The Pontiac Firebird Trans AM

The Pontiac Trans AM was Built from 1969 to 2001.

This site will take you threw the Firebire and Trans AM's from 1969 to 2002.

            History of the 1st Generation

                        1967-1969

Introduction: After the Pontiac Division watched first the Ford Mustang and then the Chevrolet Camaro enter into the pony car market, Pontiac finally got into the act in the middle of 1967. The Firebird was offered with both six and eight cylinder engines, like the Mustang and Camaro, and was based heavily on the Chevrolet Camaro chassis. Pontiac did try to make it their own and would create a European styled and mannered pony car that could hold its own against its more experienced competition.

It's too flippant to dismiss the Pontiac Firebird as an afterthought repackaging of Chevy's Camaro. But it's inaccurate to describe it as a vehicle that would exist if the Camaro didn't. Born with genuine Pontiac powerplants in its engine bay, the Firebird developed its own exuberant tradition that made it the glamour car of the 1970s and snuck in a few surprises during the '80s and '90s that are recognized today as classics of recent vintage.

First Generation (1967-1969)

To get the Firebird into production, Pontiac shared not just the basic structure of the Camaro, but most of the sheetmetal, as well. The front fenders and door skins of the 1967 Firebird were Camaro pieces, and the rear quarters were Camaro parts with simulated vents stamped in. But with its split front grille, beaked hood and slitted GTO-like taillights, the Firebird managed to evoke its own personality when it went on sale as both a coupe and convertible on February 23, 1967.

What gave the first Firebird its personality was beneath the hood. Pontiac built its own engines then (as did Buick, Oldsmobile, Cadillac and Chevrolet), and only Pontiac engines went into the Firebird — not a one was shared with the Camaro.

Of the five engines offered in the first Firebirds, the one that stood out the most was Pontiac's overhead cam inline six. Introduced along with the '66 Tempest, the lowliest 230-cubic inch (3.8-liter) OHC six poked out 165 horsepower (gross rating) while inhaling through a one-barrel carburetor. Stepping up to the "Sprint" version included a four-barrel carb and higher compression ratio to swell output up to 215 horsepower. The six was backed by either a three- or four-speed manual or a two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission. The OHC six made the base Firebird a substantially more sophisticated machine than the base Camaro and the Firebird Sprint truly special.

Most '67 Firebird buyers, however, opted for V8 power. Pontiac's V8s were of conventional overhead valve design and notorious for their low-end torque production and relative reluctance to rev compared to Chevy's similarly engineered V8s. The '67 Firebird started with a 250-horsepower low-compression two-barrel 326-cubic-inch V8 and moved up to a higher-compression four-barrel "H.O." version making 285 horsepower. There was also a 400-cubic-inch beast making 325 horsepower. Beyond that, Pontiac's Ram Air cold-air induction system (which made the hood scoops on the Firebird 400 functional) was available with the 400, yet it only moved the peak horsepower figure higher in the rev band. That, and the Ram Air system's $600 option price, meant few ordered it. The V8s were available with similar transmission choices as the six's, with the addition of the three-speed Turbohydramatic autobox.

Whatever engine was ordered determined the general model designation and trim of the '67 Firebird line (base, Sprint, 326, 326 H.O., 400 and 400 Ram Air). And beyond that was an almost endless option list which ensured that no two Firebirds had to be alike.

For 1968, the Firebird's appearance barely changed. As with the Camaro, the side vent windows disappeared as "Astro Ventilation" was adopted, but otherwise the most obvious change was the adoption of wraparound turn signals beneath the front bumper.

But, in the engine bay, things evolved as the 326 V8 grew to a full 350 cubic inches. Still a purely Pontiac engine, the 350 was available in two-barrel form making 265 horsepower and 320 horsepower when equipped with a four-barrel and higher compression. Furthermore, the 400 now came in four varieties — a 330-horsepower regular version, a 335-horse H.O. version, the H.O. with Ram Air (and unchanged horsepower rating) and a 340 horsepower "Ram Air II" version. Back in the six-cylinder world, the base OHC engine was now rated at 175 horsepower, while the Sprint remained at 215.

The only other significant change to the '68 Firebird was the adoption of staggered shocks in the rear (one in front of and one behind the rear axle) and the use of new multi-leaf rear springs.

While retaining most of its structural hard points, the 1969 Firebird got a restyling similar to the same year Camaro's: It was broader in the fenders with a new front end that separated the headlights from the grille. Except for the revised body work and freshened interior, the basic elements of the '68 Firebird carried over to '69. The 350 H.O. gained five horsepower for a total of 325, and atop the mountain of 400s offered sat the new Ram Air IV making 345 horsepower. Those changes, though, were merely a prelude to the big news of 1969: Trans Am.

It wasn't more power that made the Pontiac Trans Am special, but its looks and handling. Conceived to campaign in the SCCA's road racing series (with a special de-stroked 303-cubic-inch V8 never installed on the production car), Pontiac paid $5 to the racing organization for each Trans Am sold as a license fee for the name. With a special dual intake scooped hood, deck spoiler, fender vents and white with blue stripe paint scheme, the Trans Am was easily the flashiest Firebird yet. With its lowered suspension, big antisway bars, larger tires and Ram Air III (making 335 horsepower) or Ram Air IV 400 V8, it was also the best handling and most sophisticated. Going on sale in March of '69, only 697 Trans Ams were sold during this first model year (including eight convertibles). A slow start for what would become an automotive icon.