MCfan

Great price for an SS in that condition and relatively low mileage! Love the sassy "up and at 'em" stance!

I think your idea is clever and could be workable, but NOT as it is currently shown in your photos above. The axis of rotation (i.e. invisible line between the center of the two stand "bearings") needs to be much closer to the axial center of the body's mass (although hard to know exactly where that is). Right now the axis of rotation appears to go through the lower edge of the windshield and rear window leaving a much greater mass/weight below it than above it. It would be the same as putting a whole chicken on a BBQ rotisserie skewer too close to the backbone. If, in its current orientation, you can jack the body up and lower the attachment brackets so the axis of rotation is moved down closer to the axial center of gravity (probably passes through a little above the middle of the firewall) , the body should rotate easier with fairly equal weight distribution at any radial position. If you attempt to rotate the body the way it is currently attached to the stands, I'm afraid the extra weight below the current axis of rotation will unbalance the entire set up so much that it will either tip over or be so marginal as to be unsafe. Again, I applaud your creativity but hope you don't try to rotate the body in the position shown.

Grant, I have installed two pairs of those splash shields and offer a word of caution in case it applies to your installation. I don't know if the material used to make those reproduction splash shields varies by manufacturer/supplier, but both pairs I acquired were made of fairly thin stiff/brittle black plastic. As you can see in the photo below of the Assembly Manual page, the splash shield mounts just behind the inner fender with three screws: one into the frame, one into the bottom of the door sill and one to the back edge of the inner fender. If your splash shields are also made of stiff/brittle black plastic, be extremely careful that you don't over-tighten any of the screws, especially the one that connects to the bottom rear edge of the inner fender. I found that the contour of the splash shield did not match the contour of the rear edge of the steel inner fenders on my '70 SS. When I tried to snug up that fastener, the edge of the brittle splash shield broke off and I had to epoxy it back together. I did not have that problem when I installed a similar pair on my '70 with plastic inner fenders from the Parts Place because they were flexible enough to conform to the contour of the splash shield (another reason why I prefer flexible plastic inner fenders over steel). Good luck with your installation.

Bill, I knew of a man in the Dallas area named Bob Van Buskirk in the '95-'97 timeframe. He was a friend of a friend and I remember he always drove cool cars. I would have recognized a first gen Monte Carlo if he showed up in it so I can't say this is the right guy. According to Whitepages, there is a Robert Van Buskirk in Dripping Springs, TX who used to live in Dallas. His age is listed as 68 which would be about right for the man I knew back then. I know it's a long shot but you may want to contact him using info from Whitepages. Good luck!

My '70 402/4-speed was a very low-option car - no A/C, no power options (not even power steering!), AM center speaker radio, etc. (although its got all that stuff and more now). Focus was obviously on performance, not frills. The Drivetrain was further modified for performance in '74. I believe that by the '71 model year, performance enthusiasts had figured out that Montes could still be ordered with big blocks and 4-speeds while the SS was stuck with the automatic. Certainly economy or low end buyers may have gone for the 350 but with the compression ratios dropping to 8.5:1 in '71 and all hp ratings (except the 454) also dropping, the clear choice for stick-shift performance was a 402/ 4-speed. Either combo is a great deal of fun to drive so it;s well worth chasing one down if you are so inclined.

Kevin, I have personally seen three sources that claim there were 80 350/4-speeds and 269 402 4-speeds (349 total 4-speeds) built into '71 Monte Carlos. These are the production numbers I believe (not 289 402 4-speeds as shown in your post above). One source was the computer printout I was shown by Allen Moledor when he owned your car (have you looked in the back of the 3-ring binder you got with your car?). Another was the sign displayed with a '71 402/4-speed at the Blacktop Nationals in 2010 (see photo below). The third was a photo copy of a page published by the National Monte Carlo Club (now defunct) showing those exact production numbers. For many years, our Tech Info section on this site had those numbers reversed but no one could confirm their accuracy and they have since been removed, leaving only the 349 total. At this point, I believe you are safe claiming only 80 350/4-speed in '71 Montes. If someone wants to question that, the burden of proof is on them IMO.

I believe he did. Although I didn't recognize it at the time, the '72 rear trim clearly shows in one of the photos I took in late 2009 and Allen told me the dash came out of a '72 so he may have had access to a '72 donor car. If I remember correctly, the first owner was a lady on the east coast of FL who kept it original but I don't know how many other owners may have been involved before Allen got it. I don't think the black interior was all original '71 either. At least the seat covers were somewhat fuzzy and he apologized that they had a lot of his dog's hair all over them at the time I drove it. I got the impression that he bought the car to fix up and flip - which is what he continued to do with other muscle cars after he sold the Monte. From the photos both you and Aaron posted, it doesn't look to me like the car has changed much in the past ten years. It is a sharp looking Monte for sure - love the Gobi Beige ('70) or Covert Tan ('72) color - not sure what the original color was. And with a 4-speed behind that healthy 355, it has to be a blast to drive. Enjoy!!

Yes, Kevin, I know the "builder" and have driven the car. The 350 was modified and the body re-painted in 2009 when owned by Allen Moledor who lived in Lehigh Acres, FL at the time. I don't know where he lives now but I can probably get you in touch with him if you want. I saw the car soon after it was "finished" at a "Toys-for-Tots" car show at Muscle Car City in Punta Gorda, FL around Christmas of 2009 (see photos below). It is a very memorable car for me because it was the first time I knew that GM actually installed a 4-speed in any first gen Monte. It was the car that started my journey back to owning two '70 Montes, one a 402 4-speed (that I still have) and also a 454 SS that I sold last summer. Allen was the one who showed me a green-banded computer printout of GM production numbers (in the back of the three-ring binder he carried in the trunk) that showed only 80 350 4-speeds were built in '71. Of course, he also told me that some 402 4-speeds were built in '70 which immediately began my search for one. I did consider buying his '71 and went with my wife down to Lehigh Acres to check it out and drive it. Allen thought the modified 350 (355 with overbore) put out around 375 hp and it sure felt that strong when both he and I drove it. He was asking $21k for it ten years ago which I felt was too strong for the market and actually bought my '70 402 4-speed for considerably less about a month later. The car has probably received some TLC and upgrades since then but at that time there were issues with the dash and other non-'71 trim that turned me off. I used to see Allen at car shows in North Ft Myers and may have been the one who gave him the FGMCC cards. I seem to remember that the car left Florida for Wyoming several years ago and I don't know were it's been since but I am absolutely certain it is the same car I took several photos of at the 2009 car show in Punta Gorda. I will include some of those photos and you can probably confirm its identity. Let me know if you have any questions although there probably aren't many specifics I will remember after ten years. It sounds like you may have received Allen's three-ring binder with the car - please let me know if it still contains those production number computer print-outs as they could be very useful to our club. Thanks and enjoy your new ride!

Oh, Joe, I've seen this movie before .... and I suspect many other members have as well. We all know from watching Counting Cars and Overhaulin' that it doesn't take 6 weeks to do a professional paint job (nor would I want one done in two days). I gave my painter 6 full months (while I was away at my summer home) and he dicked around 5 months and three weeks before I rode him so hard he finally pulled it together. His "helpers" dented my halo top trim in numerous places, but by then, I was out of runway to have anything fixed before I left for the National Monte Carlo mini-meet in Kissimmee, FL. I suggest you drop in at least once a week to be sure he is making steady progress, especially if you had to pay him anything in advance. Good luck!

Joe, I can't speak to the quality of OPGI's bumpers as I got my '70 front bumper from AMD (no issues at all). Maybe you are used to dealing with OPGI but, if not, they are notorious for back-ordering items after you order them online. If you decide to order bumpers (or anything else) from them, I suggest you call them first and confirm availability. I have had several unsatisfactory and even unpleasant experiences with OPGI in the past. But, I haven't done business with them for several years so hopefully things have changed. Good luck.

Welcome to the forums, Luc! That's a nice looking '72 - understand it is not yours. I'm guessing lots of first gen Monte owners would like to have a set of factory rallys as nice as those appear to be. What your rallys are worth would depend entirely on their condition. You say you have factory wheels and tires (or whatever they are by now) and it sounds like you are planning to keep the tires and just replace the wheels, is that right? If not what size of tires are you hoping to run front and rear? The '72 in the picture appears to have BFG 245/60-15s all the way around. I ran 245/60s on stock 15x7 rims with the standard 4" backspace (0 offset) with no problems at all. If you are planning to go to a wider rim (15x8 or more) in back with a wider tire, you may need more backspace and even some positive offset. If you want more of a deep dish look on a 15x7 rim, you may want some negative offset - see what your wheel manufacturer recommends. Otherwise, if you're happy with your current setup, I'd leave the backspace and offset alone. BTW, if your spare tire and rim are the same as your other four, you can easily measure the backspace and calculate any offset if you also know the rim width. Just lay your spare tire face down, lay a 16" straightedge across the outer edges of the inboard rim and measure down to the wheel mounting surface (where it bolts onto the hub). That is your backspace dimension in inches. Offset is the distance in millimeters between the wheel mounting surface and the physical centerline of the wheel (one half the total width of the rim from outside edge to outside edge. On a stock 7" wide rim (inside bead to bead measurement) the backspace should be 4" with 0 offset (wheel mounting surface is exactly in the center of the rim width). With all of the excellent tire and wheel sizer apps available online, it is foolish to guess what may work on your Monte. Go to any of them (I prefer tiresize.com) and read the definitions of backspace versus offset; then play around with different tire and rim sizes to compare them to your current setup. You should be able to figure out pretty quickly what backspace and offset (if any) you will need for the setup you want to switch to. Again, pay attention to your wheel manufacturer's recommendations. Of the five calculators available at tiresize,com, you will need to use at least the Tire Size Comparison and the Wheel Offset Calculator. Good luck.

Great advice, Jared! Guess I've been lucky so far as I was not aware of that risk. Another critical factor when installing/re-installing steel inner fenders can be how and where the frame is supported with either jack stands, floor jacks or both. After removing the steel inners on my '70 SS to completely refurbish them (stripped bare with POR-15 inside and black semi-gloss outside), I had a terrible time getting several of the holes to line up once a few of the fasteners were loosely in place. Adjusting the jack/support points was the ultimate solution but they sure don't go back in place as easy as you might hope or expect. I've had the plastic inners off my other '70 several times and found them much easier to align.

Hey, Willie, Sounds like the new gang switch will not plug into your factory harness. If you can't find a reproduction switch that matches the original stud pattern, I believe you may have a couple other options. If the exterior appearance of your original switch is acceptable, it is possible (although a bit tedious) to completely refurbish the internal contacts and studs. I did this for all of the switches on a salvaged '72 power window system I installed in my '70 and made a project photo journal if you are interested. If you want the exterior appearance and new mechanical workings of the new switch, you can possibly (and carefully) remove the back plate/stud array from your new switch and your old switch, refurbish the contacts and studs and swap the refurbished back plate onto your new switch housing. That way the new switch will mate with your current harness. After spending days messing with power windows on both of my '70s, I am convinced that poor electrical contact/conductivity is the biggest contributor to slow, intermittent or failing power window operation. Which ever way you go with your switch(es), I suggest refurbishing all of the electrical connectors before you button it back up. Finding a new switch with the original stud pattern is probably the most desirable solution so I hope that is possible. Good luck.

Had 'em both. Prefer the Monte-specific plastic units from the Parts Place - hands down.

The 255/60-15 will give you a nearly 2" wider tire (10) with a height very close to stock at 27". Yes, the 275/60-15 is an inch taller at 28" but the speedometer error is only about 3.2%. If your speedometer is reading 60 your actual speed is 62. Note that the exact calculation depends on what size you enter as "stock" or the tire for which your speedometer is calibrated. I use 205/75-15 or 215/70-15 as close to "stock size". I did not change my speedometer gearing when I went to the taller 275/60 because I seldom drive my '70 over 60 anywhere, even on the interstate. When I need to verify my actual speed in high gear, it is so easy to do so by glancing at my tach. With a 3.31 rear gear and a non-slipping 1:1 in 4th gear of my manual transmission, my actual speed is almost exactly my tach reading divided by 40. For example: if the tach is reading 2000, my actual speed is 50 mph; 2400 is 60 mph; 2800 is 70 mph, etc. When driving at lower speeds in first, second, or third gear (i.e school zones, residential streets, construction zones, etc.) I just use my speedometer reading knowing the error is very small as long as it is not reading greater than the current speed limit. Bottom line: Once you know the know the percentage error and how it affects your actual speed a various points, it becomes second nature to mentally adjust your speedometer reading to actual speed in real time.