Said to have been put into storage 39 years ago, this 1963 Pontiac Starfire was recently pulled from its slumber and given what sounds like a thorough once-over to get it back on the road. Said to be ready for daily-driver duty, it’s for sale here on Craigslist near Norfolk, VA, with a reduced asking price of $12,500.
When it was first introduced as a separate model in 1961, the Starfire was Oldsmobile’s highest-priced model due to its long list of standard features, including power steering and brakes and a center console with a floor-mounted shifter for the automatic. This example, from the third year of production, would have been equipped with a 330 horsepower, 394ci V8 engine from the factory.
According to the seller, the car has had a thorough mechanical refresh since being pulled from storage, including new exhaust, fluids, tires, cooling system, valve seals and fuel pump, all of which make sense for a car that was in storage for nearly four decades. The Starfire’s interior appears to be in great shape given the car’s age, but the paint on the exterior looks like it could stand to be freshened up. The car is said to have been driven 400 miles since being pulled from storage and serviced, so it’s had a pretty good shakedown to identify any remaining mechanical issues.
The seller says this is a survivor car, having had only one owner and 93,000 miles put on it since new. If title history is available, it should be possible to verify these claims, but the car does look the part. The seller doesn’t elaborate as to why the car was first put into storage, and I still don’t understand why owners sometimes seem to stow cars away and forget about them, but I can’t argue with the practice if it provides us with clean, unmolested cars from years ago.
So,which is it?Oldsmobile or Pontiac?
I’d say Oldsmobile.
Yup, angliagt, it’s an Olds – and a really nice one, at that.
I’d suggest that the buyer take a closer look at the rust situation before handing over one’s hard-earned cash.
A buddy of mine used to cruise around SoCal in one when he got his driver’s license some 50 years ago. It was his mother’s car…
That interior looks great, I’d paint it, update the brakes, and add vintage A/C then drive it proudly.
The thought of ever having to replace that rear glass on these always made me cringe. Otherwise, looks like a fun cruiser for someone who prefers these over the 61 or 62.
These are some good looking cars and they had a 345HP 394 CI which was standard in the Starfire. The writer might have been thinking about the Pontiac Grand Prix of that year which was a real head turner.
These were just as nice as all the other GM “Gentlemen’s Cruisers”. Grand Prix, Riviera, right on the heels of a T-Bird. My old man had a ’63 Ninety Eight, 4 door, but had the same motor, the 394 with “Ultra High Compression”. I remember the old man doing the “Italian Tuneup” with it ( holding it to the floor in neutral until it cleared out) It was also the car with the green “cold light”, which went out with a “plink”, and we could finally turn the heater on. It was a tank.
It didn’t sell as well as the other cruisers did,but this car is one of my favorites on BF.
Beautiful! I’ve owned multiple 60’s Pontiac’s, and several Buick’s from that era, but never an Oldsmobile. Of the 60’s Olds, the Starfire as at the top of my wishlist! The 61-63’s were the best years, IMHO, with 62 being the most beautiful. A couple years back I drove to the SF Bay Area to look at a 63 convertible for sale, also recently brought out of longtime storage. But the seller hadn’t done all the mechanical refresh work that today’s seller had done, and there were just too many unknowns, so I passed. Still wonder if I did the right thing! Red with a tattered white top, and that beautiful red interior. Someday!
Like what already has been mentioned, I’d take a very close look at this one, inspecting for hidden (and not so hidden!) rust issues. She’s a beauty though!
Buddy had a 61 with a 394 pretty Badd Ass
Pretty car, I wouldn’t hesitate to buy this one, if I was in the market for one, but I did like the 62 the most of all the Starfires. What I prefer in the 62 over the 63, is the design of the tail. I thought the styling of the interiors was beautiful for all these cars.
The 394 is a special engine to me, I swapped a 394, tranny, and rearend, into a 1953 Mercury 1/2 ton, and that engine/transmission combo was inspirational.
Owned a 62 one time about three wives back. Really liked that car, the 62 is still my favorite. The car was white Ext. Red int. 394 engine th400 trans. It was loaded, p/s, p/b, p/windows, automatic headlight dimmer, cruise control, A/C. It was a boat, but what a cruiser. Very comfortable.
Hmm, measuring time via ex-wives,,,interesting,,
usually they are put away due to a death of a husband
Yep, it’s how we got our 1950 Packard.
My dad owned a 62 Olds 98 four door hardtop. White w/ red interior. Loaded , powerful, and beautiful.One of my favoritets