A noteworthy milestone that any auto enthusiast can appreciate.
A woman by the name of Maria Carpenter recently celebrated a momentous anniversary with her beautiful Goldenrod Yellow 1969 Pontiac Firebird convertible. Last month marked 50 years since Carpenter, of Shelby Township, purchased her Firebird from the former Higgins Pontiac dealership in Ferndale, Michigan. She still has a black-and-white photo that was taken as she drove the brand-new car off the lot on June 9, 1969. You can see her holding that framed photograph in the above image of Carpenter standing proudly next to the Firebird.
The salesman from whom she purchased the vehicle was a retired police chief for the city of Ferndale. He also happened to be a friend of her father-in-law’s. Maria Carpenter says that her ’69 Firebird was the first car that he sold and gave her a great deal below the sticker price. What’s more, he gave her a dozen roses to celebrate the sale as well.
“I paid $3,882,” she recounted. “You couldn’t even get a clunker right now (for that price).”
When Maria Carpenter was first looking for a car, she actually had her eyes set at a Camaro, Mustang, and Firebird. It was the Pontiac Firebird’s eye-catching yellow hue that was the selling point for her. The Goldenrod Yellow paint code was actually a new color that had to be specially ordered from the factory.
Upon purchasing the Firebird five decades ago, it became Carpenter’s daily driver. She used it on an everyday basis to take her and her three kids to where they needed to go. Instead of replacing the Firebird, though, she decided to put the car in storage and not sell it. Since Pontiac had stopped making the Firebird convertibles for some time, she predicted that her example could become more valuable in the future.
After a lengthy 25 years in storage, Maria Carpenter decided that it was time to restore her 1969 Pontiac Firebird.
“When you don’t drive a car after 25 years, it causes more damage than good,” she said, adding that the company that handled the restoration work did an “amazing” job. “It is in perfect-looking condition. Not a mark. Not a scratch.”
The car is now in show-quality condition and has earned Carpenter close to 50 trophies over the years. She takes very good care of the car and never drives it in the rain. As it turns out, she was right about the car’s worth too! Since its restoration, Carpenter has been offered as much as $60,000 for the car. But sometimes, you just can’t put a price on love.
Source: C&G News
Photo(s) by Erin Sanchez; Courtesy C&G Newspapers
