The Safari badge was hung on all early Sixties Pontiac station wagons, whether based on the full-size Catalina and Bonneville, or the midsize Tempest.
The Catalina Safari was the less expensive of the two full-size wagons, and the advertising touted that the '64 Safaris "look like Pontiacs, handle like Pontiacs, ride like Pontiacs...and tote like troop transports!"
The basic motor, if you ordered a car with the three-speed manual, was the 235 horsepower 389 cubic inch Trophy V-8, with a 2-barrel carb and an 8.5:1 compression ratio allowing it to run on regular fuel. If the buyer opted for the Hydra-Matic transmission, the baseline motor was also a 2-barrel 389, but with a 10.5:1 compression ratio requiring premium fuel and putting out 267 SAE gross horsepower.
Also available were higher performance 4-barrel and 3x2-barrel versions of the 389, making 306 and 330 horsepower, respectively. If you needed maximum towing grunt (or wanted to surprise unsuspecting normies at a traffic light) there were four-barrel and tri-power 421 Trophy V-8s on the menu that put out 320 and 350 ponies.
This faded Marimba Red 1964 Catalina Safari wagon was photographed in June of 2022 using a Nikon D800 and a 24-120mm f/4 VR zoom lens.
Redlines and poverty caps, too! I can't see the exhaust so I'm immediately suspicious that it's a sleeper.
ReplyDeleteThe raft of Hot Rod Power Tour stickers in the rear window and the subtly larger rear meats suggest it's got something gnarly going on under the hood.
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