1972 was a strike year for General Motors so only 1,286 Trans Ams were built during the year. Early 2nd generation Trans Ams are highly desirable, especially when ordered in Lucerne Blue. This example is located in Santa Ana, California with a minimum opening bid of $5,000 here on eBay and has 6 days remaining.
The cowl tag indicates the car is a true WS4 Trans Am and was painted code 26 Lucerne blue from the factory. Pontiac actually dropped the base price of the Trans Am by 8% in 1972.
This year would be the last for the vacuum operated flapper on the rear-facing shaker hood scoop. New EPA standards in 1973 required the scoop to be riveted shut to reduce noise from the beautiful round port HO 455. The HO 455 was the only engine option and was also the last year for the cast aluminum intake manifold.
This car is said to have its original numbers matching HO 455 engine. Car and Driver ran a 13.9-second quarter-mile time at 104.6 mph and a 0-60 mph time of just 5.4 seconds in 1972. An interesting feature is the addition of t-tops on the car. T-tops were not a factory option on Pontiac Trans Am’s until 1976.
While the seller shows an odometer reading of 33,000 miles, it is likely this car has many more miles than indicated on the five-digit odometer. The car is also said to have rust-free floorboards but there is significant rust indicated around the rear windows and in the trunk.
While this car would require significant work, it is a rare project that a buyer might stay in the black with a modest restoration if they were able to purchase the car for under $10,000 initially. What do you think?
The bodywork is going to be awful expensive.
So needs a roof transplant due to T top conversion, quarters, interior is roached and yea dash is gone per vin pix.
One needs to see underneath as i don’t buy the underneath is good without proof.
I like it but too much work..
Sad that bad trans choice at factory on automatic 😏
I guess Cali by the seashore on rust .
I don’t think it started life in California. The numbers on the plate would have been issued in the early-2000’s. The rust patterns aren’t typical of a coastal car.
Steve R
You are probably right, it’s a Norwood produced car; most west coasters came from the Van Nuys plant. Not a definite indicator, but a usual one.
Could have easily been an original CA car, but that doesn’t mean it has spent the last 47 years there. As for the rust, this could have had the rear quarter area exposed to more weather than the rest of it. Anything is possible. Real numbers HO might be worth the time if you have body working skills.
The “rainbow” plate suggests that it moved to CA between 1982-87.
Huge Project with the cost of restoration and purchase far exceeding the restored value.
Looks like it has an of American T-top aftermarket t-top. Design is similar to the Hurst Hatch, but with larger panels and a narrower center bar. This modification is likely as old, or nearly as old, as the car itself. If I were the buyer, I’d keep it.
@ Classic Steel. Everything you wrote is so very true! When I saw the T-tops I thought early parts transferred to a later car but either way those are not a plus in my book. This must have been a cool car in it’s day. Too much rust, hidden and unhidden in these photos which will require a closer inspection.
eBay shows the baked interior, confirming our suspicions. And oh my look at the rust in the roof by the t tops and split filler over the roof weld in the sail panel.
This car is worthy of restoration. But at $5k with RNM yet, I’m not sure the investment makes sense.
This car will need to be pulled down to the bare shell. By the time your finished replacing rusty panels there won’t be much original steel. You’d be saving a parts car and it will take at least 1500 hours and a fare chunk of your wallet. And that’s if you do your own work. In you have a shop do it your wallet will be gone and so will your wife and kids. I say strip off what ever can be used on another car and cube the rest.
He was left a shell of a man, and with the shell of an old Trans Am.
Tell you what, men. The current price guide puts the 70 / 72 cars at around 85k as restored. Unless you have had it for years or are in love with it, anyone who buys it to restore it will be upside down in no time, when it is done. Then it is worth a no. 2 on the scale and all the love money for a no. 1 is gone. buy a done car! This is a rare car. After 47 years, just how many are left? 400? 500? The drivetrain (engine, trans, rear and suspension are worth at least $9k. Roof rust is always a sign of a coastal car; so what if you have to go through it. Those T tops will only diminish the value thru the years.
It is or was a factory a/c car. Odd there’s a flexalite fan on it, when there should be a factory clutch fan on it – the latter should give better performance, i would think.
Surprising the rear valance/front bumper are not rotting/cracked.
I prefer the shaker open ALL the time, since pinging could occur at part throttle going up hills.
Extra body comes with it because this one can’t be saved?
Judging by those gaping holes around that rear window which looks like it could drop through any day now the whole rear end body,frame and trunk are more than likely rotted.just replacing the rear B window pillars are very expensive to fix!$$$ what a shame a good muscle car came to this! 😟
Needs a donor car.
It’s the donor car.
Must’ve been a sharp ride when new(fairly new?). Like the blue color, a lot more than the red TA featured today. Too bad this one was treated with absolute neglect.
Buy the car. Remove the vin tag. Place it on another Trans Am of any year. It will be just as authentic and “original” as this would be once it’s “restored”.
This 1972 Trans Am is being sold in California so pretty easy to go get a Rust-free Donor Base 1972 Firebird for the body swap and your in business. Much cheaper, faster and better way to restore this car.
Yup. And it came down the same line in the same year, with the same randomly gathered parts for it.
Bought a identical one in ’62, OK, did have a 4 speed. It was a new dad’s first family car after trading a ’68 vette 427 convert 427. Traveled via Greyhound to Detroit to pick it up at the Pontiac dealer on 8 mile and drove it home t r y I n g to resist letting it have its way! OH happy days!
I worked for GM starting in 1969 – don’t recall a strike in 1972, which would not have been a contract year – the big strike was in 1970, which delayed the intro of the Gen 2 Camaro. That is why the 70 Camaro is usually referred to as a 1970 1/2 Camaro.
The next contract year would have been in 1973, as the contracts between the UAW and GM, Ford, and Chrysler were 3 year agreements, at least up until Chrysler needed the first government assisted bailout ( private loans guaranteed by the government, not taxPAYer money.)
The government IS THE TAXPAYER!
That’s where the government “Git’s Da Money” from.
THE TAXPAYERS!
There was a 72 strike
Come on 5600.5 days left.no more gaping for you sir .we good the pipe😎
I started working at a Pontiac store in January of 1972. Firebirds were few and far between because of the strike at that time. I don’t remember seeing new ones come in on the truck until about late April or May. And I don’t remember them all being Trans Ams. I am old now so I don’t recall the exact strike dates. But my old dusty memory says October 1971 through mid or late April 1972.
Fun cars! The early ’70s was a great time to work at a Pontiac store. “Let’s see, I have a hot date tonight, I will take the used Corvette. And this Saturday there is an auto cross, so I will take the Vette back and grab a Trans Am! Yes indeed, great times! And I hate to admit it, but that is how a few cars were “broken in” in those days.
I was referring to the National UAW-GM strike – did not know about the Norwood plant strike. The Fremont CA assembly plant was in full operation during all of 1972. I know the 1970 strike was ALL of GM plants, including the parts warehouses- dealers couldn’t get “Genuine Parts” for over 2 months. The 1970 strike lasted 67 days.
About 1100 cars crushed at end of 170+ day UAW strike at Norwood.
That’s a sad picture.
Clearly nobody has given a damn about this Poncho in a long time. Bring a Bank Account