For Pontiac fans, the early second-generation Trans Ams are among the most desirable muscle cars of the era, and this one checks all the right boxes. Listed here on eBay, this 1971 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am is a numbers-matching, PHS-documented example, equipped with the legendary 455 HO V8 and a rare M22 “Rock Crusher” 4-speed manual transmission. Only 887 of these cars were built in 1971 with this combination, making it a very scarce find for collectors. Thanks for the tip Mitchell G.!
The seller states that this Trans Am was repainted and freshened up in 2003, with fewer than 5,000 miles driven since that work was completed. The car presents in striking white with blue stripes, the classic livery for early Trans Ams, and remains in excellent cosmetic condition according to the description. Doors reportedly open and close with precision, and the body fit looks to have been well preserved.
Under the hood sits the factory-original 455 HO engine, paired to the heavy-duty Muncie M22 4-speed manual transmission. The seller describes the car as driving and shifting smoothly, with no rattling or hesitation—exactly what you want to hear from a car designed for both street and track. The numbers-matching status, backed by Pontiac Historical Services documentation, adds tremendous value and authenticity.
Inside, the interior is described as immaculate, a testament to the care the car has received. The 1971 model year marked the second for the redesigned F-body Firebird, which featured a lower, wider stance and improved aerodynamics compared to the first-generation cars. The Trans Am trim added a performance suspension, functional shaker hood, and unique styling cues that set it apart from other Firebirds and Camaros of the time.
With only 887 examples produced in this configuration, this Trans Am represents a rare opportunity to acquire one of the most sought-after muscle cars of the early 1970s. The combination of a numbers-matching 455 HO, the bulletproof M22 gearbox, and long-term preservation makes it highly appealing to both collectors and enthusiasts looking for a car that can be enjoyed on the road.
Would you keep this rare Trans Am in its current well-preserved state, or would you bring it back to concours-level condition?
For a BIN price of $98,000, the ad has no pics of the PHS documentation, the block ID, date code, or mention of any other original accessories on the engine. Does it have the original carb? That’s a big ticket item to source. I can’t see someone plopping down close to $100k, without seeing the documentation. Besides, I’ve noticed a lot of nice cars are sitting and not selling. The old car market is in a slump right now, it’s a buyers market.
I believe he answered all of your questions in his vehicle description
In the ad, seller says he couldn’t post pics of the items of documentation you asked about; maybe he was at the limit. He has them on request.
What is sort of a head scratcher is the seats were reupholstered in black rather than blue and the door panels were painted blue. Why change the color on anything inside instead of keeping the original color? Painting door panels rather than a redo is odd. Needs to post underside pics as well.
Love to take this out for an afternoon drive 🏁What a great machine from the Pontiac division.
Waiting for my powerball check first…what a car!
very limited information , no under carriage shots, engine etc. Is it a driver with nice paint and interior, untouched underside? must not want to sell ?
Click on his vehicle description in the eBay listing for undercarriage pics plus the documentation information he has available for serious buyers.
Clean and all business!!!
Of the 887 built, we must have seen 443 on these pages that were ready to be made into soup cans. Per KHayes, some of these high-end cars we see here don’t pass muster upon deeper looks. This car, if legit, must have been in a museum or some other type of collection. As such, there should be no excuses, and nothing to hide.Buyer and/or deposit sender, beware.
For me, this is just about the perfect time machine! I never owned a Firebird (several Camaro’s) but a close friend had 71′ just like this and it was a beauty (in 74). Great cars, great times. You never know what you’ve got until it’s gone.
If only it were a ’70… and Blue w/White.
Drive baby, drive. I have had the 70 version of this car for 28 years and they are meant to be driven. As great as it looks in the garage, heading down the road in it is 1000x better.
Drive baby, drive. I have had the 70 version of this car for 28 years and they are meant to be driven. As great as it looks in the garage, heading down the road in it is 1000x better.
Makes me want to watch Thunderbolt and Lightfoot again………………
Blue guts would really pop on that. A shame they changed it.
There is a John Wayne movie, McQ, where he drove a green 1973 Trans Am with some good chase scenes. I saw a clip that said the production company had 2, and they were both Super Duty’s, Brewster Green with all decals removed.
Steve R
Saw the movie in the theater on my 13th birthday and I’ve been a T/A guy ever since.
Saw the movie in the theater on my 13th birthday and I’ve been a T/A guy ever since.
Well my dream car is a ’74 SD-455, but maybe I’m rethinking that now…
That green T/A in McQ was beautiful…!
As a high school senior, I wanted a ’70 similar to this one. After graduation, I then decided to seek out a 454 Chevelle or a GTX. I went with the 6bbl GTX, 4spd and 4.10 Dana. Didn’t lose a street race, but never raced the LS Chevelle. Thinking back, a little S/C Rambler was close.
Awesome car ! But, $98,000 Not even if I had the money.
Wowwwww! Beautiful car! Love the looks! Plus a 4 speed! A blue interior would be nice too!
If you like this style Tran’s Am check out the red one in the David Carradine movie Cannonball. Actually there’s two exact same Trans Ams but you’ll have to see the movie to understand why. Not Cannonball Run, totally different movie. Great car action in this movie. Cross country car race like other movies but more realistic, sort of more like Gumball Rally.
There are a few inside baseball details about the Firebird Trans Am models some of you may not know:
The styling add-ons the 1969 Trans Am were mostly done by Gene Winfield at the direction of John DeLorean. Herb Adams was asked by DeLorean to work on the handling.
The 2nd Gen styling with the wheel well “spats”, the front spoiler, and the reverse scoop were done by a collaboration of Paul Lamar, who had a stellar career including working on various aircraft and Jim Hall’s Chapparrals, and John Schinella’s team at GM Styling.
The bean counters at Pontiac planned to build the Trans Am with the same suspension components (anti-roll bars and springs) as the Camaro Z28. Herb Adams nagged his boss, Bill Collins about this. According to Herb, Collins finally said, OK, you have until Monday to give me a reason to argue the case. Herb, Dan Hardin, and engineer in Herb’s group at Pontiac, and a technician spent the weekend at the proving ground, and presented Collins with skidpad performance of better than 0.8Gs. Combined with an active PR campaign with the magazines, who all raved about the car, showroom traffic increased, and Trans Am sales blew away the forecasts. Originally expecting very modest sales, Pontiac had licensed the Trans-Am name from SCCA (note the race series name had a hyphen, the car model didn’t) for $5.00 per car. This left Pontiac’s bean counters with a high-quality problem, complaining how much money they were paying SCCA.
Boy some of the folks here are really negative about this car. I just wonder if some of these experts have ever owned one of these. I’ve had a 1970 Ram Air IV for 45 years and it’s a great car, and worth every damn dime.
100k man that is stiff. times are tight now maybe sitting on this for a spell
The Movie MacQ has 4 cars, one destroyed one they found and other two whereabouts unknown. All sent back but one was driven for months after the movie. Go on line and you will see the build sheet all four the same.
They had four cars for the movie, one crushed, one found and in private hands and other two whereabouts unknown. All went back to GM with one driven for months after the movie shoot. All info in great story at PontiacV8.com even have build sheet.
Would they build u 1 with stripe delete?
Since there are several comments about Firebirds in movies and TV series, here’s another bit of inside baseball. Some of you may recognize the name, Eric Dahlquist, from his time at Petersen Publishing as editor of both Motor Trend and Hot Rod. He was a huge fan of Pontiac and was one of the reasons the Gray Ghost 1964 Tempest Le Mans GTO driven by Bob Tullius in the 1971 Trans-Am series. He launched a public relations business, with Pontiac one of his biggest clients. He claimed credit for all the product placements from the Rockford Files to Kitt to all the movies. He later had Mercedes as a client.
Ended at $62,100.
Reserve Not Met.