Pontiac built over 211,000 Firebirds in 1979 including the base Firebird, Esprit, Formula, and Trans Am. Of that, 38,642 units were the base Firebird model. This is a plain jane 1979 Pontiac Firebird that has been reportedly driven for 107,334 miles. The car is listed here on eBay with 3 days remaining in the auction. After 20 bids, the Firebird has been bid to $3,501. It is located in Lyon, Illinois which is near Chicago.
The interior of the Firebird is black vinyl and appears to be in pretty good shape. The car does not have the gauge package that comes on the Formula or Trans Am so the dash is comprised of just a speedometer and a clock. The V8 engine is backed by a console-shifted automatic transmission. The seller states that the Firebird was repainted and pinstriped 32 years ago. The car doesn’t have too many options but does have air conditioning and a rear spoiler. The seller states that the service records since the car was new are still with it.
I believe that the base engine for the Firebird was the Buick 231 cubic inch V6 engine. At 105 horsepower, this was barely enough power to move around a 3,200 lb Firebird. This car has a V8 so it is probably equipped with the L37 301 cubic inch V8 engine. With a 2 barrel carburetor, the 301 cubic inch engine was rated at 140 horsepower and 235 ft-lbs of torque. A 305 cubic inch V8 engine was available for California cars to meet their stricter emission standards.
1979 was the first year of the restyled front end which people either loved or hated. The rear brake lights were also restyled compared to the prior year. This car is dusty and has been stored in a garage for 20+ years. The seller states that it has not been started regularly and it is showing some rust on the leading edge of the hood and in the quarter panels and fenders.
Old Illinois plates.
LOL !! Nice catch :):)
Kind of surprising since the copy reads, “It is located in Lyon, Illinois which is near Chicago.”
…
Amazing! Illinois, huh?
Nice catch, LOL :):)
With all the aftermarket gofast goodies that are available for these cars now
Why pay more for a transam if you are going to upgrade everything anyway !
When i still had the motivation , i replaced the control arms , bushing , sway bar ,brakes and all on my firebird and it hands down , outperformed the previous factory stuff
So a naked looking firebird with all new underpinnings , big brakes and LS engine and trans combo would scream in twists and curves but not be too flashy …
Perfect candidate!
According to the VIN this car was built in Los Angeles with the L37 301 2 bbl.
Wow all the drunk people who over pay for cars like this are so far not bidding on it I’m surprised the price isn’t in the teens yet
At this point 👉 you need to buy the plane Jane’s of the car world 🌎 😒 so you can upgrade it with all the goodies or just make it a sleeper.
Around 13 years ago I bought a 78 Firebird in similar condition, for $950, white over a red gut. When I read here “it is showing some rust on the leading edge of the hood” — I recall attempting to opening unlatch mine to find the whole top surface of the hood rusted away from the inner structure. The reinforcing “X” stayed in place and the top of the hood broke free. Also found a pretty sizeable nest from some animal atop the air cleaner. Evidently the combination of rainwater never draining from the closed hood and urine from the critters compromised the metal and began the rust cycle over the years it sat.
I guess Rusty Jones didn’t do his job lol, but I like the car, simple with a lot of potential
I,d like to see under the rust rea. Bet their is more. The drain holes inside the quaters are close off and when the trunk leaks. All of that rain builds up and cause the quaters to rust out. Better check that area. My 76 is in alot better shape then this one. Hear I didn,t think mine was worth more the $3,500. Besides I had a complet front end put on,rebuilt the motor,new gas tank,brakes ,etc. Its easy on gas–I,ll drive it this summer.
I would check out the frame if you look at the gap in passenger side back is quite large compared to front not sure on drivers side can’t really see it..from what I see pretty large might have frame problem or maybe adjustments might fix.pretty nice
The door sag is common in these cars and the drivers door the picture isn’t that great.. I see what you mean by the gap
I had new pins made for my 78 Firebird and an earlier 75 Nova, both suffering from door sag. This many years later, there is bound to be a cottage industry built upon redoing the hinges with better material or maybe sleeves for the hinge pins to keep them from elongating the holes they are inserted in?
It’s up to $6,300.00 right now. As for the gap at the rear of the door (I believe someone mentioned the gaps weren’t the same) the door has edge moldings on it, so it looks like a bigger gap. If I had the room (& time), I’d take this in & build another canyon carver – no LS though, pure Poncho powered. Whoever did that pinstriping job needs a slap upside the head.. with a brick. Is it really that hard to follow the contour??
door pins and bushings and some times over size bushings common problem on G body GM cars available at most auto part stores
SOLD for $5,600.
Appears to be well bought.