It was the last year for the Pontiac 400 cubic inch V8 engine in the Trans Am. GM divisions had only two years remaining before corporate engines were mandated across their divisions. I can remember pulling up to many a stoplight and wondering if the Chevrolet, Oldsmobile or Buick powered car next to me had more power than my 1979 W72 400 4 speed Trans Am. Many of us grew up during the 1970’s and 1980’s when the Pontiac Trans Am was the leader in styling, power and handling. The popularity of the Trans Am was reflected in fact that Pontiac sold over 117,000 Trans Ams in 1979. This 1979 Pontiac Trans Am is located in Shreveport, Louisiana and is definitely a project car. However, it is priced at $6,000 and the seller may be open to negotiate since it has been listed for 5 weeks here on FaceBook Marketplace.

The interior has seen better days. While the seller states that everything is there, what is there is in poor condition. It appears the floor pans have been replaced but the dash is cracked, the seats worn and the other interior parts are mismatched. The console looks good but the console lid will need to be redyed using SEM paint. As far as options, the car has tilt steering, air conditioning, rear defrost and power locks. You would except to see power windows with power locks but the car has hand cranks for the windows.

The original engine has been replaced with a Pontiac 400 V8 with a wild looking air cleaner that has replaced the scoop. The seller states that the original shaker scoop comes with the sale of the car. The base engine for the 1979 Trans Am was the 403 cubic inch V8 that came with an automatic transmission. A buyer could also order a 301 cubic inch V8 engine rated at 155 horsepower that came with a 4 speed or automatic transmission. The performance option for 1979 was the W72 400 cubic inch engine that only came with a 4 speed, WS6 suspension and a 3:23 rear end ratio. This engine option included a 800 cfm 4 barrel Rochester carburetor, high capacity 60 psi oil pump, special cam, baffled oil pan, special piston rings, and 8:1 compression heads.

The paint is faded across the upper portions of the car or just plain missing. The front fender flares and front spoiler are also missing. Newer tires are mounted on factory 15×7 snowflake rims which denote that the car came with the base suspension package and not the WS6 performance handling package. This one is going to need alot of work so maybe someone can acquire it at a good entry point.