Today’s Nice Price or No Dice Trans Am eschews the traditional screaming chicken decal on the hood for ram air induction. Low miles and a six-speed stick add to the car’s attractions, but will the price tag prove a turn-off?
We have John Z. DeLorean to thank for so much. He gave us the Pontiac GTO, time travel, bold and innovative corporate financing opportunities involving pharmaceuticals, and, perhaps not least, the Chevy Vega.
The bigwigs at General Motors assigned the Vega project to Chevrolet just before DeLorean took over the brand as General Manager. Still, it was John Z. who shepherded the project through to its finish and onto dealer lots. Along the way, he announced that the Vega would be “the highest quality product ever built by Chevrolet.” Sadly for DeLorean, that prognostication proved as unreliable as his judgment in corporate financing partners.
We looked at a 1977 Chevy Vega wagon survivor yesterday, and while it still retains the handsome styling that made the car a hit when new, time and some questionable modifications have made it a bit funkier now. That, along with a notable appearance of our old nemesis rust on that bodywork, made for a tough time justifying the seller’s $7,500 asking price. In the end, you all thought that asked too much of the car, sending the Vega off in an 85% No dice loss.
Getting ‘effed’ up
When introduced as the dynamic duo of F Bodies for the 1967 model year, Pontiac’s Firebird played Robin to the Chevrolet Camaro’s Batman. That all changed a decade later when a black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am with T-tops earned a starring role in what would turn out to be a classic comedy, ‘Smokey and the Bandit.’ After that, people couldn’t get enough of screaming chicken hood decals or the mental image of Burt Reynolds and Sally Field bumping uglies.
That party couldn’t go on forever, though, and while the Firebird and Camaro lasted through two more generations, both were killed off after the 2002 model year. With GM having bumped off Pontiac as a whole, eight years later, any idea of the Firebird’s resurrection was dashed, leaving the Camaro to carry the torch for another decade.
Long before that sad ending took place, this 1999 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am hit the streets. Painted in Navy Blue Metallic over a tan and gray interior, the car’s meager 31,425-mile odometer reading indicates that it hasn’t hit too many of those streets in the intervening years.
Top this
That bodywork looks to be in great shape. By the time this generation of Trans Am was on offer, Pontiac had toned down the model’s decal game, so no screaming chicken here. Instead, this Firebird has one of the most aggressive, predatory-looking noses of any car on the market, featuring stacked quad nostrils between pop-up lights and above deeply inset fog lamps. It all lends the car the look of something that might suck your brains out if you were an unfortunate extra in the movie ‘Starship Troopers.’ Behind that is a coupe body with T-top roof (extras included in the sale), all riding on factory 17-inch alloys wrapped in what the seller says are fairly new BF Goodrich tires.
The ad claims the car to be in like-new condition and to have no history of accidents. That condition is backed up by the pictures in the ad, showing a clean interior, engine bay, and undercarriage. It should be noted that, while the seller does seem to take good care of their cars, they should really invest in a safer set of ramps or jack stands at the very least.
The right stuff The right stuff
This Trans Am has the goods to go along with the looks, too. Behind the quad nostril nose sits a 5.7-liter LS1 V8. With the WS6 Ram Air induction package, that mill produced a factory-claimed 320 horsepower and 335 pound-feet of torque. Behind that is a Borg-Warner six-speed manual feeding a Positraction limited-slip diff in the live axle at the back, in traditional pony car fashion. The ad notes a “newer performance exhaust system,” which calls into question whether the car still has its cats (hopefully it does), and just how “throaty” it sounds.
According to the seller, the car is rust-free and comes with a clean title. That seller is asking the Firebird’s Craigslist ad to do double duty, as they also have an old 1975 Buick Skylark up for grabs in the listing. That car looks to be in just as nice a shape as the F-Bird, and also has a manual gearbox in case anyone is looking for a bit of Buick malaise.
Big bucks?
We, however, will focus on the Firebird, and in doing so, we now need to take into consideration its $26,250 asking price. While the seller claims that it is a reduction from an earlier ad’s price, that’s still a lot of dough for an old F-Body. Obviously, this car appears to be an extraordinary shape for its age and is kitted in the manner that most of us would like, so it has a leg up.
What’s your take on this Trans-Am at that $26,250 price point? Does that feel like a deal to get some old-school pony car action? Or do better, more modern options in this price range call into question this car’s value?
You decide!
Nice Price or No Dice:
San Francisco Bay Area, California, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T RevUnlimiter for the hookup!
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