We love a good build around here…no matter the model, if it’s put together well, we are paying attention and can appreciate the work that has gone into the build. Case in point: this 1978 Pontiac Phoenix. The Excitement Division’s Nova on it’s own…well, the exciting X-cars had been gone for a couple of years, so unless you knew how to work the order form to get a 9C1 Nova, there wasn’t much to get hot and bothered for. But like any Nova, some good mods will wake up an otherwise dowdy platform and give it all of the fun factor you could want. And the wheels are the dead giveaway for what has happened here.
A 2004 Pontiac GTO was removed from circulation and donated it’s 5.7L V8, 4L80E automatic, and independent rear suspension to the Phoenix, making the Pontiac not only much more gearhead-tolerant, but quite reliable and possibly even more economical than it would’ve been left alone. Good start, right? How about Vintage Air air conditioning, just to keep you as cool as you need to be? The end result is the kind of older car you can (and should) drive just about anywhere. The new paint is gorgeous, the wheels and tires from the Goat look pretty decent on the X-car, and…well, what else can we come up with? It’s a well done machine that is up for grabs. It’s winter, sure, but imagine rolling this thing all summer long next year…
Craigslist Link: 1978 Pontiac Phoenix
While I normally love this lind of stuff and I appreciate all of the work done to this… I cannot stomach 17 & a half thousand dollars for an LS swapped “ugly nova”
You can still buy a low mileage new age GTO with the LS2 & a 6 speed manual for less then that.
For under 10k I think this would be a good buy but for this price why wouldn’t you just get the real thing???
I’m glad he kept the shifter in the proper place, on the column where it belongs. I’m not a huge fan of the aftermarket ratchet shifter’s although they do have their uses in drag racers. They just take away from the originality of an older vehicle in my opinion. Now if it’s a full on custom, I’m really not opposed to the Lokar shifters. But for something like this, keeping it on the column is perfect.
I dig it! I bet this car sneaks up on a lot of folks.
Too bad he did to an ugly Phoenix. Should done a Ventura instead. Nicely done though.
This is way more interesting than the ugly nineties gto from which the parts came. I know it says 2004 gto but the ugly nineties design lingers there. There are more interesting cars you could start with maybe, but this is nicely done and not the same old shite.
I love to poop!