I don't know much about Firebirds, let alone the 3rd gens, but I am interested in how much one of these cars would be worth. One of my friends grandparents had one that they bought brand new and then put in the garage. It had 12,000 miles on it and was in showroom condition. They kept up with all of the maintenance and had it detailed a few times a year even though they hardly drove it. I don't know what motor it had, but knowing them it was the one that cost the most when they bought it. I am just wondering how much it would be worth because a little while ago they just up and gave it to a friend of theirs that has a small car collection. I have tried to look up the value on the internet, but I can't find anything that goes back that far.

 

it depends u should have snatched it for cheap before they gave it away Id say 8-10 grand possibly, but its only worth what people will pay

 

My friend would have gotten it before I would, but they refused to sell it. Then they gave it away, literally, which made a lot of the family mad. It was the nicest 3rd gen I have ever seen and probably will ever see.

 

Are you 100% sure it is a Recaro? There were only about 2000 of them made. If it had the top engine it would be a crossfire injected model. There are sleight differences from a regular TA, but the Recaro option was basically just an interior package with Recaro seats. There really isn't anything else that a regular TA couldn't have that the Recaro did, minus the seats.

That being said, it is really only worth what someone would pay. One sold on Ebay about a year ago for $3000 and it was complete and in very good condition. I have seen some pristine '82 TA's on Ebay have starting bids at $5000-6000 and get zero bids. Ebay really isn't a determining factor on the value of a car, but you can see what similar cars are going for. I think 8000-10K like the other person posted is on the high side...I don't really think that is realistic. What makes a car valuable is how desirable it is. Unfortunately the early thirdgens came out at a time when performance was on the back burner, and fuel economy and practicality were in the front. If you look at the broad spectrum of the thirdgen models there are more performance options as the years went by, and by some more desireable.

If someone is really going to pay top dollar for an early thirdgen, or an '82 Recaro specifically, then they really want to have that type of car. I don't think too many people are in that "niche" right now. The average buyer though isn't going to pay a lot for it, because there are so many other cars out there and you could pretty much find any thirdgen you want in the price range you want, with the options you want.

Someone will probably flame me for this, but when someone hears "recaro" they automatically think it's "rare" and worth a ton of money. While it may be rare, it doesn't necessarily mean it is worth alot. Again it's only worth what someone would pay...if you want to slap a for sale sign $13,000, I'm sure someone would eventually buy it. But that one person wanted one really bad...I could think of many other cars that could be had for that much, and better also.

I still think it's too early for these cars (thirdgens) to be worth a whole lot right now. If that Recaro is in pristine shape, I'd say anywhere between the $4000-$5000 range, but that is just me.

 

There is an '82 Recaro T/A with 27,000 miles that has been in the mid-west Auto Trader for at least 10 months now. The seller originally started out at $9,800 but is down to $7,000 for the last couple months. Still no takers.

I agree with 1982TA. Its a $4-5,000 car and it probably would still take some time to sell it at that price.

 

Those lower prices seem about right to me for the car. I just knew that there were only 2000 of them made so I didn't know how that would affect the value. Its too bad they aren't more desirable cars for the guy that owns it now, it is probably in close to the best condition of any Recaro editions I have seen on the internet if not the bast. But it is still 1 of only about 2000 so it is still a rare car and has plenty of time to gain value.

 

Do you have any pics of the car? Would it be possible to get some? I'm just curious to see the hubcaps and if they have the gold pontiac logo vs. the red on the regular trans ams. I have been told that even some recaro's got the red emblems. I have only seen 1 photo with the gold, and that was on the "Recaro Trans Am" web page. Usually the hubcaps are the first to go on these cars, sometimes the wheels also.

 

Like stated above, unfortunately anything prior to 1985 really is not pulling value mostly because of the power, or lack thereof. The Crossfire was an OK engine, but it has its own set of issues. TPI has its own set of issues but most of the bugs have been worked out because of its popularity in the aftermarket realm.

Value... 12K mile car I would think $7K to $8K tops, more or less in the ballpark of $4K to $6K unless someone REALLY wants that exact car...

Its a shame because they are nice looking cars too

As for book values...
http://www.nadaguides.com/default.as...&vi=84507&da=1

JOhn

 

Rarity if half of it... Demand is the other half the car could be one of one if no-one wants it... Its worth nothing.

There are lots of cars out there with production numbers in the <2000 range that will have a hard time getting any interest... for example I know of a 1980 Olds 442 (one of 886) fair price? about $3000. Why? the 1980 was kind funny looking and was a big heavy slow car...

 

The seats/wheels/hubcaps are a sought after item. I've seen those wheels/hubs go for over $1500 for a set of four...I've also seen Recaro mint seats go for over $1000 for the set. If a guy wasn't in a rush to sell, getting over $2500 for the seats/wheels/hubs isn't unheard of.

 

Sorry, no pics, and the guy that owns it now lives 4 hours away so I wont be able to get any. I could see if my friend has any, but it will be a couple weeks before I see him again.

 

True. I was meaning that it being a rare car gives it more value to the person that owns it. And I'm sure that the value of the 3rd gens will eventually go up like most cars. Everyone usually wants the 1st gens, then once those are too hard to find or too expensive everyone goes for the 2nd gen, and so on.

 

Again, you are going to have to find someone who REALLY wants them to pay that kind of money. I haven't seen the turbocast rims sell for that much in some time now. I've been keeping an eye on how much these wheels sell, and as of lately they seem to be around the $800 range. And even at that price not many are buying them. You'll get your spikes now and then when a set will go for some astronomical price, but it really isn't the norm. Also, the only people paying those prices are people doing knight rider cars.

The hubcaps are harder to find than the wheels in my opinion. Junk yards and hubcap shops just don't have them. You might find them occasionally, but wheels are cake to find compared to the caps. Of course you can always check ebay, but again, you will be competing/paying what the knight rider crowd pays. For a lot of people, it's just too much and not worth it.

As far as seats go, I've NEVER seen them at that price and I've had more than one opportunity to buy them and the most anyone ever wanted was around $250. Again, it's all about who wants them at the time and how much they want to spend.

I always think it's funny when people pay huge amounts when if they just do the looking for themselves, they could probably find the same thing much cheaper. I just saw an '82 shift **** and button sell on Ebay for over $100 USED. Not the shifter assembly also, JUST the **** and button! Someone must have been desperate because I have 2 ***** I paid $10 for, and I was just recently at a swap meet and a guy had no less than 10 of these buttons for $5 each! And then I found a NOS **** and NOS button for $60 total, and I still paid less than the other guy for USED stuff!

A set of '82 charcoal seatbelts just sold for over $250 on ebay also. That is the highest I've ever seen a set of seatbelts go for! I don't get it...