This beautiful Monte SS G Body has to be one of the finest examples of an all original Ultra Low Mileage Survivor of its kind out there today. Imagine watching a garage door open up in front of your eyes, evealing the covered body of a car sitting under a thick layer of dust and covered underneath with 25-30 year oldspider cobwebs!
What lay underneath the cover was none other than this beautiful All Original 1 Owner 1985 Monte Carlo SS with its odometer reading out a simple 02211 Kms (Yes that's OnlyTwenty-two hundred and eleven kilometers or the Imperial equivalent of 1373 ORIGINAL MILES!!!) To better paint the picture of this true story please follow the link below with over a 150 digital pictures from the initial uncovering up to present day pics of the car after it was revived and put back on the road.
150 + Pictures Link: http://1drv.ms/1LEQ3C2
It was only this past summer thatI purchased this Monte SS fromit's original owner who in fact ordered the car through my father back in 1985. As a long timefaithful customer of my fathers they sat down one day in the officeand started to check off the order sheet for a potential new car purchase. After some haggling and the customer's request that aspecific Dealer Promo Poster hanging on the showroom wall (displaying a1985 Monte SS and LS model for the modelyear)was to be thrown in they made thedeal. Yes that original poster and the story go with the car 30 years later howneat is that? With a handshake and the promise of the poster going along with the car on delivery they placed the order in system with the hopes my father would be able the get the order accepted and built. The Dealership the car was purchased from is none other than Queenston Chev Olds, till located in Hamilton Ontario Canada (now a different location but the same principle dealer) and still the place where my father sells new Chevrolet and GM vehicles to this day!
The original owner had last licensed and driven the SS back in 1992. You will see the picture of original owners "85 SS" vanity plates with the '92 renewal sticker that was still on the car at time of our initial viewing. In the Monte's first 7 years of its life (1985-1992) the original owner along with his wife had only accumulated 2211 Kms (1373 MILES) on the odometer. The car was found sitting exactly as shown in the start of the picture set with the only thing missing being the original AC Delco battery long retired from years of sitting idle.
The car still retains all of its original factory installed OEM parts. The original engine compartment looks like it did back when the car was brand new including all the original GM belts, oses, acuum Lines etc.
If you actually walk around and look over the car in person you could easily imagine yourself standing at the Chevy dealership back in 1985 looking at a Brand New 1985 Monte SS model on the showroom floor.
Fortunately,the fact that it was left to sit undisturbed and covered from UV rays and moisture for so many yearswas the realreason behind the preservation of this all original survivor car. The long hibernation for the Monte made for an incredible findfor meto say the least! It was just like those stories you read in car magazines of "Unmolested Survivor Finds" and "Low Mileage Barn Finds" etc. For me thiswas no magazine article or dreamitwas very areality andas real as a day is long!
How cool is it not only to see a car of this caliber sitting right there in front of you to touchbut to actually have the chance to purchase and own basically a New Car 30 years after it left the factory floor!
The story behind Finding and Reviving this Low Mile Monte SS goes a little like this:
Over the last 10 years or so my father had always talked about a low mileage Monte SS G Body he knew of just sitting in the owner's garage hibernating. He had never seen the car since the mid80'sand only knewof thestory becausehe was the one who sold it brand new to it's owner. It was through occasional conversations with the original owner that the ownerwould tell him how the mileage had stayed the same as the car was not being driven at all or had been for many years. I 've always been a fan of G Bodies since I owned one as my first car. Personally I have a soft spot for the Oldsmobile versions however this being an ultralow mileage G Body and anSS model it had always sparked my interest. From time to time we would talk about how nicethe carmust be withsuch lowmiles and how cool it would be to maybe purchase something that he (my father) had sold whennew. We continued to chat on and off about the car over theyearsand at my requestmy fatherwould occasionally check in with the original owner with aphone call to ask if he had done anything with the car or if he had driven it anymore. Although we were always invited to come take a look at his "2211 km" SS hibernating in his garage we never took him up on his offer. It was never that we didn't want to see this low mileage car in person, he reason mainly was the timing never seemed to be right on my end. If it wasn't school, t was marriage and camethen home ownership. Later thenit was the start of a young family with kids and I wifeconsuming my life, nergy and paycheck. The truth was that there was noextra money laying around for a "Toy". It was not only that the timing was not right for me but the fact that the Montehad never really been"For Sale" was the other part of the equation. I felt I should just keep it on the back burner and wait for a better time to actually one day go and see it. I also never wanted to provoke the owner to maybe want to part with it without me having the funds in hand and inturn lose out on such a unique chance to buy it. Well this past summer's follow up call turned into another request to come look at the car but this time the owner added thatthe carwas unofficially for sale now!Yep the Monte had to find a new garage to stay covered upin as the original owner had no intentions of storing the car any longer.His house which had guarded over this Monte all these years was listed up for sale and his plans for a downsized condo did not include the 30 year car coming along with him. Some people would use the expression "The Stars Started to Align" and this couldn't be further from the truth. The opportunity presented itself to me and the timing was finally looking Right! The quick series of events that followed had me removing a 1373 Original Mile 1985 Monte SSfromits hiding spot 30 years after it was first put in there.
Let's jump back for a second to the "Unveiling" part of the story. Yes this was the visit we talked about for so many years but always put off for one reason or another. This time it had my father and I standing in front of a 2 car garage in an upscale suburban neighbourhood starring at the silhouette of a dusty, overed vehicle. The only hint that this was a MONTE CARLO SS sitting under the car cover wasthe bottom portionof 2 factory SS mag wheels with the original Eagle GT Goodyears peeking out from under the cover.
When we lifted up the car cover we were quickly drawn to the bright all original SS decals and the amazing condition of the car's body and paint. Dirty from years of dust yes but dirt washes off and I could seethe carwas in factmint as we thought it would be. I proceeded to open the passenger door and took in the smell of the "like new" interior. It was at this point in timethat I felt I was standing beside myself. I needed to see more, his was just too good to be true so. So nextI popped the hood for a peeked into the engine compartment. Wow, t still looks just like it didwhen GM assembled it at the factory. It is all still there, itting untouched under a layer of 30 year old dust. I thought to myself this is absolutely amazing, wonder what the undercarriage look likes. Quickly down on all fours I went for a quick view of the bottom side of the car. It was full of 30 year old spider webs and dust bunnies galore. The all black undercoating that was done when it was brand new was still all dark black and crisp justlike it was done yesterday it was just dusty. It was right then and there I knew had to own this survivor G Body SS. Don't get me wrong there are many beautiful G Bodies out there and I have seen my fair share over the years but honestly I have never seen one that still retains so many of the factory id markings, tampings and decals throughout the vehicle. And I am not only talking about the engine compartment as you will see in the many pictures through the link but tags, ecals and unique markings under the car and on suspension components, riginal colored brake line fittings etc. All still visible some 30 years after it left the factory was simply spectacular to look at.
"The Revival"
Since the car was stored and off the road since 1992 the first step of bringing the car back to life was to flatbed the vehicle back to the garage for a complete flush and change of all of its fluids. This included removing and bagging the Original Black Delco GM Oil filter (So at 2211 kms this Monte had its first official oil change). The original transmission filter was also kept and bagged just to stay with the car for those die hard collectors / car enthusiasts out there. The brakes are still original but we did flush out the original brake fluid and replaced it all with new fluid just as a caution. As you will see in the picture link from sitting the rear drums had a thin layer of brown oxidation so I sprayed them with a semi glass primer/paint. The original rear end fluid was also drained and replaced along with the transmission fluid. A thorough flush of the engine's coolant system was up next. It was during the flushing of the radiator that we discovered some of the core openings inside the rad tanks had developed some corrosion from the coolant sitting stagnant for so many years. So with no expense spared I had the original radiator completely re-cored at a cost of over $500 re-using the original tanks for a concourse worthy repair. In the replacing of the radiator we found another unique find which I have never seen before. Obviously done at the factory, here is a "305" stencil marking present on the original radiator core section (pictured in the link as well). I assume this was done at the factory to indicate which radiators were to be installed on v8 cars during the production run. The original copper core section has sincebeen tagged and bagged along with the original oil and transmission filter all which stay with the car.
Luckily the fuel was stabilized during its time in storage and the previous owner did fire up the car from time to time to keep things all in check in regards to the engine internals. The fuel has been since been run out and replaced with our highest commercially available 92 grade octane fuel for future drives.
The Monte fired right up after all the new fluids were changed and it runs strong just like it did back in 1985. The car still has all of its original items such as the Delco factory spark plugs, gnition wires and all the other Delco Ignition part that were factory installed back in the day. The original Air filter, M Belts, M Stamped Radiator Hoses are all present and original as per the 1985 build. The rubber hoses and belts are all in excellent condition with no cracking or dry rot. Even the original Eagle GT tires are still on the car and have no damage or cracking visible on the side walls or between the treads. The tires are 30 years old but a must have for showing the car as they have never been broken down or messed around with. If the new buyer plans on driving the car often I would suggest buying a set of new rubber for all four corners. A car of this caliber really deserves a set of those new Goodyear Eagle GT reproduction tires to keep the original look from the 1980's. Due to the fact that car sat in a two car garage that was used by the home owners in the winters the 2 passenger side rims did get a few spots of corrosion on them (seerust spots visiblein the uncovering pictures). The car cover never went right to the groundsowith snow and moisture from a second car parked beside the Monte and typical human traffic between the vehicles in the garage the only bit of rust toever show up was on the pass wheels. I decided I was only goingto sand down the spots with rust and touch them up the best I could without re-spraying the complete wheels. This way the rims are 95% or more all original paint with a few touch ups done by dabbing the areas not spraying them. The final pics show how well they turned out!
The interior feels and smells like it did when it was still on the dealer's lot new. Due to minimal driving time and that fact the car was always covered while in storage has left all the rubbers, inyl trim panels, ash pad and seats in top notch shape. They have never seen much of any sunlight and therefore have no cracking or sun fade you often see on a 30 year old car. The original SS leather wrap wheel still has all the factory "Grain Pattern" intact.
I have no doubt that this car will be a Trophy Winner when shown. Between the original owner and myself it has never been shown but hopefully one day it will get its time to shine and bring home some hardware and bragging rates for its new proud owner.
Along with all the original GM books in the glove box we also have an original 'period correct' Queenston Chev Dealer Badge (uninstalled) for the new owner. Aside from the factory manuals shown in the car I went ahead and ordered thru the GM of Canada Historical Services Division the full Build Sheet Info Package. It references the build options along with VIN, elling Dealer, roduction Date and Model Numbers Imported to Canada in 1985. FYI The car is one of only 901 Z/65 SS models ordered & delivered new to Canadian Dealers for the 1985 model year. There are lots of other Monte SS specifications and model info that they provide in the kit and it all goes with the car.
The car was ordered with a few interesting choices making it a little more unique and rare than most of the 1985 SS Montes out there today. First off the bucket seat / floor console option was not checked off, nstead the buyer decided the car was to be ordered with the standard bench seat / column shift with a tilt wheel. Along with the column shift option the owner's decision to order the car with the Code 79 Dark Maroon Metallic exterior and the 82D code grey interior instead of the typically maroon on maroon color combo makes for a unique SS build for this vehicle. How many exist like this that I do not know but I do believe that those two choicestogether willhelp this car stand out from most Maroon Metallic1980's Monte SS cars out there. Along with the fact that the car shows like new and has just over 1400 original miles will make it a stand out in a crowd any day.
The original paint and rust free body are 100% original and have never seen any repairs or damage. The car was recently professionally buffed and the paint looks as good as can be expected for 30 year old 1985 GM paint. The 1980's never had the technology or the high quality standards we see on today's new vehicles being produced. Minor paint runs, lemishes, hin spray coatings inside trunk lids and jambs are to be expected, hey were part of the era. That being said it is 100% original and there is no checking of the paint. All the SS decals are all intact and overall the paint shows very well for being 30 years old. There are some very minor flaws throughout the car like a few very minor chips in the paint throughout the body and a couple minor ones on the edges of the sport mirrors etc. A few minor light scratches and/or marks around the body do exist but nothing that stands out or looks bad or very noticeable. With some hard detailing work I bet most could be detailed right out of sight. At the end of the day they are only original once and this one has been well preserved its entire lifetime. In the glove box there is an original GM touch up stick of the color if the new owner wants to detail the car or correct the minimal road marks the car has.
If you could travel back to the Dealer's Lot in 1985 this car looks, mells and drives like it did 30 years ago. You would be hard pressed to find another one like this that is so well preserved in its original condition without having to giving up a large chunk of your 401k retirement fund to buy it! These cars are the last of the GM RWD G BODY era and now having turned 30 years old are just starting to gain some of the respect they so rightfully deserve. They don't build them like they use to these days do they? What does $18-20k really buy you at the Chevy Dealership these daysmaybe aloaded Chevy Cruze? Why not take yourself back in time and buy this "like new" 1985 Top of the Line Monte SS for many years of personal enjoyment or for a personal collection.
For potential buyers it should be noted that the A/C does not blow cold as it has lost its charge over the many years of sitting. It is still setup for R12 and that refrigerant is not available in Canada anymore. I chose to leave it as is and original therefore not converting it over to the current R134. The Monte has been licensed and driven very little this year but the speedometer is ever so slowing climbing. Since the uncovering the mileage now stands at 2275 Kms (1414 All Original Miles). I do like to take the car out for a short drives from time to time and the mileage may go up slightly during the duration of the auction. However if the reserve is met during the auction then I would respectively stop driving the car and it will be grounded until the buyer finishes off the transaction.
So you are probably thinking after putting in all the effort to keep tabs on this special SS Monte and finally making the purchase just this past summer to buy this Monte why would I all of a sudden be listing it for sale?
Well that's a very good question and here is the short and simple answer to it:
Unfortunately due to some unforeseen circumstances in my personal life I have to seriously entertain the idea of parting ways with this very beautiful Monte SS. Now that being said I am not yet in dire needs to sell it off quickly. This is in no way a fire sale by any means just simply put my life plans and the path I was headed down have taken a change in course. Ideally if I can get what I feel is good market value todayfor this beautiful and rare find then I will gladly pass it alongfor somebody else to enjoy. Serious collectors or car enthusiasts with a desire to own a very low mileage Monte SS G BODY survivor you have to consider this one on your short list. Or imagine buying this car as a gift for that someone specialand the look on their face when the car sits in the driveway with a bow on it!Maybe they always wanted one back in the 1980's but as we know the "Timing was never Right" sohere's the opportunity knocking...maybe you would call it fate?
Don't miss out this would make an incredible gift for somebody special or maybe its time totreat yourself with a gift after years of always putting others first.
Please be sure to bid often and bid accordingly so hopefully you will be the successful bidder at the auctions end. Please don't ask me as I will not reveal what my reserve is set at. That being said I am not looking for as much as some dealers ask for cars with 10 times the miles that mine has out there on the net. I know I will never have the chance to buy another G body that is this clean and original for my reserve price but that's life and you have to do what you have to do when things come up. I have down some homework and feel I have priced the car on the lower end of the scale for anything I can compare to which is not much. I understand that these G Bodies are just starting to gain momentum in the classic car market and have not peaked yet so I took that into consideration when setting my reserve.
Please tell your friends, amily members and Monte Carlo Fans about the auction...Don't miss the opportunity to own this beautiful survivor car.
Feel free to contact me for more details if you have questions. The car is located about 1 hour from Buffalo, Hour Drive from Detroit. It is in located in Hamilton Ontario Canada (In between Toronto and Niagara Falls Ontario). Please only Bid if you have the funds and the desire to go through with the purchase of this vehicle.
Terms of auction:
$500 US Non- Refundable deposit is due with 24 hours of auction's end (Paypal will be acceptable for this deposit payment only).
Balance owing on the Car is to be paid in full with 15 days of auction ending or sooner unless discussed otherwise between the buyer and seller. All arrangements are to be made to pick up the vehicle in person (preferred) or by using a shipping service in a timely manner after all payments have been finalized.
Final Balance Payment to be paid in Cash in Person on Pickup or Via a Secured Wire Transfer, ertified Bank Draft etc. If a wire transfer is done and there are fees for service they are to be covered by the buyer if not paying in cash. I will not accept PAYPAL for the balance of the auctions sale price.
Buyer to arrange all shipping and pre-pay all shipping costs which is 100% the buyers responsibility not the sellers. I will assist in getting the car loaded up if need be and prefer a door to door shipping service if you do not plan on picking it up yourself. Years back I did sell a couple of personal vehicles to the USA where the buyer would come in person with the cash and a trailer and tow it home. Ideally this would be the best situation and preferred by me but not a requirement for a successful transaction. The car was built in Arlington Texas and will have no problem going back to the USA. The car currently has a clean Ontario title in my name. There are No Liens on the car and it comes with all Ontario paper work to assist in exporting the car to the USA. The Car is licensed and road worthy within Ontario for local buyers. It will be sold as is if going out of Province/Country. If a serious buyer wants to look over the car in person it can be done by appointment only (US buyer feel free to come for a nice drive into Canada and have a look). I reserve the right to end auction early as the car is for sale locally but would only be done if the reserve is NOT met at that point in time. If the car meets the reserve and is going to sell in the auction to the highest bidder then I would not cancel the auction. The high bidder has first rights to ownership as I stand by the rules of eBay and the auction process. Hope you enjoy the auction and I do have a whole link of pictures from the uncovering to the on the road pictures I am going to try to add the link into the auction. If for some reason it will not work I will gladly email it to any and all interested parties. I even have a short video of the tow truck pulling it out of its bat cave after 23 years of storage. I would gladly share the video to interested parties as well.
Thanks for reading my long winded story of The FIND: Uncovering A 1373 Mile All Original 1985 Monte SS.
Good luck to all bidders!