Find or Sell Used Cars, Trucks, and SUVs in USA

1976 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Coupe 2-door 6.6l on 2040-cars

Year:1976 Mileage:119000
Location:

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, United States

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, United States
Advertising:

Motor:

This car has been in my care for the last 10 years and has been an on again off again project up until last Summer when the car finally came together. This car was originally Goldenrod Yellow with a 400 4 speed and no other options. The original enigine was rebuilt, bored and stroked and was set up with #69 heads (72 cc), Ram air 3 cam, Edelbrock performer intake with a factory Rochestor 4 bbl carb with electic choke. The clutch, starter, battery & cables, alternator, radiator, belts and hoses were all replaced. When the engine was out the engine bay was detailed as well as the under side of the car. This car runs on regular low octane unleaded and was patterned after a 1970 400 Ram Air. The actual engine dislacement is larger though and mileage was 19,000 when I got the car so I assumed 119,000?

Interior:

New carpet and headliner. Door panels, console and dash are in great original condition. The windshield was pulled to fix some sun discoloration to the dash and was re dyed. The engine turned aluminum panel was restored and made into a Bandit style in gold to match the interior. I also replaced the steering column with a tilt wheel. The front seats were not restored nor the lower kick panels. I intended to add 4th gen Firebird seats but never got to it. The original AM FM is in place but is not hooked up, nor are there any speakers. The plan was to put a modern stereo in the console map pocket section and leave the original in just for looks. (The console was missing when I got this car but found an original 4 speed console and installed, but had a cutout for power window switch). This car has manual windows.

Brakes/Suspension/Exhaust:

The front brakes, calipers, rotors and caliper hoses were replaced as well as rear brake shoes and rear parking brake cables. The front sway bar was pulled, painted and reinstalled with poly bushings. There are also new body mounts, KYB Gas Adjust shocks on all 4 corners, welded in subframe connectors and a new Pypes stainless exhaust system 2.5" from the mandrel bent downpipes to the X pipe crossover to the single rear transverse muffler through the "Hockey stick" tips out back. Nothing under this car is hanging down to get caught on a speedbump! The Exhaust manifolds are the cleaner 1970 style and were blasted and ceramic coated inside and out. Rear end was serviced and works perfectly. I intended to replace front springs with lowering springs but never got there. The rear leaf springs and axle were not painted but a chrome cover was added to the differential. Front end is tight and detailed and the reverse lockout backdrive linkage was hooked up properly so this must go in reverse before you can remove key. Neutral safety switch was also hooked up.

Body:

This car was stripped down and found to be rust free. No patchwork anywhere! It was when the body was coming apart I got the idea to change the front end to a 1972 model. The front nose, lower (metal) valance, center spoiler and hood pull latch were all changed over. I do NOT have the original 76 front end. The body and paint is a mirror finish in a base coat clear coat application, which was baked in an oven at a local dealership. The paint was changed to 1970 Polar white and fitted with early Trans Am blue decals from Phoenix Graphics. The front nose could be a bit smoother for a perfectionist. The door, cowl, roof, shaker scoop and trunk weatherstripping is all new. The Honeycomb wheels were repainted with the original Honeycomb paint (as well as brake drums in matching paint) and new tires were added.

Summary:

This car fires right up, idles perfectly, sounds fantastic and runs great. I took this to a local car show and turned plenty of heads!  I have put about 250 miles on this car since the engine was fired up for the first time. It drives straight, no rattles or shakes and feels brand new. These are some things that need attention: The Borg Warner is leaking from the Imput and output seals, shift shaft seal and the clutch could be adjusted. I have a seal kit for the tranny. The back up lights are non opperational (I have a new switch to install), interior parking brake light switch needs replaced. (parking brake works perfectly but light on dash wont come on), the front parking lights and side marker lights don't work properly when the healights are on. Possible bad turn signal switch. This car was intended to be a nice driver but has become a bit more.

Terms:

Your bid is a contractual commitment to buy. Don't bid if your need your wifes permission or if you don't know what it costs to ship a car. Figure that out first because those are excuses that are unexceptible. If you want to know what shipping costs call Ultimate Auto Ship at 954-796-2023 and Patrick Lynch will give you one.  I won't disclose the reserve or end the auction early either. This car has about 250 miles on a rebuilt drivetrain and still has the break in additives in it. Don't ask me questions like if it "will make it to New Hamster" or something like that. I kinda like to drive a car until it proves itself to me.  I have another car project with an engine rebuild going on that car and and home that needs work so I'm considering selling this, but I don't really want too.  High bidder pays 500 NON REFUNDIBLE deposit withing 24 hours of auction end and cash is king. The balance due within 10 days.

Auto Services in Idaho

Westside Body Works ★★★★★

Automobile Body Repairing & Painting, Truck Body Repair & Painting, Wheel Alignment-Frame & Axle Servicing-Automotive
Address: 459 N Five Mile Rd, Kuna
Phone: (208) 995-2265

Tint Works Inc. ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Window Tinting, Coatings-Protective
Address: 6050 N Sunshine St, Coeur-D-Alene
Phone: (208) 762-8468

Sunnyside Automotive ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Used Car Dealers, Automobile Parts & Supplies
Address: 3790 E Sunnyside Rd, Ammon
Phone: (208) 529-4931

Perfect Fit Auto Body & Repair ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Body Repairing & Painting, Automobile Parts & Supplies
Address: 711 1st St S, Melba
Phone: (208) 461-1946

Mountain Home Car Care Ctr ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Used Car Dealers, Automobile Parts & Supplies
Address: 675 W 6th S, Mountain-Home-A-F-B
Phone: (208) 587-4832

Marler Auto Supply Inc ★★★★★

Automobile Parts & Supplies, Automobile Salvage, Automobile Electrical Equipment
Address: 2715 N 15th E, Shelley
Phone: (208) 244-6615

Auto blog

Junkyard Gem: 1980 Pontiac Phoenix LJ Hatchback

Sun, Jan 22 2023

The car-building world was rushing headlong into front-wheel-drive by the late 1970s, eager to reap the weight-saving and space-enhancing benefits of front-drive designs. General Motors designed an innovative FWD platform to replace the embarrassingly outdated Chevrolet Nova and its siblings, and that ended up being the Chevrolet Citation. The other US-market GM car divisions (except Cadillac) got a piece of the X-Body action, and the Pontiac version was called the Phoenix. Here's one of those first-year Phoenixes, not doing a very good job of rising from its snow-covered ashes in a Colorado self-service yard. Pontiac had used the Phoenix name on a luxed-up iteration of Pontiac's version of the Chevy Nova during the 1977-1979 model years, and so it made sense to apply that name to the Pontiac-ized Citation. Phoenix production continued through the 1984 model year (the Citation managed to hang on through 1985). Just to confuse everyone, the Nova name was revived in 1985, on a NUMMI-built Toyota Corolla. The LJ trim level was the nicest one for the 1980 Phoenix, and it included lots of trim upgrades and convenience features. However, even Phoenix LJ buyers had to pay extra for a three-speed automatic transmission instead of the base four-on-the-floor manual ($337, or about $1,291 in 2022 dollars). If you wanted air conditioning, that was another $564 and you had to get the $164 power steering and the $76 power brakes with it (total cost in 2022 dollars: $3,080). Affordable cars weren't so affordable back then, not once you started adding basic options. Both generations of the Phoenix had grilles influenced by those of the Pontiacs of earlier years. The base engine was the chugging 2.5-liter Iron Duke four-cylinder, but a 2.8-liter V6 was optional. This car has the V6, rated at 115 horsepower rather than the Duke's miserable 90 horses. The price tag: 225 bucks, or 862 inflation-adjusted 2022 bucks. The Phoenix was available just as a two-door coupe and five-door hatchback. The MSRP on this car would have started at $6,127, or around $23,469 now. That would have been a pretty good deal even after paying for the options, with the Phoenix's excellent mix of good interior space and solid fuel economy… but the Citation and its kin (the Oldsmobile Omega and Buick Skylark as well as the Phoenix) suffered from seemingly endless, highly publicized recalls and quality problems.

Are orphan cars better deals?

Wed, Dec 30 2015

Most folks don't know a Saturn Aura from an Oldsmobile Aurora. Those of you who are immersed in the labyrinth of automobilia know that both cars were testaments to the mediocrity that was pre-bankruptcy General Motors, and that both brands are now long gone. But everybody else? Not so much. By the same token, there are some excellent cars and trucks that don't raise an eyebrow simply because they were sold under brands that are no longer being marketed. Orphan brands no longer get any marketing love, and because of that they can be alarmingly cheap. Case in point, take a look at how a 2010 Saturn Outlook compares with its siblings, the GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave. According to the Manheim Market Report, the Saturn will sell at a wholesale auto auction for around $3,500 less than the comparably equipped Buick or GMC. Part of the reason for this price gap is that most large independent dealerships, such as Carmax, make it a point to avoid buying cars with orphaned badges. Right now if you go to Carmax's site, you'll find that there are more models from Toyota's Scion sub-brand than Mercury, Saab, Pontiac, Hummer, and Saturn combined. This despite the fact that these brands collectively sold in the millions over the last ten years while Scion has rarely been able to realize a six-figure annual sales figure for most of its history. That is the brutal truth of today's car market. When the chips are down, used-car shoppers are nearly as conservative as their new-car-buying counterparts. Unfamiliarity breeds contempt. Contempt leads to fear. Fear leads to anger, and pretty soon you wind up with an older, beat-up Mazda MX-5 in your driveway instead of looking up a newer Pontiac Solstice or Saturn Sky. There are tons of other reasons why orphan cars have trouble selling in today's market. Worries about the cost of repair and the availability of parts hang over the industry's lost toys like a cloud of dust over Pigpen. Yet any common diagnostic repair database, such as Alldata, will have a complete framework for your car's repair and maintenance, and everyone from junkyards to auto parts stores to eBay and Amazon stock tens of thousands of parts. This makes some orphan cars mindblowingly awesome deals if you're willing to shop in the bargain bins of the used-car market. Consider a Suzuki Kizashi with a manual transmission. No, really.

GM recalling another 2.7 million vehicles in five separate campaigns

Thu, 15 May 2014

The recalls keep rolling in from General Motors, evidently keen to avoid repeating the mistakes of the ignition-switch debacle and clean house. This time they're all coming at once, with five separate recalls announced together covering approximately 2.7 million vehicles.
The largest of the five actions involves over 2.4 million units of the previous-generation Chevrolet Malibu and Malibu Maxx, Pontiac G6 and Saturn Aura in order to fix brake light wiring harness, which have been found to be susceptible to corrosion. The recall is separate from the 56k Aura sedans which GM recently recalled over faulty shift cables, not to mention the previous massive recall of 1.3 million vehicles - some of them the same models - but appears to have resulted from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation that started with the G6 almost a year ago.
The second-largest campaign involves the 2014 Chevy Malibu, specifically those fitted with GM's 2.5-liter engine and stop/start system, approximately 140,000 examples of which has been found to have problematic brakes. The issue does not appear to be connected to the recall of 8k Malibu and Buick LaCrosse sedans (also involving brake woes) which we reported upon last week. Four crashes have been reported in such models, but GM admits it's not yet clear if the problem was a contributing factor in the accidents.