder blocks as that summer came to an end, and my parents told me my uncle had moved back to Florida [that was code for he’s in prison…again]. That was the last I saw of the monza, and my uncle for 3 years. I don’t think I saw another monza for at least 10 years after that. I did see a red starfire once or twice though.
Capriest the wheels on the Hooker Vega were American Racing, not sure the name but they were 15×8.5 with 255-50 and 235-50 BFG T/A tires circa 1980s
Vega duh! Talking about a Monza, my bad everyone I was looking at theV-8 Vega in the previous add.
Reminiscent of the Buick Roadhawk. Those plastic panels used to warp so bad from the sun that the only way to fix them was to urethane them to the body.
DeKon Monza wannabe?
Nope.
I would rather have the Gremlin behind it
Looks a lot like the Opel Mantra? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opel_Manta#/media/File%3AOpel_Manta_arriving_Schaffen-Diest_in_2017.jpg
Who do you think owned Opal? GM.
They did indeed. Very similar?
Many people own Opals. It is a semi precious stone.
GM owned Opel, however.
What I remember about these cars is the pain it was to get sparkplugs out of the rear cylinders. Quite a few of them got “modified” wheel liners because of it. But underneath it all, its still a Vega. And it drove like one — albeit an overweight one.
The Vega GT would handle better than the V8 Monza because they were too nose heavy. My 76 Cosworth Vega will out handle all the cars in it’s class of the day. In fact the Cosworth won Car & Drivers 10 best Sports Cars class in 76.
Nothing about it being parked next to a Gremlin X???
Crazy looking collection.
Usually smart to do the motor before paint…
That interior is original, RPO Code 07V on the trim tag verifies it as such (white with Firethorn accent) so it is not the other Mirage with the all-red interior mentioned above. Great looking car, till you open the hood. Confusing to see the engine bay so badly ignored while the rest of the car looks new.
It’s funny how certain aspects of a particular car stick in one’s memory. I remember the V8 Monza for two reasons.
The Tubes, singing “What do you want from life?” Perhaps a “New Monza?”
Also lodged in my memory is the “fact” that the engine needed to be hoisted to replace at least one spark plug. Back then, plugs were scheduled for replacement at early intervals (15,000-18,000 miles?).
People that I assumed much smarter than I told me about the “spark plug issue” waay back in the day. Were they misinformed, and am I even crazier for believing such scuttlebutt?
Ha! I remember the Tubes. To be clear, only the 262 needed to be lifted off it’s mounts, the 305 that was in my ex-wifes car, I didn’t have to that. Took every swivel and extension I had, however.
A hot SBC and a 4 speed would twist this car up like a pretzel. JS
I would take one without the body kit.
To me they looked awful when they came out with that tacked on crap.
Take a clean, interesting design and slap go faster junk on it was the mantra of the industry in the 70s though.
Turn that 115 HP into 400 with plastic pieces.