hey everyone, im a newb here, i have a jeep and i am very familiar with this type of message board cause im on jeepforum.com and they are alot alike(not that you needed to know that)..anyway me and my buddy picked up an 85 trans am a few weeks agofor free. it has a 305(i believe, going off valve cover bolt pattern)with an edelbrock carb, it hasthe functional cowl, four wheel disc brakes, five speed manual and 17 inch centerlines with zr rated tires...i want to know everything you guys know about this car..its from nevada and im in california, i noticed there is alot of smog stuff missng...also i had a few questions of my own...i wanted to knowif anyone makes permanent style head lights for this car(kind alike the new corvette head lights) and if anyone makes a good cheap lambo door kit for this car(please no flaming, im only trying to solve my bad habit of hitting other cars with those long doors, and i want to fix the hinges cause they sound like hell)..im pretty familiar with these cars , ive had a 86 iroc-z 305 tpi and several of my frieends have these cars..
thanks in advance
-travis

 

First, welcome to the board. I'm sure that someone else will say this, so I will say it nicely first. The search is your friend .

There is a kit for the lambo doors, if you search for it, you will find a post that contains pictures. The kit is part of the 'evolution' from the kit builders at K1 styling, however, I think they are going to discontinue or they have, so this might be hard to find.

You are probably right about the car having a 305, but the just to let you know the bolt patterns are the same as the 350 and it is nearly impossible to tell the difference from either one of the exteriors of the engines. There are a couple places that you can find the stamps and BODs to figure out which one you have. Check out Motec.com for more information.

If you go to the homepage, you will find a 'tech data' link that will contain the stock hp, torque, available transmissions and rear gears that came in each years as well as the the available levels of firebirds.

Since the car is old enough, we really can't tell you too much if anything has been changed. From the sound of it, someone has already been messing with the mechanics of the car and might have changed out the engine or done some other work, which you will just have to start searching for.

Again, welcome to the site.

 

welcome. and grats on a 'free' trans am...HOW THE HELL DID YOU PULL THAT OFF!?! lol.
posting or sending me pics and i can tell you a lot more
much of my emissions were removed by the previous owner as well, most would like that, often gums up the works and a few headache starters, but being in a "clean" state, you may not be so lucky.have u ran the engine block # yet? i found out mine is from a 86 caprice, pretty clever since the only difference between these two blocks was the means of EGR control, lol. next is it a t-top? there are probs with leaks. your hinges just need greased the grease tends to get hard, i need to do mine again. and hitting cars with your doors is not a big prob for me, it lets you know that you're not alone in the world, lol j/k. if u have a repair manual for ur camaro it should work for ur t/a as well. chiltons is my favorite.
also, about the headlights, you can lock them into the up position but try replacing the relays attached to the headlight motors, they are about $15, easy to replace, and the cause of almost 90% of headlight failures. but if you insert stationary healights...u have a camaro! lol. to keep ur headlights up, there will be a plug where a pair of two wires meet, running to the headlight, not the relay! unplug this on each side and turn the **** on top of the headlight motor till the headlights are completely up, now they will stay up whether on or off.
many people complain of overheating, this wont happen if the air damn under your car stays there. dont remove it!
being in cali. road salt is less of a prob for u, but install splash guards on the front and back wheel-wells, the f-body has a trouble area with rust, under the driver feet area.
this is more important to you than me, since you have a manual, there was a recall on the parking brake, mine fails to engage completely but i think that was the fault of a previous owner. there was also a recall on your year's seatbelts and wheels, more at this site 1985 Pontiac Firebird Recalls, Defects, & Problems

posting or sending me pics and i can tell you a lot more

ps. i never liked lambo doors! i believe in more traditional styles of trans am.

 

Being in the right place at the right time.

Everything we know is in this forum... so grab yourself a few years worth of food, a fast computer and DSL, and settle down for some seat time. As for smog, that's going to blow when it comes to CA emissions, unless you're in a place where you don't have to worry about it. Grab yourself a 3000 page Helm service manual for your car ($75... only 2.5 times as much as a "normal" manual you can find at an autoshop) and it will show you everything that you ever wanted to know, and everything else you don't want to know. It's well worth the extra money.

1. No. Search for firebird headlights and you'll run across some posts regarding deleting them and creating a non-popup version.
2. Good and cheap don't run well together. But do a search for Lambo doors and you'll be well on your way. I know that at least one member on this site has them.
3. Grab a hinge repair kit from TDS, and it'll cure your busted and sagging hinges. Well worth the $190.

Welcome to the site.

 

ok, ill post pics when i get them, do you guys know if this site allows pics or do you have to be a paying member?...i really would like the lambo doors, one because i like how they look on 2 door vehicles and two, its something you dont see...it does have t-tops...i was pretty amazed to see a edelbrock carb sitting under the hood, for a free car, it shouldnt even have a carb hah much less a motor...does anyone think that k1 company will still have those hinge set ups??..is this the same kit as the evolution kit on euroworksltd?...does anyone have info on how to reach them??..also, the t-tops dont leak, but the weather stripping is pretty bad on the car, where is a good kit that is pretty complete?..the reason i want to get headlights that dont pop up is because one of the head lights is off of a different year firebird and doesnt line up properly(maybe a minor accident) i know some people who do vacuum molds and i was going to try to make a mold for them to do for me in clear plex..all the other mounting points would be done in sheetmetal(my capabilities)...

thanks again
-travis

 

Well welcome to the site!
As far as finding out if your car is a 350 or 305, see if you still have the RPO codes inside your console. if you do, do a search for RPO decoder, if you cant find it i can email it to you. and if you cant find the RPO codes. look at the VIN number. then search for the VIN decoder, and once again if you cant find it i can send it to you. do you have any idea as to if its the original motor or not?
nice score and welcome again!

 

K1 wasn't the only company that had Lambo hinges... and I'd say buy the hinges from a manufacture here in the states, especially since K1 doesn't make the Evolution kit anymore, and it'd cost an arm and a leg to have the hinges shipped overseas.

I use original GM weatherstrip for the t-tops, and then Soff Seal is good for the other stuff like door jams and hatch. The general rule of thumb is that OEM is best, but it is expensive. Soff Seal is a good company, and a friend of mine has a t-top car with all Soff Seal weather strip and had no problems. So flip a coin. You can buy weatherstrip from some of the supporters here on this site.

As for your headlights, you can adjust the housing with a 10mm wrench, that way it'd look better until you get your custom made ones in.

Most of the questions you've asked could have been answered with a few seconds of typing and a click on the search button. We have hundreds of thousands of posts, and so it's not like you will find just one thread dealing with the topic. That's not to say that you shouldn't post, but do a little research and if you can't find the answer, then post up.

 

thanks, im trying to get used to the search button again, since www.jeepforum.com got rid of theirs..thanks for the advice..i tried to adjust the head lights with those 10 mil bolts and it didnt do much of anything, im really thinking the lights have been damaged in an accident, or S.P.O....oh yea, i dont know what was up with this guy, he had a pontiac trans am, but in it he had chevy seat covers and a chevy key chain on the key ring.

thanks again
travis

p.s. ill try to get the vin number and rpo code when i visit the car again(in storage)..

 

for the lambo doors look for the diablo hinge kit i think it was called. look for a member here. dennisbernal91Z he's got a cardomain page showing the installation and the results.

 

[QUOTE=tarvis]..i tried to adjust the head lights with those 10 mil bolts and it didnt do much of anything, im really thinking the lights have been damaged in an accident, or S.P.O..QUOTE]

did u try turning this **** shown in the pic?

i have 3 repair and maintenance manuals if u need any thing just ask and i could scan it.

 

once again i personally find them unappealling; however, if carpartswholesale.com is a US based supplier of (OEM) lambo doors, MADE FOR 67-02 TRANS AM MODELS!!, priced about the same if not a little less than K1, and ships within 24 hrs. AND THIS ISNT JUST THE DOORS! this includes the doors and the entire install kit.

 

yea. for those lambo door style things you are looking at no less than $1200 before shipping for the stuff to do it.. The emissions stuff.. there is a ton of it.. I have two cars with it fully intact, and one car with it completely gone.. and let me tell you... replacing a full setup is going to cost you... the air pump will be horrible to not only find, butit will be expensive.. also if you no longer have the air tubes in the exaust manifolds, you will have to buy a new set for those too... and then all the hoses that go everywhere.. and the little valves in the hoses... Good luck.. you may need it for the emissions.. since cali i hear is like a commie state when it comes to that stuff..

 

another reason why i dislike lambo doors, lol. and i calcclated the cost of every emissions part new, but i forgot it, about a $1200 depending on quality and the deal. i believe rockauto.com can hook you up with nearly everything u need.

 

sounds like u guys dont really want me to do the lambo doors, or the emissions..haha..well i think i could pull the emissions for a better price than 1200..i have a mechanic friend...as far as a lambo door kit, i have a friend that has a friend hah..

 

Go to a few junkyards and chances are you'll find all the parts you need for emissions, and for way less than a grand like these other guys are saying. As for lambo doors... they aren't my style, but they are unique. If you feel like doing it, go for it; you car will stand out in the crowd, that's for sure.

 

the emissions i would say, if u can afford it, do it! if i could afford it, i would put my car to mint condition with all of the parts back to what they where when it first came out of the factory, except the radio, i like my radio.