1979 Pontiac Trans Am 10th Tenth Anniversary 400 4 speed

1979 Pontiac Trans Am Additional Info:

Up for your bid is a nice 1979 Pontiac Trans am 10th Anniversary Edition with the rare Pontiac 400/4 speed project car. It runs and drives good but needs much work and needs to be restored. Clear Texas Title in my name and also have most of Build Sheet from behind the rear seat. Located in Central Texas about 30 miles south of Austin Texas. Bidding starts at $7000 But it Now is $9500.
Hate to let this one go - but it is time. I have tried to do some work on it over the years but mostly it just sits and sits. I have gotten older and have decided to get rid of the extra stuff I have. Please do your research on the value and production numbers of these cars. This model is one of the most desirable and collect-able model Trans ams. This one is a fairly original and not all modified nor hacked-up. It is a real correct VIN matching block Pontiac motored 400 / 4 speed car loaded with 4 wheel disc brakes and WS-6 suspension. Has correct factory mirror T-tops. Odometer shows 96k miles but I have no idea is that is correct or accurate. I have owned this car for about 8-10 years now. I will try to go into full detail of everything I know or what I can remember about the car below.
DrivetrainI was told this was the original drivetrain in the car and was numbers matching. I was also told the motor and transmission were both rebuilt. I have no proof or documentation to verify any rebuilding work. My best guess after doing some investigating is that the motor was probably rebuilt. I am no expert but I do see that the engine is indeed a 1979 Pontiac 400 correct coded PWH stamped block and the VIN number is on the engine block and it matches the VIN of the car. The heads are stamped 6X and everything seems and appears close to correct for this year model. The transmission is indeed a Super T10 Borg Warner transmission. Rear end diff is correct and a disc brake posi. The main mods I do see done to the car are basically all emissions have been removed. I see it has true dual exhaust (no cat converter), no EGR valve on the intake but it was just removed and blocked off, and no Carbon Canister and the hood scoop has been cut open to be functional. Exhaust appears to be the correct type stock exhaust manifolds, chrome exhaust tips and EGR style intake, quadrajet carb and brackets. Engine is a bit cold starting. Probably needs the carb rebuilt and adjusted properly. Starts up good and runs good and sounds good but takes a few minutes before it will idle on it's own. Seems like the camshaft is somewhat more "lumpy" or aggressive than stock. I would say it compares to a base 068 Ram Air III cam or Summit 2801 in idle quality. Engine does not smoke or knock. Does seem to have a lifter tick or rocker noise at idle. Don't believe anything drips or leaks. Hurst Shifter appears to be correct type and original and works good. Shifter knob is original style but is a reproduction. Transmission shifts good and thru all the gears. I have replaced the clutch recently. AC components, brackets and pieces are all there in place and mostly original and correct and hooked up.....but it has one line connection open...so I know it has no freon or pressure in the system and does not work in it's current state.
BodyOf course the car needs paint and most all decals. Car does have some rust issues but not horrible. Still very restorable. Worst place is the typical rear lower tail panel under the rear of the car. The lower portion is very rotted and needs to be cut out and/or replaced. Luckily they finally now make reproduction tail panels now for about $300. Car floor is mostly good and solid. It had almost no carpet when I bought it so I could easily see the floors condition. Most of the floor pans are excellent and super solid except the passenger rear side. There seems to be a patch there already so I just covered it with paint to protect it as well. Worst case you may want to cut and repair that floor pan section but the rest is fine.I painted the entire inner floor pans with a rust-proof paint. Rear frame rails look good above and forward of the tires. Rear of the frame rails has surface rust and a bit crusty near the very rear of the tail. Under the car - I do not see and holes or rot other than the lower tail panel. Hood is original and was professionally sanded and primed. It has some minor defects and minor surface rust - but over all fair and very solid and restorable. Has one small inner support brace near the front with a rust hole about 1/4" by 1". Passenger fender was professionally sanded and primed and is in excellent condition. It has a small dent - very minor damage and has some surface rust. Drivers fender is very straight but has some minor rot starting at the bottom. Worst case you may need a lower patch panel repair. Doors both seem fair with some edges rust and outer rust spots and dings but no bad damage. Doors close excellent and have great alignment. One outer door handle is broken but I have a replacement part. Rear quarters both have rust near the rear of the door bottoms and one quarter has some rot at the lower rear. I do believe there is some bondo on the lower driver's rear quarter but I do not notice it much anywhere else on the car. Quarters may need some patching but I do not believe you need to replace whole quarters. Body door inner edge openings, and rockers have no rot or rust. Trunk floor is solid with no rot. Trunk lid has rust and minor rot on the inner corners. Trunk spring area is not rotted nor rusty. Urethane flares, nose and rear bumper are fair. They have some minor chips, small chunks missing and age/heat warping and dry but not too bad. Bought new grills for the nose. Some bezels, misc parts, extra parts and trim removed and are in the trunk. Hood scoop was drilled open with big ugly hideous round holes when I bought the car. I cut it out to be more factory looking and improved flow. Tail lights are fair and not too bad. I added a 1981 "bird" rear gas center section but have the original one coming with the car. T-Tops are factory original mirror type. I cannot honestly say I have never seen them leak...but the car has mostly been under a car port or a car cover since I have owned it.
GlassSide door glasses and rear glass are fine. Power windows currently do not work. Have not done too much to check them out. Front windshield is cracked badly and needs to be replaced. My guess is - looks like someone had unbolted the hood and it slipped and probably broke the windshield by both corners of the rear of the hood.
Suspension and BrakesEverything pretty much factory stock and unmodified. Car has 4 wheel disc brakes, posi 3.23 gears (I believe) and WS-6 handling suspension package. Car had air shocks in the rear and I replaced them with some new gas shocks. One rear brake caliper locked up and I installed replacement parts. Currently, the car has regular brakes but they do not work too good at all. I rate them about only 5-10% working only. Emergency brake does not work - it needs at least one cable, hardware attached and some additional work. Wheels are correct type WS-6 Turbo Wheels. Tires look okay but they are old, cracked and dry rotted and should not be driven far except maybe onto a trailer. Tires hold air but too dangerous to drive on. Brakes currently are too sketchy to drive with currently.
InteriorDash is not cracked and in pretty doggone good condition. It is very slightly wavy on top but pretty good for a 37 year old car. Console is fair and not too bad. Steering wheel had the leather cover worn and loose and coming all apart - so I removed it. The main padding under under the wrap is gray and doesn't really look too bad. I do have the original material for someone to make a upholstery pattern to replace it. Door panels are wavy and warped. Drivers side is poor on the lower section and the worst and passenger side isn't nearly as bad. Need replacements. Seats were very, very dry and splitting and cracking. I treated them with some leather conditioner and they are much better than they were. Drivers seat bottom is very worn and tattered. The seats look pretty good on the upper portions but they all need to be replaced with new upholstery. Headliner is bad and needs replacement. Some of the plastics and trim are not so good and heat dried out and warped. Carpet was mostly gone when I bought the car. I painted the floor with some rust preventative paint.. I put in regular Trans Am silver/gray short height carpet. It is not the correct shag style that these 10th Anniversarys had.....I just did not personally like that shag kind - so I installed the short height stuff. Has the correct factory red lit radio...and it works. No power antenna - it was missing. Car still has the mesh mesh rear speaker deck. These are often hacked up and modified or missing but this one isn't.
ElectricalNot too much hooked up or working electrically. Nothing really missing or hacked up. Car ignition switch works and starts and runs fine. The tail lights do work as do some of the dash gauges and the radio. The head lights do not work. Power windows do not work. I have not done much at all to check out the wires, fuses and hookups. It may need some major troubleshooting to trace down each component to find out what is wrong. Hopefully it's just a big connector not making good contact or bad or missing grounds or fuses.
New Parts/work doneNew alternatorNew front grillsNew transmission clutchNew starterOil and filter changedNew rear brake caliperNew outer door handle
Please realize this is a 37 year old car in need of much work and restoration. It is far from perfect. As you can tell its a heck of a big project and it needs to be fully restored. Good news is it is fairly original and runs and drives good. It is a very collectable, valuable and a desirable rare Trans am - worth restoring. Please try to arrange to view the car and check it out before bidding. I want a happy buyer that know what he/she is getting into. Personally I think it's a great rare unique car to own. Very valuable when restored. Car cannot be driven home due to poor brake and tire issues and issues with the electric stuff. Car must be trailed or towed. Once paid for I can hold up to 30 days max. I will try to assist with the loading of the car and help if a auto transport company arrives. Located in Texas about 30 miles south of Austin.
Due to problems in the past I have to point out the rules:Starting Price $7000 is firm and non-negotable. I will not lower it.Full payment due within 10 days no exceptions.Once paid foryou can have up to 30 days to pickup.Car does not leave my possession until full payment is made or funds are verified in my accountI do not accept payment plans or accept payment delays and sad long storiesI do not want any nor accept trades of any typePoor and limited Feedback bidders will get rejected and blockedI ignore ridiculous questions and block annoying, disrespectful and non serious peopleI only accept cash, Paypal and wire transfers. I will not accept any personal checks.No, I do not have any other cars or parts for sale