Some people buy one cool car in life, sell it too soon, and talk about it forever. Such was the case with a friend of mine and his mid-1970s Cosworth Vega, like the one shown here on ebay. If you are similar, and this happens to be your dream car, then grab up some money and hit the “bid” button right now. The car has sat at its opening number, just $500, for a few days. There are three days left to go as I write this. Note that the reserve has not been met. If you find the magic number, prepare to get to Commack, NY, to roll your prize away.
What will you be getting? A sporting little coupe that retains all of its original features. It does have 101,000 miles on the odometer, and the seller is realistic, saying that this is not a restored show car, but a drive-and-fix classic with upside for the right buyer. If you don’t mind kind of perished paint and rust at the bottoms of the doors, this could be a project worthy of parking in your garage while you fix it up. Before doing that, however, you might line up an information session with someone who understands the fuel injection system used to deliver the dead dinosaurs to the intake air, because the car, the seller says using varied descriptions, runs rich.
The Cosworth Vega is a classic turned out by Chevrolet after being dreamed up by John DeLorean. It was offered for only two model years, 1975 and 1976 and sold around 3500 units. Each one came serialized, the sequence number being engraved on a plaque which is affixed above the radio. The idea was that the car could compete with the best sporting offerings from the European manufacturers, like the BMW 2002 and the Alfa Romeo GTV. That never quite happened, though a niche following has existed for the Cosworth Vega from the get-go until now. The Vega itself, some will remember (and perhaps wish they hadn’t), was a compact car that came in a number of body styles. This Cosworth edition always reminded me of a miniaturized 1969-70 Mustang Sportsroof (fastback), its looks definitely recommending it.
How did these get along? Like the mini-GT car that they were. Using a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder that might gratify the modern collector when he or she reads the dash plaque, which boasts that the car has a “16 valve engine dual overhead cam.” To know that the top end was designed by Formula 1 supplier Cosworth adds to the provenance. Those engines, by the way, were hand-assembled. So if this is your thing, and you can find a way to make this make economic sense, then maybe this tatty around the edges mini-GT car is for you.
Yes these are cool, one bid now. I just think the demand for these are not strong.
Supply exceeds demand. There’s actually quite a few of these still out there. Probably 95% of the Vegas still on the road are Cosworths.