Turbo V8 Chicken: Pontiac Trans Am - /BIG MUSCLE
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ต.ค. 2024
- Mike Musto tests the iconic 1981 Pontiac Trans Am. It had the first mass-produced turbocharged V8, and more graphic art than a basement gallery showing. Icon. Legend. Famous. Fast?
Have you all listened to the exhaust? If you listen closely, the car in this video has a miss. One cylinder is not firing. Cuts power terribly. I know this because I was a mechanic in this era. Listen, learn
Yes, I heard that too. Also, if that turbo is all original, it probably needs rebuilt by now. Also, the carb probably needs rebuilt by now as well. Simple maintenance would have brought this car alive. The 80 turbo T/A is NOT a slow car like the one is this video. Also, his automatic transmission kickdown did not seem to be working properly. That will also hurt performance.
Agree. Although it is slow - if it ran right - it has enough torque to be a little bit zippy. This car seems to both have a miss and a worn out turbo.
What chu lookin' at
Agreed.
This car had a dead cylinder.
I thought it was the wheels making that hiss.
At 8:04 you can clearly hear the dead cylinder miss. Good ear Larry!
If GM didnt strangle Pontiac, Pontiac would have ruled the performance part of GM to this day.
I humbly disagree. Back in the day I owned a 93 z28, 97 30th anniversary SS Camaro, then finally ended all the f body suffering with an 02 WS6. The Camaro SS was a lighter and better car vs WS6. Besides, fact is that the Corvette rules the roost at GM. Last I looked it wasn't a Pontiac
@@andrewstevens7205 Really. I owned a stock '77 TA that would smoke stock Vettes and Camaros built in the same year. Besides GM killed Pontiac in 2010 to qualify for the government bailouts.
@@andrewstevens7205
How much lighter? They were both basically the same car from 82 onward.
@@331Grabber what are asking buddy?
@@andrewstevens7205
Wondering how much lighter your Camaro was compared to the WS6.
Bought the 1980 special edition when I was 16 years old. Still have it today.
Wow that is amazingly cool.
How much would you sell it for
@@flamingskull3027 sorry, but too many memories.
SilentMajority UScitizen would you sell it for half a million
You mean mom & dad bought it? Lol
I had a 79 Trans Am in 79.I loved the car. 400, 4 speed ws6 package.Absolutely loved it.
This is a very cute car.
Was it fast?
@@DavidThomas-me6pi I had one too... 400, 4-speed, WS6, T-top... As fast as you could get for '79... A few mods, and you were back close to the glory days... Sold it 5 years ago
@@lonmcq7317 I know they had some torque but not so much horsepower.
@@DavidThomas-me6pi Uncorked and super-tuned, the stock W72 was right back in the game for less than 500 bucks... About 300 horses.. changing the cam got you back to the nostalgia days... It was a marvelous engine...Loved mine...
Pretty sure wearing a cowboy hat in a Trans Am is mandatory
Jue_boy mustache too
78 Tranz Am Man Musto didn't have a mustache though
Jue_boy Burt Reynolds did though
I have a 99 ws6 and it has a cowboy hat that lives in it.
When white people were cool.
The choking by the smog stuff and the resulting lack of performance is exactly why Dodge made the Lil' Red Express trucks that /Big Muscle already showcased. It is just very hard to look at cars from a different era and compare them to today.
Look at the 90's when a 250 horse power WRX STI was considered very quick and the R32 Skyline was crushing many super cars with an under rated 276 hp. Twenty five years later you can get a base Mustang with 300 hp from a V6 and Dodge is selling a car with over 700. We are living in an age of massive hp
K
Evan Moon Dodge, like Chevrolet, most likely supercharged their V8 engines, the Imprezas were designed to be under 300hp to be homologated as Group A/WRC rally cars after modificatons, and the Skylines would be race modified and turbocharged to reach 500hp to be homologated for the JGTC/SuperGT.
Dodge never uses superchargers. Only for their hellcat. Never used it for their vipers. Its always been normal aspiration. Same with chevrolet. They just recently added superchargers for fuel economy. and to get that extra lil edge over ford. factually forced induction isnt normally used in american cars...theres no point. we have way too much torque n hp as it is.
Subaru runs detuned boxster porsche engines in their wrx and sti models. Dont ever think that that miniscule 300 hp is not enough for an awd tin can with a turbo charger as big as a grown mans face. Plus traction control helps big time for launches.
extracredit100 Negative. Subaru uses Subaru *boxer* engines, not Porsche engines.
This car sounded like it was running on 7 cylinders. I've had way too many GM v8's for anyone to convince me otherwise. lol
At about 8:04 you can here it sounds not right
Agreed sounds bad
@@brettenford5816 it has a crude turbo charger, smog pump, single cat converter and then dual exhaust. That's how they sounded, I worked at Pontiac back then. The exhaust is not stock on this one, so who knows what they did.
Even I can hear something is just "off" with the exhaust, and I'm not that good with cars.
Maybe that's why he's frustrated on how "slow" the Firebird is?
Yeah I heard my 87 iroc 305 miss like that that's definitely a miss and a dead cylinder
RIP Mr. Reynolds. You will be missed.
I bet there are a million Firebird fanatics screaming at the monitor about the 20th anniversary Trans Am which used a Grand National motor and was considered the fastest thing GM made in the 80s.
I did for sure. Owned one an let me tell you. Used to stomp on GNs
The G body car was the worst pos ever made. Not American muscle. Wasn't even a v8.
@Stealth Customs Corporation I actually found and bought a 1979 F/A. They made modified T/A's from the same dealership as the Macho ones, they were the MSE Firebirds that out handled Porsches throughout the 1980's.
@Alex Cheetah The Turbo GTA was quicker than the Grand National but not the GNX. The GNX owned the street, the Turbo GTA was only allowed to use it.
Mike you cant imagine how slow the Trans am looks from our screens. But i love it too.
Burt Reynolds and the Pontiac Trans-Am. Iconic Hollywood legends!
Come on Danny Rumbles they are both limp!
rip
The Hoff and "the black t-top".
I've had my 81 Turbo Bird since 93 and although its slow its never died on me and trust me I beat on it. Kid in high school had an Omni GLHS and he could always out run me!!! Turbo Bird is currently apart and will be receiving a built Pontiac 400 and new interior and paint/graphics.
Derek Joon If you can afford it, get Alum heads.
Nothing is as upsetting as having almost 12:1 on cast iron heads, you need 110, or at them min 93/110.
You have video?
Selling any parts off old engine?
lesdmark He can do what he wants with this own car. I'm sure a little more power would be nice in that particular car.
I got the car for a steal so I bought it, I'd have kept the turbo 301 but it was starting to burn oil and the cam was pretty much worn, buddy had a 400 from a wrecked GTO so why not I'm reserecting a great car instead of sending it to the crusher.
And it is a Pontiac 400 not a Chevy, kinda building a Bandit clone. Just wanna have a fun car that's not costing me a fortune.
ive owned a SD-455, you bring me great joy with the way you broadcast this bird, the turbo T/A has been called a turbo turkey , to a burbing chicken, but at least when some one sees that TRANS AM on the back spoiler, they still wanna race you, even though it aint got the juice to do it. but remember, the older birds were not called chickens, they were called FIREBIRDS !!!
I actually think its a flaming phoenix which is why they originally called it the "firebird".The chicken is what ignorant people say but i would bet the pheonix has alot of prevalence in this car.I also think trans (transition) plays a role here it is all esoteric.
This is my 1st favourite car I love it my dad had one when I was 4 to 5 years old and I still love it today
I've owned two Firebirds. The first was an 89 Formula, the second was an 87 Trans Am. Both sold for financial reasons. God willing, the next one will be a Trans Am from the 77 - 81 years. Resto-moded so it can be my daily driver.
There's a lot more to appreciate about cars than balls-out torque and speed. Some people commenting below me don't seem to get this.
Right. These cars will always look better than later models, slow or not. The 3rd and 4th generation were still slow. Why not have a better bodystyle
@@CaptainFALKEN Although slow. These cars Did have style! The looks. Not as desirable the 77 78"s. You can still put a 455 or whatever motor you want in it. if you made it quiet fool people!
Captain FALKEN umm at the time 3rd and 4ths where fast for what they where .my 02 ta cam only beats a lot of newer cars and let’s be honest all f body’s are fat
@@racingjunk7024 Right? If an LS1 Ws6 is slow, the late 2nd gen's are glacial 😂😂
Don't get me wrong, I love the old T/A's, but that dude needs to be reasonable. Don't ever put down an LS1 car, they may not be as fast as the most current cars, but they are badass. They at least have enough power to be fun to drive and a great engine to work off of. By '80 the old T/A's didn't even have the Poncho 400. You'd have to do an engine swap to get anything going.
As a european ... when i first saw this car ... i could only say ... "lol"
But then again ... this thing is insanely cool in it's own way.
It's a balls out, no holds barred design. No fucks given. It is what it is.
I can see this thing growing on you. I like it already.
Although 200 hp from a turbo 5 litre v8 ... jeebus ... that is particularly horrendous.
detaart it was the early 80's dude. outside of F1 everything had shit power. You do realize that a Honda Accord V6 coupe from today can more or less match a Ferrrari 512i from the same year as his car right?
Maxpound A 1982 e30 325i made 170 hp. So a 2.5 litre in a non-assuming run of the mill sedan that had a non supercharged six cylinder car made 170 horse, while this is twice the size WITH a turbo and two extra cylinders and is supposed to be a performance car, but only makes 200 ...
I get your point man, modern cars are quick. But this was slow even then.
Cool car, don't get me wrong. Very cool car in fact.
Just a bit of a pig ...
Quick edit:
a 512i made 360 horse, and a 2015 accord V6 makes 278, so ... no
detaart It would've made way more power but GM stopped Pontiac from further developing it. Pontiac had to rush it into production in the first place and then they weren't allowed to fine tune it. Read up on it if you like Pontiac always had big plans for their engines. They were the performance division of GM in their prime.
number3665 OK yeah, i'm sure there's much more to this car than meets the eye. I'm not even debating that. A production turbo V8 in those days ... there MUST have been some plan for this.
Still ... doesn't change the fact that it is a pig.
I wonder what you can get out of that motor though.
detaart My dad put a 455 Olds in his with a custom flywheel and Muncie 4-speed. It could roast tires in 3rd gear at 140km/h without hesitation.
Trans Ams were always good performers for their time. Not only was the Turbo TA the first mass produced V8 turbo production car, it was also one of the best performance cars of 1980-81. Yes, performance sucked back then but it was one of your best options. It was also one of the best handling cars of it's time with the WS6 suspension option. After 81, it took 4 years for there to be another Trans Am that had a higher power output - not until the 1985 Tuned Port Injection engines came out. The best you could get in '82 was the 165HP Cross-Fire Injection 5.0L. The standard '82 Trans Am engine was a carbureated 5.0L with only 145HP, so while the turbo TA may be slow by today's standards, it was respectable for it's day.
I am a total JDM guy but I must say I respect each person that was involved in the making of this beauty, it just DEFINES the word badass. I can only imagine what it was like in the 80's when chicks stared at you riding in one of these.
I don't usually like American cars
but I've always liked the look of that Pontiac
This looks like the type of car Chef Rob Irvine would have driven in Dinner Impossible, Imagine that.
Love this car . . . it's like the 'Batmobile' for the masses!
I had a 1973 with a 455. To this day the car I regret selling the most.
😪
Guy up the street from me went into the Air Force and bought 1 of these - I loved It!!! Made me join the Air Force too!!! I loved it that much!!!
Mike Musto, you are an excellent presenter. Your knowlegable, smart, enthusiastic and a real car guy. Its always a pleasure watching your videos.
A great car from the best decade ever.
I was 11 years old, and life× were amazing!
This Car is Legendary... It's an Icon...
It's... Also Slow by today's standards.
No Biggie, Here the Easy Fix. Pull Old Engine Out. Store it in Bubble Wrap.
Insert New Pontiac 550HP Big Block and watch THE PHOENIX RISE AGAIN !!!!
Maybe slow in acceleration but cornered and stopped very well
everything was slow in the smog era, the best selling ferrari had 155hp
PhenomProductions23 Or procure for yourself one of the new Trans-Am just being manufactured you can't get the limited edition model of a thousand horsepower! Those are gone. There is only 50 of these worldwide, so you and I will have to stick to the Bandit style Trans Am. Awesome styling (plus those must have T-Tops)and has 840 horse power. Here's a link to this wicked, wicked reworked Trans Am. it's not a thousand horsepower like the limited edition model bit 840 horses works for me!
Link 1: www.transamflorida.com/hurst%20TA%20002.htm
David Snigier Looks like the only option for you and me is to get the newer style Bandit Trans Am because there are unlimited quantities unlike the one that was in New York at a thousand horsepower, but 840 horses works for me! Here's the link to the place that's making this new styled Trans Am.
Link 1: www.transamflorida.com/hurst%20TA%20002.htm
Ragimund VonWallat I once heard a famous author saying if you want to live, live Dangerously. So keeping that theme in mind you might want to grab the 840 horsepower reworked Trans Am. Here's a link to the site. Good luck!
Link 1: www.transamflorida.com/hurst%20TA%20002.htm
Pontiac did a good job keeping the Trans Am competitive with cars of the day. (the '81 Corvette had 190HP) They stopped building the Pontiac 400 V8 in 1978, so after the '79 model year the only V8 options were the Pontiac 301 and Chevy 305 and 350. The turbo 301 was as close to the performance as they could get to the old 400. And being the first American production turbo V8 was a great marketing gimmick.
I own one of these. A 1981 Y84 Special Edition Trans AM. 22000 original miles in pristine condition. I love this car for all the same reasons Mike states in the video. No car I have ever owned or driven gets more positive attention than this car! You can't go anywhere without someone striking up a conversation about the car. It's really nice to see the reaction, and for those few people out there who don't get it...well they can get back in their Honda Civic and go have a nice day. Turbo Charge!
I live in the UK and first saw one of these black T/A's in 1978 around the time of the
Smokey & the Bandit movies. I love the look of the 70,s Trans-Ams, we never got
them over here. I've only seen them at classic car shows over here, and I still think
these are great looking cars, even after all these years.
***** Yeah, they looked great back then, and still look goodtoday. OK, at that time back in the late 70's, these cars may have beenmore "show than go" but you have to remember this was at a time whenengines were getting strangled by the manufacturers over emission laws.But, there were, and still are, many after market parts available to makethese cars perform as well as they look. I loved the look of US cars fromthe late 60's thru to late 70's. I hated that "Knight Rider" T/A from the 80'sthough. However, the ones from the 90's up until the end, the T/A's beganto look good again. Just my opinion.
I had an 80 Turbo with a hopped up 455. Because people thought it was so slow I had A LOT of kills in it, even though 1st gear was practically useless (all the torque). You are right about gimmicks. It had to be the most gimmicked out Pontiac in history.
Close.The Indy Pace Cars with all the decals Recaro seats,power antenna,and factory 8track....I think the designers did an 8ball and dropped Acid when they rolled that baby out.Although when I was 13 I worked at a car wash and would fight over who got to drive them 25feet when they would come thru.I still like them.Can't believe what they bring at auctions.
HAL 9000 maybe a 301 not a 455
No replacement for displacement!
btw I fell in love with this car the moment I saw it the first time in my life
I want it and I can't explain why.
GT7786 Exactly.
I love this car, it is very beautiful, I dreamt that this car was parked in my driveway last summer.
I grew up with this car. My dad's sister bought one new, couldn't afford the payments so within a year or so it became his. I was born in 87, it was his daily driver for years and years. Eventually took some damage in a tornado, and been sitting in my dad's friend's garage out in a Texas country town for well over a decade now, along with his 1977 black and gold trans am that he picked up in the 90s I think it was. They presently both still need work done lol and are just sitting in that garage
After I graduated HS in 86, I ended up getting a 81 Z 28. It had an air induction flap on the cowl that would open when you punched it. Eventually all that computer controlled mess was doing poorly, so the upper end got replaced, new(used) turbo 350 transmission, emissions yanked and actual duals installed. For a while, was sporting a 410 gear. Even back then gas cost sucked.
It wasn't a race machine, but around town, it was a lot of fun. Sold it after my oldest was born, and guy that bought it ended up totaling the car. Walked away with a scratch on his knee. The car and the telephone pole weren't so lucky.
"Here's an 8-Ball of Cocaine. Don't come out until you design something amazing." Best quote ever! lol Thanks Mike.
Charlie Criscola It really is the only possible explanation.
Drive BigMuscle it really is
I prefer the looks of the 1977 trans am.
Anonymou s my favorite 75 second 77 👍👍
I have a 77 that I built using what I thought was the best of every year except for the 12 bolt posi that was only available in 1970 too rare to find at the time of build
Anonymou s
The 78s were better.
WS6 suspension, and the W72 "H.O." 400ci engine came along for 78.
I owned lots of these cars in the 80s.
A 78 Formula equipped with
WS6/W72 was the best version, IMO....
For me its 79-81 because of the rear is a full piece and the front end
I prefer anything before fkn 1982
The Burt hat is not what the Trans Am driver would have sported in those days. A mullet, a porn mustache, sleeveless Def Leppard union jack shirt w/ cut off acid wash jeans and Judas Priest blaring from a cassette deck would have been more appropriate. BTW, the Olds Jetfire turbocharged 215 ci alloy block V8 was mass produced roughly 15 years prior. A methonal/water solution injection was required to offset detonation. Apologies offered if I am 75th person to remark this fact.
I had all that but I traded the mustache for Raybans.
Those 2 Burt Reynolds movies were the beginning of my love for cars! The first time he pulled that 6.6 liter black and gold T/A out of the truck I would never be the same (that goes double for the black Countach in Cannonball run). I knew someone’s dad growing up that had that identical car and used to just sit in his yard and look at it and daydream that I was the Bandit. If it were mine it would get upgraded to a modern LS, 6 speed and pro-touring suspension, brakes and wheel/tire setup.
I just want to let you know that this video gave me one hell of a smile . in 1980 are used to own 1 and I had her for five years and now that I’m 55 I still miss my Trans Am 301 turbo mine was charcoal with black interior I’ve moved to Phoenix Arizona and I sold it there Hopefully one day I can Have one again if I can find one I seen them for around $25,000-$30,000 in the market absolutely a great car thank you very much for this video made my day...!!!!!!!!
I bought same '81 turbo at $4500 in late '80. Yes, it was slow, but sure it was fun to drive!
aosan was it used with 100,000 miles on it? I bought a Brand new 1980 TTA Black on Black and I paid twice That
Lol I can't stop laughing! Burt would be proud and I luv the TA too. :-)
I would love to find one of these that has been dogged. I would fix everything wrong with that engine/turbo setup/smog crap and make it super quick.
Just spied a 1980 black Turbo Trans Am with a red cloth interior, hand crank windows and a silver dash board, not gold. The rims were not the turbo style. It reminded me of my high school days when everyone wanted this car. Peeking inside, seeing the low seats, the materials and ridiculously small back seat was an amazing flash back to a younger time.
I had a Midnight Blue Metallic '81 TT/A and I LOVED that car. It was a year-early graduation gift (thank you, grandpa!! rip) and I was as hated as I was admired. I had it until '84, when a brand-new Rabbit GTI totally smoked me in a race around Kearney, NE (Kids, don't street race- we were stupid in the 1980s). I drove to Omaha a month later and traded my T/A for a GTI, which I also LOVED. Extra upside of the GTI- the PoPo wouldn't follow me all over town, waiting for me to speed.
Damn, wish I still had that Big Blue Chicken.
3:53 so what you basically said was that that 4.9 liter turbocharged V8 only had around 150 horsepower?
America
xBuzz996 And probably does about 15MPG.
Cory _182 yep we still need some help, fucking poser (ricer) Hondas and evos everywhere
xBuzz996 This blew the time capsule mystique of the car for me, I was nine then and could've cared less if I'd known GM was being deceptive and letting the gov regs emasculate the TA. It's sounds terrible too. I still respect the badass rims though.
The turbo 4.9 made 200 hp. But 150-ish was the usual for v8s in the late 70s and early 80s.
That car isn't tuned correctly or it has 2:73 highway gears because the acceleration shouldn't be that poor. My 1979 TA with the Olds 403 lights the tires up in almost every gear! And it was only factory rated at 185HP.
The car has stock 3.08 gears and only makes its 200hp/340 tq at 9psi of boost. This car makes no boost until the revs get quite high, turbo lag is crazy in this car, Its compression ratio is only 7.6:1 which only adds to its slow response to throttle. Decent gearing, torque converter and EFI would help this car immensely. Night and day comparing this Turbo T/A to say a 1989 TTA.
This car stock only ran 16 second quarter miles. The big problem is the restrictive exhaust. Open it up and it will spool faster. 80's had 210 hp the 81's 200
16 second quartemile isn't that bad - the car in this video isn't running right. It's probably doing 20 seconds - or worse
The 403 was okay in first gear... After that, the show was over...
Haters can say what they want hell who wouldn't want this car?
+mauserk98bnz44 It's such a beautiful machine isn't it?..as Burt Reynolds called it "Son of Trigger"
mauserk98bnz44 it may look nice but really slow car
@@jogmas12 i want it beacuse of the movie and how cool it looks but at the same time its slow and sounds bad
mauserk98bnz44 I certainly don’t want it. The 1979 trans am is better. Has a bigger v8 and not computer controlled
@@jogmas12 It may be a slow car but looks really nice.
in 81 I had 77 t/a opened up on i-35 doing a 135 mph at 2 in the morning.like gliding on air.had several near death experiences also.now I'm 55 and just bought 81 turbo t/a.offset good scoop.the lines are beautiful, a. real piece of art.if you never drove one,the feel is spectacular.so for me,that's what it's about.aint gonna be racing and tearing up my investment.gave 3000.matching numbers,undercarriage immaculate.
I was born in 1971...and I'll tell you...I wanted one of these SOOOOOO badly.
TurboCHAAAAARGE xD
First turbo V8 was the 1962-3 Oldsmobile Jetfire. Whoever runs this channel better brush up on the facts.
no one said this is the first turbocharged car
It says it right in the description! Wow.
I always wanted a jetfire has the water injection to prevent detonation but I have a 62 olds super 88 with a transplanted 455 with turbo 400 transmission ( was my first car 40 years ago and I still have it learned mechanics on it.
so you saying the jetfire wasnt mass produced? next thing you know youll be saying the 215 buick wasnt mass produced
"turbochargeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee", barely moved! LMAO
So funny.
These cars were also a fraction of the cost of a "modern fast" vehicle. The thing is, wages have not kept up since 1980. It was possible back then for a regular working stiff to afford a Turbo Trans Am. Such is not the case today. How many twenty something, regular guys can afford an $75,000 Z-28 Camaro? So, are we really better off now than we were 35-40 years ago?
My very first car was a 79 Trans Am with a 403 Oldsmobile engine 350 turbo transmission with 4 way disc brakes. The donuts and X marks I could do were completely amazing. These cars made this day in time will shift gears so fast and put you in the woods and the anti-lock brake crap gives you absolutely no control of how you want to control and slide your car out on a dime. I sure do miss my TA !!!!
smokie and the bandit was awesome. smokie and the bandit 2 not so much.... actually not at all..
+James West The first one was a classic. I had more fun watching the bloopers at the end of #2 than in watching the movie itself. #2 had its moments but it seemed to be the family version of #1.
kd5you1
Sounds like a diesel traktor.
Nice video, but the bird on the car are not chicken, chicken is what you eat at the 'colonel' restaurant,, fry.. Those on the car are eagle, just so you know!!
You are right!
Yeah, but the nickname "Screamin' Chicken" stuck. Like it or not, it is what it is.
Its a phoenix not an eagle or a chicken.
its a joke dipshit. People also call it a screaming chicken, are you going to bitch about that too?
its an expression,you are obviously from a very sheltered European country
that doesn't understand western pop culture.they call it the screaming chicken.
I had a 77 Pontiac Trans Am when I was 19 years old. The car handle well but was slow as hell. Great looking car black and gold.
The 77/78 was a much better car imo
+Tullerion Anything 78 and below was a better car really, as long as it has a big block in it.
Just Here For The TH-cam
Agreed lol, they were really slow, was talking more body style =)
Tullerion Yeah, didn't the 78 only have like 200hp? I personally think the mid-70s Firebirds looked pretty nice, my only complaint is that they were a bit plain.
Just Here For The TH-cam 220 for the TA 6.6 and 180 for the 6.6 Liter
Tullerion 79 good too
It takes a lot of skill to get 200hp from a 4.9L V8 turbo, was the turbo sucking the air out of the engine rather than blowing it in?
5.0l turbo V8 305 Cubic inches
4.9l turbo V8 301 Cubic inches
+Bill Bixby my mistake
laughing my ass off
just another American built car mate, that's how they're all made
just noise and no action!!
truly independent >I had a 79 T/A in 1981. Girls loved those cars. Believe me I got plenty of "action" in my T/A!!
All haters keep hating, it still looks better than the crap you're comparing it with.
The Cobra it may look nice but it’s slow
@@jogmas12 It may be slow but it looks nice
Derkaderka Bukaladuka it’s a dog 🐕 on the track!!!! The engine has only 150hp. Worst TA ever!!!
@@jogmas12 that don't make it the worst T/A ever. No one cares how it performs because it can easily be made fast so.
Derkaderka Bukaladuka dude you gotta put a whole new engine in it. That 301 is weak. You need big bucks to make that car go fast plus you need do away with the computer that controls the current engine. Big modifications there bub!!!!
I use to have the 301 turbo installed. Now it sits in the garage, I replaced it with a 455 bored to 472 solid roller pumping 600hp. Yeah the 301 turbo sounded cool when I was 18 and after a custom Comp Cam I thought I was kool. Now I know what is really cool.
Yep, I also had 1. My 1st car except mine had black interior. My engine blowed up so I put pontiac 400 in it and man oh man, what a rocket! Absolutely my favorite car ever!! Now I'm going after 1 of the new 1's.
...blowed up, did it?...
Was the turbo working in this particular one? Sounds like not...
any Pontiac guy knows the 301 was a boat anchor! this car was an embarrassment to pontiac
the block was not heavy enough for a boat anchor
I disagree, the Aztek was an embarrassment to Pontiac, this car is far from embarrassing
*Firebird
Far from being a chicken
+Dilbert Doe Chevy actually nicknamed it that to make fun of the Ford Thunderbird. It was a legit name given to it by Chevrolet.
Dilbert Doe It's called Screaming Chicken and has been used since '67, but has had excessively large decals since 1970
For a car whose design was originally conceived on the drawing board in the late 1960's, I still think that this looks drop dead gorgeous even now in 2024.
Never really cared fro this style of car when I viewed them on the internet, but I drove past one of these in person, and I fell in love with the car.
lets be honest this car never took off because 200 hp
If it actually made 200 HP it would have done OK. I don't even think they were making 160. I knew a guy with one who put a boost gauge on his and it was pushing 2 to 3 PSI in factory trim. The factory might be to blame since there wasn't much in the way of high octane unleaded around in 80/81. Pontiac probably didn't want endless warranty claims for blown head gaskets and fried pistons. Any way he figured out how to get the boost to 8 or 9 PSI and with 91 octane gas his T/A became way less of a pig :)
The combination of less emission and political bullshit-factor made it impossible to make any power to speak of at that time. Still - a lot of power makes a lot of emissions - but since engines are tested at idle - even a 5-6-7 hundred horsepower engine will pass the test.
The power was there, but it had a 3 speed trans, and nosebleed low 2's rear gears. That is what killed it. They just could not get off the line or wind up quickly. Higher boost would have helped, but I worked at Pontiac back then- the power was there, it kicked in very nicely over 4'000 RPM, it's just the trans and rear gear choice killed it. The 200 HP W72's could be had with a T-10 4-speed and up to 3:42 gears- and torque between these two was actually close, but obviously they were a lot quicker because of those differences. The introduction of "Computer Command Control" to the 81's was the final nail in the coffin. It was what it was, this car should be viewed as an investment, and let's applaud the effort to give us folks some excitement back then, as they tried to cope with having to deal with learning how to deal with emissions, computers, and such. I prefer the 75 (400 or 455) -78 (400) Trans Ams, 4-speed cars. If I were going to buy an '80 GM, it would be a 1980 Z28 w -4-speed, just like the black one on the sales brochure. But, I'll buy the TA, because nice, correct ones are better than money in the bank.
LOL....here is some coke.....make me a car.....
What were the 0-60 and 1/4 mi times for this car?
scterka 9.5 0-60 and around 17-secs in the quarter
scterka dismal
STARSHIPTROOP Not in it's day.
...two days ...
scterka dunno but you needed a calendar to time it ;-p
I have the same car, but the factory NASCAR/Recaro edition. I pulled the 301 and dropped in a 350. I gave the engine to my buddy who scrapped it.That was 20 years ago, and it was just an old car. Now, it really is an icon, and I wish I still had that crappy turbo engine!
its the coolest of all !!
I love TAs .... I own two show quality Trans Ams ; a 79 black Y84 400 4 speed t-tops , and a 73 455 white automatic and both steal the show wherever they go , even from exotic cars ....)
we used to have them in great numbers in Saudi Arabia back in 1970s and 1980s
turbo chAAAAARGE!
What a very cute car.
1970 trans Am was the best...
That beautiful screaming chicken is easily grandfathered. You can pull that motor, set it aside, and slam in a BB LS. Talk about waking up that car!
I did it with my square body that came originally with a v6. I love that truck, it rides smoother than most new cars and trucks on the road today.
Lol I love the smog era. such glamorous designs. (owner of a 79 mercury cougar xr7) luxury and flash hardly made up for 15mpg/200hp but after some compression modification and retrofitting, these cars have everything!
With every episode, this becomes one of my favorite YT channels!
Car is not worth more than $1500
donald waller good luck with that
donald waller you do realize these cars sell for more than 15 grand right?
george phillips Burt just got his sold this year for $450K!!
donald waller good god not TODAY!
78 Tranz Am Man. Thats becausr it was burts. Doesnt mean its actually work that. Bluntly put,it isnt.
A fitting tribute to an amazing car and to the man Burt RIP Reynolds himself!
For me this generation of T/A is the best looking Pontiac. Love it. What a silhouette.
Absolutely agree with what you said here. I had a dark blue '80 TA in high school that got a lot of attention, the colors were great and this was the 80's so the car "worked". Smokey and the Bandit is also what got me into cars and especially TAs, and loved the T-tops for cruising on sunny days. Wasn't fast but the style made up for any speed deficit, and honestly for a high school kid that was probably a good thing. I did love the sound the turbo made... once I learned it wasn't 5.0 wanting to write me a ticket.
My dad used to have one, he also used to joke "Back in the 80's you'd think every Trans Am that was sold came with a free Boston tape."
I know the young guys think it's goofy, but when the the 77 came out all black and gold I was 14 years old. It was the coolest thing we had seen. I did have a 79, it was silver and black. Stuffed a 455 and a 4 speed in it and got the speed back.
Holy what a blast from the past! In 1992 as a younger man I purchased an absolutely spent 1980 turbo formula (oh yeah baby it still had the chicken on the hood) for 8hun. Did I ever get my money's worth! Proud as a new mom I took her to the car wash directly after I bought her thinking maybe I could spray off that gawdawful smell of burning oil and hoses..alas all I accomplished was taking out an 18" section of paint off the hood right next to the chicken! It was that fucking terrible light blue metallic that gm used on everything in the 80's..everything rusted but the decals!! After discovering it was down to maybe 2 cylinders and burning a quart of oil and power steering fluid a week I bailed and got 6hun from the next and probably last poor sucka who owned her. But dayum..those turbo lights on the scoop and the disco 70's silver vynil seats..priceless.
I LOVE my 2002 ws6 & Trans Am Firehawk. Power & beauty.
I remember hw crazy I was over trans am watching it in the rockford files, then in the knight rider... I always bewildered where they store the T-Glass roof... luv dis car
Zahemi AZUL ISLAMI Jim Rockford's wasn't a Firebird Trans Am . Rockford's was the Pontiac Firebird Esprit.
Excellent work really enjoyed it thankyou. I'm British so I've no idea how the muscle car golden era felt but I love watching retro muscle car golden era footage,rivalries are amazing
AWESOME! When I was a kid in 1981 I remember a Pontiac dealership full of those 1981 Trans Am for sale with the marketing scheme last of the big birds. Sitting on my BMX I wanted to be able to own one and drive so badly...
"T-U-R-B-O C-H-A-R-G-E" you have to yell it. I love it.
Back in 1981 a buddy of mine had a 77 with the Pontiac 400 with a 4 speed and he raced a guy with an 81 turbo TA and it was even, in fact the other guy was crawling past us slightly
the car is just super and in my city of San Francisco there are all these cars that showed in this video and a great game and still play it because the legend does not die
Best motor for an old trans am. 455 SD. Some guy took me for a ride in one and I was blown away on how much power it had for a factory car
I had this exact car, looked AWESOME still does it's a timeless F body. Wouldn't run for anything. Beautiful car, chick's loved it got blown away by so many 350 4 speed Z-28's and everything else for that matter got rid of it and never regretted it. 301 Turbo with the Rochester quadrajunk carb fake dual exhaust, sad. The car was so slow it really wasn't even that much fun.
The Turbo lights in the hood intake which was fake was nothing more than a gimmick. Really an awesome vehicle with absolutely no horsepower at all. Looks great in the showroom don't take it out on the interstate you'll be embarrassed I was and was tired of it.
got one of these myself not too long ago. absolute beut, and great fun for doing burnouts at traffic lights... which I'll admit might have something to do with adding some new components... like twin turbos and a six speed standard, among other things. very much agreed about the turbo lights. however, "TURBOTHRUSTERS ENGAGE!" is also fun to yell.
LOL. I just caught this video...again. Very entertaining. Love Mikes honesty. No sugar coating, just telling it like it is. "TURBO-CHARGE!". :D. Burt is smiley down right now. Fantastic job on the video. On my favorites list.
All cars had quite low hp rating in the mid 70s-mid 80s due to the oil crisis that happened in 1973, which caused horsepower to drop a lot.
I always loved these model of Trans Am because of the movies Smokey and the Bandit 1 and 2 :)
It's incredible how almost every reviewer completely ignores that power ratings also went from gross to net. Power did drop though not to the extent usually exaggerated.
Mike, I love your love for cars, man! I dig it, I appreciate it, I identify with it, all that stuff.
Long time viewer, first time caller.
Keep doing what you do brother!
Bought a '79 6.6L(403) Black and Gold, T-tops, back in 1986 and had it for 7 years.
I loved driving that car, tight steering, limited slip rear end, anti sway bar
bought it for 1200 dollars and sold it for 2000 seems Germans at that time
were big into TA's. If I could have another muscle car it would be a 1970 Challenger 440-6
or I would love a 69 TA or a 70 TA with the 400HO and the GTO front end, love that front end
one of my favorites...I had a 1975 trans am, with the m-22 4 spd......4:11 rear, I loved that car
no M22's in '75...