Let’s see- 500 bucks for a complete, running, rust-free factory V8 Monza 2+2? Sold!Īs a bonus, the car came with a gallon of ATF, a gallon of Prestone antifreeze, a can of Gumout carb cleaner, and a set of jumper cables. He then gave me an irresistible offer- if I come get it that week, I could have it for $500. He was getting married, moving out of state, and needed the car gone. A couple of years later, he had posted the ad again and we reestablished contact. He and I exchanged e-mails for the better part of a year, and then lost touch. My Monza’s previous owner was a nice young fellow named Manny. When the other guys caught up to us a few minutes later, the ZX’s owner, an older black gentleman named Tony, went up to Tim and said “what the hell did you do to that thing?!? ” We laughed our asses off all the way to the restaurant. The junky little Chevy screamed like a banshee, smoking its right rear 13-inch tire furiously for half a block and leaving the bloated ZX in the dust. As soon as the light turned green, Tim floored the accelerator while simultaneously popping the clutch. ![]() Tim and I were in his Monza, while two other classmates were in an automatic, 4-seater 280ZX. Despite being tired and dingy, that car was a hoot to drive.Īt the end of the last day of class, us and two other classmates headed up the street for a burger and a beer. Tim had a ’76 2+2, faded red, with the Buick-sourced 3.8 liter V6 mated to a four-speed manual. The two of us were taking a smog licensing class at El Camino College, and quickly hit it off. I didn’t have my first ride in an H-Body until the late 1990s, when I was briefly friends with Timothy Iskenderian, who happens to be the youngest son of legendary cam grinder Ed Iskenderian. It still didn’t stop me from wanting one, however. I just thought they looked cool, and I was determined to have one someday.Īn early Consumer Guide test described the Monza as “an overweight subcompact in search of an engine that fits”, citing the loss of the rotary, the low power and dubious reliability of the Vega-derived four, and the significant additional heft and thirst of the optional V8. At that time, I was completely clueless about these cars’ ills- their infamous Vega heritage, the awful build quality, the crappy brakes, and their general crudeness. Pushing a button would make the pistons in the cutaway engine go up and down, the tires turn, and other neat stuff.Īs a budding car enthusiast, I was smitten. ![]() In one of the display halls was a bright red Monza 2+2, split down the middle with one half of it hanging on the wall, and the other half sitting on a raised display platform in the middle of the floor. ![]() My first exposure to these cars was at the tender age of 8 (this would be around 1978 or ’79 ) when I accompanied my grandparents and cousins on a trip to the L.A. The $1300 asking price at the time was fair, but due to my stalling and / or indifference, I wound up getting the deal of the decade. Almost on a whim, I started looking specifically for a hatchback H-Body. I spent a great deal of my spare time trolling Craigslist for cheap vintage project cars. The saga of my ownership of this car starts way back in 2005, a full three years before I actually took possession of it. ![]() Good things come to those who wait. A wise saying, especially when shopping for a somewhat rare and unique vehicle (nowadays, anyway ) like a GM H-Body.
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