'73 Vega GT, amazingly nice time capsule

[DW31S]

Originally Posted by Bill Pritchard

Belongs in a Ripley's Believe-It-Or-Not museum.....a Vega purchased in the Midwest that has no rust 47 years later

Now THAT was funny!!!

[njsteve]

That Vega brings back memories. Back in 1981 I was living in Aurora Colorado and attending Denver Automotive and Diesel College. A bunch of us hooligans rented a house and proceeded to become an annoyance to the entire neighborhood. One of the neighbors was always calling the cops on us for having too many parties/girls/noise/cars parked, etc. They eventually moved out and out of spite, abandoned a 1972 Vega GT automatic, in that same color red, right in our front yard, blocking our driveway.

Well, when the neighbors leave you lemons...make lemonade. After a couple weeks I called the police to get it towed and they said since it was abandoned on your property, wait another month and then apply for an abandoned vehicle title. Then you can do whatever you want with it: junk it, part it out, get it licensed and drive it, etc.

So I waited, got the title and tags, pulled a door lock cylinder out, and had a key made. The thing started right up and I drove it for six months. It had zero horspeower, being that we were at 5,000+ foot elevation and it had an automatic. But it was a dependable car. I then traded it to a local used car lot/junkyard, straight across for a 1971 Cuda 383 convertible! Here's that cuda as I found it:

Best Vega Ever!

[scuncio]

Cool story Steve. Boy, that Cuda was a mess for being only ten years old or so.

[njsteve]

Yeah, cars sure dissolved quickly back then. The junk yard got it because it had been abandoned on Lowry Air Force Base by an airman who had been transfered and left it behind. The old paperwork in the car indicated that it came from Rochester, New York - hence all that pre-existing rustiness. But it had all its original drivetrain and was Curious Yellow. It also started right up! I applied for an abandoned title along with the junkyard-supplied paperwork. And the rest is history. Go here for the "after" photo:

https://www.yenko.net/forum/showthre...149631&page=16

[earntaz]

Here is a pic of the little Vega I had back in 71' ...

[67since67]

In the early to mid 1970s I made a bunch of money replacing warranty short blocks in these. Didn't take long for GM to realize the aluminum cylinder walls weren't such a great idea for the general public.
Steel sleeves made them a fairly reliable engine. The A/C equipped cars weren't as likely to score cylinder walls due to having a larger radiator. Replaced a lot of valve seals and diff pinion bearings in these as well.

[juliosz]

I know these aren’t super cars but I couldn’t pass on price of admission a few years ago when I picked this up. 38000 miles on the clock and runs great once I sorted the fuel injection. It’s also a really nice driving/handling car. The chassis team at Chevrolet Engineering did their homework. Even though the 122CI L4 is no rocket ship, I never considered doing a V8 swap.

The last couple years prior to 2020, I was driving this once or twice a week to work between April and November, about a 50 mile round trip.

[earntaz]

Originally Posted by 67since67

In the early to mid 1970s I made a bunch of money replacing warranty short blocks in these. Didn't take long for GM to realize the aluminum cylinder walls weren't such a great idea for the general public.
Steel sleeves made them a fairly reliable engine. The A/C equipped cars weren't as likely to score cylinder walls due to having a larger radiator. Replaced a lot of valve seals and diff pinion bearings in these as well.

On my blue Vega below, between my dad and I we put over 93K on it. The only things that ever went bad were a throwout bearing and a starter drive. Oil was changed like clockwork and car maintained to the max. I found my used Cortez Silver Yenko Deuce at Broadway Chev in Green Bay and was going to trade the Vega in on it, but my dad wanted the Vega. Later, my brother stuffed a SBC in it and the last I heard it was still on the streets in Green Bay.

[Too Many Projects]

Originally Posted by juliosz

I know these aren’t super cars but I couldn’t pass on price of admission a few years ago when I picked this up. 38000 miles on the clock and runs great once I sorted the fuel injection. It’s also a really nice driving/handling car. The chassis team at Chevrolet Engineering did their homework. Even though the 122CI L4 is no rocket ship, I never considered doing a V8 swap.

The last coupe years prior to 2020, I was driving this once or twice a week to work between April and November, about a 50 mile round trip.

Dang, that's cool. The Cozworth's are rare.. Even more rare if you found that in MI with so little rust.

[Bill Pritchard]

Originally Posted by 67since67

The A/C equipped cars weren't as likely to score cylinder walls due to having a larger radiator.

A good friend of mine (now departed) bought a new 71 Vega GT with a/c and never had a lick of engine trouble during many years and miles of ownership.