Member: Ken Zahariuk
Car: 1969 Beaumont
Car: 1969 Beaumont
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Back on June 30th, 2003, my son-in-law and I had just finished a round of golf at Deer Valley Golf Course just north of Regina and headed back to our daughter and son-in-law's house in Regina for a barbeque. After supper I was searching Canada Auto Trader on the internet, when I came across this 1969 Beaumont. To my surprise it was a Regina car, just about 5 minutes away from their house. I had been quietly looking for a car for a couple of years. Back in 68 I had owned (new) a 1968 Chevelle Malibu, 327 4 spd, and a good friend of mine had a 68 Beaumont 327 4 spd., so I knew something about Beaumonts. I quickly phoned the telephone number and asked the owner if it was still for sale, which it was. My son-in-law, daughter and I then quickly drove (within the speed limit of course) to see and inspect the car.
We all were surprised at the good condition it was in and how good it looked. I guess you could say, it was love at first sight for me! The Beaumont was originally sold from Mid West Motors in Regina SK. and Regina Beach, about a 1/2 hour drive north west of Regina, was its home for many years. The 307 was long gone and replaced with a 350. Other than the engine and the wheels and tires the car was basically original. The owner had done some motor work, replaced the upper & lower ball joints, and the brakes (4 wheel drum) and brake hoses, new tires on 15 x 8 front rims and 15 x 10 back rims.
Well, we settled on the price and now the next step was to tell my wife! My wife and I were living and working in Moose Jaw back then, so it was back to my daughter's house to phone Debbie to tell here what I had found! To make a long story short, we came back to Regina the next day and bought the car.
The car was antique gold and had the factory two tone trim package. The fellow I purchased from had Pontiac emblem decals made for the wheel centers. When we are at car shows, people that look closely at the car almost always ask if the wheels are Pontiac wheels, and compliment the detail.
I was told that sometime in the 1970s or 80s it was rear ended and repaired (we noticed evidence of repairs when we had the car repainted). The body and frame are straight and the Beaumont is a very solid car.
We have done some work to the Beaumont since we bought it: 2003-added a black vinyl top; 2004-new weather stripping and new rubber bumpers for the hood, trunk, doors, and license plate cover, re-painted the car its antique gold color, installed a mild cam, and a polished intake; K & N filter; 2006-headers, holley 650, pertronix ignition; wheel-well moldings; 2007- 2 stage shift kit, new front springs, new seat covers and door panels (headliner, carpet, dash are in like new condition), new door sill plates, new front armrest pads, added 350 cu in engine fender emblems (have the original 307's). I'm still looking for the Beaumont script name for the trunk.
We cruise Regina a lot and drive to the local show and shines in southern Saskatchewan. Its been enjoyable and certainly sits better since the new front springs were installed. We store the Beaumont for the winter months and it has never seen rain or snow since we have owned it.