1979 Pontiac Firebird

1979 Pontiac Formula L78, 4 speed Project - very, very rare Please read this and look at the pictures carefully: This is a factory Firebird Formula with the L78,WS6 and WS6 options. One of only 346 manufactured and I cannot find a trace of another 1979 Formula equipped like this one. It is PHS documented and it’s the last of the Pontiacs to be offered with the 400ci Pontiac engine. It has the factory PWH 400 engine, 6X heads, it was built with the following options: (L78), 3.23 Posi Rear (G80), (K81) Heavy Duty 63 Amp Alternator, (K05) Engine Block Heater, (U17) Tachometer), (A01) Sift Ray Glass, (V02) Super Cooling Radiator, (UN9) Radio Accommodation Package, (D80 Rear Spoiler) (N33) Tilt Steering Wheel, (WS6) Special Performance Package, (B13) Custom Trim Group). It was built with no air conditioning and no T-Tops. These omissions make it very rare. The car was delivered new to Tom Peters Pontiac in Waukegan, Illinois. It has the factory 4 wheel disk brakes (J65), close ratio 4 speed T-10 trans M21 UH1 (it was the only transmission that came with the Pontiac 400), part of the light blue interior, Nocturne Blue paint. I have scoured the internet and cannot find any similarly equipped (or lack of equipped) car anywhere. It might be the only one surviving equipped this way. This is an example of one of the rarest Pontiac factory cars ever offered. 1979 was the final year for the 400ci Pontiac engine. Due to the limited number of remaining 400 engines available in 79, Pontiac required all 400 equipped Firebirds to come with a 4 speed trans and the WS6 performance upgrades. It has the 6X heads (see pictures) but I haven’t cleaned up the motor enough to figure our if the block is numbers matching. By staring at it for awhile I am guessing that it is. This car yard drives great but needs to be gone through before it is driven on the road any distance. You will need to trailer it away. Before I bought it it sat in a body shop neglected for a long time it and parts disappeared off of it. The car runs and drives and needs a tune up but has plenty of power. I have driven it around yard and driveway and when you go over bumps there is sort of a creaky sheet metal type of noise. I am guessing that the genius that put the Trans Am fenders on it didn’t bolt them down tightly. I am not responsible for the Trans Am fenders they were there when I bought the car. The car stops on a dime but the brake pedal does down substantially and I think it needs a master cylinder. Some of the parts that are missing include: 15x8 snowflake wheels, the correct air cleaner, rear window molding, gas filler door, carpet and padding, the back half of the exhaust is missing (but the car still sounds good), the radio is gone and that part of the dash has been cut. Much of the interior plastic is damaged, mismatched or missing. The front grills are missing. All of the stuff that is missing can easily be replaced. This car has no spare tire or jack. The original shifter and knob are there and the reverse lock out is hooked up and it works. There has been rust repair to the floors - some of it repaired well and some of it not so well. There are still open holes in the floor. It seems to me that with some artful welding the floors could be saved. It has an old Grand Prix seat on the drivers side with one bolt so the car can be moved around. Many of the cosmetic parts on the car that I have collected are bolted on loosely for you to see them. It needs a new head liner. There is a crack in the windshield. The body work and paint is so-so with over spray in many areas and the door handles have been painted over. Did I mention there is over spray everywhere? The trunk floor and doors seem solid and rust free. I don’t know what the quarter panels are like but would assume there is bondo in them. Judging by the engine firewall it looks like this car may have been rust proofed when it was new. This car needs and deserves a compete restoration. What you see is what you get - I do not have any parts that are not shown in the pictures. You should inspect this car in person before you buy it. I sat on the old title for awhile before I applied for it in my name. I will have clear Illinois title in my name on or about June 10th. The car is for sale locally so I reserve the right to end the auction at any time. It is sold AS IS WHERE IS. I have 100% positive feed back. If you have a "0" feedback rating and no Paypal account or have ever had a non-payment strike, or not enough feedback you may not bid on this item at all, I will just cancel it. Cash talks. Lou 847 341 4720On Jun-07-12 at 14:51:06 PDT, seller added the following information: June 7, 2012 - I have a clear Illinois title to this car in my name.