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Yes, this one is getting a fresh 350 as soon as this rain passes this week I will be hauling over to my friends shop. Pretty much stock L98 rebuild im going to be running an upgraded TBI system.
Just picked up this mostly / all original beauty in Indianapolis, IN. It's my birthday present to myself (happy 52). Found it here in the Firebirds for Sale forum, called the owner, talked to him for a good while and told him to consider it sold. Had to wait until Cindy was through teaching summer school before we could head up to Indianapolis to pick it up. When I saw it parked under the garage, I was amazed at how good of a condition it was in. Real survivor. She's one of 277 built back in 1990, LB9 with 5 speed stick, dual cat, engine oil cooler, four wheel disc, 3.45 geared posi rear and T-tops. She's got every option and only had 88k miles on her, barely a thousand put on with the last owner over the last several years. AC is old Freon, empty, and hasn't been changed over yet to R134A which is why the trip back was done with the T-tops off and the windows down.
She's got some kind of aftermarket cat-back on her that sounds good and is hella loud. Indiana has the worst effing roads I've ever driven on ... the roads literally scream! While I was in Indiana I had to drive with the T-tops off, windows down, and 32db reducing foam ear plugs just to keep my sanity. The scream of the roads under the super fat and wide BF Goodrich tires and the 120db aftermarket exhaust was sanity robbing without ear plugs but I loved every minute of it. This car hauls ***, easily faster than my '86 TA but then I guess four years and 30 to 40 factory horses more combined with a stick and lower gears in the pumpkin out back it had better be. Man, this is a hella fun car to drive and it's going to look good in my garage parked next to my '86 black and gold Recaro TA.
All original survivor except for ...
The BAD
Driver's side window and rear window are tinted, amateur work, peeling, and so dark that I can only describe it as black onyx opaque in color. Can barely see out of it during the day, impossible to at night. That's getting removed this long holiday weekend. Passenger side window? Not tinted at all.
Window wipers don't work. The motor spins and the wipers kind of move up and down a little like they're getting bumped every now and then by something. Going to crack open a shop manual and see how the wipers are connected. I'm thinking some nut came off and the wipers are no longer firmly connected to the motor but it could be something else. Another project for this weekend.
There's a red / white / blue badly peeling "NO FEAR" decal on the rear upper window. It was fun to drive this m u l l e t mobile through five states with that blaring out its youthful arrogance but now that the Formula is home, that high school BS has got to go and with a quickness.
It's got some weird hybrid fusion Optimus / Kraco aftermarket stereo and lots of rewiring / splicing under the driver's side dash. I'm pretty sure that Kraco is on the very low end of stereo offerings and Optimus strikes me as an old Radio Shack brand so the hardware is cheap at best. There's a big subwoofer filled box in the cargo pit that has GOT to go. None of it works. The previous previous owner had this s#@t installed (probably did it their selves by the look of things) and someone broke into the car and stole some kind of amp / pre-amp and now nothing works. Didn't matter ... couldn't have heard much over the exhaust and screaming roads anyway. The good is that the seller included the original factory radio which was the high end AM/FM Stereo cassette model. That will be going back in as soon as I tear all the clown stuff out.
AC is original Freon based Harrison unit. Long bled out. No AC on the trip home made for some high speed 90mph natural AC through the windows and T-tops. People north of the Mason-Dixon line drive like idiots and maniacs, which I guess is why every other billboard you see on the road is some law firm telling you to call them if you're ever involved in an accident. Saw plenty of accidents on the way up and back. Lawyers must be rolling in the bux.
Some kind of grinding on the right rear disc brake. Doesn't happen when driving, only when braking. Probably need a brake job, if so, I'll go ahead and replace discs as well while I'm at it.
Car has had very limited use ... so, all fluids are going to need to be drained and replaced, all filters, etc. Basic stuff. The stuff we all enjoy doing.
Center console has a rip in it, about an inch and a half long. Otherwise seems intact. I may have a spare center console lid ... if not, I can get either a cover or a replacement off Ebay. No biggie.
Rear bumper will need repainting, clearcoat is coming off. Spot on roof has surface rust and paint rub, nothing even remotely serious. One slight rub / dent on rear driver's quarter panel. Some of the square-dot-fade decal that breaks up the black to silver paint scheme is scratched off. One side bird has lost everything above its head, the orange stripe is broken in several areas, the rear Formula decal has been beaten to hell, and the plastic "PONTIAC" emblem is missing from the driver's headlight. The underhood insulation mat is good, not great, ragged in some places. I'll replace that as well.
I think the synchros in the 5 speed are worn. Everything works fine and nothing falls out of gear even flat to the floor or power shifting, but if you want to shift into 1st or reverse from a dead stop, you have to first shift down into second then up into first or over into reverse ... otherwise you get that cringe-worthy "grrrrrrnnnnkkkk". If you do the shift trick, no problem as all. If you don't do the shift trick, everyone in the parking lot turns to look at you.
The GOOD
All original survivor! Short of the electrical clown work and aftermarket radio / amp / sub stuff, this car hasn't been hacked or beat to pieces by a bunch of ignorant kids who have seen "Fast and Furious" more times than they've ever watched the Barret Jackson auctions.
Mint interior with just some TLC needed. Door handles have "spread" top and bottom so I'm going to pull them and reglue them. If that doesn't hold, Ebay. Driver's side cup holder I think is broken at the front bolt hole, or it might just need to be retightened or a washer added if its pulled out. Need the small Firebird emblem on one side of the inside door handle and the bolt cover on one of the inside door drink holders. Ebay safari.
Body and paint are really good. Not perfect, will require some paint work and new stripes / decals but it's got only one small spot of surface rust (roof) and it's not a rattle trap rust bucket. It rides decent too ... like it's all still tight. That's rare in a used third-gen. I'll probably go with aftermarket shocks, struts, springs and frame connectors before any paint and bodywork but that's just to make this car even more stable.
Interior is MINT. Dash is perfect. Gauges all work. Vent works. No wear and tear, no faded seats, etc.
Headliner is mostly intact. The parts that flapped in the wind I think I can just glue back down with some 3M spray.
Tires are all almost brand new.
Glass is all good.
Rear wing is fiberglass ... previous owner replaced the cancer-eaten rusted out factory wing. Good!
Car handles like it was on rails!
Car rides well, it's a WS6 car so big bumps still rattle you and your fillings but on relatively smooth roads it glides.
Engine turns 3000 rpm at 90mph and purrs under the hood. Drove the car back over 900 miles one way and it never let me down. Would have been really nice to have AC on the way back but if you're not prepared to bust knuckles, cuss, bleed and sweat on one of these cars, you don't deserve to own it.
All in all, it's an American classic ... it guzzles high octane and farts Freedom!
I'm happy. Like I said, it's a very rare car, 1 of 277 made with the LB9 / 5 speed and T-tops. With the color scheme, I'd guess it's one of maybe 15 made with this color, interior and options ... just doing some rough statistics based on production numbers I've been able to find.
I'll be posting a complete go-through / checkout of the car on my website at goingfaster.com in the short future.
Last edited by Black Echo; 06-30-2021 at 08:50 PM.
Very nice Chris. I may be letting go of my black crosslace wheels soon as I get the new set on and if you need any more parts let me know I have a stash going. Hope to see you at July 3rd show downtown!
I’m not usually a fan of the silver/gray lowers but that one I do like.
I dunno how orig you want to keep it but if your ok with “some” retro, pop a 4th gen console in that dude. I personally liked the 93-97 version as it settled with the rest of the third gen look the best.
10-28-2020, 08:37 AM
