I have owned the Trans Am since the summer of 2004. There is a bit of a story in my buying the car. In the spring of 2004 I had decided to get a fun time car and the 2nd generation Firebirds were the main focus of my search. I had been watching the car web sites for a while and had looked at a number of cars but nothing had really caught my eye. Summer was getting going and my vacation was coming up so I decided to put the search on hold and enjoy a trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. But before I left on the trip, I saw an ad for a Trans Am in New Market that looked really good. It was an original 4 speed W72 and WS6 car with very low mileage (59,000 km - 37,000 miles) but I decided I did not have time to go and look at the car right now. When I came back from my trip I thought the car would probably be sold, but I decided to give the owner a call and see how it went selling the car. The car had not been sold so I arranged to look at the car on the weekend along with another one.
When I looked at the car it was in very good condition and the low mileage appeared to be genuine the car ran well and felt tight on the road. There was some minor rust at the rear quarter panels but everything else was very solid so I decided to go ahead and buy it. The owner also had some trim parts that he had not installed, the factory parts manuals and some mechanical parts. In asking about the history of the car I learned that I would be the 4th owner of the car and that the car was purchased at Old Mill Pontiac in Toronto. I had purchased a car from Old Mill that spring so it seemed to be fate that I would but this Trans Am also.
For the first year I enjoyed the car as it was then in the spring of 2006 I had the rust on the rear quarter panels repaired. It was amazing how much this picked up the look of the car!
Next item to come in for attention was the engine – the original plan was to freshen the motor up and maybe a little better camshaft. Well… by the time it was done I had a 461 Eagle Stroker Kit and the original heads reworked for larger valves and a bit of porting done with 1:6 roller tip rockers.
I drove the car for one summer with the new motor and then the Super T10 transmission started to make whining noises that all was not well inside. I had always thought that a 5 speed transmission would be a lot better so the order was placed for a Tremec TKO 600 kit from Kiesler. The installation did present a few challenges. The transmission hit the tunnel despite the claim that it was a straight bolt in, and the pilot bearing bore in the crankshaft was too large for the supplied bearing. New body mounts with extra spacers got me the tunnel clearance and I was able to find a roller pilot bearing that would work with a custom sleeve adapter. The 5 speed transmission has been a great addition to the car! Cruising at hi-way speeds is much more relaxing now.
My plans for the car include and eventual repaint but the near original condition of the car has me debating that one. The suspension is also original so freshening up of this will be in order. The interior is in good shape but the original owner did the 70s thing of installing door speakers so I would like to install uncut door panels and deal with the crack on the dash pad and finally the driver’s seat is showing its age.
Remember the story of my buying the car after a trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina? Well in September of 2013 I took the longest trip I have done in the Trans Am. I joined the group on the Appalachian Beach Run. This group of mostly Trans Am owners met up in Pigeon Forge Tennessee and drove as a group over the next week to Ocracoke Island on the Outer Banks. It was a great trip and we helped to raise some money for Breast Cancer Research as we went.
This is the TA at a show this summer in London, Ontario
This one is me in front of Dale Ernhart in North Carolina
This is a shot of the interior.
Last but not least this one is the designated co-pilot on the Blue Ridge Parkway
