So the original ad copy reads for the introduction of the 1969 1/2 Trans Am, which was to be the beginning of a 30 year legacy. Back when the Chisholm Trail was considered an expressway, you needed 335 horses to haul the mail. (torque 430 3600).Ĥ) L-67 Ram Air II rated 3 rpm.ġ969 Trans Am - The Beginning of the T/A legend. This tuning matched the performance of the exact same engine combination that was available in, the then 'top-dog' of Pontiac, the GTO Ram Air which was rated 360 bhp in '67.ġ968 saw the choices expand to four 400 cid engines for the Firebird.ġ) W-66 Base 400 rated 3 rpm.Ģ) L-74 400 - HO rated 3 rpm. Tuners such as Royal Pontiac were able to quickly rectify the handicap. Throttle restrictors prevented the '67 Firebird Ram Air 4 barrel secondaries from fully opening Wide Open Throttle. It was rated 285 bhp, equipped with a Quadrajet, dual exhausts, heavy duty suspension and special 'H-O' body striping replaced by the Pontiac L-76 350 HO rated 320 bhp in '68.ĥ) Firebird 400 was Firebird's 'king of the hill' for '67 with the 400 cid rate of 325 bhp in both Base & Ram Air versions. Pontiac's longtime marketing representative, Jim Wangers of MacManus, John & Adams ad agency credit's Ron Monchak, then creative director of M, J & A, with coming up with "The Magnificent Five" marketing idea.įrom the start, Pontiac infused excitement into the 19 Firebird model line with the availability of 5 specific Firebird models that Pontiac referred to as "The Magnificent Five".ġ) Base Firebird with 165 brake horse power (bhp) Overhead Cam in-line 6 & manual 3 speed "on the tree" transmission Rated 215 bhp for '68.Ģ) Firebird Sprint with the high performance 230 cubic inch displacement (cid) version of the Overhead Cam in-line 6, was rated 215 bhp, equipped with a Quadrajet and floor mounted manual 3 speed Known as W-53 rated 215 bhp in '68.ģ) Firebird 326 was Pontiac's standard model equipped with a 2 barrel 326 cid V8, rated 250 bhp & manual 3 speed "on the tree" transmission replaced by the Pontiac L-30 350 rated 265 bhp in '68.Ĥ) Firebird HO was the high-output version of the 326 V8. Both were in the same price range as the Firebird. the Firebird being marketed as a 5 level performance image pony car. Mercury's Cougar was marketed as a luxury car vs. 134 days after Camaro, and 133 days after Mercurys' new Cougar. And that is how "Firebird One!" came to first arrive in dealer show rooms on February 23, 1967. They added Pontiac's own engine & drive trains, hood, tail panel, side marker lights, and a one piece solid chrome combination bumper & grill "Bird Beak". Required to retain the Camaro front fenders and doors, the Pontiac design and engineering staff, headed by John DeLorean, transformed the F-body platform into a bonafide Pontiac. Pontiac started the F-body program in March of 1966, forced by GM management to use the 60 day from production Camaro engineering. Using the same floor pan, cowl & sub frame as the Camaro and Chevy II, the first Firebirds were known as '67 1/2's having been introduced late in the model year. This was the start of what was to became the now celebrated 35 year success story of the Firebird & Trans Am, selling over two million units from 1967 to 1981.Īlso on the option list was, in Pontiac's never ending search to develop cutting edge design and marketing, the unique and radical for it's time Over-Head Cam in-line 6, 230 & 250 cubic inch engines offered in both economy and performance versions. Included on the first option list was the venerable Pontiac V8 engine family that touted performance including multiple 326, 350, & 400 cubic inch versions. 1967 - 1968 - 1969 Pontiac Firebird History and Information
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