Good morning! Today we’re looking at a couple of rear-wheel-drive sports coupes, both manual transmissions, and both varying shades of green, though only one started out that way. Which one will you spend your imaginary greenbacks on? We’ll find out.
Friday was a four-way shootout between all the cars I picked over the week, and as I suspected it might, the Jeep Cherokee won. I still maintain that if I were to bother with owning a Cherokee, it would have to be a manual, so I’ll pass on the purple brick.
For me, I think the choice among those four is the Oldsmobile. It’s the only one I could drive as-is and not feel like I needed to do anything to. I have a dwindling list of cars I’d be willing to take on as projects, and none of these are on it. So I’ll stick with the ready-made Radwood contender.
All right. Let’s check out some sporty green numbers. One of these I own, and know well; the other I always thought was cool but have never had the opportunity to own.
1969 MGB GT – $5,000
Engine/drivetrain: 1.8-liter overhead valve inline 4, four-speed manual, RWD
Location: Oakland, CA
Odometer reading: 125,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
“Your Mother Wouldn’t Like It,” said the old ads for the MGB GT. It’s hard to believe from an American perspective, especially thinking about the cars that roamed our streets in the late ’60s, but the MGB’s 1798 cubic centimeter four-cylinder engine was pretty big and powerful in Britain, for an inexpensive car like an MG. There were larger engines and faster cars, to be sure, but most ordinary cars coming out of Great Britain had engines of around 1 liter of displacement, and probably half the horsepower.
The closed-roof GT version of the MGB sold a lot better in Britain than it did here; Americans preferred the roadster. Personally, I am very much in agreement with the British on this one. The MGB roadster is handsome, but the GT is just gorgeous. This one, in classic British racing green with wire wheels, looks the part, and the seller says it runs and drives well enough for some errands around town. Sounds familiar to me.
Inside, it’s just a little scruffy, but the “Abingdon Pillow” padded dash is intact, and the vinyl upholstery looks all right. The seller says it has an “original” wood-rimmed steering wheel, but in 1969 the MGB still had a wire-spoke steering wheel with a plastic rim and a red MG crest in the center. This is a very nice aftermarket wheel, either a Moto-Lita, or, more likely, one of the Tourist Trophy wheels sold by Moss Motors.
Unfortunately, it has had a little bump in the left rear, and another in the nose. Neither one is bad, but they’re both definitely noticeable. At the very least, you’d want to straighten it out enough to install a taillight lens on the left rear, and make sure the bonnet latch isn’t damaged in front. I’d track down and re-install that missing overrider on the rear bumper, too, because it would bug me that it’s missing.
1991 Pontiac Firebird – $4,900
Engine/drivetrain: 5.0 liter overhead valve V8, five-speed manual, RWD
Location: San Leandro, CA
Odometer reading: 159,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
The third generation of GM’s F-body coupes, the Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac Firebird, was better in every measurable way than its predecessor. It was faster, more efficient, better handling, and way better looking (yeah, I said it). But the third-gen cars have always been a little bit looked down on; maybe it’s because they had David Hasselhoff as their “face” instead of Burt Reynolds.
That cheapness and lack of proper “classic” status has kept the third-generation cars cheap, and that has allowed enterprising owners to do all sorts of weird things to them. Like, for instance, tear them all apart and paint them fluorescent lime green. This base-model Firebird appears to have originally been red, but it has recently been painted to resemble a giant highlighter. The repaint appears pretty well done, but the reassembly isn’t quite finished, and there is some interior trim that still needs to be put back on.
It’s powered by a Chevy 305 small-block V8 and a five-speed manual; both were removed to paint the engine bay and overhauled while they were out. It runs strong, the seller says, and if it’s not enough power for you, all the upgrades you could ever want are only a Summit Racing catalog away. It has nice aftermarket seats in it, and the rest of the interior is as nice as you could expect a third-generation Firebird to be these days. Personally I’d ditch the T-handle shift knob in favor of a nice round knob, but that’s just me.
The hi-viz safety color may not be to everyone’s taste, but I kinda like it. I’m not sure why they didn’t paint the rear spoiler to match, though. And you’d be wise to take a peek underneath, and maybe bring a refrigerator magnet with you to check for filler. There’s a reason why it was repainted; if it’s just because it was faded, then that’s cool; if it’s to hide accident or rust damage, that’s not so cool.
You’re going to stick out like a sore thumb driving either one of these. I can’t take my MGB GT to the corner store without someone asking me about it. And a lime-green Firebird isn’t exactly stealthy either. But either one should be fun to drive, and more or less reliable for toy duty. So which one will it be?
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
MG.
The MG isn’t great, but that Firebird is a clown car in that color. And I’m not completely above driving a clown car Firebird, but it should have T-Tops to make sure everyone hears “Night By Night” by Dokken coming of my speakers as I chirp the tires at the stoplight.
That MGB looks soooo much lighter and easier to push
Both are a bit rough but having been the owner of a 1978 MGB, I’d choose the 1991 Firebird. 305 V8 and NO Lucas electrics.
Anyone else encounter a superstition about green cars? My wife, an otherwise intelligent and rational person, was convinced driving a green car would result in certain death.
That is a quintessential MGB, but I personally like neon green and I’d rather have the v8 in a newer, easier to fix car.
I like the Firebird,but in this case I would drive away in the MG.
After all the pain my 84 Firebird put me through,I’ll take the MG. Sure, it’ll be painful too, but it’s a different kind of pain, so hopefully that will at least make it interesting.
I would definitely be hard pressed to pay that money for either of these. MG Hard tops lok like low rent bond cars. which is not completely bad and at least this one is before the hideous bumpers and US spec lean burn carb issues. the Fireturd does have a factory v8 and manual trans going for it, but that is about it and unfortunately that T5 probably would die behind even a lowly 5.3 truck LS, which of course would be the best swap for the money you could do to that thing. they were pretty aero and they do have potential, jut not sure the price to play here makes sense.
Easiest one in a while. MGB GT in BRG. Looks nice enough and has the right wheels.
The Firebird already had a tough go even without the paint and the garbage loaded into it. Is it really that hard to clear out the crap before taking a photo? So if they’re that lazy, what else have they been to lazy to do? Basic maintenance maybe.
Not even a hint of a question here for me. The MG has decent bumpers, the correct wheels and is in the correct color. The dents can be fairly easily fixed. The Firebird is in one of the least correct colors imaginable and is less the kind of car I’m interested in driving. MG it is.
I’ll pick the MG because BRG >>> highlighter green all day long.
Plus, look at that roofline!
It’s not just Hasselhoff. Growing up in a Navy town in the 80s and 90s, those Camaros/Firebirds were the official car of the 19 year old sailor who bought the car from a buy-here-pay-here lot at 30% interest. No thanks.
And that sailor was the 5th owner in 3 years….
I like the MG more than the Firebird, plus the MG has a song about it (MGB-GT by Richard Thompson) and AFAIK nobody has penned an ode to Firebirds (Stravinsky doesn’t count)
The first car I bought with my own money at 16 was an 85 TA, so I’d take the Firebird especially because it’s a manual.
The cult status of the various generations of F body had nothing to do with their figureheads. Second gen was up against the Mustang II for most of it’s run so it got the nod as the last remaining old school pony car. At least they did until the Fox body Mustangs showed up. And that was what gen 3 was up against.
I’ve been rewatching Oz Clarke and James May’s drinking adventures lately so I’m feeling quite sophisticated with a hint of playfulness. MG for me please
Unlike our fearless leader, I’m not a fan of the overall look of those late 3rd gen F-bodies at all. I always thought that the refresh stuff (front, cladding) looked tacked-on in a futile attempt to de-80’s a car that’s quintissentially 80’s. The treatment here isn’t doing it any favors either. The little GT is an intriguing platform that you could either do much or not much at all with, and you’d get a very engaging and outright fun little car (insert obvious contrarian joke about Lucas electrics here).
My father had an MGB GT of that exact color when he was a teenaged janitor. Bought brand new, paid for it with cash.
I’d make it into an EV conversion, of course.
V-8? Manual transmission?
Sold.
If you bought both, you could use the Firebird to pick up all of those Lucas Electric parts you’re going to need for the MG. If you can find them.