With only 66k miles on the odometer, this 1979 Pontiac Firebird Formula looks to be pretty clean and is said to be in original, stock condition. Mitchell G. found this Formula listed here on Craigslist for $11,000. That seems to be a good price if the car has no rust. The Formula is located in Merrick, New York. Out of the 211,453 Firebirds built in 1979, Pontiac produced 24,850 Formulas. While the Trans Am got all the attention, I have always had a soft spot for the dual scooped Formula and have owned many over the years.
The black deluxe interior looks to be in fine shape with hobnail cloth on the seats. No rips or tears are evident. If you upgraded to the deluxe interior in 1979, a buyer received the upgraded seats and door panels. This car does not have power windows but looks like it has power locks. The car has no air conditioning, T-tops or tilt steering. The seller includes numerous pictures to show the trunk and original space saver rear tire.
The base engine for the Formula in 1979 was the L27 301 cubic inch V8 fed by a 2 barrel carburetor and rated at 140 horsepower. This car has the optional L37 301 cubic inch V8 fed by a 4 barrel carburetor and rated at 150 horsepower. In California, the base engine was the Chevrolet LG3 305 cubic inch V8 fed by a 2 barrel carburetor and rated at 133 horsepower and the optional LM1 350 rated at 160 horsepower was the high altitude option. The Oldsmobile L80 403 cubic inch V8 that came only with an automatic transmission was the next step up. The L80 403 cubic inch V8 was rated at 185 horsepower and 320 lb-ft of torque. The high-performance engine option that year was the L78 W72 400 cubic inch V8 engine. The 400 cubic inch V8 was only available with a Borg Warner T-10 4-speed manual transmission and came with 3.23 rear gears, WS6 suspension, and dual turbo mufflers. It was only installed in 367 Formulas in 1979.
The front end of the car appears to have been repainted possibly due to an accident repair. The Formula rides on the standard 15×7 Rally II wheels and has the optional rear spoiler. This car has been relisted several times over the past year and the seller keeps decreasing the price little by little. Maybe it will find a good home soon.
If its from NY, it has rust. That car does not look to have been garage kept, so almost for sure has it. The price would be more in line with reality if it were the 400/4speed. This car has little to offer. Why no air in a cruiser? The only bright side to this sad story is that the engine bay will easily hold a small block Chevy, or better yet, an LS. But if I have to do that, drop the price by a ton.
Not all cars in NY have rust. I know of numerous collections of rust free cars located in NY. Ridiculous comment. “Almost for sure”? Is that a thing?
Very informative write ✍️ up BJ.
Always cool the Formula model.
I prepped all these cars at the Pontiac dealer back in 79, the only way you could feel the power difference on the 301s, including the turbocharged T/As was with a stopwatch, they were all slugs. The 403 Olds was a boat anchor, I was disappointed with those as well, no power and a tall rear gear, but such were the times with choking emissions. The W72 400 Pontiac was the only engine that made you feel like maybe your car was a little quick and only available with the 4 speed.
I agree. I had a ’79 T/A with the W72 Pontiac engine and all the other trimmings.