Here's a photo of my car during the summer of '98, in High Level, at the Roadside Turnout, or Roadside Burnout as we call it.  I was just up to no good at all that day. *evil Calvin grin*  It's an '83 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, with beige interior and Black and Gold exterior.  It is seen in this picture as it looked for most of its life.

    I bought the car in late 1997, from someone in High Level for the small sum of $475.00 one afternoon.  I had seen the car parked for ages, but never had the nerve to ask what the owner's plans were for the car.  Then early one morning, I was driving cab and had a call to pick up at the very house where the car was parked.  Upon further inspection, it was determined that the car had been parked for a considerable amount of time.

    When I got the car home, it immediately needed new front brakes, a fuel pump, fuel filter and air filter.  After replacing all the plugs, wired, distributor rotor and cap, the car ran much better.  The suspension needed attention next, as it had the smaller sway bars and lower rate springs found in lesser Firebirds.  I found and installed front & rear sway bars from an '84 T/A, and replaced the gummy bushings and links with stiffer polyurethane ones from MOOG Chassis Components.  The car's then exhibited much more stability and less body roll, but the springs were still softer than they had to be.  Edelbrock then provided a higher rate, shorter spring designed especially for the third generation F-body.  After replacing the springs and sway bars the car handled a lot better than any F-body from those years.  There are still a lot of things that need to be done to the suspension of this car, but for now, it handles better than the cars produced with the 'Performance Suspension'

    The transmission was replaced during the summer of '99.  It came from the factory with the miserable THC-200 3-speed automatic.  When the car was purchased, the reverse gear never worked, and never did fully, even to the day it was removed in favor of a much better THM-350, or Turbo 350 as it is more popularly known.  The installation was done by David T's Firebird Club of Edmonton, Alberta.  I recommend this conversion to anyone who is considering changing the transmission in their car.

    The engine is the standard LG4 option 305 V-8.  It has never been apart as far as I know, so it should only have a mild camshaft, and 8.0:1 compression.  It has a 4 barrel Rochester Quadrajet carburetor, and a trick factory air induction which draws cooler, denser air through a scoop in the hood.  It has a solenoid that opens the induction when the engine is under full load.  It just looks groovy.

    Future plans for the car include '84 Aluminum wheels from the same T/A that donated the sway bars.  235-60 R15 Dunlop D-60 radials for tires, and a set of weld-in subframe connectors, to reduce chassis flex.

    For more information and continuous updates, check back here often!

    --Chase