What I like about the Autotron classic car shows is the wide variety of cars and visitors. Even if you’re not interested in old cars, it’s fun to walk around. From an all original old Ford Fiesta (and Sierra) to a pristine Bentley, and from a DAF 33 to a shiny Mercedes-Benz W140 S-Class V12, it’s all there.
Outside the main building, parked side by side, an illustrious duo from the seventies. So close together, yet so far apart.
From Germany, a 1974 Porsche 911S Sportomatic with an air cooled 2.7 liter flat-six.
And from the US of A, a 1976 Pontiac Firebird with a 250 ci inline-six. This Firebird was imported into my country as a new car and got its first registration on July 9, 1976.
More of the wide variety lurking in the background of the pictures. Many of them in the foreground before long.
Looks an awful lot like a Formula Firebird (I’m trying to remember whether Formulas has a T/As “metal finish” instrument surround or an Espirit’s wooden-look surround). Very unusual looking dual exhaust system, both pipes exiting under the license plate.
I always thought the ultimate Firebird of this generation would have been an Espirit with the no-longer-offered OHC six cylinder engine and a manual transmission…..VERY European.
That’s a very aggressive hood on that Firebird for the I6 under the hood.
Same goes for the massive twin exhaust pipes in back. Does it still have the six??
I have heard (though I have never seen it done) that you could optimize an I6 by tying certain cylinders together with the exhaust header and creating a dual exhaust system around that.
I’d love to hear it and see it.
Its registration says it has a 6 cylinder engine.
Replacing a 6-cylinder by an 8-cylinder means you have to go to our “Rijksdienst voor het Wegverkeer” (don’t ask me to translate that…) for an inspection and new registration as an 8-cylinder car.
Furthermore, every 2 years a safety inspection and inspection of the general condition of the car (bad chassis rust, for example) is legally required.
Showing up in a V8 car while the official documents say 6 cylinders…not good, not good…
I just drive to my Toyota dealership for the biyearly inspection of my ’69 Plymouth. Several mechanics there have the legal permit to do these inspections. About 20 minutes and € 20, that’s all it takes.
Looks like a great selection! Looking forward to seeing the gold Opel Monza coupe close up, and the Morris 1000 van, first example I’ve seen in decades. Looks like a beautiful forest or park in the background.
Johannes: When you wrote “illustrious duo from the seventies” I was anticipating more on the R107 SL in back of the 911 in the second and third photos.
That pair are certainly significant and historic vehicles. A six cylinder Firebird is rather something to forget.
Perhaps from Germany via the US or Canada, as it seems. That Porsche has US “sugar scoop” headlamp assemblies and US front turn signals with integral sidemarker lights and reflectors. No US all-red taillight lenses, but the rest-of-world ones with amber turn signals are an easy swap. I’m not a savant on the subject, but the front and rear bumpers also look potentially American and the automatic transmission further suggests North American provenance, no?
Most likely. A good number of these have been repatriated. So Cal cars with no rust are especially preferred.
European Porsche 911s adopted US bumpers in order to avoid class-warfare parallel parking damage. The headlights are another issue, but 5 mph bumpers were a godsend for Europeans who had to park nice cars on the street.
I’m aware about the bumpers. Since Porsche traditionally sold more cars in the US than Europe, it was also just cost-efficient to not make too many unique changes. I was referring to the headlights. But the whole headlight situation is funny; just like some Americans prefer the Euro-look headlights, some Europeans like American-style lights. So it’s not a fool-proof verification.
That seems correct to the degree I can verify it with Google image searches—both US and Euro 911s have the protuberant bumpers with accordion fillers. But the wraparound front turn signals with sidemarker reflectors and lights are not present (or catered for, spacewise) on the European cars.
The thin Dagmar rubber bars on the rear bumpers are also offered on the German and rest-of-the-world 911 G-Modell (1974-1989). The only difference is the shock absorbers fitted as standard equipment on US model and as extra cost option on German and rest-of-the-world 911.
For 1975 model year and on, the Dagmar rubber bars on US model are widened to fill in the gap between the numberplates, improving or ruining the appearance. To each his own, one might say.
Of course, Daniel is correct about the provenance of this 911 and how easy it is to mix-and-match the equipment to the owner’s desire. The originality and provenance must be taken with grain of salt. I think the ‘Entenbürzel’ (ducktail) spoiler is only fitted to Carrera RS (1973-1974), which has the Carrera stickers along the lower side body. A Google search revealed the ‘Entenbürzel’ kit for any 911 model if the owner desires the ‘uniqueness’…
The rear bumpers with massive Dagmars for 1975-1989 US models.
Photo source: http://911-guide.com
Saw this one during my bicycle ride in Erlangen.
I’ve heard of “sticky” tires, but that’s gotta take the cake!
I saw on a ‘car flipping’ show a British buyer who looks for vintage Jaguars, in any condition, to take back to the UK. Said he was “bringing them home”.
Really cool pair of cars. Those slot mags really wake up the look of that FB. That Porsche is a fantastic example…the Fuchs mags are iconic and without them, I think any Porsche is lacking something. Im digging that color too…its not your normal silver…in the pics, it looks more like a primer gray with some metallic flake and a glossy finish. Very unique looking.
I think every last one of those mid-70s GM seatbelt keepers has broken off. I replaced mine several times between 1980 and 1989.
Also, a Firebird 6 of that era is a fairly unusual car, although perhaps not for European Delivery.
I would love the Firebird if it didn’t have the bondo slathered ground effects covering the rocker panels
I don’t think Pontiac offered the OHC 6 during the ’70s.
Only the push-rod OHV motor.
I’d like to see a picture of the DAF 33?
Happy Motoring, Mark
IINM, 1969 was the last year Pontiac built the OHC six. 1970-76 Pontiac sixes have the OHV Chevrolet 250 (with the exception of the new-for-1976 Sunbird, which used the Buick 231 V6, same as its Buick and Oldsmobile counterparts, presumably because a straight six wouldn’t fit in an H-body). For 1977, Pontiac switched to the 231 V6 across the board.
Ah, so Sportomatic 911’s still do exist! I’d love to have one and take it to every Porsche meet I could just to drive the haters mad. Having owned an Automatic Stickshift Beetle, I am familiar with the general concept — and with the eye-rolling that you get when you admit to having one.
Rare find. The G-series body used that RS ducktail for a very short period before adopting the much larger turbo tail. Never seen one for real. Nice, Johannes. Sportomatic… hehehe
I guess the Germans called it Sportomatik.
Firebirds of this generation look as if they were extruded from some enormous pastry bag. I think the body kit helps diminish this appearance a bit.