Sell the project Pontiac for this? Or keep for swap.

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g0thiac

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Sep 6, 2020
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I am really having trouble deciding whether or not, I should sell my Pontiac Bonneville with the shot 305- and get a '67 Pontiac Parisienne.

Or should I buy a 350, and get the G body up and running again.

Here are the pros.

-Parisienne and Bonneville both have a great body.
-Seller is willing to include a section of frame to replace the rotted part.
-My bodyman can weld it in for a decent price.
- Has running motor.
- It's $1700.

Cons

-I just spent $1000 for the welding plus $500 for the floor pans in the Pontiac Bonneville last summer.
-I spent months fixing the electrical issues.
-I also just got it to pass safety, before the 305 broke a month later.
-If I bought the Parisienne, it would need to be towed, which CAA Plus may not be okay with.

So I spent close to $3000 on my Pontiac Bonneville, and all it needs to run again is a 350 swap.

And I'd also need someone to drive me tommorow, from Belleville to the Peterborough area here in Ontario and back, to give a deposit on the car which I may not be able to do.

I can't do more than 2 projects at once, and I'm keeping the Caprice. Help guys?

Photo of the car is below.

1621374521402.jpeg
 

ck80

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Grass is always greener.

Pros of bonny: you mostly know what you've got, and what you need to do. It's somewhat smaller than the caprice if you're looking to drive it somewhere without concern over parking. Certain things have already been squared away. The parts you do need have lots of interchange options outside of some cosmetic items.

Pros of paris: it's a big old land yacht party barge coupe. COUPES RULE! You could live in it in the summer of you had to. It wins in the "looks" department. Depending what it's running for an engine you may have a good core towards something really fun.

Cons of both: bonny wouldn't be worth as much completed; Paris looks pretty neglected for a while with that roof and rims sunken into the dirt on flat tires. Landau roof hiding... well it could be BAD. Drivetrain completely unknown in the Paris but was road used outside of the engine being bad.

My opinion? Id get the bonny running even if just a junkyard guaranteed engine before selling. It just doesn't really have good value with a busted engine and the extra doors.

If you're not sure you can afford the deposit on the Paris, notnsure how you're going to afford to get it going because it needs A LOT. And if you think bonny specific parts were rare then the Paris is going to be torture for both you and your wallet.

If it's a dream car/bucket list item maybe that's one thing. But absent something like that I'd stick with what you've got.

Also, if your gut is telling you as us weirdos for validation I think it means you know inside it's probably a bad idea.
 
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g0thiac

G-Body Guru
Sep 6, 2020
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Grass is always greener.

Pros of bonny: you mostly know what you've got, and what you need to do. It's somewhat smaller than the caprice if you're looking to drive it somewhere without concern over parking. Certain things have already been squared away. The parts you do need have lots of interchange options outside of some cosmetic items.

Pros of paris: it's a big old land yacht party barge coupe. COUPES RULE! You could live in it in the summer of you had to. It wins in the "looks" department. Depending what it's running for an engine you may have a good core towards something really fun.

Cons of both: bonny wouldn't be worth as much completed; Paris looks pretty neglected for a while with that roof and rims sunken into the dirt on flat tires. Landau roof hiding... well it could be BAD. Drivetrain completely unknown in the Paris but was road used outside of the engine being bad.

My opinion? Id get the bonny running even if just a junkyard guaranteed engine before selling. It just doesn't really have good value with a busted engine and the extra doors.

If you're not sure you can afford the deposit on the Paris, notnsure how you're going to afford to get it going because it needs A LOT. And if you think bonny specific parts were rare then the Paris is going to be torture for both you and your wallet.

If it's a dream car/bucket list item maybe that's one thing. But absent something like that I'd stick with what you've got.

Also, if your gut is telling you as us weirdos for validation I think it means you know inside it's probably a bad idea.
Those are all good points.

And I never thought about how spare parts for the Parisienne would be more difficult to find.

So I will get Bonnie her heart surgery done, as I wasn't planning to sell in the first place. I just felt it was pretty rare to see a deal like this that's all.
 

pontiac guy

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Oct 28, 2016
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Royse City, TX
Ditch the Caprice. Keep the Bonneville. Get the Parisienne. I assume it in Belleville Michigan. Assume it's rusty everywhere. 67 big car stuff isn't too hard to find. It's not growing on trees but it's out there. There are conversion kits for it if you want to go for modern brakes. Big Pontiacs are great driver's and that 400 is almost bulletproof. You'll want to use a more modern head and cam though. Bring the compression ratio down and get a modern cam profile.
 
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g0thiac

G-Body Guru
Sep 6, 2020
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Ditch the Caprice. Keep the Bonneville. Get the Parisienne. I assume it in Belleville Michigan. Assume it's rusty everywhere. 67 big car stuff isn't too hard to find. It's not growing on trees but it's out there. There are conversion kits for it if you want to go for modern brakes. Big Pontiacs are great driver's and that 400 is almost bulletproof. You'll want to use a more modern head and cam though. Bring the compression ratio down and get a modern cam profile.
No it's in Ontario. And I can't get rid of the Caprice because I need it for a winter car.

Bonnie is a summer driver only, and if I were to buy the car it would have to take its place. Also I don't know if it has the 400 or not.

From the photos I saw, it looks around the size of a 350.
 

pontiac guy

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Oct 28, 2016
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Royse City, TX
All V8 Pontiacs are the same size. Ignore the 301/265 they are weirdos. All gen 1 SBC are the same size. If it is original and a Pontiac it will be a 400. If it's original and a Chevy it should be a 350. I dont think the 400 came out till the mid 70s. I really don't speak Canadian Pontiac very well. But the point is, from a general pic you won't be able to tell anything other than Pontiac or Chevy. If you post it, I'll be glad to identify it to the best of my abilities
 
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pagrunt

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Sep 14, 2014
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All V8 Pontiacs are the same size. Ignore the 301/265 they are weirdos. All gen 1 SBC are the same size. If it is original and a Pontiac it will be a 400. If it's original and a Chevy it should be a 350. I dont think the 400 came out till the mid 70s. I really don't speak Canadian Pontiac very well. But the point is, from a general pic you won't be able to tell anything other than Pontiac or Chevy. If you post it, I'll be glad to identify it to the best of my abilities
Being a '67 it would be a 283 or 327 if originally Chevy powered. The 350 was Camaro only if '67.
 
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79 GP 4 speed

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Nov 12, 2017
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Being a Canadian car it should have been born with a Chevy engine. 67 is the year that Pontiac came out with the 400. The parissean was Canada's version of the Bonneville.
 
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