1975 Pontiac Catalina Safari

Looks very clean. Starting bid seems quite reasonable. (Especially compared to the very comparable 1975 Catalina that a dealer in Florida has wanted over $12k for over a year.)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1975-Pontiac-Catalina-/292440768554?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368

 

Based on the size of the house you'd think he could spring for a better quality camera. Does look nice in the pictures.

 

The tint almost makes it look like he took the photos 34 years ago, hah.

I like the car, I'll just mention a few issues; interior plastic on the top left in both of these pictures seems to be cracked, do I see daylight through the first one? (I suppose it's typical of this era of GMs?)



It seems to be hanging down here:



I can't see the rear window channels very well from here. I'm wondering why they decided to rebuild the engine if it has such low mileage, though?

 

Currently bid to $6200. Reserve apparently met.

 

I don't know that we can assume either.

First, about the mileage, if it were really only the 36,000 shown, you'd think he'd be screaming it from the rooftops as that would be a significant selling point. But he makes exactly zero mention of the mileage. It could easily be 136,000. He's just listing what the odometer says, keeping quiet about it otherwise, and letting people draw their own conclusions, even if those conclusions are wrong. After all, if questioned about the mileage, he can always just say "I just posted what the odometer says. I never claimed it was 36,000, 136,000, or 236,000."

About the engine rebuild, what he says is this:

Most people, when talking about an engine being rebuilt, don't bother to mention that they put on new belts and hoses, too, because that goes without saying. I'm wondering if this car has had ONLY the belts and hoses replaced, and, along with a new carburetor, he's considering this to be a "rebuilt" engine. Because you're right. If the mileage really is only 36,000, there is no reason for a rebuild. The engine is hardly broken in. But if it's 136k, that's a different story.

You kind of have to read into this what he doesn't say as much as what he does say.

 

Well it's been pulled or canceled.

 

Maybe he sold it locally.

 

If it has 136,000 miles, hoses or belts would have been due, sooner or later. If a belt or hose has only 10,000 miles on it and still looks good, I wouldn't replace it, upon rebuilding the engine itself, unless the customer authorizes it. If it was my own vehicle, I wouldn't do it, in any case. If it only has 36,000 miles on it, the only reason to change either would be because of them dry-rotting. If he would only give a reason for why he changed them, we could determine if it's low mileaged or not

 

The engine at worst has had a respray. All the paint looks fresh and clean, despite the overspray on some of the fittings that wouldn't normally be on the engine when it was painted. It also has a VIR delete setup on it, which means the AC probably works. It's a super low option car in any event, which would be a hard sell except to the right buyer...

 

Yes, gone from eBay.

 

This one is on its way to Ohio.

 

How so? Do you know who got it?

 

Yes I talked to him today and he sent me a picture of it on the back of his rollback. I'm in the process of buying one of his other wagons.

 

Looked like a nice clamshell for the price.

 

Looked at this one in Ohio yesterday. Very nice wagon! He bought this one for $6500.