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AMC Trans Am Javelin SST, an ultra-rare underdog, is up for auction

Among the rarest of the American muscle cars that went racing in the early Seventies — cars including the Camaro Z/28 and the Boss 302 Mustang — the 1970 AMC Trans Am Javelin SST may be the most hard to find, and among the most valuable. Only 100 units of this unique Javelin were produced, and one of them is up for auction at the Mecum event in Dallas on September 20. The Trans Am Javelin was fashioned in a patriotic livery of tricolor paint — red, white and blue — and arrived after the American Motors Corporation had decided in 1968 to compete in the Trans Am racing series against Ford and General Motors. The company's chief driver, Mark Donohue, would dominate the 1971 season, taking seven wins in his Javelin AMX and that yearÂ’s SCCA Trans-Am Championship. AMC took the trophy with 82 points, well ahead of Ford's 61, Chevrolet's 17 and Pontiac's paltry 7. The example listed for auction came equipped with a 390-cubic-inch V-8 engine with 325 horsepower at 5,000 rpm and 420 pound-feet of torque, power steering and brakes, dual exhaust, BorgWarner four-speed manual transmission and Hurst competition shifter. Its “ram induction system” sealed a chamber around the air filter so that cool air from the functional hood scoop would be funneled into the intake. This JavÂ’s factory price was $3,995 — a mere $32,000 or so in today's money, though it was expensive by the standards of the time. The 100 Trans Ams were among 19,714 Javelin units built in 1970, so they started out rare, and today the surviving examples are highly collectible, if and when they come up for sale. No bid estimate is available yet. Related Video: Motorsports Chevrolet Ford Pontiac Auctions Automotive History Racing Vehicles Classics

Classic Pontiac Trans Am Firebird Super Duty 455 sells for nearly $90,000

Historically, the Pontiac Firebird Trans Am raised the performance levels a notch or two over a plain Firebird in the muscle car hierarchy of the Sixties. But the Super Duty 455 version of the Trans Am — that number represents the cubic inches of the hand-assembled V8 engine — moved the performance needle big time in 1974. So much so that a clean example of the machine sold recently on the Hagerty Marketplace auction site for $89,296. Advertised with just under 54,000 miles on the clock and having undergone a thorough restoration, the Buccaneer Red model was one of just 943 Pontiac Firebirds equipped with the Super Duty 455 package for the 1974 model year. That build had also been offered in 1973. The Hagerty listing drew more than 21,000 views and 39 bids. According to Hagerty's valuation report, a similar car would be worth $85,700 in good condition, and $103,000 if it was in ‘“concours condition.” The Super Duty motor borrowed technology from the lineÂ’s 366-cubic-inch NASCAR engine, and featured heavy-duty connecting rods and an entirely new block with a revised crankshaft and heads to deliver a claimed 310 horsepower. The Firebird that sold was indeed loaded, with a three-speed Hydra-matic transmission (which surely reduced its overall value), power locks and windows, AC, dual exhausts, heavy duty stabilizer bars all around, and a “custom Interior trimmed in Red perforated Morrokide vinyl upholstery.” The entry of PontiacÂ’s pony car in the U.S., facing off against the Mustang and Camaro, dates back to 1967, when it was offered with an inline six and optional V8. The first Trans Ams were introduced two years later, the name derived from a handling package. General Motors ceased production of new Pontiacs in 2002 owing to declining sales and losing stakes in the sports coupe market. The big 455-cid V-8 had disappeared years earlier.

Junkyard Gem: 1980 Pontiac Grand Prix LJ

A couple of years before John DeLorean and his team at the Pontiac Division created the GTO by pasting a big engine and some gingerbread on the LeMans, they created a rakish, powerful coupe based on the staid full-size Catalina. This was the 1962 Pontiac Grand Prix, which sold like crazy and escalated the personal luxury coupe war already brewing in Detroit. Starting with the 1969 model year, the Grand Prix switched to a smaller chassis (shared the following year with the new Chevrolet Monte Carlo), and all subsequent rear-wheel-drive Grand Prix (that is, through 1987) remained siblings of the Monte. Today's Junkyard Gem is a rare 1980 Grand Prix LJ, found in a self-service yard near Reno, Nevada. Sure, a fresh round of Middle East conflict had put a kink in America's fuel hose in 1979, leading to gas lines and a general sense of malaise, but at least the new Grand Prix looked extra sharp for 1980. The LJ package came with all sorts of appearance and comfort goodies, including these "luxury seats with loose-pillow design in New Florentine Cloth." A Pontiac Phoenix LJ was available as well. These seats must have been very comfortable when new. Who needed a Cadillac when Pontiac would sell you this car at a base MSRP of just $7,000 (about $26,704 in 2023 dollars)? That price was what you paid if you were willing to get the base 3.8-liter Buick V6, though. To get a V8 engine with four-barrel carburetor, you had to pay extra. If you did pay the extra for a V8, which one you got depended on which state you lived in; in California, you got this 305-cubic-inch (5.0-liter Chevrolet small-block), and in the other 49 states you got a 301-cubic-inch (4.9-liter) Pontiac. The 305 was rated at 150 horsepower with 230 pound-feet; the 301 made 140hp and 240 lb-ft. This car was originally bought in California (the state line is about ten miles away from its final parking spot), so it has the Chevy engine. The V8 added $195 (plus $250 for the California-only emissions system) to the out-the-door price of the car, or about $1,316 in 2023 dollars. Outside of California, a 4.3-liter Chevy V6 was available for just 80 additional bucks ($305 now). All 1980 Grand Prix got a three-speed automatic transmission as standard equipment, with no manual available from the factory. This car has the optional air conditioning, which cost $601 ($2,293 after inflation). This is the "Custom Sport" steering wheel, which was standard on the LJ. The tilt option cost $81 ($309 today).