The Morning Call and Mcall.com's view

The Pontiac Trans Am hasn’t been around forever but at times it certainly seems that way. Here is a car that was introduced in those halcyon days of 1969 when factory performance cars roamed the land and seldom was heard a discouraging word about such mundane matters as pollution controls, mandated fuel mileage, big increases in gasoline prices and low octane unleaded.

Now 16 years may not be a long time in, say, the life of a giant redwood, but it certainly is quite a stretch for any car model to be retained. And especially a car model that happened to be a muscle car during the 1970s when every force was working against it. Disappearing in rapid order were the fauna cars – Road Runner, ‘Cuda, Cobra – and the initial cars – GTO, AMX, SS, GTX. But somehow the Trans AM survived. And while it wasn’t exactly thriving during the late ’70s and early ’80s, it was at least alive and awaiting the day when performance was once more appreciated.

To make a short story even shorter, that day arrived and all manufacturers are back in the performance fold to one degree or another. Today, there are performance sedans, performance sports cars, performance four-wheelers and even performance economy cars. Many are front-wheel drive and most are powered by turbocharged four bangers or V-6s. Although the Trans AM is a much more sophisticated car than it had been, it still retains the basics of the classic performance car – it has a V-8 rumbling under that louvered hood and power is transmitted to a rear axle. And it still has a certain mean look about it.

The test car – supplied by Knopf Automotive, 3401 Lehigh St., Allentown was not your small bucks base model. The graceful yet masculine Trans Am styling was even further highlighted by silver metallic paint, tinted T-roof panels, fascia extensions all around, rear deck spoiler and turbo-finned cast aluminum wheels. In a word, a knockout.

Pontiac doesn’t refer to the Trans Am as a sports car but it is more sports car than many of the sports cars offered today. It can perform and it can handle. And it does both with such ease that you might not notice at first just how fast and just how responsive it is. But you better learn fast because Big Brother will be watching you. Although beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, the Trans Am is in the eye of the fuzz. And this is one of its big drawbacks: It looks too distinctive, too mean and too fast for its own good. So, drive softly and carry a big radar detector.

The Trans Am has a wheelbase of 101 inches, length of 191.8 inches, width of 72.4 inches, height of 49.7 inches and curb weight of 3,212 pounds. This makes it large for a sports car, but keep in mind it is smaller than some of the older Corvettes. That is, except in the interior. The TransAm does have a roomy interior – for this type of car. The two front seats should even be able to accommodate Hulk Hogan and Sgt. Slau ghter in comfort. It is typical low- down and stretch-out sports car seating. There are two rear seats, which should be mentioned. They are perfectly suitable for small children but you would probably need the services of the above-mentioned gentlemen to force adults to climb back there. But the Trans Am is a hatchback and the seats can be folded down to provide extra cargo room. The cargo area is rated at 11.6 cubic feet with the seats in place. This isn’t a whole lot of room but it does include two lock-up storage bins. With the seats folded, cargo volume is increased to 31 cubic feet, which is excellent for any size car.

This year’s Trans Am is almost identical to the ’84 model. There is a new hood with louvers and extractors that replaces last year’s domed asymmetrical hood. But the big change is that there is a new optional engine offered under the new hood. And this is the engine powering the test car. It is a multi-port fuel-injected 305 cubic inch (5. liter) V-8 that produces 205 horsepower at 4,400 rpm and 270 foot pounds torque at 3,200 rpm. This certainly should be enough power to run to the grocery store for a half-gallon of ice cream and return home before it melts – even if the grocery store’s in Hazleton and you live in Leather Corner Post.

Multi-port fuel-injection simply means that each intake port has its own injector. The big advantage of this type of fuel distribution system is that it burns fuel more cleanly and thus can meet emission standards. It also can mean a smoother running engine, better fuel mileage and more power. These are certainly worthwhile features for any car but more so in a performance machine.

The test car, not surprisingly, was quite a runner. Acceleration, passing power and highway cruising were all very impressive. The Trans Am can go from zero to 60 mph in a little more than eight seconds – and this is with a four- speed automatic transmission, the only transmission available with this engine. Fourth gear is an overdrive gear which means that the V-8 is just loafing along at highway speeds. All of this, of course, means that if you don’t put the pedal to the metal too frequently, fuel mileage won’t be all that bad. The test car averaged 14 mpg for city driving, a shade over 20 mpg on the highway. The engine’s 9.5:1 compression ratio does require unleaded premium.

Two other engines are available in the Trans Am. The standard engine is a 305 V-8 with four-barrel carburetor that is rated at 160 horsepower at 4,400 rpm and 250 foot pounds torque at 3,200 rpm. The other optional engine is the HO version of the four-barrel 305 V-8 which produces 190 horsepower at 4,800 and 240 foot pounds torque at 3,200 rpm. Rather interestingly, the HO engine is only available with a five-speed manual transmission. The standard engine, however, can be ordered with either the five-speed manual or four-speed automatic. It gets curiouser and curiouser.

Handling, as mentioned, is quite impressive. Suspension features MacPherson struts up front, a live axle with a torque arm and track bar design in the rear and big stabilizer bars fore and aft. The standard tire is a big P215/65R15 but the test car had the optional and even bigger P235/ 60VR15. This is a lot of rubber on the road. The test car’s ride was very firm. In fact, it has one of the firmest rides of any car available this year. This really shouldn’t bother sports/performance buyers. After all, this is what you are paying for.

Base price for the Trans Am is $11,335. Standard equipment includes the 160 horsepower 305, five speed manual, power steering, power brakes, halogen headlamps, fog lamps, turbo aluminum wheels, rear deck spoiler, full gauges with tachometer, sport mirrors, reclining seats, AM radio and Trans Am trim. With a delivery charge of $414 and options totaling $5,480, the test car had a full price of $17,229. Some o f the higher priced options were: six-way power driver’s seat, $215; luxury trim group (upgraded cloth upholstery), $359; locking T-roof, $850; air conditioning, $730; four-wheel disc brakes (front disc/rear drum standard), $179; limited slip differential, $95; cruise control, $175; multi-port fuel-injected engine, $680; electronic tuned AM-FM stereo with cassette, equalizer, $519, and tilt-steering, $110. Keep in mind, the test car was a heavily loaded Trans Am. Most models will bear price tags somewhere between this one and the base model.