Canmore man’s love affair with his vintage wagon lasts 50 years
Ian Mackie sentimentally attached to 1964 Pontiac that he bought new
Fifty years is a long time to keep a car. But that’s how long Ian Mackie of Canmore has owned his 1964 Pontiac Laurentian Safari station wagon.
In the early 1960s, Mackie was employed by Canadian Pacific. He’d drive from Alberta to Nova Scotia as the seasons changed, working at CP’s various properties, and was putting plenty of miles on his Chevrolet Biscayne.
Then, in 1963, Neil Morrison, owner of Calgary Motor Products, invited Mackie to the introduction of the 1964 Pontiacs. The cars were displayed in the foyer of the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, and when Mackie saw the Laurentian wagon, he knew it was the car for him.
“I knew Neil, and dealers and guests were invited to the display,” Mackie said. “He wanted me to see the Pontiacs. The Safari wagon was there, and I thought it a beautiful car and that it would be better than the Biscayne.”
In October 1963, he ordered a Laurentian Safari wagon. He specified the car in Tuxedo Black with a maroon interior, complete with the base 283 cubic- inch Strato- Flash V8 engine and twospeed Powerglide transmission. The car was delivered to Calgary Motor Products in April of 1964.
Built in Oshawa, the Pontiac Laurentian was the middle- of-the-road model for the General Motors company. It was placed one step above the Strato Chief but one step below the Parisienne in terms of luxury. The Laurentian used the running gear of a full- sized Chevrolet car, but was wrapped in Pontiac- specific sheet metal.
Mackie drove the car until 1970, when he took a job running the Banff Springs Golf Course. For this work, he required a truck, and his wife, Brenda, took over driving the Safari wagon.
The Pontiac was kept on the road for another seven years, but by the late 1970s rust had eaten holes in the floorboards, rocker panels, and around the wheel wells. But Mackie didn’t sell the wagon. Instead, a friend stored the car.
“I wanted to hold on to the car,” Mackie said, “Simply because I never saw very many of these Pontiacs, and station wagons in particular were disappearing from the automotive landscape.”
Forty- five years after he bought the Pontiac, in 2008, Mackie got the wagon out of storage and began orchestrating its revival.
He sent the car to B. C., to Canadian Hot Rods in Tappen, where the body was separated from the chassis. Wayne Booth, proprietor, pulled the engine and sent it out for rebuilding. The V8 was bored oversize and new pistons and rings installed. Timing chain and gears, valves and rocker arms were all replaced, and the heads were treated to hardened seats so Mackie could run regular gasoline.
Booth restored the chassis, installed Corvette C4 suspension components front and rear and put in an entirely new steering system, from the power steering box to the control arms and tie rods. The brakes were switched from drums all round to fourwheel disc, and a new master cylinder and stainless steel lines completed the system.
The body was sent to S& L Custom Collision and Body Repair, a company that’s no longer in business. There, all rusted metal was removed and replaced with new panels and prepared for paint — the factory- correct Tuxedo Black. Bumpers were rechromed, and all stainless trim was cleaned and polished.
With the body back on the chassis, Mackie had the car delivered to Bel Air Upholstery in Turner Valley. The front bench seat was replaced with reupholstered Pontiac Grand Prix bucket seats. All interior fabrics are GM original, from the seat covers to the headliner.
Because of the new brakes, Mackie had to install aftermarket alloy wheels as the original steel rims wouldn’t clear the larger discs. These were sourced through Wheel Master Classics in Calgary.
When the car was complete, Mackie took it to Kevan Lillace at Action Engines in Calgary, where it was fully inspected and final adjustments were made.
Mackie had the car back on the road for only a short time before he decided to replace the rebuilt two- speed Powerglide transmission with a new GM four- speed automatic. He says this gives him smoother starts, and also provides a nicer ride on the highway because the engine isn’t labouring; he can loaf along at 1,600 rpm while maintaining the speed limit.
Mackie isn’t afraid to use the car and it can often be seen cruising around Canmore and Banff. He has displayed the wagon at numerous car shows, and always comes away with awards.
“I did some automotive restorations when I was younger, but this was the first one in a long time,” Mackie says. “I really like the Pontiac, and after 50 years, I’ve got some sentimental attachment to the wagon.”