TAC Central => Lobby => Topic started by: TransAm7779 on March 19, 2021, 12:50:04 PM
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Got this article in my email today and thought some others might enjoy it:
https://ls1tech.com/articles/incredible-1976-pontiac-firebird-trans-am-has-just-17k-original-miles/?utm_source=2021319&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=content (https://ls1tech.com/articles/incredible-1976-pontiac-firebird-trans-am-has-just-17k-original-miles/?utm_source=2021319&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=content)
Side note, I know the engine color changed in the mid 70’s, but does the color on this engine look a little off to anyone else?
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I apologize in advance if someone here owns that car and I am insulting them, But I am calling BS. It may indeed be a low mileage car, and may have original paint and interior but there are some red flags to me. Theres no way that engine was painted at the factory that colour. My very early 76 had the light blue metallic like is on the earlier cars, after that they were a light blue. That doesnt even look like a Pontiac blue I have ever seen before. There are no core support to fender braces, the rear sway bar was left natural from the factory as well as the rear, those would at the very least have surface rust. They look like they have been painted with eastwood bare metal look paint ( I say that because they look just the same as on my 77 and thats the product I used). One other thing, I may be wrong with this one though, I was under the impression that up till 79 the bottom would have been in red oxide primer, not black. I have seen a few original cars and the bottom sides are truly a mess. The factory didnt care what they looked like and a lot of times they undercoated everything under there that didnt move.
Does look like a nice car though.
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According to this site http://www.pontiacpower.org/enginecolor.htm (http://www.pontiacpower.org/enginecolor.htm), there was a similar metallic blue engine color during 75 to early 77.
It could be that the photo is underexposed and throwing off the color we are seeing in the image.
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Still my favorite year and color!
Thanks for posting!
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I question how original that car is too. It might be original, but it was probably disassembled to some degree and "freshened" up. As far as engine color, here's an original '76 with the same color.
(https://barrettjacksoncdn.azureedge.net/staging/carlist/items/Fullsize/Cars/230730/230730_Engine_Web.jpg)
I do recall seeing that color on mid '70's TA's. It's darker than the earlier metallic blue, and definitely different than the lighter pontiac blues used before and after that time period. I like that color but the early metallic blue is my favorite.
Weird to see a 455 equipped car with no console. Someone was going bare bones with that one.
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Interesting, I found another one without the fender to core supports. Is it possible some '76's were shipped without them? More likely they were removed for servicing under the hood and lost or never reinstalled.
(https://www.rmw.lv/uploads/img/car_models/large/firebird_trans_am_2._generation_455ho_y82_1976_3.jpg)
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I actually like the color contrast of the engine against the black surround. It's a nice car that most of us would love to have.
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(https://live.staticflickr.com/4708/39670017814_9ba25b19b0_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/23rvddo)2018-02-20_09-07-44 (https://flic.kr/p/23rvddo) by Kerry Grubb (https://www.flickr.com/photos/156399515@N07/), on Flickr
This is my motor right after the rebuild. The new paint matched what was originally there almost to a 'T'. My car is a very early 77 build.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/4702/39524913075_ff4e4e3bc7_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/23dFvCx)2018-02-22_09-52-43 (https://flic.kr/p/23dFvCx) by Kerry Grubb (https://www.flickr.com/photos/156399515@N07/), on Flickr
Best pic I had off hand of it in the car.
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I agree with Jack, that 76 is a fantastic car. I suppose I may have been a bit harsh with my opening statement. I get irritated sometimes when people present cars as low mileage original examples, only to find 'only 1 repaint, motor rebuilt, transmission updated etc., etc., etc. My point was that even though it may have 17k miles does not necessarily mean that it is a factory original car, which I believe would merit more value. I would be skeptical that the motor has come out for some reason, and that the undercarriage looks way too perfect for an 'original' car.
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Kerry, the color on your '77 looks just like the earlier 66-70 light blue metallic. That's the color I originally painted my engine before deciding to go with the correct '71 blue. I know this has been posted a number of times before, but here is a great resource for the pontiac engine colors. It could probably be updated with regard to sources, but the colors are accurate. I've never seen a factory '75-77 pontiac engine painted the lighter metallic blue, but do recall seeing the darker metallic blue. It could be the lighting, but yours looks like the lighter metallic blue.
http://www.pontiacpower.org/enginecolor.htm