Hey y'all.... I am a local cop down here in Louisiana, and on patrol today I came across this in someones yard.... From speaking to the neighbors, its been sitting for years... Obviously its a firebird or trans am, but from the crap pics I took, can anyone tell anything else about it? Should I find the owner and try to buy her? Might make a nice parts car for someone....

 

My first thought on seeing the nose badge is that it could be a GTA. Front fenders have vents? GTAs got smooth ventless front fenders.

 

im goin back in a bit for some closer pics... will post soon

 

if its been sitting like that with grass and weeds grown that high, expect the floors to be junk

 

more pics..... If i bought it, id part her out... I am not a firebird man, but I am sure the parts would sell....

Couldnt get good interior shots but it has a black and grey interior...

 

That makes me sad

 

looks like a gta, sitting since 05. with a wash it may not look too bad, but the question is whats wrong with it.

 

Wow, how sad to let a GTA go to waste like that. I can see some surface rust on it in a few places, floors might be rusted but maybe not. I think the hood is messed up in the first pic, but I can't tell if it's the hood or nose. One tail light has a hole in it. The body might not be in otherwise too bad of shape and just needs a bath. Mine was nasty looking (worse than this GTA) when I bought it but a bath made it look 1000x better.

I'd see if somebody was willing to put in the time, money, and effort to fix it up right and not do a hack "fix it up a little and beat the h3ll out of it" job. Try to find somebody that cares about their car, ya know? It may even make a good body donor car for somebody who wrecked their car but their engine is still good.

 

Wow thats a beautiful car.

 

Very likely to be a true GTA (emblems are in the correct spot) but has 88-92 crosslace wheels yet not the correct center caps. RPO code Y84 is the ONLY way to identify the true nature. Everything else can be faked but not likely to be on a car in the weeds.

 

Definitely i diamond in the rough

 

Those are the same center caps that are on my GTA.

 

Someone needs to grab that car!

 

Yes. Please buy it and please don't part it out.

 

I am looking into the owners, but it looks like the property owner left years ago and noone knows who or where they are....I dont know what to do with it... If the owners cant be located, then obviously theres no way to get a title on her...

 

For 87 & in very early 88, they are the correct caps. After that they came with the WS6 marked center caps.
http://www.gtasourcepage.com/newauthentication.html
"Sometimes you may also see differing center caps on certain cars; the photo shows the "WS6" caps that are always seen in advertisements and pictures. I personally have seen GTAs that feature the center caps with the gold Firebird emblem as well; in fact, most all 1987 GTAs had the "Firebird" center caps. It seems the cap pictured above came into wide use in 1988 and continued through 1992."

Abandoned vehicles are "easy" to get. Only a little more feetwork but still possible. Just takes paperwork & a waiting period.

 

This is sad.... I should know how to get an abandoned vehicle considering im a cop.....lmao....

 

My wifes gonna kill me if I get this car.... Upside is that if its abandoned, it wont cost me a dime..... I will have to find a local buyer for her though...

 

I ran the VIN, and it comes back to a 1989.... Also got the registered owners info and will look into his whereabouts.

 

Running VIN & all.......Abuse of power!!
(just ribbin' ya. i do the same kind of thing because i have TXDPS conections)

 

i located the owner... he still lives locally.... left him my number on his door..... is an 89 gta a good buy? I dont know firebirds at all....

 

I've purchased two vehicles without titles and went through the court system to obtain titles. Pretty easy, and with your connections, it's probably even easier. Just tell you Mrs. that it's an impound and the lot was full.

 

spoke to the owner a bit ago.... he says it still cranks up but the tranny is gone as well as the steering column is busted from an attempted theft.... poped the hood and there sits a pretty 5.7 tpi....

He says the car belongs to his wife and they dont know how much to ask for it. Looks like its time to play hardball...lol...

 

They don't know how much to ask for a car that they don't care about?

 

he wants to let me have it for next to nothing, but his ol lady is being a bitch.... typical women...lol...

i told him,the car in its present condition, running or not, is not worth much.... oh... and no rotted floorboards.... woohoo..

If I end up not being able to afford it, I may post this up in the south region forums.... Maybe someone down here is interested in getting her...

 

Its not like she is going to drag it home and fix it anytime soon is what she needs to understand.

 

Hey, Corey, Thanks for your service. But, being a cop, you should have had your diversity training. You should be able to love a Firebird as much as a Camaro. A GTA was the top of the line 'Bird. If you ask me they're all worth saving.

 

Lmao, I do have to admit, Firebirds are good lookin rides, but one project is plenty for me.... lol

 

Cowboy up Brother! I just finished one and am kinda looking for the next one... Or just working on my first divorce!

 

just leave it. The more rusted up, broken thirdgens on the road, the more valuable the nice ones become.

 

Huh?

 

Your a Cop,have it towed out for failure to appreciate a good car.Start giving her tickets for abandoned cars,she might give it to you.

 

Enthusiasts at their best!

 

Yep. I laughed right away after reading that post. To the OP... buy that car and do something good for it! PUT IT ON THE ROAD!!! Trannys are a dime a dozen for that thing... or swap in a 6speed.....

 

I'm pretty sure this is what Hap was referring to. It always makes me kinda sad to see this attitude, No offense Nathan, These were blue collar sports cars. They were very capable. But often a Camaro or Bird was your only car, unlike a Corvette which is usually a second car most of the time. They got driven hard and enjoyed. Heck we put 1k miles on my just finished 89 IROC in less than 2 weeks! All this "Mine will be worth more if yours is rusty or crushed" attitude is kind of a bummer. I may be able to get 8K out of my car if I sell it, who cares. I have much, much more into it not counting labor. I wouldn't take 25K for it. It's always a short conversation when the first question out of someones mouth is "How much is it worth?" to me it's priceless. It's my ticket back to a better time when my Dad was still alive, Ronald Reagan was in charge and the Russians were our only enemies. Oh, and you didn't feel guilty being a selfish American for making 10 bucks an hour. I can't really put a value on that. So keep the 5K mile originals, thats just a car that missed out on a lot of fun! They were made to be driven, rebuilt and driven again!

 

I'm digging that car. Definitely one to fix up IMO

 

Buy it and post up more pics. Hey I used to live in Prairieville LA

 

Well said.

 

well the douche ended up wanting 3k firm for the car. I figure I will try again in a few months.... Maybe he will get realistic after it sits in the weeds for a few more months....

 

And then trees will start to grow threw it!!!!

 

You would think he would reconsider the longer it sits, but theres A LOT of people out there that think its more logical to let it sit and lose value then sell it for what its really worth. Sadly, a lot of them think its worth a fixed price despite its constant deterioration. Ive had run ins with people like that a number of times as im sure most other people have. In conclusion, some people are just stupid...

 

If I where coryprine,I would contact the someone in his town about the car being unregistered and becoming an eyesore

 

I already did.... I called him tonight and told him that his vehicle was in violation of the towns "junk" vehicle ordinance and to be expecting a knock at his door to be served papers....

 

Way to gomaybe after a few violation summons,he'll sell it

 

How the hell does he know if it cranks over if there's no trans? Also, you have to realize that all the brake lines will have to be replaced, calipers probably rebuilt, definitely a flushed out fuel system, and probably an engine rebuild. Not to mention new weatherstrip all around, interior restoration (would be my guess since it's a ttop car that's sat forever) tires, possible rust repair.

I love a GTA and it's a darn shame what happened to this car, but if your funds are really limited, I wouldn't take on such a project since it will likely cost over ten grand to get it back to pristine condition. That said, I do hope someone rescues it. I don't care much about value, I love all these cars from 4cyl Sport Coupes to 1LE z28s. If there were more gorgeous thirdgens around and my car was only worth three grand, I'm ok with that. I have no plans to sell it anyway.