Pontiac reached the height of production for the Firebird and Trans Am in 1979. Pontiac built over 211,000 Firebirds and over 117,000 Trans Ams that year. This 1979 Pontiac Trans Am is being sold by a dealer in Greenfield, Indiana. It is listed here on eBay with a reserve. The car has been bid to $7,200 but the reserve is not met. There are 3 days remaining in the auction. The seller reports that this is a one-owner barn find that has been sitting in a garage since 2007. The odometer has flipped over at least once, and the dealer stated that the mileage is 101,266.
There were three engine options available in the 1979 Trans Am. This Trans Am is equipped with the L80 Oldsmobile 403 cubic inch V8 engine which was rated at 185 horsepower and 315 lb ft of torque. It was only available with the Turbo 350 automatic transmission and was considered the base or standard equipment for the 1979 Trans Am. Optional engines included the L37 Pontiac 301 cubic inch V8 engine and the W72 Pontiac 400 cubic inch V8 engine. The L37 301 cubic inch V8 engine that was rated at 150 horsepower in 1979 and equipped with a 4 barrel carburetor. The rarest engine in a 1979 Trans Am was the W72 Pontiac 400 cubic inch V8 engine which was rated at 220 horsepower. The W72 engine came only with a 4-speed transmission. As can be seen, the car has some surface rust in the engine compartment and looks to be untouched.
The tan or camel interior on this car shows its use. It is equipped with the deluxe interior which came with optional cloth “hobnail” seats and upgraded door panels. The car has manual windows and, as stated, an automatic transmission which was the only transmission available with the L80 Oldsmobile 403 cubic inch V8 engine. The car does have T-Tops, remote mirror and air conditioning. Even though this car is black with gold decals, it appears to not be a Y84 Special Edition which would have gold pinstripes on the exterior and a gold bezel on the dash and shifter plate.
The car rids on the standard Pontiac Rally II 15×7 steel wheels. The wheel selection indicates that the car was not equipped with the WS6 Performance Handling Package which came with larger sway bars, tuned shocks, 15×8 aluminum wheels and an improved steering box. The rust on the bottom of the car is concerning, and the seller mentions the event that caused the exhaust and muffler to be bent under the car. Let’s see if leaving this car in “barn find” condition helps it find a new owner.
What a pile of plastic junk these were.
Why all the negativity? If you don’t like it, keep that to yourself.
yes
At least the seller is honest and showing the salty underside of this car.
You were wrong about the ’79 400 only being available with a 4 spd. I personally over my many years have had my share of ’79-’81 T/As. Two were 400 automatics. I’m California you could not get a 400 4spd,. You wanted the 400 in California you had to take an automatic if you wanted the 400.