1977 Pontiac Phoenix: Regular Car Reviews 

or betamax

@@quackman Betamax didn't get the Vacuum Babes 6 release, so VHS it is.

Just remember it has to be either extremely cheap cigarettes like pyramids, or something stupidly expensive like Benson and Hedges.

Don't let me stop you lol

Until some time in grade school, the only video store in my little town was also a liquor store, and it stayed in business at least until sometime after I started high school. It was called The Bootlegger. There was no section closed off with a beaded curtain (though that might’ve just been because the building was too small), but I saw plenty of ‘70s hoopties like this pull up, with drivers who’d come in for booze and cigarettes. Maybe they had the… other stuff… behind the counter. I never saw it happen, but looking back, it was the kind of place that it’d be kind of amazing if they DIDN’T have the kind of tapes that Uncle Pull Tab would be interested in.

Heat riser stuck and pre-heater tube likely missing or detached, also, choke/high idle needed set, probably needed a new thermostat too.

If you never maintain your vehicle, it IS going to be a junk. Sooner than later.

@@ty2010 are you saying this had an auto choke? :o that wasn't common in the UK til much later

@@kaitlyn__L They disappeared here mid 1960s Manual chokes that is

@@ty2010 that's really interesting.. even cars into the 80s had manual choke here sometimes, the auto was an option and lots of people didn't like them because they let up the choke too early and made the first few miles ride kind of rough. So they didn't option them. In the 80s a lot of base models had auto choke, where the higher end had fuel injection and they didn't want to alter the interior for the choke pulley. But then, the Citroën 2CV and original Beetle were both sold until 89 or 90 or something in the UK... even alongside Golfs and Civics and Escorts... they were just a cheaper option, with completely unchanged engineering up until their final days.

I wouldnt expect anything less

You're cute dude...

I find them easier to digest than tide pods.

I absolutely love the fact you did this. The convergence of Savage Geese and RCR is pure gold. It simply highlights that DeMuro, for all his fame and great work, doesn't have to put any effort at all into videography.

A fair deal.

Just as US back then, it looks lost.

1976 what a fucking worst year to celebrate the bicentennial

We needed the distraction. Plus at least Vietnam and Watergate were over and the hostage crisis and stagflation hadn't happened yet.

@@seed_drill7135 stagflation did happen in '74 to '76 But got worse in the early 80's

That's... that's the saddest thing I've ever read.

AM radio is great. I would rather listen to radio voices than newsman voices.

I still listen to AM radio for traffic reports when I'm coming back into my city from out of town

Better than the moron that relies on the internet with biased news directed by political parties.

I think my grandfather had one

@@joecap2919 ok boomer

Aptly stated.

It's unremarkable, not good at its one job, and hanging on only because someone puts it back in place every now and again.

Duuuude. That's me.

Truth

This was a problem with the car and GM cars of this era. When Mr. Reg started pushing it into the groove, which you can't see from the outside, I had flashbacks. Lucky for him it's 80F and the rubber is not icicle brittle.

Me too. My first car was a chocolate brown 1973 Olds Delta 88 Royale...what a boat !

True. They were fun to drive compared to Pintos, Citations, a 4 cylinder Celebrities, though, fast by comparison. A 305 Nova left everything new other than an IROC or 5.0 Mustang in the dust in 1987.

We never had these types of cars in Ireland, as they are far too large and the V8s are not fuel efficient enough. I absolutely love American land yachts, they just look beautiful in my eyes. I saw an old Dodge Monaco police car I think it was on the back of a tow truck and its sheer size baffled me, it was just barely hanging on to the truck. More than half the length of it.

Add to that, junkyards full to the brim with parts to improve and fix them

I’d love to get my hands on something like this Pontiac, even though they’re boring as bricks to many I find them cool to an extent.

They aren't unreliable at all, and you can turn up the power in the 350 easily Just that the 350 was the largest engine for the 77 Caprice it ran just fine! Got to love sealed beams and chrome bumpers...

Really sammmmmmme

I absolutely love these cars, I have a 94 Silverado, it's the closest thing to an old car like that, same principal......

I love them too.

Not really unreliable, but the reliability factor seemed to vary on each cars.

I wish I could find something like this on the cheap in my area. I would love to keep some old forgotten shit on the road, turning heads.

@@Jrez I feel ya! It's the whole reason I bought my Fifth Avenue. My brother-in-law, my mom, and a friend all said it looks like an old gangster car. It wasn't the extravagant car that they made it out to be, but it's never had really major issues, and it just stands out from every recent normal car everyone gets from or purchased by their parents.

93OakTrees lol cause it's b l u e

Orange is just neon brown

93OakTrees You're my boy bbblllllluuuuuueeeee.

Fudgeman

Mr. Regular looked great in the video, very handsome.

His choice of clothes is that of a baby boomer going on vacation.

I don't know what you mean, man. Just looks pretty functional to me

Your dad and Mr. Regular both have fine taste.

People in glass houses ...

Negil Leufeln that part was fiberglass like a corvette.

@@vector6977 That makes more sense, but still doesn't make it look good imo

It's a poor homage to the Pontiac "Beak" that was so prominent in the 60s, (See the Bonneville, Catalina, Tempest, GTO, etc.)

My dad's boss owns a Burgundy 1965 Bonneville. Nice cars and they aren't as big as you think but they do have a lots of rear overhang.

Negil Leufeln I think you've missed the entire point he was making. There was nothing wrong with the styling that Pontiac did. The problem was it was based on a 15 year old car..

Great point. It's strange how this insightful paragraph (like mine was, LOL) only gets a handful of likes, but some inane comment of 8 words gets 144 likes???? People must be "liking" their own comments. Anyhow, back to the topic; this car, when purchased new, an owner could reasonably expect it to go 100,000 miles without much trouble (it could surpass an import in longevity, by not needing an engine rebuild and rusting less). Sure, a few small repairs, usually minor, and not catastrophically expensive. Fast forward just a few years to the Celebrity, Citation, etc.; JUNK. Major repairs, major heartbreak, major stress, major trying to blame someone for their incredibly bad luck of being stranded...it just didn't make sense...it couldn't be that all of a sudden they were putting out junk...except that yes, they were. Not many people accepted this new reality. Some that did switched to Japanese cars. Thankfully the "quality gap" closed up a lot (sometimes completely) after some years, but it was huge in the early 80s.

True. BOF RWD V8's keep on going because they are indeed derivatives of the 30's-60's. But legislation, imports and the oil crisis of the early 70's forced a lot of changes upon mostly small cars: Unibodies, front wheel drive, small transverse engines, more lightweight plastics and electronics. These growing pains brought us another era of great cars: 90's to early 00's. Strong, rustproof unibody's, improved safety and less pollution. Durable plastics; no more "vinyl over foam". Their quality up to par with the olden days, but requiring far less maintenance. However, governments are pushing electric and hybrid drivetrains ever more, forcing another transition upon the industry. Which in itself is also to blame by hijacking consumers; forcing them to service their cars at the dealership. Cutting corners on quality and lying about the specs. Electronics, plastics and computer aided development having matured, they CAN build excellent cars now, but often prefer to milk us. At a point they will scare us into leasing, instead of buying. (A modern trend, I guess.) With quality declining again, and the uncertainty of choosing a future proof car that won't be banned from city centers in the next decade, I am very glad I can manage everything with my bicycle :)

Ive had nothing but FWD A cars and they are awesome. They drive really good in the snow too......cant say that with a nova. BTW i have a 1983 Pontiac 6000 STE with 53,000 original miles and yes it has its problems but still very reliable.

I've had all kind of cars, and I have the same experience: RWD's tend to wag their tails in rain or snow. My present '86 is Grand Marquis is a well designed vehicle. Apart from lock motors and window regulators it doesn't need anything. Maybe the AOD's are a bit weak.

Although I think the 6000 is STE is cool, that doesn't removes the fact the A body had many glaring flaws upon introduction I think the styling on them is pretty nice and make a good conversation piece but F and '80 X bodies... stay away

Pontiac Phoenix: the official car of ironic naming

@@chiefkeef74 rite. This shit will never rise from the ashes

NorthAmerican Auto YELELELELELELELELELELELELLELELELLELELELE

You said it as if no one would know what SpongeBob is lol. If you just said “it sounds like Patrick Star” everyone would know what you meant.

Bobsponge.

Just dressing for the "occasion"

Christian Augustin can we make this a thing......please?

He does amazing video, but I can't stand him as a reviewer.

Anthony P Why?

Akil Hodge Not to answer for him but I kinda agree. He's got the personality of a wet rag. But the quality is as good as it gets.

IIRC Savagegeese does a lot of review work for OEMs, who don't necessarily need the strong personality that other youtubers need to get their following.

It was the best selling car since 74 to 76 I think in the 77 the downsized Caprice took over

garrett koetter I have a 77 caprice wagon I’m in the process of rusto-modding. The 77 year is the last time old GM tried to be good. It’s this perfect storm of being too obtuse to pick up what needs to change and not being able to respond to legitimate challenge. This gen of refresh launch was their attempt at a moonshot and turned to moonshit immediately. They cost cut all of these cars from 1978 and on and GM was done and never really recovered. The drop off in build quality is savage from 77 to 78/9

The first part of this comment describes all new cars

Ours smelled like stale beer and cigarettes. It was our HS party car.😅

The 2.5 liter 151CID motor was launched in 1977 and was an option. You also could get a 105 bhp Buick 3.8 liter 231 CID V-6 in 1977 on this model.

valiant1968 The 231 was produced up to around 2005... in a 256" form, by Ford. Essex. That is all.

Ellenor Malik Actually, Buick produced the engine from 1961-2008. GM had sold it to AMC, only to buy it back in the mid 1970’s during the energy crisis. The last one was produced in August 2008. So unless Ford had an engine of their own, with the same displacement - what are you on about? “That is all”.

The aluminum oil pump in the Buick V6's wore out every 50K miles... you must have replaced a lot of them...

Kyle Soler the tail lights remind me of Romans taxis in GTA IV

lol. the 'Imponte Phoenix'

Yep lol funny how gta has basically its own car community. Also I think certain cars in gta could stand alone as actual cars these days

British-Leyland makes old GM look like Mercedes.

aaron frost nothing better than a car called a princess.

And unlike the cars from British Leyland, the cars from the Big 3 from this era would ACTUALLY START; sure they would run like absolute garbage from the oppressive emissions systems, but they were a lot more reliable than British Leyland cars of the era.

aaron frost Well many of the cars from Europe during the 70s looked better than American cars. Triumphs, Alfas, Rover SD1 etc.

@digitalrailroader They *ran* great, just no power. Not even enough to hurt themselves. My 85 regal had the 110hp 231 Buick v6 (non turbo) in it with a Th200c transmission (light duty th350, still 3 forward speeds). I would go from R to 1st gear at like 30mph and vice versa, J turns, dukes of hazzard shit. Never broke a sweat. what got it, was a blown headgasket from age. car sat for 10 years before i bought it, had 84000 miles. Still have it, now has a 315hp 350 Buick from a '70 Skylark and a Th350 with a shift kit, both rebuilt and installed by moi. They may be slow, and awkward and sloshy, but they are by far the best platform for modification, 73-88 rwd gm cars. If you look at the GM A Body (intermediate/midsize platform, GTO/Le Mans, Chevelle/Malibu, Buick Skylark, Olds Cutlass) from 1972, then look at it from 1973, you can tell when the malaise era truly got it's brown loafers in the door. The 80s cars on the outside were all modern and angular, if they could've made wheels with corners they would have, but the interior and ride quality were very much the same.

I have a *ahem* soft spot for malaise era cars, especially the late 70's. I've had a '79 impala since before I got my driver's license.

I love these cars. My baby was a 1980 Malibu Classic 2-door, that I slapped dual exhaust on, and just cruised in. Loved it to bits. ☺

I own a few myself. 78 Dodge Monaco and a 73 Plymouth Satellite...both 4 doors.

I think they're fascinating but I wouldn't own a 4 door. I actually Want a 2 door phoenix hatchback formula. So I can drop in a 301 Turbo with a 4 speed.

You can have em.

No, that would be the Chevy Nova

Muted green too

well thats cuz you don't live in america...if you did you would understand the concept of driving old american barges

Philip Rosenthale your use of the "term" bond-owned disqualifies you from commenting.

James Franke : It’s a joke! I like your comment!!!

Usually a two speed transmission has a really long first gear that covers a considerable portion of the speed the vehicle can even get up to. In summary, it didn't stall, but it was either lacking in acceleration or top speed.

Zac L ohhhh I understand now thanks

3 speeds and 2 speeds both have the same 1.00 top gear, but the 2 speed had a much weaker first gear. A powerglide would have a first gear of 1.76 or 1.82....compared to the TH350 which is listed as 2.52 first and 1.52 second.

@@Pershingtank precisely

A lot of street racers preferred the Powerglide. Low gears in the differential and mash it. Made it easier to daily drive too because you could put it 2nd anytime and cruise. A lot of early Hot Rod guys used to piss people off because on their way to work or the store they'd leave it in second but if someone went to cut them off they could put it in first and take off. If you've never driven a powerglide with a fast motor try it if you have the chance. They're outdated but for their time they were great. A lot of guys seriously thought long and hard-manual or powerglide.

WILNEL I remember 1982 Camaros with Iron Duke engines. Pure horror.

@@zorak1704 - Good engines that lasted forever...

There was no Iron Duke at this time they got some information wrong

@@micahrich5683 actually the iron duke was first introduced in 1977, and was on fact available in this model pheonix.

Depends on the car for me. Large 71-76 G.M. Wagons and also Jensen Interceptors are interesting, IMHO.

The '78 Firebird TA would like to have a word with you

So would several AMC products of the period.

The early 70's Trans Ams look so much better...

70s cars are cooler than most modern 2010s crap cars.

THE best things about these cars is you can turn them into real quick cars without much money because you can avoid the Boomer Tax. "Just LS it dude!" isn't a meme. Especially with GM-so many things just bolt right in. Also if you're a luxury boat kind of person they are old enough to strip the emissions crap off of them and pretend you're patrolling your row of pre-internet Ho's.

Mr Regular dropped the ball by not bringing back Uncle Pull Tab for his 1979 Ford Granada review. Some other uncle filled in for that.