We’re Eastbound and Down, Loaded up for Truckin’
The Seventies… Coors Beer, high-waisted jeans and lumpy V8s. Sunshine and T-Tops. Giant flaming gold bird.
Pontiac were arguably the inventor of the muscle car with the 1964 GTO, and launched the first Firebird in 1967, with the high performance Trans-Am variant following in ‘69. They followed the impossible-to-fault philosophy of a massive, angry V8 in a mid-sized body.
The second generation debuted in 1970 with a more aerodynamic fastback body and a longer bonnet, with the iconic Pontiac split grille becoming wider and more integrated.
An instant hit with buyers, sales numbers steadily rose through the Seventies, with a massive uptick in 1977 thanks to Burt Reynolds and the iconic Smokey and the Bandit, though certainly not by the 700% that Burt himself claimed.
The ‘77 model year Firebird and Trans-Am introduced the iconic recessed quad headlight look, along with the Hurst Hatch removable tinted T-Tops seen on this example, and continued the tradition of being a sporty, capable-handling (by American standards) muscle car, with Radial-Tuned-Suspension (featuring the dash-mounted badge so familiar to Holden fans).
Incredibly, this car’s 6.6 Litre ‘High-Output’ V8 was actually downsized from the earlier 7.5 Litre ‘Super Duty’ but one of the reasons for the ‘77 and ‘78 cars’ enduring appeal is that Pontiac managed to avoid much of the strangling that increasing emissions regulations were causing across the industry. Starting this example now, it could certainly still be considered over-engined as it rocks on its suspension with the glorious “shaker hood” exposed intake moving from side to side. It sounds exactly like a V8 should, and has plenty of torque to overcome the rear tyres from a standstill.
In spite of absolutely no steering feel whatsoever, the handling isn’t terrible, and we have no doubt you could hustle it along a good road if you were sufficiently motivated, and brave enough. Comfortable seats and a delightful small and thin steering wheel - colour-coded in Gold, along with the turned aluminium dash - make for an evocative driving environment.
The Black and Gold Special Edition option pack looks stunning in Starlight black with extensive gold trim, including pin striping and the much loved “Screaming Chicken” hood decal, and 15 inch Gold-accented “Snowflake” alloy wheels.
With this example having benefitted from extensive restoration the paint is absolutely beautiful, with the deep black offset by the warm gold. Mechanically, it wants for nothing, and is ready for many years of burbling around. From the cabin you can appreciate the warm tint of the T-Tops or place them in their leather bag in the boot and enjoy open top cruising for four people.
If you have a Long way to go, and a short time to get there, you may consider our 1977 Pontiac Firebird Trans-Am, in black and gold of course, and remember: They won’t catch you, they’re too slow!
