Long Time 409 Fan, And I Need To Get One SOON!

CORVAIRWILD

Well Known Member
Way back in 1976 my dad bought me a '67 Parisienne 2+2 convert. As you have obviously guessed, this was a Canadian Poncho, more Chevy than Indian. Anyhow, he gave me the car for my 18th birthday in 1978, and it was a summer to beat all! I was missing a hubcap, and a friend with a screwdriver in his back pocket found one (on a 2+2) at a local VW dealers back lot, and suggested we go get it that nite. I went with a different friend, and the car looked too good to "part out", so he went there the next morning with his dad, and bot the car, another '67 2+2 for $150. It had been the dealerships secretarys car, and was similar to mine with buckets console 283PG and this one had power windows and head restraints

We had a great time terrorizing the 'hood all summer, he put dual exhaust with royal Scott glasspacks, and I went with 2.5" w Corvair Turbo mufflers. We also put a Holley double pumper on his little 283, and fuel would dribble out the tailpipes! I would tinker with the car, tuning it while he was attending college classes. Guess who graduated with a degree and who's a dropout?

After a few months of foot to the floor fun, I bot a '67 442, and he blew the 283, so we went looking for a big block, and ended up discovering a 409 in a junk '57 Chev station wagon.

Long story short, the 409 was a 348, it was junk, cracked block, so we found a 409 in a truck junkyard, he had it rebuilt and mated it to a TH400, and that's the pix in my profile.

We both kept our cars for many years, but seldom drove them after the next summer. The frame on mine was so rusty I had it changed from a '66 Caprice and then parked the car for 15 years. He moved away, and eventually blew the poorly rebuilt engine.

So 35 years later I'm ready for a real 409. I saw a sweet fully restored '62 Impala SS convert in Palm Springs Cal last fall, red red 409-409, but $55,000. I also have on my bucket list a '65 Parisienne Custom Sport convert that I would have built with a 409-400 5 speed. Pontiac of Canada offered the 409 in the all new '65's, and that's were we got the exhaust manifolds from for my friends '67. In fact the 409 was offered for the entire model year, and the Mark IV 396 wasn't available until 1966. So that's were the remaining 409's ended up I guess. Production was still very limited, and CanadianPoncho has all the low numbers.

BTW, that's me 36 years ago with the afro!

I'm also looking at a '65 Catalina 2+2 hdtp, 40+ options 4 speed 421 3-2's A/C PW etc... We'll see how that goes!
 

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CORVAIRWILD

Well Known Member
Here's that '62 SS 409. I just checked and it's gone but it was too nice to drive anyways!

 

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CORVAIRWILD

Well Known Member
What Chevy club do you guys belong to? I used to be a member of the '58-'64(?) club a zillion years ago, way before the internet. Does it still exist? I'd like to find a survivor '62, numbers don't matter, as long as it's rust free and relatively original, convert or BelAir preferred, but an Impala SS would be OK. IMO restored cars are a better value, as the one I let go above was $55k, and how could one duplicate the quality at that price?

I have a friend near Toronto that just bot a '64 Parisienne Safari wagon. He will update it w a 409 700R4. Now it has a 327-250PG. Does anyone know if the tailgate is the same for US and Canadian Pontiacs? He is missing a rt hinge
 
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Iowa 409 Guy

Well Seasoned Member
Supporting Member 15
That was the Late Great 58-64 Chevy you are speaking of I believe. Welcome....................:crazy:crazycome on in. You guys were very high tech back then>.... There must not have been many trees around your area, I see you have a real cherry picker.............:dunno2:dunno2Get your billfold out..........you'll find something.
 

Mearl

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 6
These guys know everything about W motors so they can help. Just don't pay too much attention to anything else they tell you. Oh yeah, welcome to the site.
 

IMBVSUR?

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 2
Welcome, nice pics. I have had a few Pontiacs and always appreciate seeing them. Good luck on your search.
 

jim_ss409

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 5
I like the smoky burnout pictures,,, you guys did burnouts like you had a tire sponsor. :beer:D
Welcome to the site!
I've seen your posts on the Canadian Poncho site. :beer
 

CORVAIRWILD

Well Known Member
The cherry picker was rented, the next one I got was from an abandoned chop shop. The real estate salesman told me about it, and along w the hoist, we got a lo lo miles Vortec 4.3 that a friend needed for an oil burning S10. The garage was demo'd a short time later. I carried the dis-assembled picker under a heavy jacket as I lived a few doors away. Sketchy 'hood is now gentrified, and I would love to sell the slum I bot there 25 years ago.
Shredding tires? There was a nearby junkyard, and tires were cheap, and the manager at the local Canadian tire would let me use the tire machine and balancer for small cash payment. My next beater was a '70 GTO 400-350 3 speed. I used to keep an inventory of mounted tires for that oil burning rust bucket! Paid $250, beat the crap out of it, and friend locked up the shifter and burned the clutch, the pix is when the tow truck came to get it after I sold it for $600 later in the summer
 

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Jim409_Pontiac

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 2
I don't drive my 62 impala s/s 409 much any more so I might be willing to let it go to a new home.

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I am also thinking the same way with the Mack car Hauler.
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Jeff Olson

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 2
Welcome! You will find that there is not a better group of guys anywhere and the knowledge they have is amazing.
However, they may fill you full of crap once in a while just for fun.:poke
 

CORVAIRWILD

Well Known Member
I called the dealer in Redlands Ca, and he sold the '62 just after I was there in October. He had reduced the price to $55 in the video, and he told me it sold for $45, and he likes to get 10% commision. Hard to believe such a nice car would sell for so little IMO. One has to buy a nice car, get all the parts, rechrome paint interior, put it all together, and that's gotta be alot more than $40thou!
 

entourageguy

Well Known Member
Supporting Member 3
20130905_180633_resized.jpg It had a frame off 25 years ago then mostly say in a barn and garage. I bought it 5 years ago with a 348 350auto in it. I found a 409 out of a 64 chris craft boat and had Bill Howard out of Barrie rebuild it. Now has a tremec 5 speed with 411 gears. Wheels are keystone rebels.
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