1980 Pontiac Turbo Trans Am Indianapolis 500 Pace Car
This car has received new paint, decals ,and upholstery. The engine was Rebuilt at the same time, there are less then 1000 miles since this work. The air Conditioning is not currently working.
In 1980, the Pontiac Trans Am was on a popularity roll! Burt Reynolds made a black one famous just a few years earlier in “Smokey and the Bandit,” and the car was regarded by most as the last true muscle car on the planet. Driven to deliver the absolute best combination of performance and visual excitement, Pontiac pulled out all the stops with yearly special editions which have since become some of the hottest collector cars on the market. As one of only 5,700 cars built to commemorate the first time one car paced both the Indy 500 and Daytona 500 in the same year, this 1980 Trans Am Turbo Pace Car is one of the most exclusive Trans Ams ever built. If you're a savvy classic car buy who is looking for an awesome car that you can spend a little money on now and get a big return on later, here's your chance!
The 1980 Trans Am Turbo ushered in a new approach to traditional Pontiac performance and the appearances of Pontiac's wildly successful special edition packages were updated accordingly. Up front, the cars slick and pliable urethane front bumper houses instantly identifiable Pontiac split grilles below four pristine headlights in new body matched surrounds. Behind that front bumper, a new 'turbo hood' that ended a decade long run of top-of-the-line shaker hood equipped Trans Ams features a left facing firebird decal and an optional three light turbo system. At the car's greenhouse, pristine Soft Ray tinted glass which features a familiar “Pontiac” windshield banner sits below mirror tinted Fisher T-tops that seal well and look great. On the front fenders, four-color “Trans Am” scripts sit under fender-mounted air extractors with body matched metal inserts and on the doors, GM code 84 Ontario Gray sport mirrors sit above chrome GM door handles and correct rear wheel air deflectors. At the back of the car, a black trimmed backlight holds an original Ziebart decal (which we have documentation for) over a contoured rear decklid spoiler that features another pristine four color “Trans Am” script. Below that spoiler, a showroom fresh blacked-out tail light panel combines with correct Firebird exclusive side splitter stainless exhaust tips to give the car a menacing wide body look.
Thanks to increasing emissions standards and the 1978 oil crisis General Motors had to seriously re-think its performance vehicles, and that led to some innovative and very creative powerplants. Under this Trans Ams “Turbo” stamped hood you'll find an all original Pontiac code YL turbocharged 301 V8 that made substantially more twist than the mighty 6.6 liter it replaced while being significantly more efficient. Originally conceived as an economy offering, the Pontiac 301 was beefed up with a better block design, thicker gaskets, lower compression pistons, a mild camshaft, a rolled fillet crank, a fully baffled oil pan, a unique single plane intake and an electronic spark controller in preparation for a Garrett TBO-305 turbocharger. Once the turbo was installed, it created a waste limited 9 PSI of boost and helped the reborn 301 achieve 236 horsepower and a serious 345 lb./ft. of torque. Riding below a factory installed heat shield that prevents the paint on the car's hood from bubbling, that Garrett blower is fed by a high pressure fuel pump.
