Motor Vehicle Tips

The Pontiac Firebird is perhaps one of the most classic cars ever made, thanks to various popular culture references hooked up to it.  It was first made in 1967 by Yank automaker General Motors, through their Pontiac division.  The firebird was introduced along with its cousin in the GM family, the Chevrolet Camaro, with which it shared a platform.  As with its rivals, it was introduced head-on with the Mercury Cougar of Ford.  The engines powering the Firebird from the start and for almost all of its existence until its last year in 2002 were V8 engines.  First, Pontiac engines powered it up to 1982 when GM engines were used.  Since its last appearance in 2002, no efforts have been made to revive the line.  The possibility of a Firebird revival has further been made very unlikely by the discontinuation of the Pontiac brand after 2010.  This is despite the news that the Chevrolet Camaro will make a comeback for the 2010 model year.  

The 1st generation of Firebirds was available from 1967 until 1969 and was assembled in Pontiac facilities in Van Nuys, California and Norwood, Ohio.  It was available in 2-door coupes and convertibles.  In 1969, a Trans-Am package for the Firebird was introduced, which only furthered the popularity of the ar.  A Trans-Am package featured upgraded suspension, handling, and hp.  Cultured differences with the Trans-Am package include mist lights, wheels, hoods, and spoilers.  The second generation of Firebirds and Trans-Ams from 1970 to 1981 was in charge of cementing the brand in American popular culture.  The 2-door convertible was dropped.  The second generation car was seen in the films Smokey and the Bandit, Hooper and Smokey and the Bandit II.  The third generation, which was available from 1982 until 1992, was featured in the movies Alphabet City and Smokey and the Bandit Part three.  The television show Knight Rider featured a talking automobile, KITT, which was actually a changed Trans-am of the 3rd generation.  Unfortunately, declining sales made General Motors abandon the brand, with the Pontiac GTO replacing it.

For more reviews about sports cars, visit thesupercars.org and while you are at it, you might also want to have a look at ball joint for Pontiac Firebird.

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Those among us lucky enough to be around in the 70s when this fantastic automobile came out drool whenever we consider it.  Imagine getting a vehicle from the factory with a 455 cubic inch engine in it!This car kicked butt!  Then if you probably did some work, like we did to ours, as in having the engine blue outlined, balanced and a ton more, it did even better.  Let’s just say it was doing much better then one hp per cubic inch!

This was the era of Smokey and the Bandit movies.  Good ole boy Burt Reynolds drove a black Trans Am in the film and everybody and his uncle all of a sudden wanted one.  Naturally, by that time the ones they were selling were watered down versions with no where close to the power of the first ones. 

Since we’re not sure of the statute of restrictions, let’s just say that any stories are thought to start’Once upon A Time’. 

One of our fave stories is when we were getting onto sunrise road late one evening and a Camaro rolled up next to us and started revving his engine, well you can imagine the rest.Here was a poor soul who had not a clue of what was in store.  Since we don’t believe in street racing, it definitely was a good thing we were both going onto the entrance ramp.  Once we were satisfied that no one was on the parkway at that point of night, we let the Beast Out To Play.  We never did see any more then his fading headlights.

One of the funniest moments was when we lived in upstate NY and my husband went to the store to pick something up and this man in a Mustang 2 pulled up next to him and my man had a good time ( hey, we are all titled sometimes ).  As Chuck tells it : You see at that point a local car dealer was running a television spot featuring a Mustang 2 just destroying a Trans Am.  So this gentleman pulls up next to me, gunning his engine for all he’s's worth.  The light changes, he chirps his tires and flashes me an enormous grin as he’s taking off.  Well, I idle away from the light,give it sufficient gas in first to tug even with him, then drop the hammer, lighting up both tires, throw second, light them up again and then ease off.  Drive down the line to the store.

When I come out of the store this man has finally got there and is waiting for me and says,’but the commercial claims Mustangs will beat the pants off the Trans Am.’ I extraordinarily blithely responded,’Not this Trans Am!’

They don’t make them like this anymore.  It’s downcast when you concentrate on it!  Those of us who lived and grew up in the age of the muscle cars, street rods, Sat. night cruise nights were very,very lucky.  I feel sorry for the youth of today that they missed out on all of this. 

So what has happened to that great 455 Trans Am, sadly the oppressive upstate NY winters are not kind to automobiles and rust took the Trans Am from us.  However, we probably did replace it – with a customised 1973 Vette, which we drove cross country to California, but that is a full nother story!

Do you know which cars are super fast and are among the fastest cars in the world? Visit thesupercars.org to view all the fast and exotic cars. Also take a look at Pontiac Trans Am auctions.

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Being raised in Detroit, the motor city, I got to see lots of classic cars for sale.  Folks would drive around in Trans Ams, Firebirds, Mustangs, and all those other Yank muscle automobiles.  The issue was that in the winter, Michigan uses many tons of salt to resolve its ice issues.  This corrodes the cars, making them rust prematurely.  The one model that I gained the most respect for was the auto that never seemed to age the perpetually youthful Corvette.  Equipped with a fiberglass body, even 1962 Corvettes for sale seemed to be in tip-top condition. 

From the time I was a teen, it was my dream to have a Corvette for sale.  One of my mates was very into Trans Am’s, except for me that wasn’t where it was at.  Corvettes were my favourite.  They combined the grunt of the American muscle cars with an exotic, sporty appearance.  Although the most recent Corvettes were awesome, the old ones are my fave.  I was not a huge fan of used cars for sale in general, but old Corvettes, with their exaggerated sensual curves, were dream machines to me. 

Nevertheless, I did not have plenty of money.  New vehicles For sale were out of the issue of course.  Even most classic Corvettes , however , were beyond my.  I had to get a cheap used car, or I wouldn’t have any auto.  I kept away from the lots that specialised in Corvettes for sale.  The majority of those were visited by connoisseurs, and that drove the price up.  Instead, I went to some local used auto lots till I found it : a work over but drivable 1973 Corvette.  I knew that it was not in good shape, and that it would take lots of work, but I was still thrilled when I found it.  In fact , there weren’t many Corvettes for sale within my price range. 

One of the things that you have got to realize when you buy Corvettes for sale is the body nearly always looks better than what’s going on within.  That isn’t to assert Corvette don’t ware well they do.  The problem is simply that, barring a heavy crash, a fiberglass Corvette body will last forever.  If you actually wish to know if the car is in fine condition, you have got to get under the hood.  When I did, I was decidedly sad.  It really required a large amount of work.  Nonetheless, I knew some folks with expertise in automobiles to show me everything I wanted to know.  I took it to shop class, and worked on it after school.  Soon, I had one of the meanest machines on the road.

The Bikes, Cars & Boats Blog has loads of articles on assorted vehicles of all shapes and sizes including of course the Chevrolet Corvette.

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