Great-looking cars, those '73-77's.... I've owned a few myself over the years (even had a '76 Laguna S-3 for a spell in college)... I'm currently working up some designs for my dentist's project, a '75 Cutlass that we'ree applying some cool new ideas to.
Way off that topic, I've always thought about the Monte's from that era, and how natural a fit the funny car treatment would have been....
...of course, all that 'flake might slow 'er a bit... hmmmm....