There are some cars that instantly evoke strong emotions. The Pontiac Trans Am is one of those cars and one of the reasons might be that the car carried the flame for performance throughout the 1970’s while other manufacturers were running for the exits. In the midst of the fuel crisis and insurance crunch, Herb Adams and a team of engineers designed a 455 cubic inch performance engine known as the Super Duty 455. It was installed in 252 Trans Ams and 43 Formulas in 1973 and 943 Trans Ams and 43 Formulas in 1974. This car is being sold by a dealer here on eBay. After 21 bids, the car has reached a price of $24,600. There are 6 days remaining in the auction and the reserve has obviously not been met. The Trans Am is located in Lincoln, Nebraska at Restore a Muscle Car.
The Code 592 black deluxe interior looks new and is well appointed with power windows and tilt steering. The Trans Am has factory air conditioning (which only came on automatic cars with the SD motor) and power locks too. The transmission has been changed or some would say upgraded from the original automatic to a Tremec 5 speed manual. I have done this to a 1973 Formula 455 and it made it drive like a new car. This car has won many awards and has been owned and driven by Pontiac enthusiasts over its lifetime. The one year only Code 29 Admiralty Blue exterior is one of my favorite colors. Having owned a 1974 Super Duty 455 Trans Am, I can tell you that it is worth all the hype. My car was a 1974 Buccaneer Red Trans Am and the torque throughout the acceleration range is intoxicating.
Under the hood is the special numbers matching Super Duty 455 engine. It was factory rated at 290 horsepower and 390 lb ft or torque. The factory engine had a 5,700 RPM redline and the Pontiac Y cam offered .410 inches of lift and 301 degrees of intake duration and 313 degrees of exhaust duration. The engine was fed by a 800 cfm Rochester Quadrajet and the internals included forged connecting rods and TRW forged aluminum pistons. The dealer states that the engine has been rebuilt and lists the performance upgrades that were done. Originally, the engine operated at only a 8.4:1 compression ratio and yet was capable of running 13 second quarter miles. This was the last Pontiac of this era to use round port heads.
The car is shod in factory steel honeycomb wheels that are sprayed in the correct gray color. Power is fed to a 3.42 rear end ratio and exhaust is flowed to the back of the car via Ram Air exhaust manifolds and an X pipe exhaust system. The seller estimates that the car is producing around 400 horsepower with the modifications.
The Honeycomb Polycast wheels are just awesome. My 73 T/A was Buccaneer Red with the honeycombs. The downside to the wheel is the weight. The 15×7 Rally ll wheels were about 25 lbs, the honeycombs around 30 lbs. They also seemed to require more weight to balance than a standard steel wheel. Nice T/A, I prefer the 70-73 front end much better, but if you twisted my arm a little, I could “accept” this one!
I agree ; the flat rear glass and single round lamps have always been my favorites. The curved back glass just didnt sit well with me
Just looked on the website the asking price is $94,500.
This seller always lists their cars for top dollar. If their cars stand up to scrutiny that’s not a bad business decision.
Steve R
You decided to start posting again. I missed those while you were away, welcome back!
My engine builder just sold a 1974 SD 455 engine for $30k Canadian. They pull huge prices out the cars, and obviously drivetrains too. Pretty crazy
Top 3 of wheels ever 🏁🙌
This one will get around the 30k marker. Definitely worth it seeing you can’t buy one to restore up to that level for the same money. These H.O. 455’s. Are rare, at least I don’t see too many of them listed. And they are fast. Awesome looking all the way around too. Love that color combo! You know, if I had the money I would buy it, but I don’t. Bummer. Great article by the way!
Not a HO. SD is a different breed altogether.
SD Car. This will get 3 x $30k.
Top Pontiac engine of all time SD455 IMHO although about any Pontiac with a 421 or 428 is no slouch as these were designed to race as well. They just didnt make enough of them for me to get one yet but i do hope one day and ill take any color with a 5 speed & wont complain!
Recently Herb Adams told me that his group, including Tom Nell and Jeff Young, were ordered to turn it over to another group, I think it was Mckellar’s group (touted for his camshafts in an earlier era). They started changing things, including the cam, making it less powerful. Partly for cost. the aluminum manifold was replaced with cast iron. But one thing he said I hadn’t heard. The original cam had enough overlap that the car didn’t need an EGR valve or air pump to pass emissions. My impression (this is pure conjecture) was that since the plant had already ordered the parts to build a bunch of engines, the new general manager that followed DeLorean, who moved to Chevrolet, didn’t want to promote performance, and wanted to eradicate DeLorean’s Pontiac legacy, was faced with either writing off the inventory, or building cars. Since that impacted multiple executives’ bonuses, building cars won out. But Herb was put in a no-win situation, and resigned. We had already been through a serious hazing experience with NASCAR running the Cup Grand-Am race car (on our own nickel and time), and when through a back channel inquiry to NASCAR management was made, the response was, somebody very senior at Pontiac told NASCAR they never wanted to see that car on a racetrack ever again.
Plus The SD-455 was down graded to pass emissions for 1973-74 but can be remedied – One 74 SD-455 Owner did his With HL Cam – 421 SD Forged crank – Mains machined accordingly and with only 9.5 – 1 Compression made 500 HP Good for 7000 rpm now – The original PMD Test Mule SD-455 with 12.5-1 Compression etc. made 600 HP :)
Sweet, SWEET ride!!
I’ve been a Poncho fan since the late 70s…….my high school buddy had a Beautiful Lucerne Blue 78 T/A with the light blue velour interior that I fell in Love with in Detroit back then.
Hey, Your buddy didn’t live on Lesure St. (2 streets over from Schaefer) between Florence and Puritan, did he ? I used to salivate over a T/A just like that in the late ’70s.
No…he lived on Auburn St by Warren Ave.we worked together at the Burger King at the Fairlane Town Center Mall in Dearborn in 1977-79
I’m not quite as old as some of the folks on Barnfinds, but one of my earliest memories of fast cars was when I was in kindergarten around 1977-78, and watching a Chevelle SS and an early 70’s T/A have a little street race past our neighborhood. I remember both of them doing pretty awesome burnouts off the line and the T/A definitely won the race. It was my first real life introduction to fast cars and I was hooked for life!
Later when I was a teenager I remember reading an article in either Hotrod or Street Machines about how the Super Duty Trans Am was the fastest car available in America when it was produced in 73 and 74, faster than a Ferrari or Lamborghini which completely blew my young mind. I like to believe that first street race I witnessed was won by none other than the SD T/A. Sure would love to get my hands on one with a 4 speed, but they are way out of my budget these days.
Odd the redline is the same as the other 400 & 455s with cast rods! – maybe to artificially “reduce emissions” of the sd-455 by encouraging lower revs b4 you shift?
To me, it makes no sense to load up such a factory race car with heavy a/c, p/w, & even factory radio & these heavier delux seats. The front 5 mph bumper system is way heavy enough! Best bet for performance is a stripper sd-455 formula w/o p/s & w/o p/b & with a fiberglass nose.