1973 Pontiac Catalina Reviews from North America

Rear Coil Springs: 30 year old springs were in dire need of replacement.

Rear Shocks: They may have been the originals, who knows, but whatever they were, they didn't work.

Tires: The car came with the kind of tires you'd find on sale at a gas station. They were all no name brand tires that didn't even match. They had to go.

Exhaust: Since the rear coil springs and the shocks were dead, I bottomed out on a speed bump going 10 mph in a parking lot, and it broke the bolt that connected the muffler to the frame.

Small amounts of rust on the front and rear quarter panels: The previous owner obviously didn't properly store the car in a climate controlled area like a garage, or warehouse. It's not that bad though, just a tiny amount of rot that can be fixed easily.

Needs paint: Because of said mentioned rust/rot, the car needs a new paint job in the near future.

Front end work: Since it's a good 30 or so years old, it needs new upper and lower control arms, shocks, and springs. However, the engine itself seems to be in tip top shape.

Brake lines: This one was the last thing that went wrong before I started work on it. (My goal was to break everything that was on the borderline of being broken, so I would have a general idea of what had to be done) the brake lines cost almost nothing to replace, and the new master cylinder only cost 35 dollars. God bless older cars and their cheaper parts.

Despite the problems listed, the car is reliable to the bitter end. Even with shot out rear suspension, and an exhaust scrapping across the ground it never wanted to give up on me.

Recently however, I've fixed a number of those problems. Namely I brought it to a shop, and had them replace the rear springs, with super heavy duty variable rate springs, the shock absorbers are now air ride shocks. The exhaust was switched out from a single, to a duel exhaust.

The interior of the car when I got it was absolutely gorgeous. Perfect condition no doubt. You sit in it and you feel right at home because the bench seat feels a lot like sitting on a couch. The gas pedal is quick and responsive, and is the brake pedal. For a car that rivals the size of most tuna haulers it can really move, especially now with the new duel exhaust, and stance it's gained from the air shocks.

I'd recommend this car to anybody who likes Pontiac or likes older cars in general. It's a good, reliable car, with plenty of power, a comfortable interior, and lots of potential for growth.

Had to get exhaust custom bent but orange peelers were a nice enhancement.

Transmission coolant line rubbed against frame and caused leakage which overheated and blew transmission.

Air Conditioning was shot before I got it.

Rear differential made loud humming sound like a dump truck.

This vehical was a tank. I mean I could literally mount a 50mm gun to the roof of this baby and take out 1000 Saddam loyalist a day. So roomy you could stretch legs all the way out and would not touch front floorboard. I drove the heck out of this car and gave it a proper burial when it finally left me. The next day I went and bought a New 1988 Pontiac Grand Am. That's how impressed I was with Pontiac. Big Trade off with power going to a 4 cylinder, but I expected that obviously. I really miss that car!!!

Radiator.

Tires.

Battery.

Heater core.

The usual things any vehicle thirty and over would need eventually.

For a four door Catalina, she moves pretty quickly.

The interior is just the right size for any big person.

The bench seats are like sitting on your living room couch, soft, yet supportive.

And everything is within easy reach of both driver and passenger.