Chevy once advertised the Vega with the tag See What It’s Like to Drive a Winner. Maybe people took Chevy’s advice and that’s why you don’t see too many Vegas anymore. Today’s GT will let you find out for yourself, but only if its price is a winner.
Track Days let you take your street car on the track, while in contrast yesterday’s was a track car you could conceivably take on the street. Unfortunately for the seller, 72% of you raced to the Crack Pipe button, as twenty-eight grand was considered too much for a car that can’t decide what it wants to be.
If Chevy’s Vega was ever was offered the choice of what it wanted to be, do you think it would have chosen to be “a Vega?” I don’t think so, at least not after the litany of problems and ignominies piled upon the model, but now you have the opportunity to chose for it!
This is the wagon model, which is quite possibly one of the most attractive two-door wagons ever built. This one even takes its Camaro-esque nose and adds to that a Camaro-esque black hood stripe which contrasts nicely with its Mountain Dew-yellow paint. Do the Dew!
That good looking body does exhibit some road rot, but the ad claims it to be minimal. There is a roof rack too and I think seeing one of those on a Vega wagon these days is even more rare than seeing a Vega wagon.
The ad says that the car’s door and hatch seals have been replaced, however the through-the-door interior pic shows the rubber on the driver’s portal to be missing so you’d have to get clarification on that.
Delving further inside you’ll see that the seats look pretty good, and as well like they’d be hotter than hell in the summer. Good thing then that there’s working A/C. The dash is cracked in a number of places and - sigh - a Grant GT steering wheel has taken up residence in there too.
Mechanically things are a little more positive. The aluminum block/iron head (yes, it’s upside-down) 2.3-litre is said to have been rebuilt with steel sleeves, which is a big plus.
The carb, starter and ignition/charging systems are also newish, and there’s an aluminum radiator that the ad says is good for up to 400 bhp! The engine compartment - including the A/C dryer and tubing - has been given a nice coating of speckle, and there’s an ah-ooga horn because sometimes you just want to annoy the neighbors. Lastly, the parking brake looks like it could use an adjustment.
Despite the Vega’s reputation for rust, engine failures, and being the Vega, the basic design lived on long after the tainted name was cast to the wind, never again to be spoken aloud in the hallowed halls of GM. The successor Monza even continued the same tidy wagon body, albeit with a dorky nose and big bumpers. This however, is an example of the breed in its purest sense, with skinny jeans bumpers and a grille that recalls both the contemporary Camaro and that of the ’55 shoebox Chevy.
Owing to the Vega’s history, you’re just not going to see that many of them out there any more. I mean, people just don’t give a shit about these all that much. For someone who does give a shit to see this one in his or her driveway they’ll need to be flush to the tune of $5,900 - or be willing to negotiate some.
What’s your take on this survivor Vega and its $5,900 price? Is that a deal to own a slice of automotive history? Or, does asking that much for this GT have you circling your wagons?
You decide!
San Francisco (again!) , or go if the ad disappears.
H/T to Kyle for the hookup!
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