'67-'72 GM A-Bodies

I was at a car show this summer, and I've never really been into the muscle car thing, but the BOP versions of the A-Body really appealed to me, especially the 1967-72 versions. They all seemed like really good looking cars, nice lines, nice proportions, etc.

I don't expect to ever be able to afford a real GTO or 4-4-2, but what about the Tempest, Cutlass, or Buick GS/Skylark? Are these a reasonable choice for a classic cruiser someday? Where should I go to get read-up on these things?

Hotlink related:

IMO, one of the finest choices. I personally prefer 66-67.

Super easy to work on, parts are pretty cheap, repop panels available, nice cars.

68-72 was the wider fastback body style- 64-67 were the narrower boxy body style... the only thing i don't like about those cars from 68-72 is the way they flared the quarter panels out on them so that even big meats on rims with too little backspacing look like they are tucked in way too far.

Buick did some actual aero work on their version and had a good looking and functional chin spoiler on the GS, and all of the BOP A bodies had the radiator sealed to the grille with an actual sheetmetal airbox to direct the air thru the core instead of spilling out over and under the radiator support and doing nothing but adding lift and drag...

overall, the GSX was the best looking of that generation of A body, as well as likely being the quickest out in the wild... just don't tell any LS6 Chevelle fanboys that i said that...

I have a genetic predisposition for Oldsmobiles, but of all the A-body cars, the 67 Chevelle is the best looking.

I'd like a 71 Cutlass S, just like mom had in 71.

You're all wrong, the 70 GTO Judge is best looking.

I mean, c'mon, HOOD TACH!.

I'm not a fan of the Judge stripes or rear spoiler, but otherwise, Kenny is right.

There were two '70 GTOs in my high school parking lot when I was freshman. One was white and the other was black with the rear spoiler. Both were in perfect condition. Both had hood tachs.

I'm not sure if either one survived the school year. I really loved the white one, but I remember hearing that he hit a tree in the woods driving it to a keg party.

I buy and sell A bodys all the time. I am especially partial to Buicks. I currently have 2. A 1969 GS400 convertible 4 speed car in factory twilight blue metallic with a pearl interior and this 1972 Custom wearing its factory Crystal blue paint and white interior. It is being cloned into the more desireable 1970 GS455 Stage 1 car.

I dont have a picture of the 1969 but it looks like this one

novaderrik wrote:

I've driven this exact car. It belongs to Bret Voelkel from Ridetech, and it's on Putnam Park Road Course in that pic. When I drove it, it had an injected 455 and a 6-speed. It was kind of ridiculous around the track, but it was a lot of fun.

I really like all three of them. The only A-Body I don't care for is the Chevelle, and that's more from overexposure than any real problem with the car itself.

In reply to novaderrik:
I have noticed that the later wide-body cars seem to have way more fender flare than rubber to fill that area up, but some people seem to be making it work. I don't know what they're doing (other than massive tires out back) but it can be made to look OK.

In reply to Gasoline:
Nice cars, I'd like to some photos of the GS455 Stage 1 clone when you're done! Any advice on where I can get a primer on these things? Good books, a decent forum, etc?

EDIT: OK, I just did a google image search aaaaaand then only way to fill that rear arch seems to be massive rubber. Bummer, but I still think I could live with it.

it's not the "arch" of the rear wheelwells that bugs me about them, it's how far out they make the lip on it stick out as seen from the rear of the car... there is physically no way to fill up those wheel wells without running air shocks and wide wheels with too little backspacing..

the Chevelles are the cleanest of the A bodies, and thus the sleekest looking of the bunch. normally, that's enough to make me like the looks of a car better than another one- but my opinion might have been swayed about 25 years ago when i got a ride in a 71 GS with a slightly upgraded 455 in it and 4.10 gears in the rear... the guy's foot was barely touching the gas and i was getting pinned so hard into the seat that i could barely lift an arm- and the engine was barely making any noise... that was the day that i learned what torques are and what they do...

as far as a good place to read up on them: they are a Chevelle underneath, so www.chevelles.com is the place to go to learn about them... the guys there know a lot about everything, so they will even be able to help you figure out the drivetrain and trim stuff..

There is a special place in my heart for Oldsmobile Cutlasses and 442s. My dad had a black '71 Cutlass S when I was a kid. That car was fast and my dad said I would laugh hystarically when he would drive aggressively.

I hope to own one, one day, but they are getting too damn expensive.

I've always been more into the 64-67 BOP's . Never liked the looks of the 68-72 versions. My cousin had a 70 Chevelle in highschool. I liked that car.

Now these are my kind of cars. There was a real nice 71 cutlass here in town I would drool over on a regular basis. They are basically the ancestor to the G Bodies of the 80's.

I actually have the rear axel for a 70 GTO sitting in the shop.

It's one of the few cars where there really is't a bad version. They are all good looking, and if you get one that is still on the road at this point it should be fairly reliable. I am a bit partial to the older Buicks but mostly because I don't see many around here

In reply to Wally:

Yeah, I think I'm developing a taste for the Buicks as well, probably for the same reason.

http://worcester.craigslist.org/cto/4181501495.html

i dunno man, i like chevelles best. then olds 2nd, buick 3rd, pontiac last.

my ideal would be a 71-72 with a 70 quad headlight front end.

i have 2 buddies with 72 skylarks.

mine:

Let's not forget El Caminos.

sorry... Winner of the sexiest A-body goes to....

My mom owned a turquoise '67 Tempest with a straight six from '67 to 1980 (an '80 Malibu replaced it).

They've vanished from the northeast at this point.

novaderrik wrote: it's not the "arch" of the rear wheelwells that bugs me about them, it's how far out they make the lip on it stick out as seen from the rear of the car... there is physically no way to fill up those wheel wells without running air shocks and wide wheels with too little backspacing..

You say that, but 275 and 295s barely fit in the stock wheelwell, it's wall to wall rubber, so how can you have "too little backspacing"?

Knurled wrote:

novaderrik wrote: it's not the "arch" of the rear wheelwells that bugs me about them, it's how far out they make the lip on it stick out as seen from the rear of the car... there is physically no way to fill up those wheel wells without running air shocks and wide wheels with too little backspacing..

You say that, but 275 and 295s barely fit in the stock wheelwell, it's wall to wall rubber, so how can you have "too little backspacing"?

look at the way they flared the 1/4 panels out to put the lips of the wheel openings a good couple of inches farther out than the Chevelles. you have to look at the car from the rear to see it... the wheelwells under the sheetmetal that you don't see are the same as a Chevelle, but there is an extra "lip" to the outside of them that makes any tire look goofy in it as seen from any angle but straight out from the side. the only way to "fill" the quarter panels with rubber (what the kids call "hella flush" these days) is to jack the rear of the car up and put on wheels that stick out farther. it's literally my only complaint about the styling on the 68-72 BOP A bodies- everything else is just about perfect.

I'll take a look at the '68 Skylark we have at work when I get there.

And yes, they do look silly with the factory rubber.

novaderrik wrote: it's literally my only complaint about the styling on the 68-72 BOP A bodies- everything else is just about perfect.

Yeah, I get what you guys are saying, the quarter panel "flares" a lot and in OEM trim it looks like the rear axle track is too narrow for the width of the body.

That said, I'm no fan of stance and I've never been a big wheel guy. Were I to get one of these today I'd probably just drop it an inch or two and throw on some slightly-larger-than-OEM torq thrusts in a color that compliments the body. I'm pretty happy with the way they looked out of the factory.