The car is a 1985 Firebird SE Coupe with a 305 LG4 and 5-spd transmission. It's fully loaded with the "Performance Suspension" and 15" Formula-like wheels, with cloth interior.

It has 213,000 kms on it (130,000 miles?). A scuffed front left corner and a small dent in the back right that's started to rust a bit. No major accidents. Paint seems to be in nice condition. Doors close solid. Interior is dirty but I didn't notice much wear on the fabric, and no rips.

Car started up and idled fine. Went for a drive and it seemed to have good power for an LG4. Transmission was a little hard to get into second gear.

The speedometer was all haywire, pretty much spinning around, off the charts. Is that an expensive problem?

Blew a little blue on start up, but not bad at all. Owner says it burns a little oil between changes but not so much that you have to check it all the time.

He says it had a blown heater core but it didn't leak on the floor or anything.

One weird thing I noticed was that a little 'steam' of some sort was coming from the air cleaner after we had went for a drive and shut it off. Out of the front of the plastic intake hosing. I took the lid off and steam was coming out. I took the air filter out and it seemed the steam was just coming from the pan of the Air Cleaner itself. It wasn't coming out of the carb, I dont think. This normal? My buddy said maybe it was an exhaust leak somewhere?

Besides that the suspension felt really tight and it still responded well, better then my last Z28 did.

He's asking $1500 which doesn't seem too bad. It does require a lot of work though. Get the rust out & prime, replace hood & trunk struts, A LOT OF CLEANING polishing and TLC, fix the speedo, replace heater core, most likely replace the valve seals, and that's just the definite stuff I know of.

The transmission is what worries me the most. But I hear the T-5 is fairly cheap to rebuild.

Does this sound like a good price? Any opinions and comments would be appreciated. Thanks for listening.

 

C$1,500 (US$ 1,000), for a decent body and reasonable motor is not bad. Most of what you need to fix it can come from donor cars at a wrecking yards.

I believe that one has a 140 Km speedo, which are the most common at wrecking yards. But check the speedo cable first, it may be unconnected/broken/binding etc. Other possibilities could be the speedo gear(s) are stripped. Only really 3 real possibilities.

As for the vapor, it may be: 1) the carb is running real rich and you are see gas vapor, 2) if it is water, a gasket (intake most likely) leaking and you are seeing it come out the manifold 3) cracked manifold/head.

How did the coolant and oil look? If you see the slightest signs of water in the oil, then you have BAD NEWS. Also, check for oil stains/color in the coolant. Take it for a longer drive if you are still interested (like from Langley to Hope and back) and look at the oil and coolant. A long drive always reveals a lot that you just don't notice "once around the block".

Hopefully, it is just a leaky intake gasket.

 

I've got an 84 with the LG4, and 5-speed (Trans AM, but of course!)
From what i've noticed with my car, the transmission is surely not the strongest point of the car, although it is built pretty tough. I learned stick on it, and still grind the gears ocassionally (more clutch fool!) The LG4 is a strong, and reliable engine, for the amount of wear and tear u can put on it. My car used to smoke a bit after start-up but just needed a tune-up and fixed it too, so u have to do that 1st. As always, the earlier 3rd gens usually have it worse off in looks, simply because they are soo old, but a little wax does wonders. For wheel dust (if u have a ton) razors do wonders over chemicals.

As for the speedometer, mine is haywire too. I took the car into the muffler shop to put on the Flowmaster 80 series, and looked at the undercarriage when it was on the lift. Turns out the cable housing was busted. It also makes a whirring grindy sound in the cold, and hangs around the neighborhood of 75-85(top end ).

The steam is kinda strange, but could just be a leaky valve cover gasket. Mine leaked by the headers and went through the tube from the headers to the air cleaner and out the top (ram-air). But it would smell of oil.
$1500 seems like a reasonable price for a car of that age and seems like the right condition for that price too, look around a bit more though, there could be a better/faster car for cheaper to be had.

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--Steve S-- 84 Trans Am 305 (cough)LG4(cough), 5 speed, Flowmaster 80 series, otherwise an emissions restricted slow 150 hp(chilton rating) 240 torquer that needs RELEASE!!!!

P.S. Daily Driver

 

i got mine, an 88 iroc LB9 engine auto with 102k and in mint condition just needed tires for 2600. i also have a 88 TA LB9 auto with the gta rims,89k ,ws6 suspension needed exaust (had straitpipes, sounded verry badass) and tires aswell. for 2400.

that one looks good. would be a nice car to work on for the price.

-Stell



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1988 IROC 305TPI MINT!!
Mods= Accell SuperCoil, MSD 6A, Ported Plenum, No MAF Screans , K & N, 160 Thermostat+ Temp Switch, Relocated MAT, Cold Air

 

Just a note about the 'steam' thing. It seems to me that if it was coming from the AC housing that there are only 2 possible sources.
#1 (the likely source) is the breather element. After shutting down, all the oil is still very hot, and it is completely normal to see oil vapor rising from the breather (which opens into the AC housing.) Of course if this is severe then you may have problems.
#2 somewhere out of the carb. I highly doubt it was boiling fuel. You'd be completely overheated before that happened. The other hazy idea is you could have a shot head gasket, letting boiling cooolant into a cylinder, which then steams up and rises through the open intake valve and out through the carb. VERY esoteric and unlikely.
...ed

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Ed Maher - Moderator @ The Carb Board
92 Z28 Convertible - Quasar blue / Tan top
LB9 4L60 GU2 G80 - stock, soon to be sleeper

- Definitely prototypes, high powered mutants of some kind. Too weird to live, too cool to die

 

That sounds like a reasonable price for a car that's in decent shape, as that one sound like it is: just your basic old car, nothing special, not torn up, all there.

The "steam" was probably coming from teh crankcase vent tube that plugs onto the little filter in the side of the air cleaner housing. It's normal.

Speedo, heater core, and valve seals are all fairly cheap and easy repairs. If I were to get a car like that, it would take less than $100 US and a weekend to get that all nailed down. Of course the sky's the limit on body work, that all depends on what you wnat the car to be when you're through. But all in all, if that's the kind of car you want, it sounds like a good risk and a fair price.

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"So many Mustangs, so little time..."

 

The thing with the steam...

when my other 84 had an LG4 (different motor now) ... it had bad valve guide seals... burned oil, etc... oil/gas fumes would actually travel backwards through the induction and out the hood.. very embarassing to have clouds of smoke roll out

maybe it is a similar problem. My new L69 smokes a bit as well, but not nearly as bad. damn smoky *** 305's