But I reported "This laptop is dual-booting with Lubuntu 14.04, and that display driver works fine, which confirms that the Intel 945 hardware supports 1400x1050, and also confirms that the BIOS is not restricting the supported display modes."
Since Lubuntu will give me 1400x1050 with the same graphics chipset and VBIOS, doesn't that indicate clearly that those are not where the problem lies?