1969 Pontiac Gto Judge on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Junkyard Gem: 1997 Pontiac Sunfire SE Convertible

For the entire 24-year production run of the GM J platform (best known for the Chevrolet Cavalier), the Pontiac Division offered new J-Body cars for sale in the United States. First there was the J2000, followed in quick succession by the 2000, 2000 Sunbird and Sunbird. The Sunbird stuck around until the Cavalier got a major redesign for the 1995 model year, at which point Pontiac changed the car's name to Sunfire. Today's Junkyard Gem is one of those early Sunfires, a top-of-the-line SE convertible with the optional big engine and manual transmission. The Sunfire was an extremely close sibling to the same-year Cavalier (by the late 1980s, all the other US-market GM divisions had dropped their J-cars, which meant no more Skyhawks, Cimarrons or Firenzas), quite difficult to distinguish from its near-twin at a glance. The base engine for the 1997 Sunfire convertible was the pushrod 2.2-liter straight-four that powered so many J-bodies of the 1990s. That engine produced just 120 gnashing, valve-floating horsepower, not much by late-1990s standards. For a mere 450 additional dollars, however, the 2.4-liter Twin Cam engine and its high-revving 150 horses could be had by '97 Sunfire buyers. That's what's in this car. This is one of the members of the Oldsmobile Quad 4 family, though some fanatics will yell at you if you apply that name to the versions that don't have big QUAD 4 lettering cast into the valve cover. This is the most powerful engine ever used in production Sunfires. For 1997, Pontiac offered a four-speed automatic transmission for no extra cost in the Sunfire convertible. Buyers of all other Sunfire models that year had to shell out either $550 or $810 ($1,026 or $1,511 in 2023 dollars) for a two-pedal rig. That means that the buyer of this car really wanted the five-speed manual transmission (or just hungered for the $810 credit offered in the fine print for takers of the manual). Plenty of free-breathing engine power, five-on-the-floor driving enjoyment and the open skies above. What a fun car! This one made it to nearly 180,000 miles. For this car with the Quad 4 under the hood and a clutch pedal on the floor, the MSRP was $18,539 (about $34,584 today). Its Cavalier LS convertible twin with the same engine/transmission setup cost $17,365 ($32,394 now). This car has a bunch of options, including the 15" Rally aluminum wheels, so the out-the-door price would have been higher. The last year for the Sunfire was 2005, same as the Cavalier.

Burt Reynolds' old Pontiac Trans Am replica sold for $317,500

Following Burt Reynolds' passing last September, Julien's Auctions held an estate sale of the late actor's property on June 15-16 in Beverly Hills, Calif. Hundreds of items were included in the auction, but none more valuable than the Pontiac Trans Am Bandit replica previously owned by Reynolds. It easily surpassed expectations when it sold for $317,500. Julien's, the self-proclaimed experts in contemporary and pop culture, listed 876 pieces in the sale, from cowboy boots to a driver's license to scripts. The online preview said it estimated a range of prices from $25 to $200,000. They were way off. Item No. 716 was a replica of a Pontiac Trans Am Bandit that was seen in the original "Smokey and the Bandit." Not the real car, just a re-creation. But its value comes more from who owned the ride rather than what the car was. The replica was owned by Reynolds for some years, and now that he's passed, it's coveted even more. It's not the only Trans Am item that sold at auction. Three Reynolds Trans Am model cars sold for $640, $576 and $512. A Reynolds-signed "Bandit" poster sold for $3,200. A Reynolds-signed poster from the Trans Am plant sold for $1,562.50, a Reynolds custom-built Trans Am office desk sold for $4,375, and a "Smokey and the Bandit" decorative etched glass panel sold for $896. This isn't the first time a Bandit replica has sold for big money. In 2016, a promotional Trans Am sold at a Barrett-Jackson auction for $550,000. We also believe the exact car sold in this Julien's auction was previously bought at a Barrett-Jackson auction in 2018 for $192,500. If that's the case, somebody just made an extremely easy profit.

2013 Hurst Edition Trans Am

No, you didn't read our title wrong. This is a 2013 model year Trans Am, and yes, that is a Pontiac logo affixed to the front of the car. But don't bother dialing up your local General Motors dealership just yet. This is the new Hurst Edition Trans Am created by the Trans Am Depot located in Tallahassee, FL. Having spent a number of years restoring early Trans Am models, the crew at Trans Am Depot finally did what many Pontiac enthusiasts wish GM would have done - create a modern Trans Am using the fifth-generation Chevrolet Camaro.
As the former owner of a 1977 model, I've been wanting to check out Trans Am Depot ever since I first saw the company have American Choppers build a trio of motorcycles inspired by its Pontiac remakes. So I jumped at the chance to head to Florida's capital city to visit the shop and drive its latest creation, the new Hurst Edition Trans Am. As a collaboration with Hurst, this car made its debut at the 2012 SEMA Show and then popped up again on our radar with a cheesy yet perfectly fitting video back in March.
Driving Notes