Normal replacement parts for a car that is already 25 yrs old. Since I first got the car, so far I had to replace:
Belts (normal wear and tear).
Shocks (normal wear and tear).
Rear differential (broke off mysteriously).
Driver side power windows and lock switches.
Carburetor (it had the original one on it).
Wiper motor (a royal pain to adjust properly).
This car is simply amazing! And extremely tough and powerful. I got this car from my mechanic (a personal friend of mine), who gave it to me as compensation for having me sold a very unreliable Acura. He felt so bad that the Acura could never run trouble free (it would actually turn off while driving at 55 miles! What a nightmare), that he gave me this old Parissienne.
He himself got it from the original owner, so the car now has 160,215 original miles on it. Being that the previous owner was an elderly person who hardly drove it (it turns out the elderly couple had 3 cars), the old Pontiac would just sit there for months at a time without being used, so the weather really beat this car severely, so it needs major body work (lots of rust and worn out pain).
The toughness and reliability of this car is just simply amazing. The rear differential had mysteriously broken and it still manage to get to the mechanics shop in that condition, the car just won't quit no matter what happens to it. Another amazing fact about my Parissiene is the fuel economy. For a car of this size and weight (is quite heavy) it does not consume much gas, I estimate it to be at around 20 miles per gallon. I drove it from Miami to Orlando with one tank of gas!
This car is a definite keeper for me. I am planning to slowly but surely, fully restore this formidable tough car to its original condition.
How did the car manage to rack up 156K miles if they "hardly drove it"??
I like that you have decided to save the old car, but you do realize that any significant amount of money you put in this car is similar to throwing it in the trash. These cars are not exactly collector's items and with the "EXCESSIVE" mileage that you have (that cannot be erased simply because you rebuild the motor) your car in perfect condition will bring maybe 2000-4000 dollars. And it sounds like you need about 10,000 dollars worth of work. It may be old, but old doesn't always mean valuable. If it were me, I'd sell it. Get 500 bucks and go buy a real project. one that can make me money, or at least I wouldn't lose my ass on. Good luck.
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