This is a 1979 Pontiac Trans Am which belongs to my son, Jeff. He has owned it for (mumble, mumble) years, and most of that time it was torn apart, with most of the components and millions of parts stored in boxes in the garage. Jeff has meticulously put this 4 speed car back together with a Buick 455 motor, all new custom interior, and lots of extras that were never on the original. The final step to road ready is painting and replacing the interior. Here it is fresh out of the paint booth. Soon, I'll post pictures of the final product! (A black Trans Am like this one makes an appearance in Killerwatt)
This is a second generation Firebird, Trans Am. And for those of you burning to know what that is:
http://www.firebirdfever.com/pages/transamhistory.htm
The second generation appeared
for the 1970 model year as a mid-year
introduction on February 26, 1970 - but was
officially designated by Pontiac as a 1970
model, not a 1970 1/2 as many sources have
reported through the years. Replacing the coke
bottle was a more swoopy body style, with the
top of the rear window line going almost
straight down to the lip of the trunk lid. This
body style was the longest-serving, initially
with a large C-pillar until 1975; from that
year, the rear window was enlarged. A
substantial slant-nose facelift came in 1977,
redone in 1979. From 1977 to 1981, the Firebird
used four square headlamps, while the Camaro
retained the two round headlights that had
previously been shared by both cars.
The Firebird Trans Am with
the 455 engine was the last high-performance
muscle engine of the original muscle car
generation. The 455 engine first made its
appearance in 1971 as the 455-HO. In 1973 and
1974, a special version of the 455, called the
SD-455, was offered. The SD-455 used the left
over components from Pontiac's 366 NASCAR engine
and was built as a full bore racing engine
producing over 540 horsepower and was then toned
down to appease the EPA and to meet GM's strict
horsepower policy which required all GM vehicles
to hold the HP to under 300. As a result, the
PMD engineers listed the SD-455 at 290 hp but in
reality, was producing in final form, 371 hp SAE
NET (Approx 440 gross horsepower). What made
this engine unique was the ease with which it
could be returned to its 500+ horsepower form.
The SD-455 is often considered the last of the
true muscle car engines and, by many, considered
to be the most powerful factory Pontiac engine
ever produced. Pontiac offered the 455 for a few
more years, but tightening restrictions on
vehicle emissions guaranteed its demise. The
1976 Trans Am was the last of the "Big Cube
Birds" with only 7,100 units made with the 455
engine.
The 1981 Turbo Trans Am featured
a 4.9L Turbocharged V8 Engine known as the 301T
