Cold War Motors is the most popular Canadian car guy show on YouTube because they’re everyday guys who drive and work on everyday old cars.
The Cold War guys are called agents because the real Cold War had agents/spies on both sides of the conflict, so this agent-owned 1960 Pontiac Strato Chief (Canadian model) is great example of a Cold War agent car.
Jerry Sutherland
Myles Allen is part of the Cold War Motors crew, and he’s also the proud owner of this survivor Pontiac sedan. This car is a barebones, three-on-the-tree, six-cylinder, four-door sedans so it’s not a high draft choice in car guy world—but in Cold War Motors world, it’s perfect.
Myles found the car in an ad and learned the car had a major family history. The seller’s grandfather bought the Pontiac new and drove it as a regular car on the family farm. It spent its life in a shed so the Strato Chief weathered winters under cover in Morden, Manitoba, Canada—a place where winters are a very real concept.
The owner’s granddaughter interviewed Myles because she didn’t like the parts car vibe she was getting from would-be buyers. Myles assured her he would keep the Pontiac bone-stock—that’s how Cold War agents roll.
Myles is fearless so he invited his wife to fly to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada—then they’d drive the untested car 800 miles west to get home. Again—that’s how Cold War agents roll. Myles did have the car checked before he picked it up and said, “They did an oil change and replaced the ball joints”.
He added, “The brakes weren’t good, I bled the system. but they still had air” so Myles still hit the road and monitored the brakes. He said it easily ran at 70 miles per hour. He made it to Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada before the Pontiac started losing fuel pressure. Myles admitted this happened in rush hour traffic so he “lost it”, but he did get the Poncho pushed off the road.
Luck was on his side because a 1960 Pontiac Strato Chief is essentially a Chevy under the skin, so a local store had a fuel pump on the shelf. The rest of the trip was uneventful except the Pontiac ran a little hot, but Myles found a big pail in the trunk so he could top the radiator up when it warmed up.
Myles is a typical hands-on Cold War Motors agent, so he started working on the car when he got home. He learned the thermostat was closing so he yanked it and it never got hot after that correction. Myles also replaced the brake cylinders and had the drums turned to correct the brake issues. Myles is still concerned about the tired rear springs because the Pontiac really sags with rear passengers—and like he said, “The beauty of a four-door is that you can carry people comfortably in the back”.
He found out Grandpa was a typical farmer—regular maintenance on the farm equipment but he never changed the oil, so Myles admitted the Pontiac “is a smoker”. The car is a daily driver and Myles is considering a road trip through the mountains, so he’s going to stick with the factory six–for now.
Myles is considering a newer six-cylinder with conventional oil filters for the Pontiac—but that plan is down the road for one simple reason.
Cold War Motors agents like to drive their cars—it’s in their contracts.
Jerry Sutherland
By: Jerry Sutherland
Jerry Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer with a primary focus on the collector car hobby. His work has been published in many outlets and publications, including the National Post, Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Regina Leader-Post, Vancouver Sun and The Truth About Cars. He is also a regular contributor to Auto Roundup Publications.
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