1979 marked the tenth anniversary of the Trans Am package on the Pontiac Firebird, a vehicle that had loomed large in American lore and popular entertainment through the decade of the Seventies.
Pontiac commemorated the occasion with the Tenth Anniversary Trans Am, which was actually listed as a separate model with its own unique VIN prefix. (Firebird: S87, Esprit: T87, Formula: U87, Trans Am: W87, TATA: X87)
Only 7500 were built and the only option buyers had was a manual or automatic transmission. Manuals came with the Pontiac W72 400 cubic inch V-8 with an 8.1:1 compression ratio and rated at 220 SAE net horsepower.
The "6.6 Litre" badge on this one's hood scoop tells us that it's one of 5,683 with the automatic transmission and 185 horsepower L80 403 cid Oldsmobile Rocket V-8.
The homogenization of GM's engine lines was well underway by now: Your base Firebird buyers got Buick V-6's, Formulas and Trans Ams came with Olds engines, and buyers in California got saddled with a 2-barrel Chevy 305.
Incidentally, while the Trans Am had spent the Seventies as an atavistic Muscle Car Era throwback with a range of 455 and 400 cubic inch V-8 motors, 1979 would be the last year for that. Thanks to tightening regulations, the biggest motor under the hood of a 1980 T/A would be the aforementioned Californian 305.
The TATA got special two-tone Platinum paint with Charcoal accents, an extra large screaming chicken decal on the hood that sprawled clean across the fender tops, and those nifty "turbo" wheels (which would reappear later on actual turbo Trans Ams). The interior featured a full load of options and it was the first Trans Am to top the $10,000 dollar mark, with an MSRP of $10,620, the equivalent of about $46,000 in today's money.
Car and Driver tested a '79 Trans Am with the W72 400 motor and the WS6 handling package, and deleted the A/C, to boot, shaving a hundred pounds off the nose of their test car. They managed a 0-60 time of 6.7 seconds and a 15.3 second quarter mile at 96.6 miles per hour. Quick enough for its era, but still a shadow of its former self. The TATA in the photos... a couple hundred pounds heavier, its L80 down 35 horses to the W72, and saddled with a slushbox ...would have put up even less impressive numbers.
These photos were snapped in July of 2019 at the Indianapolis Hamfest using a Canon EOS M and EF-M 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS zoom lens.
I'm pretty sure my roommate's Lexus RX350, parked just out of frame, would demolish this Tenth Anniversary Trans Am in a drag race. I'm also pretty sure Trans Am Man could not possibly care less.
