i just got a 1977 monza looks like imsa vin 1r07872114709

[jeffrey123]

Why is the 5th digit an 8? not a letter it has borg warner gauges cobra racing buckets roll bar headers side pipes oil cooler v8 not sure what size looks like its built tho. real wide body 50 series wide tires all around gold rims looks to be all original? has 3100 miles 4 sp. im trying to find out what it is and where it came from can anyone help!

[73astregt]

welcome to hbody.org! youll find this to be a great site with a wealth of knowledge about the h platform cars. im shure someone will be able to anser your question as there are a couple guys here working on imsa style monzas that ive seen. by the way nice find, looks like a great car! an imsa monza or a mirage would be two of my favourite h bodys if i was ever going to replace my astre! if the lottery comes in ill have all three lol! not holding my breath wating on that tho ha ha! again welcome!

[jeffrey123]

Thank you nice astre! i hope someone can help with this car. i would love to know why it was built and by who. i was told it eas either put together by dealer or shipped to dealer special orderef? idk? stewert warner gauges have me puzzeld. i mean they looked stock but black face and 160 speedo? but perfectly placed eben gas gauge? all sw.

[jon72vega]

That looks like a beautiful car!
Please post more pictures.

[stage169]

Very cool! I know what I would do! If you are interested contact Vintage Vehicle Services here http://www.gm.ca/gm/english/shopping/parts/vintage

Since your car was built in Canada they have a lot of information on it. I think the cost is around $70.00

So the engine code is an "8"? interesting, I hope you get the info on your car and show us when you do. Ditto on more pic's. Brian

[jeffrey123]

yes i will take more of the interior and engine compartmant. i tried to upload from a camera and it dont work. i will be putting some on soon. thanks guys. jeff

[mastiff]

Nice ride Jeff. is there inspection stickers on the cage ? if there is then maybe you can track down previous owners that way. as far as the engine goes. on the passenger front side of the engine block in between the head gasket and waterpump gasket, there should be a vin number. then on drivers side rear, in between the head and the trans bell housing should be cast numbers. that will help figure out what the engine started life as any way. although if it was raced it's unlikley it's stock. If I remember right, most back in the day ran 377 small block. the guy's that actually own IMSA cars on this site should chime in soon. they will be able to help you with info on the IMSA panels as well as other thing to help you figure out more on your car. again nice ride, and welcome.

[hammerdown7]

Well, it has an OHIO historical plate on the dash. Is the VIN you listed the one on the dash or is it from the title? The IMSA panels were readily available and this would not have been a road race car, maybe built for the street with some occasional track days. What tires are on it, the wheels look like one piece BBS's, a street version of the three piece wheels that were used in IMSA. This is a great find, give us some more details of how you found it.

Dick

[hammerdown7]

Here's a shot of the first race car taken at the GM Tech Center, you can see the front end structure has no stock components although ironically it has four lug wheels.

DeKon1001_GM-Suspension-Rig-03.jpg

[jeffrey123]

thanks for the info and i traded my 1930 ford street rod for it it was a project and a guy saw it on craigslist from northern ohio and called me, i didn't know anything about imsa or much about monzas, but i liked the pics, so i looked into it a little bit the vin i gave is on the title, so i am going to try and find some info about he motor and a build sheet if possible. he boughtn hte car from a friend of his who owned a dealer ship and the story was when he bought the dealership the monza was there, the dealership owner sold the car to him with a title and pink title info that read 03120 miles, and the guy i got it from said he only drove it about 40 miles around, the only work he had done was pull the tank and drain it, change the oil cooler lines and change the holley carb to an elderbrock. to his story hye knows nothing more about the car and he just trailerd it to local car shows. now the odometer reads 03162 , the metal on the front got bent up pulling it on and off the trailer, it sits very low. i wasn't to sure of the correct milage because all the gauges are not gm. they are warner stewert? either way i loved the looks and thought it was one very unusual car so i did the trade. he claims everything on it was done and sent to the dealer? for the exception of the carb, maybe intake and valve covers. i will try and get pics of the engine compartment. thanks again

[jeffrey123]

ok i can only have 5 pics its a grainy pic but here is the engine, it has a sheild around the breather that says chevrolet and also the mastercylinder is white with the chevy emblem looks good if someone done it in their garage! almost too good! i have no idea i will find out mor later and post. thanks Jeff

[jeffrey123]

oh it has the red stripes like the side of the car around that white piece and says the heartbeat of america in the front. just bad pic.i'll get better ones and delete that one.

[hammerdown7]

Jeffrey, check the VIN on the dash to see if the title has misprints.

Dick

[stage169]

oh it has the red stripes like the side of the car around that white piece and says the heartbeat of america in the front. just bad pic.i'll get better ones and delete that one.

Looking that slogan up I think it came out in 1986.

I bet the 8 on the title is a "B" on the VIN and that would mean it was built with a 4cyl.

[jeffrey123]

YEA THANKS GUYS I JUST CALLED MY FRIEND WHO HAS IT IN HIS GARAGE, THE TITLE IS A MISSPRINT THE 8 IS A B, YES LOOKING AT THE VIN DECODER THE CAR MUST HAVE HAD AN ORIGINAL 4CYL. THE NUMBERS ON THE BLOCK EARLY 70'S 350 SO I GUESS SOMEONE TOOK ALOT OF TIME AND MONEY TO GET THE CAR THIS WAY. DISSAPOINTED THE GUY WASN'T UP FRONT WITH ME, BUT STILL A VERY COOL CAR, IN GREAT CONDITION. DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW TO CHECK AND SEE HOW MANY OWNERS IT HAD? I KNOW THE GUY I GOT IT FROM GOT IN 02, CARFAX HAS TO HAVE A 17 DIGIT VIN. GRRRRR. THANKS GUYS!