Well, we usually see Trans Ams and Formulas here on Barn Finds but this is a 4 speed 1979 Pontiac Firebird. The second generation Firebird was produced from 1970-1981 and offered in 4 models – the base Firebird, Esprit, Formula and Trans Am. This 1979 Pontiac Firebird is located in Rowley, Massachusetts (north of Boston) and is listed here on Craigslist. Rocco B found this listing and we appreciate him sending it to us. The seller is asking $24,500. It has been listed for 14 days.
This Firebird is painted in Code 69 Heritage Brown with a Code 62N1 camel interior. The 62N1 camel interior was the custom vinyl interior with upgraded seats and door panels. This car has the Formula steering wheel and, apparently, a replacement console. Aftermarket consoles come in black and must be painted to match any other color interiors. This car looks clean and appears to have the optional and an upgraded Chevrolet 350 cubic inch V8 engine. The ad states that the car has a 300 horsepower engine.
From the factory, the base Firebird had several engine options including a standard 231 cubic inch Buick V6 for fuel efficiency and was rated at 105 horsepower. A more powerful 301 cubic inch V8. The 4.9 liter V8, in its third year, came with either a 4 bbl (L37) rated at 150 horsepower or a 2 bbl (L27) rated at 140 horsepower. In California, the Chevrolet LG3 305 cubic inch V8 was available, producing 133 horsepower. In high altitude locations, the Chevrolet LM1 350 cubic inch V8 was available, producing 160 horsepower. The Oldsmobile L80 403 cubic inch V8 and Pontiac W72 400 cubic inch V8 were not available in the base Firebird.
The Firebird has a pinstripe down the center of the hood and rides on Pontiac 15×7 snowflake wheels. The paint looks solid and the ad lists a number of improvements. The seller states that it is a factory Hurst 4 speed car but the factory literature does not show the 4 speed as an option with the LM1 350 cubic inch V8 engine. For the Firebird, only the L37 301 cubic inch V8 came with a 4 speed. Regardless, this looks like a nice car and appears to be in great shape.
It may be clean looking, but the ad lists a lot of things that need clarification. What association does it have with Hurst? Was there a really a 3.64-1 8.5’ 10 bolt posi? Was the engine subject to a rattle can rebuild or something more substantial? It’s a really low option car, which might not matter, but for $20,000+ a seller should spell out exactly what potential buyers are getting.
Steve R
3.64 I think is what the Buick Gran Sports used
They did, but as far as I can tell that was when Buick was still using the BOP 10 bolt exclusively, not the corporate 8.5 which wasn’t used in A-body’s until a couple of years later. I couldn’t find any references to a 3.64-1 from aftermarket suppliers either.
Steve R
The seller installed a GM crate engine with stock 300 hp. Then you add some goodies and bumps up to 310 to 320 hp. With a 4 speed lots of fun here.😂 As for the rear don’t know. Maybe the seller means 3.73? Still fast and fun with a very fair price. If I didn’t have bum knees..🤔
Jim Rockford approved 👌 👍🏁
I probably would have went with a Pontiac engine, but this looks clean, fun and reasonably priced.
Not worth it with the Chevy engine, and even if it came with one, it wouldn’t be orange with the open element. When people restore these things to suit their tastes, unless they are going to be buried with them, maybe they should consider that their tastes don’t resell well.