The day of the Trans-Am is upon us. We just sold a 1974 Pontiac Trans-Am SD 455 for $162,500.00. This comes on the heels of the 1970 ° Trans-Am Ram Air IV we sold for $285,000.00. Think the marketâ™s down? Think again! NOW is the time to grab up Trans-Ams while the prices are still within reach. NOW is the right time for this particular Trans-Am. So, letâ™s go back in time. It's 1973 and you're on the hunt for a hot pony car. Stop off at Chevy and they'll sell you a 350 powered Camaro. Drop by Dodge or Plymouth and they'll be happy to sell you a Challenger or 'Cuda with a 360 in it. Yikes! Head out to Ford and Mustangs are all over the place with 351's. Last stop, last hope: Pontiac. A Trans Am with a real live 455 in it? Standard??? Yes, please! Make mine Cameo White over black like this beauty here and shove the paperwork and a pen my direction! Ordered new by C.V. Swofford through his salesman Reid Nations, Hereâ™s how the packet from PHS lays out the car: A01 Soft-Ray glass, all windows $37 B32 Front floor mats $7 B33 Front floor mats $6 B80 Roof drip rail moldings $15 B85 Window sill and hood rear edge moldings $21 B93 Door edge guards $6 C60 Air conditioning-custom $397 D55 Center console $57 K65 Unitized (HEI) ignition system $77 UA1 Heavy duty battery $10 U58 AM/FM stereo radio $233 Y32 Rear bumper guards $15 -WS4 Delete functional ram air $-27 Y90 Custom trim group, black $77 Y92 Lamp group $10 The car arrived at Boomershine Pontiac in Atlanta wearing a sticker price of $5,270.75â'still mighty expensive for 1973! According to the ORIGINAL order sheet, C.V. (yes, all of the paperwork uses C.V.) left a $100 deposit with Reid on March 5th, 1973, and awaited the car's arrival. Built and invoiced on may 31st, the car arrived at Boomershine on June 5th, where it was prepped and assigned stock number 3772. C.W. picked the car up THAT DAYâ'you would have, too! We have his warranty card filled out in his name, the original manual jacket from Boomershine with his name and the dealer's information, the original and very nice operating and safety books as well as the original safety, emission and maintenance schedule brochures. Speaking of emissions, a tech bulletin regarding the midyear changes done in response to the infamous "53 second" EGR valve that was supposed to legalize the Super Duty in the fall of '72! C.W. sold the car in July of '77 to also-warm Denison, Texas with a mere 32,100 miles on the clock. That owner kept the car until June of '04, slowly rolling the mileage up to 51,840 and parking the car in June of '90. Owner #3 took the car to pleasant Traverse City, MI, where the car was returned to roadworthy condition, putting around 1800 miles on the car before selling the car our way in August of last year. The car was repainted this winter, was cosmetically dressed up without hurting its originality and brought completely up to date. Three owners, one level of care: This was a lucky 'bird! Best of all for you, we have copies of the titles showing this unbroken chainâ'that's harder to find than a clean T/A! That new Cameo White paint coats the outside, set off by honeycomb wheels and subtle (by Trans Am standards) decal package, complete with the small screaming chicken on the header panel. Bright work is heavy for the model with the window reveal moldings, headlight trim rings, door handles, hood edge, sill and belt moldings. The taillights are clean and clear, as are the Firebird cloisonné badges on the sail and header panels. The original flexible urethane bumper covers are nice and straight, a result of the carâ™s years of care and proper storage. The shaker hood scoop poking through the top retains the rounded shape of the 70-72 models but has a block off plate instead of the vacuum actuated door. Pop the hood and find the L75 455 HO engine in its natural environment. Oddly, Ram Air was not allowed on this motor, but was standard on the 400 in the Formula and the 455SD in the Trans Amâ'how's that for product planning? Thereâ™s a new battery, a fresh tune up, new belts and hoses, fluids and anything else youâ™d change to make the car a reliable driving companion. Front and center is the massive shaker assembly, and all hardware that should be there, is there. Firing to life with no drama, the car runs out well, sounds great and is ready to fly! Underneath, youâ™ll again find what you want to seeâ'a super solid, mostly untouched undercarriage. Thereâ™s a new dual exhaust system with throaty Flowmaster mufflers, the original transmission and 3.42 geared axle bolted to super clean southern sheet metal. Is there room for detailing? Sure, but aren't you glad to see what's there without thick undercoating or funny paint? Besidesâ'you can drive the car without worry! Trans Am spec sway bars, shocks and fat polycast â honeycombâ wheels wrapped in 225/70/15 Goodyear Eagle GT II radials keep the car on track in the twisties, just as youâ™d expect from GMâ™s â excitement division!â Thereâ™s a ton to like about the interior. The seats, headliner, and most other trim are all original and in excellent shape, while the carpeting, door sill moldings and various small parts are high quality reproductions. The steering wheel and shifter are original and in excellent shape, as well. Even the glass is nice! Hereâ™s the baddest pony car of the OPEC years, wearing superb new paint outside and clean original upholstery inside! The heart of a giant resides under the hood, the suspension of a thoroughbred underneath, and it hits the collector trifectaâ'low production, low miles and desirability!
