1973 Pontiac Safari - $2,800 - NY

Red and the seller says it is a daily driver. Thoughts? I'd like to get a wagon, Maybe this one and do an engine swap to diesel (Since the Fuel Economy in these cars is somewhere between 6 and 17)

http://chautauqua.craigslist.org/cto/4324237592.html

 

A good, running 455 is worth almost as much as he's asking for the car.
If you buy it, do what you want with it...but I would drive it just the way it is!
Sweet find, if it's as good as it looks!!
Good luck with the negotiations.

 

Have we seen this one before because it looks very familiar?

 

@ $2800 and with a 455 it's still cheaper at the end of the day than a newer car with better gas millage at many times the cost IMO, let alone the time, $, and effort of a diesel conversion.

 

I agree you can Buy alot of gas for the cost of a Diesel conversion, then you might get 25mpg, and with Deisel costing 80 cents a gallon more than Regular unleaded, I do not see any real cost savings.

Nice looking car, and a running 70-75 455 is worth at least $1500 late model 76's quit a bit less do to thinner castings. It could be a very good Buy. heck if I still had a running 400 in the Barn I would be tempted to buy it and swap it in, just to get the 455!

 

I agree with most of the feedback given already. A clamshell in this condition for that price is very "fair"; even if it is light on the options (manual tailgate?). If I still lived in the area, I'd grab it.

 

Thanks, Everyone. I am thinking of buying it. And I know a Diesel engine swap might be a bit costly, But I'm also going for distance-per-tank here so I can do more driving and less fueling. I read the average distance for these cars (Stock) is about 179 Miles, I'd like to make that over 300.

Also, This. Stock, The wagon is in the red area of the graph below. And driving it 120k miles? Well that's a lot of money (That I could use for something else.) Oh and the thought of running it as a diesel on vegetable oil is also amusing.

 

Looks good to me. Actually priced fair if it's what it looks like.

 

If this wagon looks familiar than here is where I believe you might have seen her before.

http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21662

 

I cannot believe that people ever bought a car that had a cruising range of less that 200 miles. Also, if you add overdrive, you automatically gain mileage because the revs drop big time. Do a good exhaust, and you gain more. I would think that 300 miles to a fill, on the highway, should be very easy to achieve. Given the torque of the Pontiac 455, I would expect that more still could be found in this car, too.

 

I tend to agree that there are some things that can be done to increase mileage; proper tire inflation, no excess weight, proper engine tuning and even changing the jets and/or metering rods in the Q-jet. I had a '72 Colony Park with a 429 V8 that I was continually experimenting with different metering rods. With some tinkering I was able to increase my around-town gas mileage from 7 MPG to 11 MPG without effecting drivability and without touching anything else. If I super-tuned the engine and did a few other things I'm certain that would have increased further. It's quite possible that I could have reached the 300 highway mile range threshold.

As for gearing, I found a calculator that shows a real lazy engine speed of 2075 RPM's at 60 MPH with a tire size of 235/75/15 and rear gear ratio of what I suspect is 2.93. If this wagon has the 2.73 than RPM's drop another 100.

Chris

 

Thanks, It's useful information. And, When I said I read this model year of wagon had a range of about 179, I wasn't referring to the Pontiacs but the Buicks or Chevies. So now that's cleared up; I had made an error.

Also, I misread it; The page for the 1973 Caprice Estate (454 Engine) read "Average range of about 194 miles." And, The 1973 Buick Estate page says "Average estimate of about 190 miles." It does depend in part on how the car's driven. And those are also just numbers to give an idea of the general fuel economy from stock, They don't necessarily represent what I would get straight from stock!

I also imagine if I stuck various engine heaters - Circulating coolant heater, Transmission pan heater, Oil pan heater, Maybe more - That would be of use too because Hypermilers do that and it makes a noticeable difference having an engine with fluid that is already warm as opposed to cold, Even in the summer. Just plug in to a timer, And there - Warm engine in the morning or whenever. Also, LRR (Low Rolling Resistance) Tires may help give 2 more MPG. I don't recommend LRR tires for winter use though! I'd rather not drive it in the winter in case you're wondering, As I currently reside in Pennsylvania.

Here are pages for reference where I got the fuel economy info. If you check the Chevy page, You have to scroll down a bit since the first car on the list has the smaller 400 engine.

http://www.automobile-catalog.com/m...t_8gen/full-size_caprice_2gen_wagon/1973.html

http://www.automobile-catalog.com/make/buick/full-size_buick_7gen/le_sabre_4gen_wagon/1973.html

Oh, And I think it would be of safety measure to check all the wiring in the car to prevent fire, Yes? I heard of that 1970s wagon in England or the United Kingdom that caught on fire.

 

Helpful advice, Thanks!

- Austin

 

Mike, you have to keep in mind that in the early 70's most people did not regularly drive the distances we to today. And until Oct 1973 gas was cheap, and Oct 73 was in the 1974 Model year so until the 1974's came out it wasn't that big a deal.

Also add in the very inefficient early emission systems effect on MPG, and the fact that the 71-76 Clamshells are probably the heaviest mass produced cars that the industry ever made, with the loaded Buick and Olds version nearly 3 tons, they may be the worst example out there for range.

The only thing I ever owned that may have been worse was my 1975 Jeep CJ5, 304 V-8, full time 4wd, 3.90 axles, and a 12 gallon gas tank!!!!! I averaged 9.5 MPG with it, I carried 2 US Army Gas cans on the rear bumper for a reason!!!!! Its a good thing I almost always ran into things with it, and I was never rear ended!!!! The things I used to do as a Youngster!

 

Cool, I learn something every day. Thanks.

Austin