Looking to buy 86 Trans Am. Some Questions

[bigbadspoon]

Hi everybody. I found a beautiful cherry red Trans Am on autotrader near me and the deal seems too good to pass up, but I have a few questions for you guys. Fist, I saw that the horsepower is only rated at 150; how difficult is that to bring up without investing a lot of money? Second, how reliable is this car? It was owned by a man in his late forties and his wife, so I would say it hasn't been abused. It has about 86,000 miles on it. Think I would be able to break 130,000 with it? Third, if I do get it, and I do want to modify it, where should I start to get the most gains for my limited funds? I was thinking about starting with high flow exhaust and a high flow cat and getting some kind of upgrade to the intake (these are carbeurated, right?).
Well, let me know what your opinions are. Thanks for the input.

[Injuneer]

The "base" engine in the 1986 T/A was a 160HP 5.0L (305 ci) 4-bbl carb setup. That will show engine code "H" in the VIN, and "LG4" on the build tag.
That engine was available with a 5-speed manual or a 4-speed automatic. I think this engine was only rated 150HP in the Esprit and the "base" Firebird. I thought it was 160HP installed in the T/A.

Upgrade engines included the code "G" 5.0L at 165HP (L69) 4-bbl carb, manual or automatic; code "F" 5.0L 190HP (LB9) TPI (tuned port injection), manual or automatic; and the code "8" 5.7L 230HP TPI, available only with the automatic.

Stay away from the L69 engine... it was actually discontinued because of problems with fuel boiling.

Sounds like the one you are looking at a car with the "base" carburated engine. I don't think you are going to find a lot of performance potential in that setup. It's not real cost effective to mod a 5.0L engine, when there are cheap 5.7L replacements available. On the other hand, performance will be adequate, and there's always the possiblity of a low $$$ 383 replacement in the future.

Sounds like a nice car.

[bigbadspoon]

Cheap replacement engines? How does that work? Are they direct replacements? No computer or tranny needs or would I have to do the whole thing, because I really can't afford to invest more than $1000 dollars in this car over the next year or so. Though, I am sure even a direct replacement costs much more than that, but...I'd like to know for future reference.
I currently own a Z28, but it's always broken and I just want another car that's stylish and really fast. I can't afford a Corvette and I'd like to stay within the GM umbrella, so I figured T/A would be a good way to go.

[Benm109]

You can definetely up the HP with your engine. I can't personally tell you how exactly to, except for all the common things (headers, cat-back, intake manifold, open element, etc.).

These cars can be very reliable, as long as you maintain them correctly. As long as you, and the previous owners, did preventative maintenance (tune-ups, oil changes, check fluids), you shouldn't have much to worry about. My 91 RS has over 176,000 miles on it and runs great (only major thing I did was rebuild the engine). It has it's problems, but it's nothing that can't be fixed.

I think the best bang for your buck, performance wise, would be upgrading the exhaust first. Headers and a good 3" cat-back should do just fine.

And, one more thing, check out www.thirdgen.org . It's a site that's dedicated to 3rd generation F-Bodies. They have tons of info available on anything you would ever want to know about these cars.

Good luck.

[Maverick_82]

I have an 82 trans am and I know pretty much every flaw of the 3rd generation. Also my car was mistreated by owner up until me; MY CAR IS A WORST CASE SCENARIO! By the way, 150 is normal for some '84 trans am.

1.
Ask the owner if you can take a peek under the hood, have a flashlight with you and look behind the alternator to see the engine ID # it should read
(letter # # # # letter letter letter). The last three letters, copy down. Go to a local chevy dealer/service ask them if they could identify the engine. Hope that it is a 5.0L V8 305 CID (the original engine).

2.
While your looking under the hood of the car look to see if there are any wires, plugs, or hoses unpluged. Ask them if any major work has been done, and how it runs in cold weather.

3.
Start the car!!! examine the feel, the sound, and the exhuast. FLIP ON THE HEADLIGHTS! The only real flaws with the 3rd generation trans am are the headlight motors, a small spare tire compartment, and little leg room for back passengers.

My '82 trans am is my pride and joy. The 3rd gen trans am is a dream car, and they're the rarest of the f-bodies of that time, adding an individuality to it. It's my opinion that you should get it. It's a great care to restore, and even if the ECM goes bad it's still drivable! Another great thing is that advance auto parts has the 86 trans am and its parts in their database and shop at reasonable prices.