Curious about late 80's early 90's firebirds

[KiddX]

my GF is looking into getting a new car, and she has always loved the 3rd gen F-bird. a good friend of mine had an 88 GTA, and i remember it was an awsome car. i want her to get something she can enjoy, but still rely on.

do you have any suggested years or trim levels that you suggest? are there any particular problems i should be looking for when inspecting the cars we look at?

ty for your help!

[Rob]

89 was a good year. Still had the BW 9 bolt rear as that was the last year for it. Better rear brakes, same as the 4th gen LT1 cars. I'd stick with a GTA as they had pretty all the options. 350 TPI made good power also.

And if you really want to step up, the Turbo Trans Am was only available in 89. That'll run 1 second faster than a 350 TPI right out of the box But they are just a tad more expensive....

[Dave M]

88 and 89 are probably what I'd go with. I'm partial to GTA's because I had one for 6 years. I don't know of any real major issues with the cars, at least not that Ican remember. If this is to be your GF's only car, and it'll be a daily driver, depending on your weather situation you may want to rethink an f-body, especially something powerful like a GTA. I know I wouldn't want my wife in one.. I'd never trust her with a car like that, especially in foul weather. If you're intent on a thirdgen, I suggest you check out www.thirdgen.org Great source of thirdgen info.

[Joe 1320]

Don't discout the WS6s. My 87 has the L98 350, 4 wheel discs, etc. The GTA has different trim. I suppose it depends if you want the fender vents or not. GTAs had the standard firebird front fender that is sans the air vents right behind the front wheels, the T/As still kept them.

[Mirroredshades]

The early 4 wheel disc system sucked. I don't know if they solved the problem in later years. My 85 and 87 always felt spongy and neither stopped very well until I swapped in the Brembos.

[DeWynter]

My vote is for a 89 WS6, last year of MAF, so if you mod, they take it really well. Dual cats, for more HP, 350 or 305 TPI auto or standard. No 350 and standard though The formula comes just as loaded as the GTA (minus the digital dash and the funky movable headrest seats) but with a nicer hood (IMO) and no ground effects (also nicer IMO) also with the WS6 package and the 4 wheel disc brakes they are an awsome preformer. Mine has been really reliable. If you get a 305 tpi standard you get the 3.45 posi 9 Bolt which is much much stronger (equal to or better than a dana 44) than the regular gm 10 bolt. The 305 TPI with dual cats was rated 10 HP less than the 350 with dual cats just FYI.

[KiddX]

the ws6, was it an option on certin cars? i dont want her having anything too powerful, but i think she would be fine with 200ish hp. and since im sure there is a huge aftermarket for these cars, i know what to get her for christmas/b-day/whatever gifts

[markd79ta]

I sold mine to buy the '97 because it leaked both through the t-tops and through a body seam above the hatch glass. I lived in Olympia, WA so it rained (a lot). They also rattle a lot more then the 2nd & 4th gens. The front McPherson strut system was a huge downgrade from the 2nd gens, and the uneven A-arms were a huge improvement with the 4th gens. I would only consider buying the '89 TTA because of what it has in it, and it is a collectors car.