From: utzoo!decvax!duke!harpo!zeppo!whuxk!houxz!houxi!houxr!rs173 Newsgroups: net.auto Title: Re: J, K, and X cars Article-I.D.: houxr.122 Posted: Fri Aug 6 10:35:10 1982 Received: Sun Aug 8 08:44:43 1982 I have a 1980 Pontiac Phoenix (X-body), 6-cylinder 2-door with 45,000 miles on it. The car rides and handles well and is comfortable for 4 or 5 passengers. Its a great road car, riding stable and quiet at highway speeds. It does have some minuses too. The front tends to be nose-heavy at times, since hitting a driveway, etc. at 'too high' a speed will cause the nose to hit the pavement( a minor problem, in my estimation). A more frustrating, and potentially expensive problem is the extremely crowded, and poorely arranged engine compartment. It is VERY difficult to get at anything for repair or maintanance, such as spark plugs, oil filter, alternator, etc. My car has air-conditioning which stands between me and my alternator, which needs a new set of (small) diodes, an estimated $100 repair bill from Rassas Pontiac (a Redbank dealer), mostly for labor. I normally work on my own cars, but this model is somewhat discouraging. Gas mileage on the road has been averaging only about 25 mpg. I have complained to the dealer, and paid for tune-ups, without much improvement. He said it was typical mileage. The car is very peppy with excellent acceleration and, except for lingering fears of future repair labor-charges, is a pleasure (for me) to see and drive. Hope this helps! Ron Silver, btl-holmdel, ...houxr!rs173