10k Original miles with wrong speedometer...?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/221351505394?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

The low miles claim appears to be accurate even with the 140 speedo. I'm not as knowledgeable on the Trans Ams as I am the Camaros, so I need to ask if the 140 speedo was available with the LG4. Based on the overall condition of the car, it is still low miles, but at what number?

I think I will bid on this one, right around the corner from me.

I don't think the large hood decal (DX1) and the normal sized front bumper decal are correct when they're both together. If the DX1 was ordered from the factory, it appeared to delete the smaller decal on the front bumper. Unless the large hood decal was added aftermarket or dealership - or there was some paint/body work performed.

I think I will be watching this one also and see where it goes.

I do not think it is a 10,000 mile car, probably closer to 50K look at the brake pedal, if it was a 10K car there would be none or hardly any noticeable wear on the side.

AS for the speedo... it is kind of confusing for 1986, If I read the parts catalog correctly it might have been possible that some LG4 cars came with the 140 speedo with the LG4/WS4/U21 The 1st design would be the 85 and the second design would have been the 140

It may be a 10K car, but the brake pedal has me wondering... the rest of the car really suggests a low miles car...

This car was at the Carlisle PA car show back in October, with a $15,000 asking price. I recognize it, as it has odd second gen center caps. I snapped a few pictures of it back then, I'll see if I still have them. Sharp looking car.

I seen this car at a few local car shows here in S Jersey,except for the dent he had in the quarter panel(happened this summer) it was Flawless.He's had this up for sale for two yrs.that I've known him,the 1st year he wanted $10,000 then he dropped it to $ 8000 this summer.I would have bought it but I just don't have the room.I believe the car is what he states it is,it is beautiful.
He did add the lg hood bird,it didn't come with the car.

Funny how they covered the gas pedal with the mat, The things I noticed right off the bat was the wear/discoloration on the edge of the driver seat bolster, The driver seat belt not fully retracted and the burnt 3rd brake light contacts.
Would these contacts burn/pit in only 10k miles.....
It is a clean car but I wouldn't believe the mileage claim......

Your right,it was $15,000,I had a flyer about it can't seem to find it.

found a pic of it.

It is a beautiful car. I only took pics of 5 cars that day, and this car was one of them.

...edit to add pic

I'm Not Familiar With Firebird's,Just Curious What Is This On The Firewall.

Looks like the coil,I have a TPI,I don't have that.

I had a load of pics on this car,even the RPO List,lost them when I had my computer fixed,

I noticed that too... for some reason I glossed over it. It is not the coil, that would be in the normal place... I also think this should have the large distributor IIRC

Pretty sure the circle is around a vacuum canister?

Here's The Other Pic,It's More Or A Side View It Does Look Like A Hose And Not A Wire.

I have seen them on some factory TPI cars as well but have never seen one up close and in person.

My 87 LG4 did not have that... must be an 86 thing...

Its a vacuum canister for the HVAC.

Huh ? The ad states that it has "POWER ABS BRAKES" ?
Since EVERYONE knows that 3rd Gens DIDN't come w/Anti-lock Brakes,
should we assume this poor T/A has ABS plastic brakes ?

-My '83 has one….I'm the opposite..I thought everyone had those.
But I'm pretty sure it doesn't have ABS…maybe they meant to say "Power Assist?"

I will have to check my 83... maybe it does have it...

John

I have that vacuum canister on my 82. Like Evilmokid said it is for the HVAC system. Judging from the condition of the car I think it is a true low miles car. The brake pedal just looks like someone had dirty boots and got it dirty IMO.

None of these are issues. My car had the marks on the rear hatch contacts with 6k miles on it. The seatbelt is tight in one photo, but loose in a another. When they lifted the seat to get pictures of the back seat, the seat belt probably didn't retract. Mine used to do this all the time until I disabled the seat belt lock. There is a thread here on TGO on how to disable the ratcheting lock. While driving, if I would lean forward to adjust the radio or AC, the seat belt would go forward, but wouldn't retract when I sat back. GM implemented this "lock" so that seat belts weren't always pulling on you. It gets annoying when it gets loose and is held by the lock, so many people disable it. Also, on a 27 year old car with low miles, there is probably a lot of getting in and out, but not driving. The bolster wears from this action regardless of the miles if you slide in rather than sit in. My car started showing signs at 6k miles and I have to be careful when getting in that I sit down, then turn in. The car is definitely low miles, and if the odometer is correct for this car, then I believe the mileage claim.

As John was saying, according to the parts catalog, it appears a 140mph speedo can be correct for this application:

25085140 F (305H) W/GA (U21), TRANS AM (WS4) (EXC Z49 CANADA) (2ND DES) (NOTE 001, 2)

Note: 001 Complete Clusters Serviced or Exchanged Through AC Delco Repair Center
Note: 002 1st DES Speedo Reads 85MPH, 2nd DES Reads 140MPH

The above reads for a 305 VIN H, F-Body, with the full analog cluster (U21), on a Trans Am (WS4) that's not Canadian export (Z49) to use the "2nd DES".

I'm thinking this car has the L69 in it and not the LG4.The L69 was an optional engine for the TA in 86.If you read some of the GM literature above the 140 Speedo was only available with the optional engines.That would explain the 140 speedo.

Look at the 8th digit of the VIN. It's an H. That's the LG4.

That's not an L69 air cleaner.

I stand corrected I
didn't think about looking for the G.

My old 86 lg4 TA had the 140mph speedo. It was a ws6 car judging by the sway bars. Pretty sure it was original, but no way to document.
I thought they didn't put the vaccum canister on the firewall until 89 or 90? All the earlier cars I pulled had the ball under the battery. I think it was something they switched after they went to serpentine belts.

StealthT/A got me thinking, I suspect that the canister had to do with the fact it has no cruise control. The canister, which IIRC was a ball is located under the LH side like stealthT/A mentioned... And all my cars have cruise, so that would explain why I had not seen it before. It would also make sense as the cruise would be the end of the line for cars that are equipped with it. The vacuum booster would be about the end of the line for those cars without cruise...

That's what it is John.Cars without cruise.

Nope - that's gotta be wrong. My car has cruise control AND that same tank…. According to the drawing above, there's a "Vin 2 tank" for cars with cruise also…mine is the same size, but there must be some kind of difference…hmmm….

In the drawing, i like how it's got two arrows pointing at the tank….weird looking wiper/washer motor!

Got that info straight from the cats mouth

btw I had a 86 LG4 and it DID NOT have the 140 speedo. it was one of the first 86 TAs in town so like someone said may have been later in production run.
I believe the mileage too as I have a low mile vehicle and this car looks on the money besides speedo.

What is really cool about 1986, the original 140 speedo did not even have the km on it... My buddy has an 86 like that... They changed it mid year however so the later ones did.

John

I have a early model(2/86 manufacture date)it has the km's on it.never paid attention to it until you mentioned it.

That's not an early build. That's a late build. An early build would be 9/85 or in that area.

Yeah I remember getting my 86 TA from factory delivery in early october. like a day or two before my birthday man...best B-day present EVER!

That's good to know.

New cars (back then at least) would hit the dealers in August. A February build would be seven months into the year production. My car is extremely late build as it was built in July of '87. Another month and the '88s were out.

Here is the story on the vacuum reservoir tank.

'82-83 A/C equipped cars used the cylindrical tank above the brake booster. Cruise control was the old non-computerized electro/mechanical type that didn't require a reserve vacuum source.

'84-86 A/C equipped cars used the cylindrical tank above the brake booster. If cruise control was ordered a different sphere shape reservoir tank attached underneath the left battery tray was used that supplied vacuum storage to both the HVAC system and the new for '84 electronic computerized cruise control system.

'87-92 all A/C and/or cruise control cars used the sphere shape reservoir tank underneath the left battery tray with a rubber cap installed on the vacuum tee on cars without cruise control.

Man that musta been a awesome memory! I actually bought my first 3rdgen when i was 17 right before graduation at a ford dealership, on their used lot. I remember coming up to the car and thinking "this can totally work!"....It was a 87 Trans Am with a 305/auto/2.77 gears....loved the car to death and thought i had a bada$$ car among my freinds...even though the a/c didn't work, i had ttops! haha...didn't know it at the time, but it later turned into a love addiction for thirdgens....because i end up buying a GTA at a later time....
Ahhh memories

The hardest part was after we ordered it (dad was a GM employee and got discount and I was only child) waiting the time till it arrived. I remember getting something like an options/buildsheet that showed the options of the car and the VIN as it had been made and was going to get transported to the dealer. then one day coming to the dealership and finding a TA that was all dusty that had just come off the truck and checking the VIN.. knowing that they had to prep it and that was mine.. omg.. best feeling ever! it was black with black ground effects package. The whale tale I had ordered in 85 was an option but this was an 86 and that came standard. I remember being miffed about that since I thought it would stand out since most 85s did not have those but they were an option. I remember being upset with the placement of the 3rd break light since that was its first year. It grew on me...
next day they took off the silly red tape above the ground effects and I had what would look like next years GTA (little did I know they were taking off the tape in detroit for the prototypes) and it looked so freakin mean! sigh. memories...

A buddy of mine actually had a similar experience in 1986, he has the ordering paperwork and everything for a 350 Trans Am in 1986... Obviously it did not go through in the end, but it was funny back in 1986 someone had written on the ordering information in hand "GTA" If he would have waited one year he could have gotten the 350 and a GTA, but he did not know that at the time.

so he hand wrote in 350? there would not have had a checkbox on it for sure
since I ordered it I got the UT4 radio which was all push button. very rare for that year (1986)

Thanks for sharing

Yeah... it was kind of strange... He got the UT4 stereo too with the sub-woofers...

anything to please the customer right? As long as the customer buys from them and they make a sale that's all that matter...i would think...of course there are always certain restrictions that apply

I have literature from a dealership showing the 350 as an option in 1986.

Here you can see an IROC being ordered with the L98 for the 1986 Model Year.