If you’ve read my past blog posts, you’ll likely recall the ‘67 GTO that my grandfather ordered new (and found us 50 years later) as well as the ‘67 GTO our cousin, Rick Marasco also ordered new at the beginning of the ’67 model year. In February 1967, Pontiac introduced its newest model—the Firebird—as its version on GM’s F-car. And it certainly hit the ground running.
My dad, Jim Rotella was a high school senior at the time of the Firebird’s midyear release. Of it, he recalled, “I thought it was a very nice car. It was a good response by Pontiac to the Mustang and Camaro. My cousin Lou Rotella Jr. bought a beautiful Fathom Blue ’67 Firebird 400 from Leslie Pontiac in Council Bluffs, Iowa just after they came out. I loved that car! I have to admit that I preferred the GTO at the time though.”
Our cousin Rick Marasco ordered this ‘67 GTO new. It was Montreux Blue with black interior. The standard 400 4-barrel was backed by the optional Muncie 4-speed. He raced the car for several seasons and won countless trophies.
Just finishing high school and working part time when the Firebird debuted didn’t afford my dad much chance at owning one. “It isn’t that I didn’t want a new Firebird. I didn’t have the money to purchase a new car at that time. My dad had his ’67 GTO that I took out from time to time. I was going to college in the fall and was in the used-car market. I bought a ‘64 Cutlass with a 330 4-barrel and two-speed automatic to drive to school.”
Going into the ‘70 model year the industry was buzzing about GM’s all-new F-car. Pontiac’s stylists and engineers saw the ‘70 Firebird as a chance to create “a $3,000 Ferrari.” Everything about its appearance and persona exuded high-end European race car overtones. “I saw sneak previews of the ‘70 F-Bodies in new-car magazines. I was really excited to see what they were going to look like. My dad was just as interested in the new F-car as I was, so together we anxiously awaited their showroom introduction,” he recalled.
The building that housed the original Stan Olsen Pontiac dealership still stands at 27th and Farnam Street in Omaha. My family ordered several new Pontiacs right here during the ‘60s and ‘70s.
My dad and my grandfather (and practically every other Italian family in our neighborhood!) bought Pontiacs from Stan Olsen Pontiac—Omaha’s largest Pontiac dealer—at that time because of brothers Sam and Don Marasco (no relation to our cousin Rick Marasco). Sam was the dealership’s sales manager while Don was a top salesman. The brothers lived in the neighborhood and were known for being honest and fair. They had a very strong customer following and when my dad was in a financial position to purchase his first new car, he saw the Marascos first.
Like many dealers across America, Stan Olsen Pontiac received new Firebirds to display in its showroom upon the February 1970 national release. “My dad and I went to see the ‘70 Firebirds in person. Stan Olsen Pontiac had a base-model Firebird, an Esprit, and a Polar White Trans Am on the floor. They looked fantastic. I couldn’t get over how nice they were! I remember actually thinking that the Trans Am was a race car. The wheel flares, paint scheme, and chin spoiler were a little too much for me at the time. It looked like something completely out of my league. I really liked the Formula 400 with its 400 4-barrel and aggressive dual-scooped hood. My opinion of the Trans Am would change soon after, however.”
My dad and my grandfather also visited Rosen-Novak Chevrolet in Omaha to see the new Camaros. “I thought the Camaro was nice, and it was cheaper, but there were things I liked better about the Firebird,” said my dad. “The Camaro’s base V-8 was a 307-ci while the Firebird had a 350-ci. I liked the Firebird’s exterior styling better than the Camaro’s, but I also remember the Firebird’s interior—especially the dash—looked sportier. That was really the deciding factor for me. In all, I felt that the Firebird was a classier vehicle and Pontiac definitely was an exciting brand to own.”
My dad bought this ‘70 Firebird new that model year. That’s him with it in April 1971 before he traded it to my grandfather for a ‘70 Olds Cutlass. It’s the only picture of the car that he has.
In April 1970 my dad placed his ordered for a new 1970 Firebird with Don Marasco. “As a college student I really couldn’t afford much. I wanted to pay cash for the car and that really limited my option choices. I added the L30 350 2-barrel V-8. I wanted a floor-shifted manual transmission. The 4-speed was too costly, so I settled for the standard 3-speed. I really wanted Rally II wheels but just couldn’t afford them. I stayed with the standard hubcaps in hopes of purchasing some aftermarket wheels later, but did opt for E78-14 White Line Tires though. I added W63 Rally Gauges with Clock because the I felt the instrument panel looked bare without them and really disliked standard warning lights. I also added A02 Soft Ray Windshield, U05 Dual Horns, U63 AM Radio, and Y80 Décor Moldings. The car stickered for more than $3,200 and I paid around $2,900 for it.”
When it came to choosing an exterior and interior color combination for his ‘70 Firebird, my dad was inspired by our cousin, Rick Marasco’s '67 GTO. “His GTO was Montreux Blue. I though it was great color and it really looked sporty with black interior. As I reviewed the exterior color choices for the ‘70 Firebird, I narrowed it down to Bermuda Blue, Lucerne Blue, and Castilian Bronze. I ultimately chose Bermuda Blue with black interior because of how nice that combination looked on Rick’s GTO.”
It took only a few weeks for my dad’s Firebird to be built and delivered to Stan Olsen Pontiac. “My birthday is May 8th and I was hoping to get the car by then. Don Marasco told me it would be close, but it came in a few days after. I took delivery immediately and was really happy with the car. It looked great and as a newly restyled, early-production sports car, it created a lot of attention. I received compliments from both friends and strangers.”
My grandfather bought this ‘70 Cutlass new. When he decided to trade it in on a new 1971 vehicle, my dad traded his ‘70 Firebird to my grandfather for it. My grandfather then traded the ‘70 Firebird for his new car.
Of its overall performance, my dad says, “The car ran pretty well for a 350 2-barrel. The manual transmission certainly helped with that. I thought it handled great. It was certainly better than any other car I had driven up to that point. My only regret was not ordering power steering. Low speed parking maneuvers without power-assist was very difficult.”
During the ’60 and 70s my grandfather was buying new cars practically each new model year. “In the spring of 1971, my dad was planning to trade his low-mile ’70 Cutlass Supreme for a ’71 Monte Carlo,” my dad said. “The Cutlass had power steering and power brakes as well as air conditioning. I was more than ready for a car with those types of convenience options and traded the ’70 Firebird to him for his Cutlass. He then traded the Firebird in to Rosen-Novak Chevrolet when he took delivery of the Monte Carlo. I never saw the Firebird again.”
My grandfather traded the ‘70 Firebird to Rosen-Novak Chevorlet in Omaha for this ‘71 Monte Carlo. It was Mulsanne Blue—or the same code-26 that Pontiac named Lucerne Blue.
Looking back on his first new car, my dad reminisced, “The new Firebirds were completely different from anything else out there at that time. It was good looking sporty car, performed respectively, handled nice, and rode well. I really was a nice car for the money!”
If you could go back in time, how you order your 1970 Firebird?