[BILL DEMMER]

having owned a '79 starfire i can speak from first-hand experience. for it's size, it was a heavy car. for it's weight it wasn't a very rigid car. the front suspension had about 3" of suspension travel, so, not a well-handling car on anything other than a smooth road. putting anything in there resembling an olds v-8 would make the car very nose-heavy and plow severely. much chassis stiffening would be required be to hold the car together. the h-specials(as gm called them), came with 13" 4-lug rims. they utilized a special rear end and transmission as they were connected together by a long reinforcement bar, bushed at both ends. i had a friend break one of these cars in half on a set of railroad tracks, it was not severely rusted. it is very much a 2+2 car as in 2 under 6' adults and 2 small children(under 4 1/2' tall). back seat space is very limited and only provides lap belts for passenger retention. in an accident, it's very likely anybody in the rear seats will kiss the back side of the front buckets.
adults squeezed in back will be bashing the top of their heads on the hatch frame directly above their heads, on any moderate bumps/dips. the driveshaft tunnel chews up a lot of foot space in front and splits the two rear seats. front seats were comfortable enough for most trips under an hour or two. beyond that time, the car feels very cramped and restrictive. without a/c, the car is unbearably hot on hot days.

for it's day and it's intended mission, it was adequate transportation for about $6 grand-$8 grand, new. it was the cheapest offering by gm and showed it in every way. the buick v-6 odd-fire 231 c.i.d. was a shaky but adequate power plant at 105-110 hp. the optional turbo 350 trans. was about the best part on the car. braking was acceptable in all modes. handling(with better tires), was econobox decent. as mentioned above, when pushed, the suspension was not up to the task. on a curve with bumps you had to be careful not to be "pushing it", or you would more likely than not, lose it, especially loaded.

remember, this car was based on the vega/astre.

if you're still interested in one, check the underbody over very carefully. structural rust areas are right behind the front wheels, up in the "frame" area. that area was designed to hold everything(snow/water). also check over the rear suspension mounts and their attaching structure. the doors like to rot-out at the top and bottom. also check the hinge pillar over carefully, as these cars liked to crack the structure in that area, and subsequently rust.

btw, bill trovato races one of these cars.


bill