What is it about seeing a car that you know full well isn’t all that desirable, but when it wears the badge of a far lesser-known variant, it suddenly becomes cool? That’s a spell I often fall under despite knowing full well there’s very little added value simply by virtue of a different hood ornament. This 1978 Pontiac Astre is the lesser-seen cousin to the Chevrolet Vega and is offered here on craigslist as a barn find in surprisingly sound shape.
The seller is asking a reasonable $2,500 for the Pontiac, but he’s also open to trades for guns and ammunition or another project vehicle. My brother recently pulled a Pontiac LeMans Safari out of a garage in his neighborhood, and it has the same sort of vibe as this Astre. Sure, it’s near identical to a Vega Kammback, which was already a hard to find model – but I’m guessing the amount of registered Astres still on the road is in the double-digit range.
And truth be told, there likely aren’t that many Vega wagons left, either. This one needs an engine, which seems like an open door invitation to drop in a more powerful engine than anything that came from the factory. The seller doesn’t provide any context for how the Astre ended up in this sort of condition, but I like his line of thinking when he mentions, “…make into that dream racecar.” This Astra has period-correct drag car tribute written all over it.
The paint and the chrome is faded but I bet the single-stage finish will come back to life with a good buffing. The same could be said for the tired chrome bumpers. The bodywork is surprisingly sound for a car that hasn’t lived inside a garage, but the Texas climate is generally pretty hospitable to vintage tin. What do you think is the best future for this rare wagon – a drag car hot rod build or a daily-driver restoration?