New Longroof Owner

[CaliWagon83]

I believe he was referring to my Cali wagon with a stick.

Yeah. Figured that out. Sorry. Saw “Cali” and thought you were talking about me. I was under the impression that there were almost no manual A/G-Bodies sold in CA after about ‘80. That makes yours even more of a unicorn!

 

[Darcane]

Well, one of the reasons I bought the Malibu was that I intend to use it as a tow rig for a lightweight race car I am building. When I first mentioned this I was advised to look at B bodies instead...

Well, after owning it for several weeks and checking it over closely, I unfortunately came to the same conclusion. As much as I love the Malibu, I've decided to replace it with something a little bigger...

Specifically, a 1985 Buick Electra Estate Wagon! So, still a longroof owner, just not a G-body.

If anyone is interested in the Malibu, it will go up for sale when the title shows up. I'll miss it, as I enjoy driving it far more than it's big brother.

 

[TURNA]

Booooooooooooooo

 

[Bonnewagon]

Why not keep it and make it better? The Buick may be heavier but I'll bet it is not the best for towing either. My '81 Malibu wagon was set up the same way- 229 V-6 and 3 speed on the floor and 2:41 rear gears. The wagon was great but that combo sucked big time. A 4 speed Saginaw will pop right in and V-8's are not hard to come by. Change the rear gears and you can practically climb trees. I put a Pontiac 400 in mine I used it to tow boats all the time.

 

[Gwarren79]

Mine is also a 229/auto and i'm considering the 1992-1993 4.3L/4l60e/3.42 swap

 

[Darcane]

Why not keep it and make it better? The Buick may be heavier but I'll bet it is not the best for towing either. My '81 Malibu wagon was set up the same way- 229 V-6 and 3 speed on the floor and 2:41 rear gears. The wagon was great but that combo sucked big time. A 4 speed Saginaw will pop right in and V-8's are not hard to come by. Change the rear gears and you can practically climb trees. I put a Pontiac 400 in mine I used it to tow boats all the time.

The plan from day one was to upgrade the engine/drivetrain. My concern has more to do with how light duty the frame, suspension, and related parts are. 2500lb race car, 1000lb trailer, spare parts and tools, and I'm concerned I'll be overloading the little Malibu.

The big Buick gives me a heavier duty platform to make the same upgrades to.

 

[airboatgreg]

I'd love to have a manual shift g body

They can be converted. Not a huge job. I put a Muncie 4 speed in my 82 El C

 

[airboatgreg]

Nice ride to start out with. rare car for sure

 

[Turbolq4]

Mine is also a 229/auto and i'm considering the 1992-1993 4.3L/4l60e/3.42 swap

Tons of work and you'll likely be underwhelmed with the end result. Swap parts like exhaust are significantly more difficult to source than V8 stuff. Also there is far more support for wiring/ecm changes with more common swaps. Don't get me wrong, the 4.3 is a decent engine, I just question the reward/work equation.

 

[DRIVEN]

The plan from day one was to upgrade the engine/drivetrain. My concern has more to do with how light duty the frame, suspension, and related parts are. 2500lb race car, 1000lb trailer, spare parts and tools, and I'm concerned I'll be overloading the little Malibu.

The big Buick gives me a heavier duty platform to make the same upgrades to.

You're on the right track. I tried to set me El Camino up for towing. It did fine with a little car on a dolly or a boat, but if I loaded anything in the 2500# and up range I'd get pushed around. Power was never an issue, it just didn't weigh enough.

You should have absolutely no trouble selling a rust free, manual transmission Gbody of any flavor.