1,589 Mile 1975 Pontiac Grand Ville Convertible
We regularly have cars appear on our desks here at Barn Finds where we wonder what their backstory is. This 1975 Pontiac Grand Ville Brougham Convertible is a perfect example. You must wonder how the car has remained so beautifully preserved and why it has accumulated a genuine 1,589 miles during its 46-years on our roads. That translates to an incredible 34½ miles per year. Regardless of what its story might be, it has just been listed for sale here on eBay. It is located in Sylvania, Ohio, and even though the bidding has reached $26,100, this remains short of the reserve.
It is hard to know where to start with this Pontiac. The owner describes it as being in as-new condition, and if the supplied photos are a fair representation, it is hard to argue with this claim. Its original Roman Red paint shines beautifully, with not a flaw or defect to be found. The panels are laser straight, while the White power top is spotless. Incredibly, the top has never been lowered, so it isn’t clear whether it functions correctly. That made me wonder why you would buy a convertible if you never lowered the top. Oh well, to each their own. The beauty of this Pontiac is more than skin-deep because the underside shots show floors that wear their factory undercoat and not a spot of corrosion. The exterior trim and Soft Ray tinted glass look as spotless as the rest of the exterior, while the original Rally II wheels are wrapped in a set of new Hankook narrow whitewall tires.
With so few miles on the clock, it is no surprise that the Pontiac’s interior remains perfect. The seller goes as far as to say that it retains its new car smell. The seats are upholstered in white vinyl, while the remaining upholstered surfaces and carpet are in contrasting black. The shots aren’t that great, but what can be seen of the interior appears faultless. It seems that the buyer won’t need to spend a dime inside this gem. The Window Sticker makes interesting reading because it suggests that the original owner went feral with a pen when they got their hands on the Order Form. Climb aboard this Grand Ville, and you are confronted by air conditioning, power windows, power locks, six-way power seats for the driver and passenger, cruise control, remote exterior mirrors, a tilt wheel, headlamp warning buzzer, a clock, and an AM/FM stereo radio/8-track player. It seems that he missed nothing.
While potential buyers could order their 1975 Grand Ville with a 400ci V8 under the hood, it seems that this wasn’t enough for this car’s original owner. What we find sitting in this engine bay is the numbers-matching 455ci monster that should be producing 200hp. The rest of the drivetrain includes a 3-speed Turbo Hydramatic transmission, a Safe-T-Track rear end, power steering, and power front disc brakes. At more than 4,700lbs, it would be hard to describe this Convertible as a lightweight. That makes the 18.5-second ¼-mile ET seem all the more impressive. With a four-figure odometer reading, this Pontiac is far from worn out. We will have readers that will question the mileage claim, but it appears that it is fully documented and verified. The seller has recently performed some work to ensure that the car is roadworthy for its next owner. As well as new tires, he completed a service and replaced the fluids. He had a new core fitted to the original radiator and replaced the heater core. With a new battery on-board and a few other items addressed, this classic is ready to hit the road. The seller has taken it for a spin and says that it drives like a new car.
For me, cars like this 1975 Pontiac Grand Ville Brougham Convertible pose a dilemma. There’s no doubt that it is a remarkable car, and it offers its next owner the opportunity to own what is effectively a brand new car that is 46-years-old. Slipping behind the wheel and hitting the road is sure to be an enjoyable experience. However, part of its inherent value rests in its odometer reading. These aren’t currently a “big dollar” classic, but this one’s condition and mileage place it right at the top of the market. Every additional mile will impact its value, but determining how significant that would be is pure speculation. With those thoughts in mind, would you drive this Pontiac, or is its next destination a museum?
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Comments
I can’t imagine a better example of this car will ever be found.
AMEN……A beautiful ride. Top down on a 75 degree night. A slice of heaven !!
I never understood GM for putting one color seat (usually white) in a car with an otherwise completely different color interior. To mee, that makes it look like the car had a black interior with messed up seats, and someone found good white seats at the salvage yard & bolted them in.
I’ve seen this with Buicks, Oldsmobile, and now Pontiacs. I bet if I look hard enough, I will find Chevys & Cadillacs the same way. It just looks cheap to me.
I totally agree 👍
I never understood GM.
Chevys and Caddys with white interiors came with white door panels. On tintops with vinyl headliners I think those were white as well. Much more complete effect, especially with the dash and carpets in red, blue, green etc to harmonize with the body color instead of just black.
This color arrangement for the interior always made it look like the seats were out of some other car. I’d much prefer the solid white interior over this.
GM offered the white seats with colored door panels as a separate option to the regular white interior which would’ve featured white panels (which IMO would look better than the black). I know that Pont and Chevy offered them, but I don’t know about Buick and Olds.
My ’73 Royale convert has white seats & doors, but black carpet & dash. A white dash would’ve gotten filthy pretty quick, but having darker door panels might have been better. You know how that ’70s white plastic yellows . . . there’s nothing that will make it white again.
Bleech White will do it. I’ve used it with great success on the white interior of the 1972 Eldorado convertible I used to have. Great stuff!
I think it’s a great look.
I ordered a new 75 Pontiac Bonneville…There was 3 different interior combos you could order….all one color with
dash rear shelf carpet contrasting color,, or dash carpet side door panels rear shelf one color with contrasting seats as this example has or ,,, all one color ….
I think it was a trend back then. And not just with GM. I’ve seen European cars with similar color schemes well into the 90’s. A 1992 red VW cabriolet with white seats and black carpet just sold on BAT. After doing a little research I found that was the standard color scheme for that model.
My ’99 Z/28 was red with white seats. The rest of the interior was gray. I was able to buy it as a leftover for a huge discount.
Odd combination that was not standard. I’m not sure how the car came to be, it also had every option thrown at it.
White carpet would not work so well I would suspect.
While I was waiting for them to find me a new black 89 Mustang GT convertible with gray seats, I got a couple of offers to take white seats with gray carpet dash etc
Picture of VIN in the pictures is of a 1975 Grand Ville with 400 4bbl. He must collect them.
Very rare option is the manual adjustable brake and accelerator pedals. Slide control down on left side of steering column. Neat how they out everything in order…
I would want the original tires and battery, even if they don’t function. You can put intertubes in the tires for driving into/out of enclosed trailer. This is a trailer queen, and is super nice – too nice to drive.
As far as the interior, GM did this on many models, and for many years. From Eldorado to Monte Carlo to Regal to…Grand Ville. It was called “Compati -Color”. White Vinyl seats and door panels in an all Black, Red, Blue, Gray, and black like the subject car.
Buick and Oldsmobile convertibles came with matching door panels – in the color of the carpet, leaving only the seats in white.
Several advantages – white reflects heat, easier on the back of the legs of the shorts wearing passengers, resists fading of the darker colors, and looks sharp!
A dealer I worked for in the 80’s to mid-90’s had a triple black 1975 Grand Ville Convertible, “new” on MSO. He checked the box for every single option. Although the dealer passed in 2008 I believe the family still has the car and the dealership is definitely still family owned.
There aren’t many cars made in 1975, that actually garner my attention, this is the exception. I even like the fenderskirts on this car, it deserves them and they look spot on. For the younger folks who never had the opportunity to ride in a full sized convertible, do yourself a favor, find somebody who has one and get a ride. There is nothing like riding in a boat like this, it will make you smile and you’ll never forget the experience. Beautiful car, it makes me smile just looking at it.
Why was this car repainted with only 1589 miles on the odometer?
Sold for $98,500.00!
Very strange bidding. Somehow I think we’ll see this again.
agreed very strange bidding and bet it gets relisited
The last 5 bids were the bidder’s attempt to reach the seller’s reserve. That said, I would have given up bidding long before $50K let alone twice that.
I just looked at the bidding history and it seems really odd to me. The way that the bids jumped up makes no sense. In the end, if the seller really got $98,500 for it then good for him. I can’t see why this car, as nice as it is, would go for that amount. I could think of a few other cars that I could buy for that money with change to spare.
Well, I didn’t see that coming.
Suddenly a $20,000 colonnade doesn’t seem that bad lol.
It was a nice car (I hope I didn’t leave the impression I didn’t like the car as I was criticizing the combinations GM offered back then), but WOW! Almost a hundred grand for this? As long as the buyer and seller are both happy, who am I to judge?
Amen…
What would this beauty be snickered for, in 2021 dollars!?
Think about what this car, will go thru Barrett-Jackson for,
if properly stored, pampered and maintained, in the January, 2032 Scottsdale Auction!?
Early to mid 70s American cars are my least favorite years because of the anti smog and emission restraints that US companies were being forced into engineering. But this car is quite stunning. I didn’t read the original post. Did it say it was repainted? If so why? Great find but 98k is crazy money for a mid 70s car. If this guys wife finds out, I bet he backs out of the deal.
Can you imagine how much engineering it took for GM to make a 455 run so poorly that it wheezed out just 200 hp? It’s the automotive equivalent of self-inflicted COPD.
As Chris mentioned, can anyone explain this bidding pattern? Why would the same person outbid themselves, just to end up paying double.
When I see this, I just think it is a shill bidder, am I missing something?
Are you suggesting there are dishonest sellers on eBay? Horrors!
@PRA4SNW – it was the bidders attempts to reach the seller’s reserve price.
Thanks Abi.
I wonder if the buyer will end up paying that crazy amount. No way is this car worth that much, no matter what the condition / mileage.
Maybe the buyer has some sort of emotional attachment to this particular car.
You are missing nothing. Something is very fishy here, it smells of fraud.
True, there are so many games that either the buyer or the seller can play on EBay that it hardly seems like the most legit way to sell something more substantial than a part or a trinket.
Looking at this car I can imagine someone buying it new as an investment (perhaps for retirement), then dying and someone else eventually reaps the benefits.
Okay the bidding is fracked up. Who cares? Whiny people complaining about the seat colour for crissake. Get a life!
This is an awesome car. Yes with just 200HP it isn’t going anywhere fast. Again who cares??
Absolutely stunning Pontiac. I would far rather drive this than any of the ragged assed TAs that appear here regularly. Museum?? Oh hell no. Drive it every weekend 8 or 9 months a year!!
I agree, beautiful cars, especially in person.
I saw a couple the other day at a car show.
One was for sale for a little over 20K, IIRC.
I wasn’t whining about the color of the seats. I was expressing an opinion. I think the factory mismatched seats looks tacky. No one said you have to read my comments. But I have a right to an opinion.
Stevieg, you got my vote – right on!
Just because a bidder on ebay wins the bid at $98k, doesn’t mean the seller will be paid. Last Time I tried selling a car on ebay it sold at 3 different times and none of the buyers came through. Complete waste of time.
I almost bought a baby blue 75 Grand Ville conv in 1988 for $4,500. I passed even though it was mint. I love this red beauty but for 98 large I can have. Bloomington Gold 67 Corvette. Duh.
Just Beautiful I miss the Pontiac division. when I was a little kid my father had a 67 Executive and I had an 81 Parisienne coupe and a 91 Bonneville SSE which I enjoyed driving very much
I have had one of these cars for 15 years now. In fact – Mine looks exactly the same…….red and same interior too……. but, has 110,000 miles on it! I drive it regularly and have a ton of fun with it. Even with just the 200 HP – it still drives amazing! Though I agree with the comments about the sale – I too have sold a car on ebay and not been paid…. AND – even the seller seems somewhat iffy…… no feedback in over a year – and bad pics…….. BUT, it makes me wonder if maybe these cars are finally getting some respect? When I was in college in the 1980’s…….. all my fraternity brothers had “old cars”….. like Pontiac GTO’s, Monte Carlos, Camaros, Challengers …… many of the same cars that go for $75k + now. However, with all of that being said…… I just cannot imagine buying a car and NEVER using it! I bought my car with 80k on it – so have put 30k on it since… about 2k a year. And the joy I get from driving that 2,000 miles a year is way worth it!
I see a SCAM!
Assuming the mileage is authentic, I’ll bet that car has been in more than one small town parade…carrying the home-coming queen or some ‘dignitary’
I’ll say it again!
Your writers ought to talk to some of us old folks when they don’t understand something from The ’60s and ’70s.
It’s unusual for 1975, but from maybe the 20s on, it used to be common for well to do women to buy a convertible So they would look adventurous but never lower the top and ruin their hair.
The Thunderbird, Riviera, 67 Eldorado etc often went to women customers who used to buy convertibles because the cars were so chic.
I had a neighbor years ago who bought a 62 Dodge convertible for his wife and she never liked it. So, it sat in the garage, top was never lowered, had less than 10,000 miles on it as of the last time I saw it in the late 90’s. I was more enamored with his collection of old Indian motorcycles at the time but I’m sure that car made someone a nice time capsule.
While I was waiting for them to find me a new black 89 Mustang GT convertible with gray seats, I got a couple of offers to take white seats with gray carpet dash etc
Very nice car, but why call a 200hp engine a monster ?
Had the 1971 grandville for 8 years,2 door coupe..only light smog gear which i removed..Ran hard for its weight, endless wheelspin..Clocked out the speedo no problem..By 1975 and the cat converters and smog stuff,the 455 was a mere shadow of its former self..