i have an 87 pontiac firebird trans am gta i got from a friend for under 1000 dollars. it runs and drives as is. it has a 350 v8 engine bored .60 over. needless to say, it puts out enough horses. i have pics in my gallery. will be taking more tomorrow. interior is not in good shape. i guess the question i have is....would it be better to drive every now and then as i do have another vehicle. or would i see my money back in performing a mild restoration? by mild restoration, i mean find better interior, paint the body and do minor work here and there. im new to this whole thing so i would love any feedback that you have. thank you. ps. will be posting more pics tomorrow afternoon

 

whats your money situation is a better question? do you have a dependable second car? hows the chassis?

 

as far as money situation. im saving some out of every paycheck so it would be a lengthy process. and i have a second car that is dependable and under warranty and good in winter here in michigan. chassis is in above fair condition but not good enough to say really nice for an 87

 

also, is there a way to see what trasmission is in it? my friend that had it put the engine and trans in himself and i was just curious.

 

if its a 4 speed in almost 100% certain its a 700r4 but it might be a 200-4r, im not sure if those have the provisions for the torque arm or not though. if its a manual though its a t5 more than likely

 

it will take alot of time and money but that has paddle mirrors early production for the first year gta definatly worth holding onto at least

 

its a 4 speed. so im gonna guess probably the 700r4.

 

yea those were factory. how terrible is the body?

 

can you explain more on paddle mirrors early production?

 

the body itsself is not that bad. few rust spots but its very minor surface rust. the only spot that goes through is right above the drivers side door handle, its about a little bigger than a dime.

 

im thinking sand everything down after taking care of the minor rust spot and paint

 

that was the only year for those mirrors but they were ugly so gm switched mid year gtasourcepage.com has a ton of info about gta

 

i would just paint it up and anything you feel like it needs to be replaced then do it otherwise spend money on speed parts

 

where can i find more stuff for interior? the main thing im looking for is oem front seats, but when i search i just find racing seats

 

good luck lol. the problem it that these cars were just throw away cars. mass produced stamped out quick fixes so you'll be hard pressed to find much in that nature. you could look at getting your seats redone though, that might not be to bad of an idea

 

you need the gta ultima seat used they are expensive and will prbably need to be recovered. hawkes third gen parts has the cover set for 400 bucks or seats from a 4th gen with are almost the same

 

yeah. i thought about putting racing seats in them but i want to try to keep it original as much as possible. the original seats in there are not very pretty though to say the least

 

talk to an upholstery shop and see what they can do

 

will do. ill be sure to look at all my options before doing ne thing. ne personal opinions as far as paint? i dont want it all just one color. i was thinking a glossy black with a gold color same as wheels for a few inches on bottom color

 

cant go wrong with all black

 

i would go solid black

 

ill definatly take both your advice. will have more pics up tomorrow and will post on thread so you both can see more pics. but hey, thanks alot for the prompt responses and advice guys

 

no problem man this is what hot roddin is all about

 

It's really boils down to how much do you like the car? I mean a good restore is not cheap so you might want to make sure this is the car you really want to sink money into, because you never get your money out of them.

 

not a fan of that hood, but go for it man help keep another thirdgen on the road!

 

Is it worth restoring from a money standpoint. No. Not even close. But 99%,of us know that so we do it for the love of the ride. So if looking for an investment, not place to look. If looking for a fun project, then by all mean.

 

What color is your interior? I have some front seats from an '87 GTA that are in excellent condition. I can sell them for $400 obo for the set. They can be shipped pretty cheap via Greyhound bus. Let me know if you want them