srosscamaro@aol

can anyone direct me to a site with good pics and info on the thirdgen pro am firebirds

HCR13

iTrader: (5)

I've never heard of a Thirdgen Pro Am, only 4th gen Pro Am's...

sloick

x2

srosscamaro@aol

they exist theres not many though

//<86TA>\\

iTrader: (14)

does t-towner have one?

*********************
nope, he doesnt

HCR13

iTrader: (5)

man, this has my interest peaked now...

okfoz

The Pro Am was a conversion of the Firebird by Choo Choo customs, they also made the Bandit II cars...

More or less a sticker package with some different ground effects. no performance modifications, many were V6's matter of factly, some were V8's. All of the ones I have seen were Base Firebirds, so they would not have had a performance engine from the get-go,.

CCC also made the Team Camaro, the SS Camaro, and the Camaro SX, all based off of the SC...

John

bjhunt1055

I actually own one of these cars. OZFoz is right they were made in chattanooga tn at choo choo customs. There were only a 100 of these made. if it is a true pro am it will have a gold plate sayin what number it was. Mine actually has a 350 v8 5.0 tpi formula in it. it is a very nice car. Just basically no motor mods on it just has exterior upgrades from the trams am. I have picture of if you want to take a look at it. Not many ppl know about these cars. very rare i am actually looking to get rid of mine so if interested let me know

//<86TA>\\

iTrader: (14)

really

HCR13

iTrader: (5)

I'd like to see some pics...

okfoz

Was it originally a Formula?

JOhn

pontiacguy1

These cars are not that rare, or desirable. I have seen FOUR of them in this area (Middle Tenn), from 1987 models up to a 1991 model. ALL of them were made from base firebirds with either a V6 engine or a Carbureted or throttle body injected 305 engine in them. All of the ones that I have seen still had the 'Firebird' emblem on the side of the front fender in the stock location. All of them had drum rear brakes. It is possible that there could have been a Pro/Am made from a Formula or Trans Am, but I seriously doubt it since the big hood scoop wouldn't work on a Trans Am or Formula hood. The hood scoop was bolted/glued onto a stock firebird hood, and it is very wide and long. It is only about 2" tall.

This was just an appearance package that was offered by Choo Choo Customs. Basically, a dealer would order a Firebird, have it shipped to Choo Choo customs, and then over to the dealership. CCC would add the ground effects, fake hood scoop, exhaust tips, wheels/tires, dash plaque, and maybe some other interior stuff. Some of them were actuall two toned, some were solid colors. I have seen a red two toned one, which was a 1989 model, and a blue two toned one which was a 1987 model. I have also seen a solid white one, and a solid red one. They ALL had the base firebird wing on the back. The were really flashy, and looked really good when new. That's probably why a lot of dealers around here kept one of them on their lots. They were also pretty expensive when new. You would pay almost the same price as a fully loaded out Trans Am would cost! But they didn't have any of the performance hardware the T/A did. Because Choo Choo Customs is located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, I feel like you will find more of these cars in the Tennessee/Alabama/Georgia/Carolina area than in other places.

They are nice looking cars. Enjoy them for what they are... unique good looking one-offs. You definitley won't have a neighbor down the street that has a car 'just like yours'. Just don't believe that they are super valuable or desirable, because they aren't. I would have to see pictures and decode the VIN number before I would believe that any of these cars were based off of a Formula or T/A.

pontiacguy1

There is a guy here in town who got the hood scoop off of a Pro/Am and bolted it onto the hood of his early 80's cutlass. He didn't even trim it up so that it would fit down around the hood creases properly. You can tell it is a Pro/Am hood scoop if you've ever seen one of them. They are REALLY wide and are about 2" high. It doesn't look just terrible, but when you get up close you can tell that the scoop doesn't belong on that car.

I do think that these cars are worth more than a base firebird of the same year, same options, same condition. In my opinion, they will never be worth what a Formula or Trans Am of the same year/same condition would be worth.

HCR13

iTrader: (5)

I'd still like to see a 3rd gen Pro Am. I've seen a white 4thgen Pro Am running around here...

okfoz

I am not sure about value... It honestly is not that simple... I do not think many people are going to search them out like a factory car... THe problem is the fact there is little or no information on them... You cna contact Choo Choo Customs, they appear to still be around as I just noticed a VAn with their logo on it, and see if they have any production info left...

John

okfoz

Not to be confused with the "Fire-Am" Which was a performance upgraded car...

John

pontiacguy1

The reasons that I give for it not being very valuable or collectible are:

(1) this was an Appearance package that they put on the cars, nothing at all was done to the running gear of the base firebird... no cold air induction, no performance exhaust, no tuning, nothing.
(2) This package used the base Firebird as the platform. Some of them did have V6 engines in them, I've seen one.
(3) this was done by an outside company, not from the factory. GM did build some 'enhanced appearance' cars before the 1980's which were based on lower-end models. The SkyBird firebirds of the 1970's come to mind, as well as the Heavy-Chevy Chevelles of the early 1970's. These cars were really nice looking vehicles, but were basically base models underneath the pretty skin. None of them are prized or sought after today. Most people don't even remember them.

It's funny that you said you've only seen the 4th generation Pro/Am. I have only seen one 4th generation Pro/Am, and two 4th Generation Bandit III firebirds. I've seen 4 of the 3rd gen Pro/Ams and two of the 3rd generation Bandit II Firebirds. I always thought the 3rd gen was more popular.

It would be interesting to know exactly how many Pro/Ams and how many Bandit IIs were made each year. I'm not curious enough to do any reasearch, though.

mr396

here are a few.

mr396

pic

HCR13

iTrader: (5)

thanks for the pics mr396. Too bad they aren't bigger. But it just seems like they have a deviation from Trans Am ground effects and maybe a different hood...

mr396

Bigger pics here. http://www.cardomain.com/ride/775309/7

HCR13

iTrader: (5)

So I was searching around Craigslist today and came upon a 3rd gen Pro Am! if I had the $$ I would probably buy it and convert it to TPI
I'm uploading a screenshot of the ad so future users can see it once the ad gets removed
http://columbia.craigslist.org/cto/1573833964.html

pontiacguy1

It's not a 'different' hood. It is a standard Firebird hood with their huge cowl-induction looking scoop glued and bolted on. THe scoop was just a big fiberglass casting that was put on the hood. I bet that they either had stiffer hood shocks or had trouble with the hood staying up.

They are really pretty cars, though. I know that they cost a lot from the dealerships around here. You could buy a Trans Am for the price you would pay for the Pro/Am cars.

myfrbd

Hi
Am I correct in what you wrote- that the skybirds, redbirds,and yellowbirds were sent out to be customized and that the special editions esprit 'bird' in 77-80 were not factory done?


(3) this was done by an outside company, not from the factory. GM did build some 'enhanced appearance' cars before the 1980's which were based on lower-end models. The SkyBird firebirds of the 1970's come to mind, as well as the Heavy-Chevy Chevelles of the early 1970's. These cars were really nice looking vehicles, but were basically base models underneath the pretty skin. None of them are prized or sought after today. Most people don't even remember them.

L695speed

They were Firebird Esprits that were created along the lines of the Y81, Y82 and Y88 Special Edition Trans Ams of 77-81. In short they were ordinary Esprits that were themed for a certain color, in this case Skybirds were Blue, Red and Yellowbirds were Red and Yellow respectively. The Skybirds even had blue tinted T tops, if that option was checked, they were also fitted with the machine turned dash and formula wheel from the Trans Am. They were all created by GM and produced along the rest of the firebird line at the plants. They will eventually into their own but they are not as well known or as popular as the TAs. I've seen some Skybirds in person. Nice cars.

Now back to the third gen topic. I believe there were some other "custom" birds and camaros that were created by other people as well. The Choo Choo customs cars to my knowledge is the most well known. I'm no expert on these cars but I do know that I've never seen a Pro/Am in person anyway.

myfrbd

Hi
Not all Skybirds had the machine turned dash..many of the 77's had the woodgrain dash. Also, Ttops on the 77 we after market by Hurst and not factory. One of the reasons why skybirds are scarce is because they were so much like Trans Ams that when the wives/girlfriends were done with the cars, they were cloned into Trans Ams. They were the only muscle car in muscle car history to be promoted towards the female car collectors. A skybird in mint condition is hard to find and indeed a good one tends to be a 'rare bird'!

L695speed

I was just pointing out some of the options on it. Yes I know T tops were by Hurst and later both Hurst and Fisher before Hurst bowed out of it completely, but the point I was making was the Skybirds and the ones that followed it was a factory option, not an aftermarket one. The ones that I've seen in person had the machined dash with the TA wheel, and they were original with the window stickers. My Dad had a 77 Firebird that was a 301 and a four on the floor, he also had the wooden dash (was fake wood too). Eventually due to wrecks he himself was in the process of turning it into a TA clone, a black and gold one with a twist. Sadly it was never finished as it was wrecked before it was finished.

myfrbd

Hi
Thank you for your explanation. In the March 2010 issue of High Performance Pontiac Magazine there was an excellent story on a mint condition skybird.
http://www.highperformancepontiac.co...ird/index.html

L695speed

NICE! Just one thing...any pontiac lover will tell you that the editor made a big error on the title heading. That is a 77 not a 76 which they noted in the story itself.

myfrbd

Well, actually he was correct. The Blue Bird Is Born In February 1976, Pontiac arrived at the Chicago Auto Show with a neatly dressed Esprit called the Blue Bird.

And in the story and photos he does note that it is a 77.

fyi- dont know if you have ever been to the Trans Am Nationals, but that car was there for the 24th National in 2008. That was the first time that a Skybird was ever shown at that national. There had been redbirds and some say a yellowbird, but never a Skybird. That car took first in it's class that year, along with having a photo shoot with the magazine and several interviews along with having an interview on a cable car show.

How many guys can say that their Trans Am was a feature car in a national magazine. Quite impressive for a car that quote from an earlier post here

' None of them are prized or sought after today. Most people don't even remember them. '

The reason why I know so much about that car is.. because it is mine. That car is all original and has been taken excellent by it's first two owners. If none were sought after, then why when I was at the nationals I had many people offering to buy that car as they said they knew how rare she was.

btw- just my humble opionon

pontiacguy1

Well- good for you. I am glad that you have it. It is always nice to find an original car that has been well preserved. The skybirds were pretty unusual, but they were also done by GM, not by an outside company. Your car notwithstanding, history has not been kind to those types of cars in general. It may be that they are now so very few of them left, that they are quite the novelty. I am sure that there weren't very many to begin with.

My main point is this: From a collectibility/fame/notoriety standpoint, the most important ingredient is performance. The Yenco Camaros are well known and extremely valuable primarily because they had enhanced performance. I believe that the same will be true in the future with Rousch Mustangs. The Pro/Am cars were good looking cars, but offered nothing in the performance arena. That is why I say that they will never be worth what a Trans Am will be worth, condition and mileage being equal. I have seen several, and almost ALL of the owners of said cars believed that they had some type of rare and very valuable 'supercar', which they then would try to sell for about 2 or 3times what it was worth. Rare, yes, supercar, No.

I just don't want people to get the idea that these cars are someday going to be worth what a Daytona Superbird or a yenko camaro is going to be. They are NICE cars, good cruisers, and very very sharp looking in my opinion. If you have one, enjoy it. That's the whole point of having a third-gen in my opinion, is to enjoy having, working on, restoring, or modifying a car with a rich history, good looks, and performance potential.

If that isn't what you're after, go buy a Toyota. Don't forget to spray some WD-40 on the gas pedal! (JUST KIDDING!)

okfoz

Hey, we are a 3rd Gen Board... if you want to discuss 2nd gens, find an appropriate board... not trying to be difficult, just the rules...

John

bjhunt1055

this is pics of my pro / am http://www.mautofied.com/1990-Pontia...ing/100238870/

HCR13

iTrader: (5)

I like that rear bumper...

pontiacguy1

The ad for the car states that it was one of 100 ever made. They made these cars from about 1986 through at least 1995 or 1996 on the 4th gen cars, and they only made 100 of them? That comes out to about 10 or 12 cars per year. They might have only made 100 of them in 1990, but that isn't the way I read the ad.

Also, the ad says that the car will be worth 20,000 in another 5 to 10 years??? Where do you get that from? I would like to see some evidence of that. A 1990 Trans Am will probably not be worth that in another 10 to 15 years, so why in the world would this car?

I hope that you sell the car. It sure is pretty and has been well kept, but I don't believe that it is worth$7K, and I believe that the ad is misleading.

Those don't look like the original CCC rims on there to me, either. They look like they have been put on there in the last 10 years or so.

Paigesdad

Found this 1991 Pro Am on CL today. Out of all the pics I have seen of other Pro Ams, I would say this one is hands down the best looking. Unfortunately, IMO, that isnt saying much. At least this one is a T/A which still doesnt come close to justifying that price.

http://charlotte.craigslist.org/ctd/1631750181.html

okfoz

I agree, it is a very nice looking car... I highly suspect it has been repainted tho... A very good repaint from what I can tell in the pix, but I suspect a repaint...

There are some things that are missing, and some things that are tell tale signs... the car was disassembled to repaint,

John

firebirdproamI

Hey Gentlemen, I must thank you all for the plethora of Pro/Am information you have contributed. In April of this year I bought an '89 firebird for eighteen hundred. It has really poorly kept interior, and rough paint. But later I noticed it has "Pro Am I" painted on the doors and on the rear bumper. I had no idea what that even meant.

I was informed the Pro Am series was from '89-'91, but from the sounds of your remarks, this isn't correct. I was told there were 500 Pro Am I's in '89, 500 Pro Am II's in '90, and 500 Pro Am III's in '91. I also read somewhere that they were pace cars...which I highly doubt, but I have no idea the history of them.

When I got it the hoodscoop had some sort of extremely faded, craking, and discolored vinal covering, there was writing on it, but I couldn't make it out..."Formula" maybe... I took it off with the intention of repainting it, but I had to fix the fiberglass first.

There wasn't a gold plaque in it like the ones you all are talking about, nor is there any symbol on the headrests. It does have the rosewood interior. On the bottom of the hoodscoop were stickers from CCC numbering it 112.

I'd like to work on fixing it up, but I don't know where to start. The engine was rebuilt 23k miles ago. The T tops leak, and I don't know if there is fix for that, or if it's just characteristic of T tops.

I must say, performance wise- it could do better, I just have no idea what I've got, or what I'm doing...

NY3RDGEN

Well, Youre certainly in the right place if you want to restore youre Thirdgen. Just




Welcome to TGO !

mbizztbizz

I have 1996 Pro AM Trans AM Series III #24 Black & Gold 5.7 V8 built by chattanooga tn at choo choo custom

okfoz

Unfortunately no one would know much about the 4th gens, as this is a third gen board.

mantaguy

iTrader: (5)

Just a heads up,there is a member here who has a Pro/Am,I can't remember his name,but I've meet him at some of the local car shows here in S.Jersey.It's a beauty.

Allen Black

I have a 1991 Firebird Pro Am #29. They do exist. Mine maybe for Sale

Allen Black

I have #29

SandraRenee

I own a 1995 Pro Am III number 143. I have 41,000 miles on it. I am the original owner . Purple and Silver . Been offered 7 grand .