Will we see other G-body cars after the 83 Hurst Olds?

[bbowser]

Wasn't there a Buick as well based on this platform?

[dragcarz]

Regal

[Ace-Garageguy]

Wasn't there a Buick as well based on this platform?

Yup...in scale too. Several issues (more than shown below).

           

[Robberbaron]

Hopefully it will sell well enough for Revell to tool up a G body Malibu. I own several and would love to build them in scale but finding decent resin ones is difficult and costly.

 

I know of a certain party in the industry that is pushing Revell hard for a Malibu so I know it's at least on their radar.  

 

The Malibu would be nice to have and if I had to guess, it would be along the lines of the Mustang LX where it would be a stock and a drag version.

I'd be in for several if they did a 78-81 Malibu coupe.  I agree that the main appeal would mostly be as a street machine and/or drag car, similar to the 1:1 enthusiasts.  I think the main reason one of these hasn't been done yet is that there was no factory "performance" version of these cars.

One plus is that the basic body shell and bumpers didn't change between model years, so it would be fairly simple to do different model years.  Grills and taillights are unique each model year, 78-81.  78-79 header panel is different from 80-81.  If they molded the header panel separately (like the nose on the new Cutlass/Hurst Olds), that would allow more variations.

Also some interior changes between years. 1978-79 share a dash, 1980 dash is unique, then the 1981+ style.  Not sure, but I'm guessing upholstery patterns probably changed between some years, as well.

My personal vote would be for an '81 coupe, since IMHO that has the cleanest front/rear end styling of the 4 years, but any of the 4 would be fine with me.

Would be nice to see a Malibu coupe and wagon come forth, Revell did have an El Camino based off of the 78-80 models that could be used as the base for the wagon.

Honestly, about the only thing they could reuse from that 1/24 El Camino would be the grill, headlights, bumpers, and dash.  The 1978+ Malibu wagons shared the 108" (IIRC) wheelbase with the coupes and sedans, the El Caminos had a stretched 117" wheelbase, so even a new chassis plate would be required, in addition to body, interior tub, glass, etc.

The plus is that if they did a new tool coupe, that chassis could be shared with a wagon version, which are also pretty popular as drag cars in 1:1.

Edited August 20, 2016 by Robberbaron

[Robberbaron]

 

I wouldn't mind a stock Grand Prix. A buddy I grew up with had one that looked just like this, complete with factory faded two-tone paint job and a burgundy interior. We cruised around a lot in that car. It was quite nice for the time.

 

would love to see these on the shelf,   Ive owned 4 of them over the years,   nice cars that you just don't see anymore  !

For whatever reason, the Gran Prix seems to be the red-headed step-child among the '80s G-bodies.  Think they had the lowest sales among the 4 brands when new, and seems like there's less current interest among enthusiast, too.  Probably has a lot to do with the fact that they never had a true performance version like the other brands (even the 2+2 used the standard 305 SBC instead of the H.O. version like the Monte SS).

Never could understand why Pontiac (We Build Excitement?) never attempted to do more with these cars.  It almost seemed like they were ashamed of it (don't recall seeing advertisements for these GP's like they did for the Firebirds/Trans Ams, Bonnevilles, and Grand Ams at the time.  Maybe they thought a performance GP would just cannibilize sales from the Trans Am?

Its too bad, because I always thought the GP had nice styling, and the best interior of the 4 when it was optioned out with buckets, console, gauge package, etc.  I also had a couple friends with these back in HS, and would definitely buy a kit version, even though I don't expect one for the reasons stated above.

The '86 NASCAR homologation-special Gran Prix 2+2 would be an interesting variation.    

 

That is one hidious looking car. The wheels are ok lol

I agree that the roof and trunk/rear spoiler profile is ungainly, but it was form following function.  I always thought the nose design itself was pretty sharp, and Pontiac missed an opportunity by not offering it on cars without the back end aero styling.

 

Actually, though similar in concept, the rear windows on the two cars were in fact different, developed by two different methods and design teams within GM (if I recall correctly).

Correct, Bill.  The Monte Aerocoupe window doesn't stretch back nearly as much as the 2+2, and has pronounced corners that are very similar to the design of the 77-79 Impala/Caprice coupes (which interestingly also had some brief use in NASCAR).

The 2+2 window is much more bubble-like, and extends much further back.  In fact, the window contour continues into the 2+2 rear spoiler on top of the shortened trunk, basically creating almost a full fastback profile.

Almost a little hint of the boattail Rivieras in the way they did the rear window...

 

Edited August 20, 2016 by Robberbaron

[Robberbaron]

I agree that the roof and trunk/rear spoiler profile is ungainly, but it was form following function.  I always thought the nose design itself was pretty sharp, and Pontiac missed an opportunity by not offering it on cars without the back and aero styling

Just to show how much better these cars look without the hump-backed rear ends, here's one with the conventional rear styling.

Supposedly this is one of the last cars built by Auto Fab (outside contractor that did the 2+2 conversions for Pontiac), and the thinking is that they had already used up all the specialized rear windows, yet still had some of the noses.  Regardless of whether it was really built this way, I think if Pontiac had offered this for public consumption (maybe with optional TPI engines?) they could have had a hit...

[MrObsessive]

Call me weird, but I like the styling of the Aero Grand Prix better than the Monte Carlo. The addition of the aero glass on the Monte always looked like an afterthought to me, whereas the Poncho's seemed better integrated.

Maybe it's the more flowing shape on the Grand Prix as it's not as "abrupt" as on the Monte. However, I'd make a change in the Pontiac's rear spoiler as I'm not crazy about the shape of it. 

And yes, I'd like to see a kit of the Poncho, but I'm not holding my breath that it'll ever happen.

[russosborne]

Before reading this thread I had totally forgotten that my sister had a 79 Gran Prix that I used to drive alot after getting out of the Navy. My parents got it from her a few years later, and then I got it for a while when they were driving my Sentra and making the payments for me during a rough patch. Sky blue with the wire wheel hubcaps.

I would definitely buy one if it was available. Plastic only though, don't want it bad enough to pay for a resin kit.

Russ