I bought an '80 monza new. Piece of crap. Twisted it during the first oil change using the stock jack to lift it. Took an hour to get the factory installed oil filter off. Iron duke w/ 4spd got 18 mpg. Every 18000 miles, the clutch cable would break because the cable wasn't braided. I literally kept a spare cable in the trunk. Ate tires every 15000 (goodyear tiempo tires 40000 mile rated ... when all season tires were brand new). Had a friend who was an alignment specialist hated it. Spent 1.5 hrs trying to align it without success. He owned a vega before a 260 Z. I bought the monza as a daily driver to park my '69 mach 1 428 cj 4spd I'd rebuilt. That monza made me wish I still had my '71 pinto. Those cars were the best for pushing americans to buy reliable asian imports. At least, the non-domestic brand loyalist. Gladly traded it in for an '83 turbo t-bird 5 spd. The good old days ... t-bird as a daily and the mach 1 for you know ... Had a friend with a v8 monza spider. Stock engine twisted the body. Chaining the engine probably helped lol.
@D Beelee we never had any trouble with my dad's '77 Sunbird other than a surprise broken ball joint. It had the duke and a manual as well. I had a girlfriend with a Monza that had clutch cable problems, thought. I know that was an issue. I bet the Turbo Coupe was a nice upgrade. :) Thanks for the comment!
For me at least, I think the Starfire and the other H-bodies were so common, I didn't really appreciate how good looking of a design they really were. Thanks for watching!
Absolutely loved my 1979 Firenza. The 305/4 spd combo was very quick for its time. Never lost to a Mustang of similar time frame. Probably one of the most comfortable seats & cockpit of any car I've owned. Thank you Oldsmobile! Excellent car for its time given the emissions control. Had a 283/350 HP ready on a stand to put in it, but found out the Torque Arm was already breaking the two bolts hold the arm to the front of the pig. Decided if it couldn't handle
@periguin that sounds pretty awesome. I have wanted one for a while. I'm kind of an Oldsmobile guy, so it was a nice addition to my collection. Thanks for the comment and for watching!
The Starfire actually started out as a name tacked onto the 98 convertible in the 50s, signifying nohting more than that it was a 98 convert. The first real run as a stand alone name was 61-66, when it was a range topper (except in 66 when it was signifcantly decontented and below both the 98 the Toro). Through 1964, it was considerably more than the 98 and had better trim and a slight bump in horsepower. The compact Olds mentioned was the F-85, with the 2 year only turbocharged version being the Jetfire. After that of course we got H body seen here, starting in 75. You could get the 305 in a Monza too, but not the Sunbird or Skyhawk.
My grandad had a Jetfire. I wish I had that. There was supposedly one V8 Skyhawk built, and about 1400 V8 Sunbirds. Lots of great data here: monza.homestead.com/Production.html Thanks for the information and the comment!
I brought home a 1998 civic this summer. My 7 year old son seemed roll the window up. He was amazed. He talked about the manual windows for a couple weeks. He told everyone he seen. It was pretty funny.
They sold a ton of the Buick Skyhawks and Olds Starfires. These were ‘sporty cars’, not ‘sports cars’ or Muscle cars’. The Buick v6 was the best fit for these cars. The right amount of power and torque with relatively light weight. The 4.3, 5.0 and 5.7 v8s made these pretty good runners for the time. The upgraded bigger brakes that came along in 1977 were a huge improvement. With the quick variable ratio power steering, these were pretty nimble steering wise. The seats were pretty comfortable. And the hatch backs were quite usable for trunk space. These were squirrelly in the back end. That’s part of what made them fun to drive. The v8 with the 4 speed transmission drove as good if not better than the equivalent period Nissan 300z. I owned 2 v8 monzas. A ‘75 2+2 4.3 v8 with a 4 speed manual and a ‘78 Monza Spyder Z32/Z34 packages with a 5.0 v8 and turbo 350 automatic. The 75 was a hoot to drive, but the 78 was a much better car reliability wise and had a lot better brakes. (Vented vs solid front rotors, and bigger, better functioning rear drum brakes.) the steering ratio was slowed down on the 78 with a bigger diameter steering wheel, the spring rates changed and the rear track bar redesigned.) the changes dulled the steering responsiveness, but substantially improved braking performance.
I bought a 76 Starfire GT in the 1983. It was the Buick V6 with automatic. Spent many days carving the curvy back roads! The Tranny went just after winter. A friend of mine unlucky Wrecked his Chevelle with a modified 307 in it. Now I Had a Drag Racer! Keep in mind that at that time?! Most new muscle care were still around 150-175 horsepower. I had around 325! What a Sleeper!! Back then as a teenager! What was a unibody and what is Bracing? Twisted that Beautiful car to Death! Wouldn't mind owning Another! Thanks For the Memory! Nice Video
I had a black Firenza. I tossed the 305 and put in a 400. The TH-350 had a shift kit and would break the rear transmission mount if I nailed it. One of the fastest cars I've ever driven, even compared to my 400hp C6 Vette. I sure do miss it. A couple add ons: it's transmission torque arm was later used on 3rd and 4th gen Camaros. It also shared it's side view mirrors with second gen Camaros, and many more cars. I always believed that GM didn't provide a 350 engine factory option because it would've beat same year Corvette.
They did offer the 350 one year and California only I believe it was 78. If I'm not mistaken.ive seen a few on yoitube one was in decent shape and dude was just taking it all apart in the name of weight savings for racing I of course did not agree with his ideas lol
They made 350 in California , their was 3 of them that left the factory with a 4 barrel, very rare. The 350 had like less then 100 Horsepower, I think the 305 had more horsepower. The weak link was them 7.5 torque arm rear end. The automatic transmission wasn't a turbo 350 it was a Turbo 250 if you read the manual. They also had some 5 speeds but only behind a V6. The New Camaros were like it's older brother, had all the same features including the rear lenses.
Thank you so much for posting your Forenza I had a Forenza when I lived in Kentucky stationed at Fort Knox and I loved that car ironically I think I was shifting it way too hard because my clutch pedal broke from the column and I never was able to get that car right and I had to get rid of it nobody was wanting to weld on it because they did not want to risk of catching the car on fire but man I would love to have another video Forenza thank you so much for posting that my friend Happy Motoring
I had one back in the early 90's. Bought it as a roller, built a 350 and a th350 for it. Put a set of gears and axels in it and my buddy welded up the spider gears and it was my Mustang gt eater.
Definitely a cool unique little Oldsmobile. I like it! I like the nose with the grille that looks like the grille off a 76 442. I loves Olds. I currently have a 17k original mile 87 442. I would definitely restore your Starfire. It’s unique and really cool looking and is probably fun to drive
I actually have a '76 Cutlass S with the aero nose just like the same year 442. Your '87 sounds pretty great! I like them all, but I'm an Oldsmobile man as well. Thanks for the comment!
8:35 I like the shutoff valve for the heater hose. I put something similar on my parent's Citation; it was a necessity on many late-1970s GM cars that lacked air conditioning, since the heater flaps never cut off the hot air completely. It was less of a problem when cars still had flow-through ventilation, but with less room for ducts in the downsized models, the flow-through systems were replaced with vents connected to the heating system and summers could be unbearable in those cars.
Love the freaking h body's man I bought a 1979 chevy monza last summer with a nasty 355 in it cant wait to take it farther thanks for this content I subbed sir
They are awesome little cars. Yours sounds pretty great. Thanks for watching and the subscription! There will definitely be more content on this one in the near future.
In the 90s I worked with a guy who had a white one with those graphics, was a quick little car for a 4 speed 305 with hedders and a carb swap, I miss seeing those things around. The wheels are so 90s vintage its great!
I like your Firenza the Firenza made it over to the j platform along with the cavalier sky hawk Cadillac Cimarron and sunbird this car took me bake when I was a kid back in the 70s my grandfather owned one of those
Had a 75 Starfire back in the day. Looked just like the Monza. Had quad headlights and slant tail lights. Only had a 3.8 but it was a good car. Couldn't kill it and I tried. Wish I still had it.
I kind of like the quad headlight look a little better than mine. They're all cool regardless. Maybe you'll find another one. They are out there. Thanks for the comment!
I had a new black one back in 1978. Had a 305 V-8 4 speed. Rare car even back then? fast too. I beat many corvetts, camaros and firebirds especially off the line at red light!!! i drove it to death. never had problems but it rusted away after many years.
That sounds awesome! I honestly wish this one were black, but I'll take what I can get. My car hasn't spent much time in the rust belt here in Indiana. So, that's probably the only thing that's kept it as clean as it is. Thanks for watching and for the comment!
As someone that grew up in Lansing Michigan the home of Oldsmobile these wee popular with Oldsmobile workers with a employee discount. I had a friend that had a yellow one with a 305 V8 auto. These came out with a Chevy engine that wasn’t so bad but when people started getting a Chevy engine in a Oldsmobile 88 and 98 and Cutlas people got mad around the time these came out it was a big problem, GM ended up paying some Oldsmobile and Buick owners a settlement.
@steve1758 I had heard about the lawsuit on the big cars and wondered how it affected the brand in general. Thanks for sharing your first hand account!
@@smithmotorworks1969 my step father got a hell of a deal on a 78 Olds 88 in 80 that had a 305 Chevy in it with no miles on it that was one of the lawsuit cars. The car was fine ran great he drove it for about 10 years before trading for a Buick Park Avenue the last of the big ones.
Very nice find and great to hear you’ll be enjoying it daily:) Yeah, funny how everything makes ‘Five Hundred horsepower’ even a lowly Briggs push mower when someone is selling it ;)
Nice! My dad bought a 77 Sunbird new - Iron Duke 4sp, metallic brown with tan interior and Rally II wheels. It was a really sharp car. Since he was a loyal customer, Pontiac sent him a brochure for the new "Fiero" a few years later. It got me hooked on those too, LOL. Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 yeah I had a Fiero as well…an 85 Iron Duke manual SE. i thought they were perfectly styled but unfortunately there were some issues involving overheating and i traded it in on the now forgotten VW Fox I agree with you as how few Monza/Sunbird/Skyhawk/Firenzas are left. They were a major improvement over the Vega and I’m surprised more weren’t saved
@KARL PIEPENBURG you should check out my 84 Indy Fiero videos on the channel! I agree Fieros had some issues, but I miss the times when GM (and others) weren't afraid to try something new. There seem to be a lot of cars like the Monza and its clones out there that were once plentiful and are now scarce. I guess it's up to us to keep them rolling!
I haven’t seen a starfire in over 30 years!! My Uncle had a blue one when I was a kid. I remember asking him what the name of the car was and his girlfriend (now wife) goes “it’s a starfire” it always kinda stuck with me since I haven’t seen one since. They were a really cool car.
I don't remember that many when they were fairly new. I saw plenty of Monza examples, though. I am definitely going to enjoy this one. Thanks for the comment!
I had a 79 monza spyder with the 5.0 and factory 4 speed. From the factory it could only be had with a two barrel. I put a rochester quadrajet on it and it really woke it up.
Last sorta hot rod car I had before the 3rd child was a black Monza with a 305 and the 4 speed. Wasn't the Spyder but had the V8! Put a new clutch in it and was quite fun. Traded it in for a Celebrity station wagon.
That Monza sounds like fun. A Celebrity station wagon might sound like a downgrade, but I'd roll that with pride these days. It would be the only one at the cars and coffee, I bet! Plus, any wagon is cool. Thanks!
I bought one of these in silver in 1979 in Columbus oh. I almost drove to Tx to buy one but it sold a few days before it popped up on my radar. Love to find one like mine, 8v with 4 speed manual
I couldn't pass this one up. Even though it has been changed over to an automatic, I have all the parts to put it back to a 4-speed. Your car sounds pretty cool. I would rather have silver than white. I hope you end up finding another one. They are out there! Thanks for watching!
Keep in mind, compared to todays cars of the same size, these are light weight cars. My 75 2+2 v8 Monza 4 speed manual hatch back only weighed 3200 pounds, on the scale. The 78 with automatic and air conditioning was a little under 3,400 pounds. Keep in mind, these are small cars! Substantially smaller and lighter than the 1970’s Camaros and Firebirds. By about 500 pounds. Plus or minus 100 pounds. The Vega was lighter, but is used a lighter structure, even though it was basically the same platform. These cars were specifically designed and built for the GM Wankel rotary engine (like rotary installed in Mazdas) but GM canceled that engine at the last minute, so that is why you found so many different engines stuffed under the hood with varying levels of success. You had the Vega 2300, the Pontiac iron duke 4 cylinder, the Chevy small block v6, 2 different v6 (odd fire and even fire) Buicks and the 3 Chevy v eights. The came with 4 speed, 5 speed manuals and 3 different automatic transmissions. The best all around engine was one the Buick v6 engines, but the default engine of choice for the hot rod set was the 350/5.7L Chevy v8. The Monza got all three v8 engines. The Pontiac Sunbird Formula and Oldsmobile Firenza got the 5.0 v8. The Buick Skyhawks only came with the Buick v6 motors. Someone managed to stuff a Buick grand national v6 turbo into a Skyhawk at one point. That car was a beast! But swapped in Chevy v8s in place of 4 and 6 cylinder motors was as common as pancakes.
5:00 The Firenza nose looks a lot better than the one on the Monza 2+2. I was never a fan of rectangular headlights on rounded cars, but the single headlights on the Olds version, with the slightly rounded corners of the openings, transitions to the rounded surfaces of the car much more smoothly than the openings of the Chevy's dual rectangular headlights did.
@Smith Motor Works Getting your fender flairs back is easy peasy. Go to a professional 3D printer, have him scan the flair and print it. Then have him do a reverse print for the other side. To get the front flairs just have them printed to scale. You can easily determine the length of the front by measuring the void.
That is an option for sure. I have a small 3D printer in the shop that I've used for restoration parts on my 1950 Towmotor and our 1984 Indy Fiero featured on this channel. Check those out if you're interested. There's no compound curves on the flares, so I am planning on making them out of metal strips and welding them together. I have a lot of prototyping experience from my day job, so I (sort of) know what I'm doing. LOL. Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 Hope you can find another nose for it. Might be tricky. Haven't seen one in years. Maybe a wrecking yard in a small town might have one?
@MrSFSTUDIOS I actually have an entire spare upper nose with good headlight surrounds and grilles. I just need the lower valance, but I think that might be the same on some other H-body cars.
@@smithmotorworks1969 Nice! Yes maybe a Monza is the same on the lower panel. GM seems to try and reuse parts where possible to save on production costs.
They're what you'd expect quality-wise for something built in the 70's. But, I think the styling is pretty awesome for a lower cost car. You can't really get anything like that anymore.
I think it's pretty cool, too. Looks solid. I thought the 2.5 four cylinder made decent power, and the 3.8 V6 Sunbird was really lively. So the 350 should be able to make it up most hills ok. It might be hard keeping your toe out of it for the first while, but it'll be a good daily driver. (That's what it was made for, after all.) Have a ball!
I'm a fan of both engines. We have a 2.5 in the Indy Fiero...it can't get out of it's own way, but it's hard to kill. I figure I'll have to drive the Firenza like I've got an egg under my foot, but I'll manage. :) Thanks for the comment!
My dad had a manual 1975 Skyhawk. Very poor build quality. Clutch cable was misrouted so that the clutch could not fully engage. Body rusted almost immediately. However, the V6 did start after a night out in 20-below Chicago in 1982 or so.
My parents bought me a new 1976 Monza when I was 18 for about $4,400.00. It had a 140 cu in engine with I think a 2 barrel carb. I forget the horse power; 80 sounds familiar. After having a VW Bug, I thought it had plenty of power. There was no way my parents were going to get me one with a 305 engine. It had a 5 speed; 5th gear overdrive was all the rage back then with the high gas prices. If I recall it was 60 cents. If memory serves it had a 16 gallon tank that could at 35 mpg easily last for over 500 miles on a trip. It was Firethorne red with a red dash but the rest of the interior was white. I still have the brochure and a model (AMT?) kit car sprayed the same GM Firethorne red paint. In 1979 I bought a ‘79 Trans AM but I kept the Monza as my daily driver until I bought a ‘80 VW Rabbit convertible; then it was goodbye after four years and 66,000 miles. The VW dealer joked that the TA should be the daily driver. By the way I still have the ‘79 TA. I think the Monza was a beautiful car and miss it.
I think the Monza and its GM siblings are starting to get a little respect these days. They are what they are. But, compared to what came immediately after and the (mostly) bland options we have nowadays for transportation, they are pretty cool. That is so great that you still have your TA! I had a gold special edition '78 and a '73. I was a fool for getting rid of either one. Thanks for watching!
Those 13 inch tires on those cars were specified for load range ‘c’ instead of the more common load rand ‘b’ tires found on virtually every other compact car of the period. The v8 cars also got 6 inch wide wheels instead of the more common 4.5”, 5” and 5.5” wheels. That extra width for the tires made for a big increase in tire grip. If you installed the right tires.
And rain. A short 96 inch wheel base and a heavy front weight distribution made for much less than ideal grip in the rain and snow. Plus, tire performance was still really really poor back then. They had yet to figure out the all season or rain tire designs.
I had a silver and black '79 Firenza. Buick 3.8 and automatic. Those fender flares were a problem, didn't hold paint well and UV light degraded them. I thought they looked too bulky as well.
Silver and black must've looked awesome! I have one of the rear flares. It's in pretty good shape. I am pretty sure I can duplicate it and the other side in steel and approximate the front ones and the air dam as well. I agree with you they are bulky, but it's kind of appropriate for the 70's. Thanks for watching!
I've heard those fuel pumps cause problems. I need to dig into this one and figure out what's going on with the fuel system. It's been "modified" for sure. Thanks!
Very cool ride man .... I actually dig those wheels, the color combo and ive always thought they had one of the slickest spoilers...i would check out the rear end to figure what your runnin with and definitely put the 4speed back in cause with 3 pedals and 8 cylinders thats not only a bad ass daily but a RARE one at that. ✅ _LIKED_ ✅ _SUBBED_ Stay Safe ✌ Be Well
Thank you! I like those wheels too. They seem to fit the style of the car and the era. Plus, I'm a big fan of the old Centerline brand. I have them on my '76 Cutlass S. I have an original 4-speed and the pedal set, so I can put it all back together. I'm planning on doing a video to find out what is in the differential. Thanks for watching, the like and the sub!
I have a 1980 Buick skahawk with a V8 sitting out in front of my house that's beautiful I could drive it to Florida it's the black and orange with the bird on the hood
@@smithmotorworks1969 you know when I bought that car I parked right beside it at the Chevy dealer where I worked at and I kept looking at it every day it had four flat tires and it was on a used car lot and everybody overlooked it including me but it started bothering me and I bought it I'm glad I did now
@janfswedane I agree. It looks like the Opel shares some styling cues with the US Monza and its variants. That Vauxhall is a sharp looking car. It reminds me of a baby 68-72 Nova, at least the side profile. Thanks for the comment and for watching!
@@smithmotorworks1969 Thanks... Have you seen the South African take on the Vauxhall Firenza..? Chevrolet CanAm... Built by GM in Port Elizabeth powered by a 302DZ Z-28 engine. It's beat the COPO cars by a mile in my opinion. Bob Lutz was CEO of Opel in 70ties so no wonder they raided part bins worldwide...
@janfswedane I just found out about the CanAm around a month ago. That thing is awesome. I wish they would have made more and brought it or something like it to the US!
Would love to know the part number and brand of the spool if you end up doing a video related to the rear end. The factory gears are horrible especially with a taller tire and 5 lug conversion. Looking for a better gear set for my 78 Monza V8
@D S Will do. I was surprised they even made a spool for those. I was surprised that Summit had several options. I am definitely going to remove the rear cover and see what's in there. I might wait until it gets a little warmer, though. ;)
Good luck on finding them flairs for that car. Whats even more rare then this car and even the Chevrolet Monza Mirage was the Buick Roadhawk, they even had the Oldsmobile GT models etc.
@jorgedacosta8957 I have the left rear wheel flare. I made a mirror image of it for the right side th-cam.com/video/3WStD6uOSMw/w-d-xo.html Thanks for the comment and for watching!
Had handful of Monza's from 75 Tc coupe to the 79 Spyder with a 3.2l v-6. Not the 3.8. The clutch cables stretches and will pull through the firewall if you put HD clutch. I put 350's and 1 400 sbc in them all. Alternator should be directly on top of water pump. Belts l8ke to come loose.
If I do change it back to a manual transmission, I'll probably use a hydraulic release bearing. I remember those cables breaking on the 4 cylinder cars. I definitely have some work to do! Thanks for the information!
Badge Engineering, hmmm, well put. I bought a brand new Chevy Monza, V8, 4speed, white with dark red interior, loaded. It was so disappointing that I can't even remember what year it was. I traded it in after a few months...
I remember a lot of people being disappointed with US cars from the 70s when I was a kid. It seems like they are getting some interest lately since most (affordable) newer stuff is so bland. Thanks for the comment!
Thats always been the pattern with GM, they might have a model in the other branches that shows promise, but as soon as it threatens the Corvette, whoa can't have that! and it gets nixxed
Your going to love that car .I have one, go! Like shit!, It will be fast with that 350 in it fix it up!,you have Classic vintage car.restor it. Am fixing my 1979 Monza 2+2,and it's in Bad shape but it vintage you don't see them anymore. I would like to see more you fixing her up.
It's surprising how many car names contain the word "fire": Pontiac Firebird, Renault Fuego (Spanish for "fire"), the Opel/Vauxhall Zafira minivan, and this Starfire/Firenza with 2 instance of the word. Also, while the word Fiero doesn't actually mean fire, it sounds a lot like it. That could heighten the embarrassment when a car is recalled for a fire hazard, as happened with the Fiero and the Zafira. GM was lucky in that only 1 minor recall of the Firenza involved a fire hazard, though the car was also affected by a defect that caused some samples to spontaneously start themselves.
For sure. Once upon a time the names of cars were all fast land animals, predatory fish and birds or astronomical objects. Now the names are all meaningless gibberish. Firenza is apparently based on the Italian name of the city we call Florence. Fiero supposedly means "very proud", if you can believe the old brochure I have. Less than 0.2% of those cars caught fire, and it was more due to poor maintenance than anything. They get a bad rap unfairly. But, I'm biased since we own one. :)
Nice Starfire! I have a 65 convertible back when they were full-size. I would love to have one of these for a daily driver… Hit me up if you ever want to sell it ;-)
I liked the look of those too. The front design kind of reminded me of a '68 Cutlass with the parking lamps between the pairs of headlights. Thanks for the comment!
It would physically fit, I believe. There are cars like it with big-block Chevrolet engines and even a Cadillac 500 in there! At a minimum, you'd have to solve possible oil pan and exhaust manifold interference issues, create custom engine mounts and more. The biggest problem, I see is the water pump extends much farther from the front of the block on an Olds V8 versus an SBC. My guess is that's one of the bigger reasons GM didn't do it. But, nothing is impossible, it just takes time and money, right? Thanks for watching!
That's too bad that it no longer has the original engine and has been modified so much, it's now just a cheap beater car - but you don't seem to mind so it's all good. I had a new 1978 Pontiac Sunbird that I really loved driving, although I would have enjoyed having the V-6 underhood instead of the clanky 4-banger it came with. Enjoy what you have and good luck finding missing trim pieces, they were made cheaply and fell apart just sitting on the shelf from new, but maybe you will have success looking on Ebay or Hemmings motor news.
I don't think it matters too much for this car if it's 100% original or not. They don't have the desirability of something like a Boss Mustang. If it ever became that much of a collectors item, everything that's been done to it can be reversed. I definitely don't consider it a cheap beater car, though. LOL I'll make whatever pieces I can't find and just maintain and enjoy it as-is for now. I've got good friends in Tucson. That's a beautiful part of the country. Thanks for the comment!
Don't know why people hate 4 lug bolt patterns. If a car has enough power and traction to shear 4 lug nut studs off, you might want to upgrade to a diesel dumptruck axle.
What?!?!? I’m upset you didn’t call me and tell me it’s home but your honorable mention about me made up for it. Lmao. I’ll trade you my first born for it! ❤❤
You're lucky it has exhaust manifolds I'm going to tell you a little trick for that starter and you might think me later remove the passenger exhaust manifold and you can get to the starter and pull it out that way
There's a lot of stuff that needs to be corrected. If I can't fabricate one, it looks like this could work: www.speedwaymotors.com/Small-Block-Chevy-Upper-Alternator-Bracket-Plain,38957.html Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 I'm pretty sure the alternator was only over the water pump if it was a air conditioning car otherwise the location it's in now would be considered correct for non-air
@D S I am fairly sure this car didn't have AC. (The search for the build sheet is next.) I believe I can make a reliable mount to keep that belt on there. I didn't know about the different setups. Thanks very much for that information!
@@smithmotorworks1969 their is probably 20 unwanted cars that could have taken it's place. Check out spider gradge. And one of the last episodes of fat and furious monza vinny gives a monza to his wife. Lol.
@Chris Catarcio I've bought some parts from Spyder Garage. They're good people. I haven't seen the Fat and Furious episode. I liked the show. I will check it out.
My friend had one like that when we were in HS. It was still plenty of fun. There's lot's of aftermarket support for those engines too. Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 The 231 (3.8) always came with a 2bbl but the 4.1 (same motor, larger displacement) had the 4bbl intake/quadrajet. The 4bbl intake really wakes up the 231.
My x boss has one his is all original with factory 262 v8 3 speed in the floor he got it back in 1982 the original owner ordered it with 3 speed in the floor and CB radio it's white and blue with white interior he won't sale it and it's just rusting away😔
I've got a small 3D printer in the shop and access to a much larger one at work. I've used mine for parts on the Indy Fiero and my old 1950 forklift that are on this channel. Luckily I've got a spare grill to replace that one. I may end up scanning and printing some other stuff for it, though. Thanks!
Tiny brakes, 4 lug wheels, poor handling, and economy car powertrain are these cars drawbacks. The 305 had 147 hp. 350 power made all these problems glaringly obvious. A narrowed 8.8, and some real brakes, and suspension upgrades would really be a huge leap forward on one.
It's pretty popular to swap S-10 front spindles and rear axles to gain bigger brakes and a 5 x 4.75 bolt pattern. A lot of fairly high horsepower cars are still running the stock 7.5 differential with success. The 3-link torque arm rear suspension is a pretty good setup, but it makes swapping axles housings a challenge. Anything is possible with time, effort, and $, right? Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 oh, indeed. They are so long gone where I live, I have not seen one in years, my buddy had an '80 Monza Spyder, he swapped a 327 in, and getting it to hook up, meant the rear was going to explode. It eventually ate a curb, and was totalled, but that was 30+ years ago when young and dumb was all I was. I pestered a guy who had a red and white one for years, untill I stumbled on an '80 Capri with a blown 255 V8. I still have it.
@James George they are not a common sight for sure. That's why I jumped on this one, even though I didn't really NEED it. I'd love to have your Capri too, though. ;) Those are $$$ these days too.
@@smithmotorworks1969 Thanks, I was dumping the clutch in second gear at 5500 rpm when it ripped the torque boxes off the floor in 1999, has not driven under it's own power since then. I sold the TFS head 306 that was in it, and I am assembling an L33 aluminum 5.3 to replace it, and I'm on the fence about leaving it stock, and repairing the floor / torque boxes, or building a Watts link style custom 4 link suspension, with a Crown Vic rear axle.
The Firenza package was only available part of 78, all of 79 and part of 80. GM sold over 20K Starfires in 1979 and about 1.6 M similar looking H-body cars from all GM divisions combined during '75-'80. So, I guess a few people liked the styling. :)
look likes gm took the Monza and screwed with the looks of it and rebranded it. Monza was the best-looking and driving 3 door id ever seen and with some heavy tweaking packed a punch. when olds got it right they really got it right same with getting wrong, GM bean counters often were idiots. and it shows the brightest in the finished products. leave it to GM to take an awesome idea and shit all over it,
I'm not sure why I like this little car so much. It is what it is, and I've always been a fan of the underdogs. Dare to be Different, LOL. Thanks for watching!
![[Part 1] ทารกน้อยถูกทิ้ง👶 หญิงชราเก็บขวดขายเลี้ยงดูเขาจนโต #โลกการละคร](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/nPTDvFCExks/mqdefault.jpg)
i loved the Monza and all the GM versions of it. Was truely a cool car to drive and own.
I always thought it was pretty cool styling for a low cost, sporty car. Thanks!
In 1991 my buddy had one. We were in high school. 4.3 v8 Chevy monza. Cool little car!
@GMCJay_lly Jason Heinrich I think I'm going to enjoy it. Thanks for the comment!
I bought an '80 monza new. Piece of crap. Twisted it during the first oil change using the stock jack to lift it. Took an hour to get the factory installed oil filter off. Iron duke w/ 4spd got 18 mpg. Every 18000 miles, the clutch cable would break because the cable wasn't braided. I literally kept a spare cable in the trunk. Ate tires every 15000 (goodyear tiempo tires 40000 mile rated ... when all season tires were brand new). Had a friend who was an alignment specialist hated it. Spent 1.5 hrs trying to align it without success. He owned a vega before a 260 Z.
I bought the monza as a daily driver to park my '69 mach 1 428 cj 4spd I'd rebuilt.
That monza made me wish I still had my '71 pinto.
Those cars were the best for pushing americans to buy reliable asian imports. At least, the non-domestic brand loyalist.
Gladly traded it in for an '83 turbo t-bird 5 spd. The good old days ... t-bird as a daily and the mach 1 for you know ...
Had a friend with a v8 monza spider. Stock engine twisted the body. Chaining the engine probably helped lol.
@D Beelee we never had any trouble with my dad's '77 Sunbird other than a surprise broken ball joint. It had the duke and a manual as well. I had a girlfriend with a Monza that had clutch cable problems, thought. I know that was an issue. I bet the Turbo Coupe was a nice upgrade. :) Thanks for the comment!
That’s one cool ride! Amazing how tastes change over the years. I wouldn’t have given that a second look 30 years ago, but find it really cool now.
For me at least, I think the Starfire and the other H-bodies were so common, I didn't really appreciate how good looking of a design they really were. Thanks for watching!
I thought these were all front wheel drives when I was a kid and the base version looked like junk
@Edward Bianchi the successor to these cars was FWD. I like them all. :)
Thats pretty cool. I miss those cars that were around in the 80's
Me too. I took a lot of the ones that are hard to find now for granted. Thanks!
Absolutely loved my 1979 Firenza. The 305/4 spd combo was very quick for its time. Never lost to a Mustang of similar time frame. Probably one of the most comfortable seats & cockpit of any car I've owned. Thank you Oldsmobile! Excellent car for its time given the emissions control. Had a 283/350 HP ready on a stand to put in it, but found out the Torque Arm was already breaking the two bolts hold the arm to the front of the pig. Decided if it couldn't handle
@periguin that sounds pretty awesome. I have wanted one for a while. I'm kind of an Oldsmobile guy, so it was a nice addition to my collection. Thanks for the comment and for watching!
The Starfire actually started out as a name tacked onto the 98 convertible in the 50s, signifying nohting more than that it was a 98 convert. The first real run as a stand alone name was 61-66, when it was a range topper (except in 66 when it was signifcantly decontented and below both the 98 the Toro). Through 1964, it was considerably more than the 98 and had better trim and a slight bump in horsepower. The compact Olds mentioned was the F-85, with the 2 year only turbocharged version being the Jetfire. After that of course we got H body seen here, starting in 75. You could get the 305 in a Monza too, but not the Sunbird or Skyhawk.
My grandad had a Jetfire. I wish I had that. There was supposedly one V8 Skyhawk built, and about 1400 V8 Sunbirds. Lots of great data here: monza.homestead.com/Production.html Thanks for the information and the comment!
In 1980 and '81 my brother had the Oldsmobile Starfire hatchback that car was unbelievably quick for a little car on city streets it was a terror
This one ought to be fun. Thanks!
I brought home a 1998 civic this summer. My 7 year old son seemed roll the window up. He was amazed. He talked about the manual windows for a couple weeks. He told everyone he seen. It was pretty funny.
It's crazy isn't it? My kids reacted the same way to some of that "old" stuff. Thanks for watching!
They sold a ton of the Buick Skyhawks and Olds Starfires. These were ‘sporty cars’, not ‘sports cars’ or Muscle cars’. The Buick v6 was the best fit for these cars. The right amount of power and torque with relatively light weight.
The 4.3, 5.0 and 5.7 v8s made these pretty good runners for the time. The upgraded bigger brakes that came along in 1977 were a huge improvement. With the quick variable ratio power steering, these were pretty nimble steering wise. The seats were pretty comfortable. And the hatch backs were quite usable for trunk space. These were squirrelly in the back end. That’s part of what made them fun to drive. The v8 with the 4 speed transmission drove as good if not better than the equivalent period Nissan 300z.
I owned 2 v8 monzas. A ‘75 2+2 4.3 v8 with a 4 speed manual and a ‘78 Monza Spyder Z32/Z34 packages with a 5.0 v8 and turbo 350 automatic. The 75 was a hoot to drive, but the 78 was a much better car reliability wise and had a lot better brakes. (Vented vs solid front rotors, and bigger, better functioning rear drum brakes.) the steering ratio was slowed down on the 78 with a bigger diameter steering wheel, the spring rates changed and the rear track bar redesigned.) the changes dulled the steering responsiveness, but substantially improved braking performance.
Thanks for the comment and the information!
I bought a 76 Starfire GT in the 1983. It was the Buick V6 with automatic. Spent many days carving the curvy back roads! The Tranny went just after winter. A friend of mine unlucky Wrecked his Chevelle with a modified 307 in it. Now I Had a Drag Racer! Keep in mind that at that time?! Most new muscle care were still around 150-175 horsepower. I had around 325! What a Sleeper!! Back then as a teenager! What was a unibody and what is Bracing? Twisted that Beautiful car to Death! Wouldn't mind owning Another! Thanks For the Memory! Nice Video
Sounds like fun! Thanks for watching! There will be more episodes with the Firenza in the future.
I had a black Firenza. I tossed the 305 and put in a 400. The TH-350 had a shift kit and would break the rear transmission mount if I nailed it. One of the fastest cars I've ever driven, even compared to my 400hp C6 Vette. I sure do miss it. A couple add ons: it's transmission torque arm was later used on 3rd and 4th gen Camaros. It also shared it's side view mirrors with second gen Camaros, and many more cars. I always believed that GM didn't provide a 350 engine factory option because it would've beat same year Corvette.
That sounds pretty cool! Evidently, for California only in 1975, you could get a 350 powered Monza. Crazy, right? Thanks for the comment!
They did offer the 350 one year and California only I believe it was 78. If I'm not mistaken.ive seen a few on yoitube one was in decent shape and dude was just taking it all apart in the name of weight savings for racing I of course did not agree with his ideas lol
Maybe 75 was right my bad
They made 350 in California , their was 3 of them that left the factory with a 4 barrel, very rare. The 350 had like less then 100 Horsepower, I think the 305 had more horsepower. The weak link was them 7.5 torque arm rear end. The automatic transmission wasn't a turbo 350 it was a Turbo 250 if you read the manual. They also had some 5 speeds but only behind a V6. The New Camaros were like it's older brother, had all the same features including the rear lenses.
Thank you so much for posting your Forenza I had a Forenza when I lived in Kentucky stationed at Fort Knox and I loved that car ironically I think I was shifting it way too hard because my clutch pedal broke from the column and I never was able to get that car right and I had to get rid of it nobody was wanting to weld on it because they did not want to risk of catching the car on fire but man I would love to have another video Forenza thank you so much for posting that my friend Happy Motoring
I'm glad you liked it! They are out there. Hopefully you can find a replacement! Thanks for watching.
I had one back in the early 90's. Bought it as a roller, built a 350 and a th350 for it. Put a set of gears and axels in it and my buddy welded up the spider gears and it was my Mustang gt eater.
That sounds like a winner. I think the Firenza is going to be a lot of fun. Thanks!
After watching it sit in Kansas for the last few years it's good to see someone has it who wants to take care of it
I'll do my best. Thanks!
I had an old mobile star fire back in the eighties. I enjoyed it.
They are pretty cool. Thanks!
I had two of these back in the day. A white one just like that and a silver one
Definitely a cool unique little Oldsmobile. I like it! I like the nose with the grille that looks like the grille off a 76 442. I loves Olds. I currently have a 17k original mile 87 442. I would definitely restore your Starfire. It’s unique and really cool looking and is probably fun to drive
I actually have a '76 Cutlass S with the aero nose just like the same year 442. Your '87 sounds pretty great! I like them all, but I'm an Oldsmobile man as well. Thanks for the comment!
This was called the Euro nose they used on the track Indy 500 races etc.
8:35 I like the shutoff valve for the heater hose. I put something similar on my parent's Citation; it was a necessity on many late-1970s GM cars that lacked air conditioning, since the heater flaps never cut off the hot air completely. It was less of a problem when cars still had flow-through ventilation, but with less room for ducts in the downsized models, the flow-through systems were replaced with vents connected to the heating system and summers could be unbearable in those cars.
I'm sure it works. I'd just rather have something a little more sophisticated looking, LOL. Thanks for watching!
@@smithmotorworks1969 Like What
@Paulwal maybe something like this: www.summitracing.com/parts/uac-hv1021c?seid=srese1&gclid=CjwKCAiAqt-dBhBcEiwATw-ggK4ZWDHmTBfU3HEQulAFe50MvrR5py_3OI2yitCmSji7xhMnFZmTdxoCnrwQAvD_BwE
Love the freaking h body's man I bought a 1979 chevy monza last summer with a nasty 355 in it cant wait to take it farther thanks for this content I subbed sir
They are awesome little cars. Yours sounds pretty great. Thanks for watching and the subscription! There will definitely be more content on this one in the near future.
@@smithmotorworks1969 heck yeah I'll b waiting and watching for it thanks again 🙂
In the 90s I worked with a guy who had a white one with those graphics, was a quick little car for a 4 speed 305 with hedders and a carb swap, I miss seeing those things around. The wheels are so 90s vintage its great!
I thought the same thing about those wheels. They just seem to suit the car. Thanks!
I like your Firenza the Firenza made it over to the j platform along with the cavalier sky hawk Cadillac Cimarron and sunbird this car took me bake when I was a kid back in the 70s my grandfather owned one of those
I like the looks of the J-car Firenza. The headlight arrangement reminds me of a '68 Cutlass. Thanks for watching!
Had a 75 Starfire back in the day. Looked just like the Monza. Had quad headlights and slant tail lights. Only had a 3.8 but it was a good car. Couldn't kill it and I tried. Wish I still had it.
I kind of like the quad headlight look a little better than mine. They're all cool regardless. Maybe you'll find another one. They are out there. Thanks for the comment!
I had a new black one back in 1978. Had a 305 V-8 4 speed. Rare car even back then? fast too. I beat many corvetts, camaros and firebirds especially off the line at red light!!! i drove it to death. never had problems but it rusted away after many years.
That sounds awesome! I honestly wish this one were black, but I'll take what I can get. My car hasn't spent much time in the rust belt here in Indiana. So, that's probably the only thing that's kept it as clean as it is. Thanks for watching and for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 mine also had the older 4 headlight front end similar to the monza.
As someone that grew up in Lansing Michigan the home of Oldsmobile these wee popular with Oldsmobile workers with a employee discount. I had a friend that had a yellow one with a 305 V8 auto. These came out with a Chevy engine that wasn’t so bad but when people started getting a Chevy engine in a Oldsmobile 88 and 98 and Cutlas people got mad around the time these came out it was a big problem, GM ended up paying some Oldsmobile and Buick owners a settlement.
@steve1758 I had heard about the lawsuit on the big cars and wondered how it affected the brand in general. Thanks for sharing your first hand account!
@@smithmotorworks1969 my step father got a hell of a deal on a 78 Olds 88 in 80 that had a 305 Chevy in it with no miles on it that was one of the lawsuit cars. The car was fine ran great he drove it for about 10 years before trading for a Buick Park Avenue the last of the big ones.
Very nice find and great to hear you’ll be enjoying it daily:) Yeah, funny how everything makes ‘Five Hundred horsepower’ even a lowly Briggs push mower when someone is selling it ;)
That is so true. The outrageous stories are pretty entertaining at times! Thanks for watching!
Had a 79 Sunbird version with a 3.8 V6 manual. Beautiful car
Nice! My dad bought a 77 Sunbird new - Iron Duke 4sp, metallic brown with tan interior and Rally II wheels. It was a really sharp car. Since he was a loyal customer, Pontiac sent him a brochure for the new "Fiero" a few years later. It got me hooked on those too, LOL. Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 yeah I had a Fiero as well…an 85 Iron Duke manual SE. i thought they were perfectly styled but unfortunately there were some issues involving overheating and i traded it in on the now forgotten VW Fox
I agree with you as how few Monza/Sunbird/Skyhawk/Firenzas are left. They were a major improvement over the Vega and I’m surprised more weren’t saved
@KARL PIEPENBURG you should check out my 84 Indy Fiero videos on the channel! I agree Fieros had some issues, but I miss the times when GM (and others) weren't afraid to try something new. There seem to be a lot of cars like the Monza and its clones out there that were once plentiful and are now scarce. I guess it's up to us to keep them rolling!
@@smithmotorworks1969 thanks i will check out that channel!
My first car was an '80 Monza with that engine. Total rubbish but it was quick and handled nice.
I haven’t seen a starfire in over 30 years!! My Uncle had a blue one when I was a kid. I remember asking him what the name of the car was and his girlfriend (now wife) goes “it’s a starfire” it always kinda stuck with me since I haven’t seen one since. They were a really cool car.
I don't remember that many when they were fairly new. I saw plenty of Monza examples, though. I am definitely going to enjoy this one. Thanks for the comment!
I had a 79 monza spyder with the 5.0 and factory 4 speed. From the factory it could only be had with a two barrel. I put a rochester quadrajet on it and it really woke it up.
Nothing like the sound and feel of the secondaries opening up on a Q-jet! Thanks for the comment!
Nothing sounded like the old quadrajet when those big secondaries opened up. 👍
It sounded even better with the air cleaner lid flipped over, LOL!
Last sorta hot rod car I had before the 3rd child was a black Monza with a 305 and the 4 speed. Wasn't the Spyder but had the V8! Put a new clutch in it and was quite fun. Traded it in for a Celebrity station wagon.
That Monza sounds like fun. A Celebrity station wagon might sound like a downgrade, but I'd roll that with pride these days. It would be the only one at the cars and coffee, I bet! Plus, any wagon is cool. Thanks!
I bought one of these in silver in 1979 in Columbus oh. I almost drove to Tx to buy one but it sold a few days before it popped up on my radar. Love to find one like mine, 8v with 4 speed manual
I couldn't pass this one up. Even though it has been changed over to an automatic, I have all the parts to put it back to a 4-speed. Your car sounds pretty cool. I would rather have silver than white. I hope you end up finding another one. They are out there! Thanks for watching!
Keep in mind, compared to todays cars of the same size, these are light weight cars. My 75 2+2 v8 Monza 4 speed manual hatch back only weighed 3200 pounds, on the scale. The 78 with automatic and air conditioning was a little under 3,400 pounds.
Keep in mind, these are small cars! Substantially smaller and lighter than the 1970’s Camaros and Firebirds. By about 500 pounds. Plus or minus 100 pounds. The Vega was lighter, but is used a lighter structure, even though it was basically the same platform.
These cars were specifically designed and built for the GM Wankel rotary engine (like rotary installed in Mazdas) but GM canceled that engine at the last minute, so that is why you found so many different engines stuffed under the hood with varying levels of success. You had the Vega 2300, the Pontiac iron duke 4 cylinder, the Chevy small block v6, 2 different v6 (odd fire and even fire) Buicks and the 3 Chevy v eights. The came with 4 speed, 5 speed manuals and 3 different automatic transmissions.
The best all around engine was one the Buick v6 engines, but the default engine of choice for the hot rod set was the 350/5.7L Chevy v8. The Monza got all three v8 engines. The Pontiac Sunbird Formula and Oldsmobile Firenza got the 5.0 v8. The Buick Skyhawks only came with the Buick v6 motors.
Someone managed to stuff a Buick grand national v6 turbo into a Skyhawk at one point. That car was a beast! But swapped in Chevy v8s in place of 4 and 6 cylinder motors was as common as pancakes.
All true, thanks!
5:00 The Firenza nose looks a lot better than the one on the Monza 2+2. I was never a fan of rectangular headlights on rounded cars, but the single headlights on the Olds version, with the slightly rounded corners of the openings, transitions to the rounded surfaces of the car much more smoothly than the openings of the Chevy's dual rectangular headlights did.
I actually like the previous quad headlight Firenza a little better. But, they all look pretty great. Thanks!
@Smith Motor Works Getting your fender flairs back is easy peasy. Go to a professional 3D printer, have him scan the flair and print it. Then have him do a reverse print for the other side. To get the front flairs just have them printed to scale. You can easily determine the length of the front by measuring the void.
That is an option for sure. I have a small 3D printer in the shop that I've used for restoration parts on my 1950 Towmotor and our 1984 Indy Fiero featured on this channel. Check those out if you're interested. There's no compound curves on the flares, so I am planning on making them out of metal strips and welding them together. I have a lot of prototyping experience from my day job, so I (sort of) know what I'm doing. LOL. Thanks for the comment!
When I was a kid my mom had the Skyhawk it was sliver with the yellow orange and red Hawk going down the side V6 5pred.
I bet that was a sharp looking car! Those Buicks of that era were flashy, but cool. Thanks for the comment!
Nice Adventures In Babysitting reference! Great car too!
Hahaha! I'm glad you caught that. Awesome movie. Thanks for the comment!
Nice H-body with lots of potential! Hope you restore it and enjoy it.
I definitely plan on taking good care of it. Thanks!
@@smithmotorworks1969 Hope you can find another nose for it. Might be tricky. Haven't seen one in years. Maybe a wrecking yard in a small town might have one?
@MrSFSTUDIOS I actually have an entire spare upper nose with good headlight surrounds and grilles. I just need the lower valance, but I think that might be the same on some other H-body cars.
@@smithmotorworks1969 Nice! Yes maybe a Monza is the same on the lower panel. GM seems to try and reuse parts where possible to save on production costs.
I remember seeing these and other versions and wondering if they were as cool as they looked.
They're what you'd expect quality-wise for something built in the 70's. But, I think the styling is pretty awesome for a lower cost car. You can't really get anything like that anymore.
3:20 That window profile always reminded me a little of the cave drawings depicted in the book "Chariots of the Gods".
LOL. I have that book. I'll have to check it out again!
I think it's pretty cool, too. Looks solid. I thought the 2.5 four cylinder made decent power, and the 3.8 V6 Sunbird was really lively. So the 350 should be able to make it up most hills ok. It might be hard keeping your toe out of it for the first while, but it'll be a good daily driver. (That's what it was made for, after all.) Have a ball!
I'm a fan of both engines. We have a 2.5 in the Indy Fiero...it can't get out of it's own way, but it's hard to kill. I figure I'll have to drive the Firenza like I've got an egg under my foot, but I'll manage. :) Thanks for the comment!
My dad had a manual 1975 Skyhawk. Very poor build quality. Clutch cable was misrouted so that the clutch could not fully engage. Body rusted almost immediately. However, the V6 did start after a night out in 20-below Chicago in 1982 or so.
They definitely had their share of problems. I believe I can sort out the worst of them and make it fun. Thanks for the comment!
My parents bought me a new 1976 Monza when I was 18 for about $4,400.00. It had a 140 cu in engine with I think a 2 barrel carb. I forget the horse power; 80 sounds familiar. After having a VW Bug, I thought it had plenty of power. There was no way my parents were going to get me one with a 305 engine. It had a 5 speed; 5th gear overdrive was all the rage back then with the high gas prices. If I recall it was 60 cents. If memory serves it had a 16 gallon tank that could at 35 mpg easily last for over 500 miles on a trip. It was Firethorne red with a red dash but the rest of the interior was white. I still have the brochure and a model (AMT?) kit car sprayed the same GM Firethorne red paint.
In 1979 I bought a ‘79 Trans AM but I kept the Monza as my daily driver until I bought a ‘80 VW Rabbit convertible; then it was goodbye after four years and 66,000 miles. The VW dealer joked that the TA should be the daily driver. By the way I still have the ‘79 TA.
I think the Monza was a beautiful car and miss it.
I think the Monza and its GM siblings are starting to get a little respect these days. They are what they are. But, compared to what came immediately after and the (mostly) bland options we have nowadays for transportation, they are pretty cool. That is so great that you still have your TA! I had a gold special edition '78 and a '73. I was a fool for getting rid of either one. Thanks for watching!
Smith Motorworks, I enjoyed your video.
Those 13 inch tires on those cars were specified for load range ‘c’ instead of the more common load rand ‘b’ tires found on virtually every other compact car of the period. The v8 cars also got 6 inch wide wheels instead of the more common 4.5”, 5” and 5.5” wheels. That extra width for the tires made for a big increase in tire grip. If you installed the right tires.
Thanks for the information!
I love that car!! Pretty rare! I'd daily it too but not too much irreplaceable!
Thanks! You never know, I've seen stories of rare Sunday drivers getting wiped out on the way to a local show. I plan on being very careful. :)
Great find!! I had a 77 star fire with a V6 in it. Would smoke'em all day long. Sucked in the Snow.
I figure this will be about the same or worse on anything but dry pavement. Oh, well ;). Thanks for the comment!
And rain. A short 96 inch wheel base and a heavy front weight distribution made for much less than ideal grip in the rain and snow. Plus, tire performance was still really really poor back then. They had yet to figure out the all season or rain tire designs.
There's a couple of them running around with Grand national engines and turbos
I had a silver and black '79 Firenza. Buick 3.8 and automatic. Those fender flares were a problem, didn't hold paint well and UV light degraded them. I thought they looked too bulky as well.
Silver and black must've looked awesome! I have one of the rear flares. It's in pretty good shape. I am pretty sure I can duplicate it and the other side in steel and approximate the front ones and the air dam as well. I agree with you they are bulky, but it's kind of appropriate for the 70's. Thanks for watching!
I had the Buick version of this with the V6 and my only complaint was the electric fuel pump.
I've heard those fuel pumps cause problems. I need to dig into this one and figure out what's going on with the fuel system. It's been "modified" for sure. Thanks!
Yeah the one in my old 80 Spyder gave me issues too.
@Grabasandwich I think the one in my car may have been bypassed. It's one of many things I need to investigate. Thanks!
Just re-blacking out the trim would make a world of difference. Have Fun!
Yeah, you are right. I was looking at that last night. I might tackle that when it warms up a little. Thanks!
Yeah I always enjoy having what's left of my eardrums blown out by the lead in music.......... Thanks a lot!
I didn't realize it was that much louder than the rest of the audio.
@@smithmotorworks1969 "Huh?"
@Gary Hull the Norton in your avatar is cool.
@@smithmotorworks1969 Thanks. It's one of the ones I let go that I still regret.
@Gary Hull I've always wanted a British bike...maybe someday!
Very cool ride man .... I actually dig those wheels, the color combo and ive always thought they had one of the slickest spoilers...i would check out the rear end to figure what your runnin with and definitely put the 4speed back in cause with 3 pedals and 8 cylinders thats not only a bad ass daily but a RARE one at that.
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Thank you! I like those wheels too. They seem to fit the style of the car and the era. Plus, I'm a big fan of the old Centerline brand. I have them on my '76 Cutlass S. I have an original 4-speed and the pedal set, so I can put it all back together. I'm planning on doing a video to find out what is in the differential. Thanks for watching, the like and the sub!
I have a 1980 Buick skahawk with a V8 sitting out in front of my house that's beautiful I could drive it to Florida it's the black and orange with the bird on the hood
That sounds pretty awesome. I don't see many Skyhawks out there. Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 you know when I bought that car I parked right beside it at the Chevy dealer where I worked at and I kept looking at it every day it had four flat tires and it was on a used car lot and everybody overlooked it including me but it started bothering me and I bought it I'm glad I did now
Looks a lot like an Opel Monza simplyfied for the US market. GM-UK used the Firenza moniker for their 2-door coupe version of the Viva.
@janfswedane I agree. It looks like the Opel shares some styling cues with the US Monza and its variants. That Vauxhall is a sharp looking car. It reminds me of a baby 68-72 Nova, at least the side profile. Thanks for the comment and for watching!
@@smithmotorworks1969 Thanks...
Have you seen the South African take on the Vauxhall Firenza..?
Chevrolet CanAm...
Built by GM in Port Elizabeth powered by a 302DZ Z-28 engine.
It's beat the COPO cars by a mile in my opinion.
Bob Lutz was CEO of Opel in 70ties so no wonder they raided part bins worldwide...
@janfswedane I just found out about the CanAm around a month ago. That thing is awesome. I wish they would have made more and brought it or something like it to the US!
Would love to know the part number and brand of the spool if you end up doing a video related to the rear end. The factory gears are horrible especially with a taller tire and 5 lug conversion. Looking for a better gear set for my 78 Monza V8
@D S Will do. I was surprised they even made a spool for those. I was surprised that Summit had several options. I am definitely going to remove the rear cover and see what's in there. I might wait until it gets a little warmer, though. ;)
Cool Ride thank you sir
You bet! Thanks for the compliment and the comment!
How do you like messing with the starter on that thing you're going to love it
Hopefully, I don't have to mess with it anytime soon!
Good luck on finding them flairs for that car. Whats even more rare then this car and even the Chevrolet Monza Mirage was the Buick Roadhawk, they even had the Oldsmobile GT models etc.
@jorgedacosta8957 I have the left rear wheel flare. I made a mirror image of it for the right side th-cam.com/video/3WStD6uOSMw/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for the comment and for watching!
Had handful of Monza's from 75 Tc coupe to the 79 Spyder with a 3.2l v-6. Not the 3.8.
The clutch cables stretches and will pull through the firewall if you put HD clutch.
I put 350's and 1 400 sbc in them all. Alternator should be directly on top of water pump. Belts l8ke to come loose.
If I do change it back to a manual transmission, I'll probably use a hydraulic release bearing. I remember those cables breaking on the 4 cylinder cars. I definitely have some work to do! Thanks for the information!
@@smithmotorworks1969 They were fun and crazy at same time. Have a great day.
Badge Engineering, hmmm, well put. I bought a brand new Chevy Monza, V8, 4speed, white with dark red interior, loaded. It was so disappointing that I can't even remember what year it was. I traded it in after a few months...
I remember a lot of people being disappointed with US cars from the 70s when I was a kid. It seems like they are getting some interest lately since most (affordable) newer stuff is so bland. Thanks for the comment!
Chevy built the Monza Mirage GT with a 5 ltr V8....even though it wasn't a high hp V8 it was a pretty quick car.
I think it's going to be pretty fun. I need to go through it all, especially the wiring before I take it any distance. Thanks!
No Mirage GT, only Monza Mirage. GT was either Oldsmobile or Vega GT not Monza.
Thats always been the pattern with GM, they might have a model in the other branches that shows promise, but as soon as it threatens the Corvette, whoa can't have that! and it gets nixxed
Unfortunately, GM seems to be their own worst enemy at times. Our Fiero that is featured on this channel is one of those stories. Thanks for watching!
Your going to love that car .I have one, go! Like shit!, It will be fast with that 350 in it fix it up!,you have Classic vintage car.restor it. Am fixing my 1979 Monza 2+2,and it's in Bad shape but it vintage you don't see them anymore. I would like to see more you fixing her up.
It ought to be fun. I plan on having a new episode out this weekend. Thanks for watching!
It's surprising how many car names contain the word "fire": Pontiac Firebird, Renault Fuego (Spanish for "fire"), the Opel/Vauxhall Zafira minivan, and this Starfire/Firenza with 2 instance of the word. Also, while the word Fiero doesn't actually mean fire, it sounds a lot like it. That could heighten the embarrassment when a car is recalled for a fire hazard, as happened with the Fiero and the Zafira. GM was lucky in that only 1 minor recall of the Firenza involved a fire hazard, though the car was also affected by a defect that caused some samples to spontaneously start themselves.
For sure. Once upon a time the names of cars were all fast land animals, predatory fish and birds or astronomical objects. Now the names are all meaningless gibberish. Firenza is apparently based on the Italian name of the city we call Florence. Fiero supposedly means "very proud", if you can believe the old brochure I have. Less than 0.2% of those cars caught fire, and it was more due to poor maintenance than anything. They get a bad rap unfairly. But, I'm biased since we own one. :)
Nice Starfire! I have a 65 convertible back when they were full-size. I would love to have one of these for a daily driver… Hit me up if you ever want to sell it ;-)
I'd like to have an older one too. I'll definitely let everyone know if I decide to get rid of it. It may be a while, LOL. Thanks for watching!
I had a 1988 olds firenza 4 cylinder. Just a rebadged cavalier. It was a good car till it rusted out.
I liked the look of those too. The front design kind of reminded me of a '68 Cutlass with the parking lamps between the pairs of headlights. Thanks for the comment!
I had a 78 Starfire in 87 that had the v6 4 bbl and 4 speed. I thought I was hot sh%*#t.
LOL That is cool. I actually like the look of the 78 and earlier ones a little better. Thanks for the comment!
It's an Oldsmobile version of the Chevy Vega/Monza.
For sure. I talk about that in the video too. Thanks!
Would the Olds 403 fit in place of the 350 ( presumably chevy junk ) motor?
It would physically fit, I believe. There are cars like it with big-block Chevrolet engines and even a Cadillac 500 in there! At a minimum, you'd have to solve possible oil pan and exhaust manifold interference issues, create custom engine mounts and more. The biggest problem, I see is the water pump extends much farther from the front of the block on an Olds V8 versus an SBC. My guess is that's one of the bigger reasons GM didn't do it. But, nothing is impossible, it just takes time and money, right? Thanks for watching!
Cool 🥰
Thank you!
I wonder if that is the same one that was for sale here in CO. a few yrs ago.
I think it may be. I don't know the full history of the car yet. Thanks for the comment!
Could you use one to 3-D print another? I mean I have no idea what it would cost. Just an idea.
Sure. I could scan or create a 3D model of one and print it if I had to. Luckily, I have a spare to use for now. Thanks!
That's too bad that it no longer has the original engine and has been modified so much, it's now just a cheap beater car - but you don't seem to mind so it's all good. I had a new 1978 Pontiac Sunbird that I really loved driving, although I would have enjoyed having the V-6 underhood instead of the clanky 4-banger it came with. Enjoy what you have and good luck finding missing trim pieces, they were made cheaply and fell apart just sitting on the shelf from new, but maybe you will have success looking on Ebay or Hemmings motor news.
I don't think it matters too much for this car if it's 100% original or not. They don't have the desirability of something like a Boss Mustang. If it ever became that much of a collectors item, everything that's been done to it can be reversed. I definitely don't consider it a cheap beater car, though. LOL I'll make whatever pieces I can't find and just maintain and enjoy it as-is for now. I've got good friends in Tucson. That's a beautiful part of the country. Thanks for the comment!
If you do the motor work right it only brings the value up in this case
It would have Ben awesome if Oldsmobile put a 307 or a 350 or a 403 Oldsmobile engine
I agree. I figure it must've been cost-prohibitive. Thanks for the comment!
Don't know why people hate 4 lug bolt patterns. If a car has enough power and traction to shear 4 lug nut studs off, you might want to upgrade to a diesel dumptruck axle.
Good point. I think it's the lack of custom wheel options, at least for RWD applications. Thanks for the comment!
The firenza was their model of monza spider
There are similarities for sure. It's kind of halfway between a Spyder and a Mirage. Thanks for the comment!
Call it Firenkenstein.
I haven't settled on a nickname yet. That one could work! Thanks!
@@smithmotorworks1969 I'm glad u liked it. Cool car!
What?!?!? I’m upset you didn’t call me and tell me it’s home but your honorable mention about me made up for it. Lmao. I’ll trade you my first born for it! ❤❤
I think I'll keep it for a little while. But, I'll let you know first if things change, LOL
Here is my 1980 Olds Starfire Frienza.
That looks nice. I might have some questions for you!
looks like GM Opel Manta mk2
Supposedly the 1975 Monza influenced the Manta design. Thanks for the comment!
Lol! Had the Monza version in my late teens, was a 305 2bbl. Terrible car....But had a cool spider on the hood.
Hahaha! The spider makes all the difference! Thanks for the comment!
You're lucky it has exhaust manifolds I'm going to tell you a little trick for that starter and you might think me later remove the passenger exhaust manifold and you can get to the starter and pull it out that way
I've heard it can be a challenge to access the starter. Thanks for the tip!
altinator is mounted above the water pump in front of engine good luck finding that bracket
There's a lot of stuff that needs to be corrected. If I can't fabricate one, it looks like this could work: www.speedwaymotors.com/Small-Block-Chevy-Upper-Alternator-Bracket-Plain,38957.html Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 I'm pretty sure the alternator was only over the water pump if it was a air conditioning car otherwise the location it's in now would be considered correct for non-air
@D S I am fairly sure this car didn't have AC. (The search for the build sheet is next.) I believe I can make a reliable mount to keep that belt on there. I didn't know about the different setups. Thanks very much for that information!
what did it have for a rear end gears?
Supposedly, it's an aftermarket 4.10:1. I haven't verified it, but it definitely feels like something fairly high (numerically). Thanks for watching!
That crushing was bullshit. That car had a lot fo good parts. Probably had a good windshield. I have a 79 monza 2+2. Myself.
@Chris Catarcio I totally agree. Someone had to know those parts had value.
@@smithmotorworks1969 their is probably 20 unwanted cars that could have taken it's place. Check out spider gradge. And one of the last episodes of fat and furious monza vinny gives a monza to his wife. Lol.
@Chris Catarcio I've bought some parts from Spyder Garage. They're good people. I haven't seen the Fat and Furious episode. I liked the show. I will check it out.
If you need that cracked windshield repaired, let me know where you are and I'll forward a reputable glass tech to take care of it.
@periguin finding a replacement might be a problem. I'll eventually get there. :) Thanks for the offer, though. I appreciate it!
looks like europeen opel manta
We had those in the US. When I was a kid, one of my paper route subscribers had a yellow one. That was a sharp looking little car. Thanks!
Looks like a monza.
LOL. There's a good reason for that. Thanks!
We're at I'm in randolf County Winchester
Cool. Home of the "Worlds Fastest 1/2 Mile", right? We're in the Indy area.
Looks like an Oldsmobile version of a Chevy Monza.
I talk about that in the video. Thanks!
I also have a Vega cosworth are you interested to buy
That sounds pretty awesome. I better hold of on the vehicle purchases for a while until I get some more room, though!
I want one with 231 and manual trans.
My friend had one like that when we were in HS. It was still plenty of fun. There's lot's of aftermarket support for those engines too. Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 The 231 (3.8) always came with a 2bbl but the 4.1 (same motor, larger displacement) had the 4bbl intake/quadrajet. The 4bbl intake really wakes up the 231.
My x boss has one his is all original with factory 262 v8 3 speed in the floor he got it back in 1982 the original owner ordered it with 3 speed in the floor and CB radio it's white and blue with white interior he won't sale it and it's just rusting away😔
That's a shame. Hopefully he'll come to his senses soon. Thanks for the comment!
If you want to fix that grill you could have it 3D printed.
I've got a small 3D printer in the shop and access to a much larger one at work. I've used mine for parts on the Indy Fiero and my old 1950 forklift that are on this channel. Luckily I've got a spare grill to replace that one. I may end up scanning and printing some other stuff for it, though. Thanks!
Ferrari 412
It definitely has some 365 GTB/4 styling cues. I believe the designer(s) admitted that. Thanks!
My neighbor had the V8 Chevy Monza, similar but probably not as rare
The Monza is a pretty awesome looking car too. Thanks for the comment!
Your fender flare is getting crushed on YT. Search 79 Firenze crushed. Yours is in the pic.
Oh, man. I've seen that one. What a waste, right? Thanks!
Monza’s cousin
For sure. Thanks for the comment!
Tiny brakes, 4 lug wheels, poor handling, and economy car powertrain are these cars drawbacks. The 305 had 147 hp. 350 power made all these problems glaringly obvious. A narrowed 8.8, and some real brakes, and suspension upgrades would really be a huge leap forward on one.
It's pretty popular to swap S-10 front spindles and rear axles to gain bigger brakes and a 5 x 4.75 bolt pattern. A lot of fairly high horsepower cars are still running the stock 7.5 differential with success. The 3-link torque arm rear suspension is a pretty good setup, but it makes swapping axles housings a challenge. Anything is possible with time, effort, and $, right? Thanks for the comment!
@@smithmotorworks1969 oh, indeed. They are so long gone where I live, I have not seen one in years, my buddy had an '80 Monza Spyder, he swapped a 327 in, and getting it to hook up, meant the rear was going to explode. It eventually ate a curb, and was totalled, but that was 30+ years ago when young and dumb was all I was. I pestered a guy who had a red and white one for years, untill I stumbled on an '80 Capri with a blown 255 V8. I still have it.
@James George they are not a common sight for sure. That's why I jumped on this one, even though I didn't really NEED it. I'd love to have your Capri too, though. ;) Those are $$$ these days too.
@@smithmotorworks1969 Thanks, I was dumping the clutch in second gear at 5500 rpm when it ripped the torque boxes off the floor in 1999, has not driven under it's own power since then. I sold the TFS head 306 that was in it, and I am assembling an L33 aluminum 5.3 to replace it, and I'm on the fence about leaving it stock, and repairing the floor / torque boxes, or building a Watts link style custom 4 link suspension, with a Crown Vic rear axle.
Looking at it you can see why 4k got produced.
The Firenza package was only available part of 78, all of 79 and part of 80. GM sold over 20K Starfires in 1979 and about 1.6 M similar looking H-body cars from all GM divisions combined during '75-'80. So, I guess a few people liked the styling. :)
Chevy Monza..
This is true. A lot of people have made the same comment. Check out the video, I talk about the history. Thanks!
Now if you slipped in a 455....😏
That would be fun! Thanks for the comment.
#BeerGoGGles4You!🤓
Not today, LOL!
look likes gm took the Monza and screwed with the looks of it and rebranded it. Monza was the best-looking and driving 3 door id ever seen and with some heavy tweaking packed a punch.
when olds got it right they really got it right same with getting wrong, GM bean counters often were idiots. and it shows the brightest in the finished products. leave it to GM to take an awesome idea and shit all over it,
I'm not sure why I like this little car so much. It is what it is, and I've always been a fan of the underdogs. Dare to be Different, LOL. Thanks for watching!
Opel monza
The Chevrolet Monza influenced the Opel design for sure. Thanks!
@@smithmotorworks1969 to bad we did not get the drivetrain and v8 in europe