Hey people,

I was wondering if anybody knows any ways I can physically check if my car came with WS6 pacage. Its an 86 TA I just bought, the guy said it has WS6 but had nothing to back that up. The car is missing an RPO sheet as well. Is there any way I can check myself? What parts should I look for? Pics would be nice.
Thanks

-Max

 

Well I do know that first of all, WS6 T/As came with 16x8 "20 Slot" alloys in '86. Heavy duty springs as well (hard to tell just by looking at em) but generally, (from my experience) WS6 cars sit just slightly higher in the rear due to the higher spring rate.

Also check for the right offsets on the wheels themselves. Meaning that the front wheels should have a 1/2" wider lip than the rears. It's important for all thirdgen T/A and Formula owners to ensure that this wheel configuration is correct on their car!. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

Also check for the right offsets on the wheels themselves. Meaning that the front wheels should have a 1/2" wider lip than the rears. It's important for all thirdgen T/A and Formula owners to ensure that this wheel configuration is correct on their car!. Good luck and keep us posted. [/B][/QUOTE]

nFORM91
Could you please explain the above Please?



[This message has been edited by 82 T-TOP (edited May 09, 2001).]

 

I have no experience with the package in question, so take my comments with a grain of salt, but shouldn't the car have a WS6 Suspension badge on the dash, along with WS6 emblems on the wheels. Moreover, shouldn't a WS6 car have a hollow 36 mm front sway and solid 24 mm rear?

JamesC

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Typicly the WS6 cars had huge front and rear sway bars, 16" rims, quick ratio steering box, stiff springs and shocks. My 89 just has the performance badge on the dash as did my T/A. The T/A didn't have the WS6 package. So... the badge doesn't mean all that much.. i think you get that when you set the stage 2 suspension. Rims are a dead give away although they can be swapped. Check the front sway bar.. i think it will be 1-1/4" in dia. I beleive the WS6 cars came with the NNL rear springs, i know mine has them..check that.. its a tag on the coil. You might be able to run the VIN, i am not sure. Check the front swaybar and rear springs. If its a fake, not many people would put the time in to change those things.

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• 89 Formula 305 WS6
  SFC's, LCA's,
  Spohn Panhard Bar
  Air Foil
  Flowmaster Cat Back
  Tranny Cooler
  A/F Ratio Meter (not a mod but it sure spurs interest)
  Trans Temp Gauge
  Most "Free" Mods
  3:73, Zexel Torsion Posi
• 90 Eagle Talon 2.0
  (Winter Beater)
  Mods? Um, no

 

Thanks for the help. I checked the rims and the car is wearing 15" tires and the regualr Alum TA rims. But... When I checked the sway bar in the front of the car, it was huge! It wasn't 1-1/4", it was more like 2-1/4". Could this be, or did ALL WS6 cars come with 16incher rims? Thanks people

-Max

-'86 Trans Am WS6?
-305 TPI with 700R4
-All stock until I fix all the problems

 

I think you'll find that the sway is a 36 mm, which apparently was stock on WS6 cars from 86 to 92 (89-92 on Camaros). Should anyone be interested in a 36 mm / 24 mm combo, please see my ad in the classified.

JamesC

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16x8" rims are an indication of the WS6 performance handling package upgrade, however thirdgen guys swap the rims often.

What I meant by checking the offsets is really simple. The front wheels on WS6 cars stick out about 1/2" more than the rear wheels due to a wider lip. If you look carefully at them you will notice this.

Just remember this, the ones with the wider lip edge (about an inch wide) are the fronts and the lip edge of the rears are about 1/2 an inch. Never mount the rears on the front or the fronts on the rear.

 

something else you might check is the rear axle will probably be limited-slip differential -if it is, it has a little metal tag sticking out on one side (although you need to crawl under the car) -I'm not 100% sure about that for this model year though as I have an 87. If the car has smaller sized wheels, I doubt it's WS6, especially if there is no PERFORMANCE SUSPENSION sign by the right side of the dashboard. Even on the offchance that it is WS6 the smaller wheels won't give you the added traction benefits of the bigger wheels -if you want true WS6 qualities, find something else with 16x8 wheels and the badge inside to be sure... also, if you take it for a test drive, the ride is pretty rock hard, particularly over pot holes (!), but if you have nothing to compare it to, it's difficult to tell...