I have a 02 WS6 and I love it, open air driving and the LS1. These cars will are starting to get the recognition they deserve, and are modern era classics! Plus the styling is unparalleled by anything else, when you see a 98-02 Trans Am there’s absolutely no confusing it for anything else
I totally agree with you, I've had some younger folks ask comment "awesome looking car! What is it???" Lol...nothing like that to make a guy feel his age!
I've totally had that happen too, typically after putting them in my rear view mirror lol! One time a kid asked me what I put in the car to make it that fast, I told him "gas"....
Reg, you did an awesome job reviewing this classic ride. I, too, have been a Trans Am fan for many years. I remember when the Firebird first came out and even my Mom liked the car. My ex had a 1974 Firebird Esprit when we met and that car was like a Trans Am without the body panels, or the insurance. Loved that car!
Took me 19 years to finally own a WS6 Ram Air. I had several opportunities but they were pretty beat and abused. I didn't want to settle for less, then comes this low mileage all original 02 pewter grey Ram Air. It surprises youngsters what year it is, and it snaps necks all day! love it!
The first time I took my wife for a ride she was on her phone recording me being overjoyed with the car I was just crawling in first gear and I just decided to hammer it lol, her phone went flying into the backseat... I need to see if I can find that footage lol!
My Dad and I test drove that same Ram Air. Pewter! Looked grey to me. It was the first time I heard of that color. It was a 6 speed. We managed to squeeze the salesman in the backseat side ways. My Dad drove the crap out of that thing, fishtailing it and spinning the tires. The salesman was a young guy, although he didnt make the sale, I could tell he got a since of enjoyment out of the test drive. That was my Dad and I thing to do, we would occasionally get up early on Saturday mornings and go test drive sporty cars. I particularly remember the 02 Ram Air, Roush F150 (4 door) and a Cobra Mustang 01. Something about that Mustang was SWEET but nothing compared to the Trans AM, they're so slick and that hood is absolutely lovely. Quick story. My first car ended up being an 86 Z28, almost like a redish orange color with gold ground effects, and gold wheels to match. I swapped the wheels out for Iroc wheels, they had gold highlights down the spoke and they were alloy. T-Tops! My buddy ended up getting a Trans AM. We were in High School and we always raced. He kicked my ass all the time, he had a posi rear end and mine wasnt. His was a 350 and mine was a mere 305. Love the Trans AMs, congrats on yours!
I bought my 1999 Trans am in 2003....still have it today. I'm never getting rid of it. It will be passed down to my kids (who absolutely love the car).
I've owned 18 Firebirds, Trans Ams, and Camaros over the year. I currently own a 1999 and 2001 WS6. The 2001 is my daily driver. I absolutely love 4th gen Trans Ams. To this day I still think it's one of the best looking cars on the road and looks modern to this day. I get teenagers all the time asking if it's a 2022 model car.
im a 4th gen T/A fanatic for life.... and this is the first channel i subscribed to because he showed the car from the most beautiful angles....WITH THE TOPS OUT! this man is a trans am man for sure.
Haha!!! Thanks so much for the kind words! I'm glad my passion for the car shone through! Hats off to the @TFL team for the edits! I just saw they did a feature on a 95TA that they picked up.... I'd be game for a roadtrip and a shootout lol!
@@RegsChannel its crazy to compare our parents generation version to a classic to ours... i mean look at that T/A. this is a 20 year old car and its design is still eyeball sex til this day.
I still remember this first time i saw one of these. One came driving past my high school parking lot and my 16 yr old mind was blown! I thought i was tripping, it looked as if someone was driving a fighter jet. If I saw this car parked on a dealership lot next to a Lambo and I would want the Trans Am. This car has super car looks. The pontiac brand was GMs overachiever child. In the south these are country boys Ferrari. All it needs is an touchscreen in dash with rearview camera and aftermarket wheels and tires and i little lowering and a garage to help it increase in value each year.
I was in the same boat as you when I was younger, I loved these! I've done a Kenwood headunit with wireless android auto and carplay, installed a backup camera, and rims/tires are on the to do list. For me the car only comes out on sunny days with no chance of rain lol
I've always preferred it's LS1 twin the Camaro SS but the WS6's style has grown on me over the 24 years now of this models existence. Now I just feel old.
The white Camaro SS with hugger orange stripes always had a soft spot in my heart! Not going to lie, I do feel a bit dated myself, but those sure were great times!
1995 5.7 without the T tops in a six speed and the upgraded suspension was a beast (it was essentially a WS-6 because in California at the time had to put a full dual exhaust to clear CARB). With BF Goodrich R-1 radials would pull over 1 g on a skidpad. Raced WS-6s all the time and always was just as fast. Unfortunately, cruise control does not work over 119 mph.
I currently a 2001 red formula Firebird with 75k miles (Still has the LS1 350) . I love that car. not something I would ever want to drive everyday but on nice weekends I take the tops off and cruise. Newer cars may out run it but they definitely don't have the muscle car feel of the Pontiacs and they dont have the fun factor either plus I don't pass 5 other cars that look just like mine either unlike newer sports cars. I get a lot more compliments on my bird then I ever did when I had my 2016 Mustang GT. Thanks for the review.
Thanks so much! Yup mine typically only comes out on sunny days or for some weekend cruises, they have a unique look that can't be mistaken for anything else out there!
I love this comment, bc to me, these cars are the quintessential muscle car. That really struck me when I was looking to get a car. I really wanted a Ws6, but test drove some 5th and 6th gen Camaros. The 'Maros were great cars, and faster than the Ws6, but when I finally found my Trans Am, it struck me how different it looked/drove/felt inside than the Camaros. It really feels like a muscle car, and I love that. I'm not sure how to describe it other than when you sit in one, it really does feel like the end of a long era, and in the Camaro it actually does feel like the start of a new chapter.
i just picked up a 99 for short money.... it needed some work but drivetrain was strong body was straight.....i know today its considered slow but that LS1 is a hell of a motor...fun times ahead.
Proud owner of a black '97 T/A, non-WS6, hardtop, leather interior with lumbar, 4L60E (yeah, i know it's not a 6-speed), paid $4500 back in '16 and it was best thing I bought, never regretted it ever since, love it. Plus having some engine work already done to it (bigger mild cam and upgraded valvetrain) also helped seal the deal
But I know you wish you had the 98-02 body style. You got a hell of a deal on your Trans Am though. Anything under $10,000 is a steal for under 100,000 miles
I picked up a 1997 trans am WS6 6 speed with 85k miles for 8k. Front bumper needs paint, but otherwise it’s a very nice car. Still got the original window sticker and invoice too.
The 2001-2002 models had the LS6 block...pontiac totally underrated this cars power because GM always warned them to not outdo the corvette model after model. And how they were smart enough to create an air intake and hood to force air into the car was pure brilliance. The created a simple form of forced induction, the faster the car is going the faster air is forced into the intake. I would love to see a firebird formula v8 in the V6 model with the w68 OEM ground effects from the factory. I love the wide and muscular build of the ground effect package v6.
Glad you addressed the WS6 thing pretty quick. As soon as I saw it, it's easy to clock a non WS6 - the 16" wheels are a quick giveaway. Love fbodies :)
I have always loved the Pontiac Trans Am, the WS6 was one of my dream cars when I was younger, so loving the hood on here. Really cool car, hope you enjoy it for many years
My last Trans Am looked identical to this one but was a true 1998 Ram Air WS6 LS1 6sp & my buddy had a '99 Firehawk T/A that was just bad ass! My first Pontiac back in 1981 was a '67 326 HO then an '83 Trans Am, Bandit T/A & an '85 Bandit II that I bought brand new! Smokey & the Bandit being filmed around my hometown area the summer of '76 is what made me a Trans Am fanatic! We only lived a few miles from Snowman's house in Jonesboro Georgia then we moved to Covington in 1977 & I was lucky enough to be on the square when Burt landed his plane to get beer in Cannonball Run 1981, I was standing with the folks moving out of the way as the plane turns around {RU-vid video Cannonball Plane} & I was on the opposite side of the square in 1978 when they filmed the first episode of Dukes of Hazzard {RU-vid video Dukes Of Hazzard : Chase From 1st Episode}, I was in front of Harper's Dime store {red store as the General slides onto the square} & that is my dad's '72 Plymouth Fury II parked in front that you see when they U turn!✌💖☮
My dad's 2002 firebird had a blown head gasket and he sold it 😭 We went everywhere in that car. Long road trips to the doctor or vacation. He let me use it in college. I loved that car. Super comfortable inside. Rode so smoothly. Pretty fast too, I sped up so fast when in a hurry for college. I miss it. I am going to get one for myself some day.
Everyone with and F-body knows that if you want to stop the squeaks and rattles you need subframe connectors. This is especially imperative on t-top cars and convertibles.
Clean car. I have a set of the correct OEM 17" WS6 wheels sitting in the garage if you're interested in buying them to complete your OEM WS6 Ram Air conversion.
Hey there! I have been debating that as this season I am going to need some new rubber. .. feel free to pop on over to my channel and DM me, we can chat.
I used to own a red t-top 96 Trans Am, but sold in 2010. I was a great car. For the past few years I've been searching for a red 99-02 WS.6 t-top Trans Am. But I couldn't justify many of their high prices, so I decided to search for a red 98-02 W68 t-top Firebird...man did I find one. This past summer I bought a red 98 W68 t-top Firebird. The guy I bought it from had the car since around 2001, drove it only on nice summer days and kept it in a climate controlled garage for all these years. The car has just under 88,000 miles, no rust, gray leather seats, chrome rims and is all orginal. Does it have the the LS1? No, but I can't complain how clean and well maintained this 3800 series ll engine is. Decent rumble when in idle.
I got one......40,000 miles on new GM LS1 that I bought from Pace Performance back in the day...Got 400,000 on orginal LS1...Basic mods with off road Y pipe, Eaton True Trac rear end, no cats, electronic cut out, custom tune for 93 octane and the other mods...Factory rear rims widened to 11 inches with 315/35/17's...Sub frame connectors BMR Torque arm and tower brace, BMR lowering springs.l They run ALOT better with these bolt ons...Next will be some drag radials..The True Trac really does trac true....The car stays straight and lays down the twin black marks without much need for correction..Runs and drives well for a now antique vehicle....😎
This was my first car. Black on black 02 WS6. Mine had a 4 speed auto though, but it sort of suited the car's character. The thing was simply explosive in a straight line, definitely one of the top muscle cars of it's era.
Awesome cars. Hard to find any for sale in Australia. Be good to import here. We have the 25 year old rule which means we register the car as a classic (cheap rego) and don't need to convert the steering wheel to right hand.
This has been my dream car since it was new and I was 10 and saw one on a car lot while car shopping with my dad. He got a Sunfire, which is much less cool...
I remember when I was 17 going to a dealership with my dad to look at a firebird, and the salesman tried to sell us on a Sunfire, needless to say we passed and we kept saving until about a year later when I was able to get my 95 with the V6. That was in 2000...
Talking to you now on Facebook, but I could not agree more with the styling, and overall feel of the car. Personally, they just do not make cars like this anymore. Granted, as you mentioned, you get some of the squeaks in the road noise, etc. which is to be expected from a 20-year-old car but it handles like a dream, and with simple driveway modifications, you can stiffen the chassis up and it’ll handle that much better. Very clean you’ve got there, and awesome videos. New subscriber for sure!
@@RegsChannel if i can work the salvaged title into the deal with the insurance company. i think the the engine and trans is salvageable so the dream would be to pull it all and put it into a late 70s or 80s trans am hopefully it works out.
@@ironpuppy2434 that would be a solid option. I know alot of guys are taking intact cars and simply parting them out knowing what they can get for parts will be worth more than selling the car whole. The sad reality of it being out of production for 20 years...
Love both my 2001 Z28's. They both have been super reliable. The cargo area is just fine. Both are head and cam cars, built transmissions. One did get a 6.0 after getting flooded in Harvey a few years ago but solid cars.
Love the 98+ z28's personally! Next stop for me will likely be headers and exhaust... I've always liked the idea of going with a Procharger setup but for the cost it seems like a turbo setup might be a more economical way to go..
nice review from my hometown, I worked for GM Canada in the 90's and was a great place to be lots happening and some really cool cars were being built and sold and this was one that held its own on the road, there was were very few other cars available that had the hp available stock that this had for the price you paid and any 2 door sports car or touring sedan of this era all had the big door problems with a rattle or a shake , I test drove every model sold on the market in Canada that was a 2 door, sure some were better in some ways, not drastically, sure they were maybe a bit more finished or materials were fancier, they were also more than double the purchase price, many didn't have steering wheel controls and they didn't perform twice as good and cost a week or 2 pay check to maintain or fix, these were decently reliable cars and got what you paid for ,hp and fun smiles per mile and got reasonable economy for what they were a sports car , i had a few Volvo 2DR Coupes of the day and believe me those doors were as big and as heavy, they did not have the performance or the smiles per mile , great video 👍
Thanks so much for the kind words! Sounds like an amazing job! Agreed! Stock for stock, these typically had the edge on the Mustangs of the era, as well as everything else in that bracket. In terms of maintenance you nailed it on replacement part costs, still even today is very reasonable, you just need to decide, do you replace something with an OEM part, or a performance equivalent. The sky is the limit!
Lets get the record straight folks the only dy between the 4th gen ws6 and base trans am is it the ram air hood with raised air box and stiffer progressive springs. The sway bar brakes and shocks are same. Camaro or trans am with the slp package had to hd 1le bigger saway bars be and Bilstein shocks. The horse power difference between the fbody and the Corvette comes from the tune and on thebair box on the f body there is that funky sir silencer on connected ro the box which impedes air flow. The horse power is closer to 350 not 305. And with longtube header and a nice cam your close to 390 hp ive kept up or beaten 5th gen camaros and newer mustangs u have to remember these 4 th gen are lighter than the newer piny cars
I had a 93 firebird as my first car worked all year to buy that car. It started having issues so I sold it a few years later. I miss that car. Want to get a ws6 next
Great video! I SO miss my 1989 triple black TA with the 5.7 - it was not the GTA either, it was the GT special-order with the 5.7. Never should've sold that car! But now (someday) I have to add a 2000+ TA WS6 to my garage!
You totally got the spirit of this car. Build quality was certainly not their strength but they were also incredibly affordable, even new. Built for some real fun, not meaningless Nürburgring lap times...
1975 is my fave, along with the near identical 1974 model. I could do without the screamin' chicken hood decal, but I guess that's part of the appeal of that era. This featured model looks really brawny, no doubt due to bulbous hood scoops.
Fyi trans am ws6 cars, specifically 1998-2002 almost everything about the car is the same as a regular trans am/formula. The sway bars were beefier, ram air hood and air intake box, and 17" wheels were the only difference on 98+ ws6 cars. The Shocks, springs, and brakes exact same. Now the earlier ws6 up to 97 did have more suspension changes, but along with the addition of the ls1 in 98 the suspension was reworked and besides sway bars was left unchanged on ws6 cars from 98-02. I've owned 7 4th gens and currently own a 1998.
Detailed those when I was a lot younger at a Pontiac dealership my favorite was the firehawk it was a numbered one so I guess it was limited production,only saw one and it was black a very hard color to keep scratches from showing in the sun.
My first new car I bought was a 78 Firebird. I loved the second gen. The 3rd gen were the worst. The last ones were pretty bad ass but I hope the build quality was better than mine
My biggest challenge in terms of build quality was always the squeaks and rattles inherent to this generation of vehicles. It was quickly forgiven with the t tops off and the sound of the LS1 making them disappear!
I hate that these are suddenly popular again. It's making the values skyrocket. I've been looking for a clean, low miles, 1997, MN6, slicktop WS6 for a while and every time I find one, it's way too expensive. Really regret getting rid of mine back in 2002. Mine was black and always got attention when I pulled into a car show. The 1.6 rockers and Borla exhaust made it sound super sexy.
@@michaelm3381 I second the suggestion for founders performance, got my strut tower brace, adjustable panhard bar, weld in subframe connectors, and koni adjustable shocks from there. Money well spent.
Some rough napkin math has me around 15ish mpg city driving and around 25mpg highway. The majority of my mileage is Highway cruising. The 6th gear really helps with that.
I have a real 02 WS6 in pewter metallic with less than 50k miles and it's hands down the single greatest thing I've ever owned. show me a more beautiful car made in the last 25 years and I'll eat my hat. there is no comparison.
They are good for the most part. If I go to a touchless car wash sometimes you will get some water where the door meets the seal. Beyond that's it's good!
Not much affordable now for an Ls1 4th Gen Trans Am. I paid 6k for my 98 back in 2015, I'm the second owner. My same car is going for almost double what I paid. My car was all original when I bought it. I still have all of the stock parts but I upgraded my entire suspension, have weld in subframe connectors, and upgraded all of the factory lightning with led lighting and projector headlights. Not to mention full exhaust and bolt ons. Great cars for the most part but they have already hit their depreciation rut and are honestly going up in value. I got lucky when I bought mine.
@@FWDSUXARSE true, my first car was a Monte Carlo often thought it would be fun to fix one up, very simple cars by today's standards but not so feasible any more
I loved the early 2000s Pontiac line up. It’s a shame the dissolved Pontiac they had some great sporty cars. I personally had a Grand Prix 2 dr and loved it
I'll never forget when I had my V6 firebird, I was "humbled" by a Grand Prix GTP. The 3.8 was solid for itself at the time, coupled with a supercharger... Just wow! It was a shame that Pontiac wasn't able to weather the storm.
Hello from Vienna/ Austria. I own the same Car like yours. My 2002 Ws6 is a Daly driver. but not in the Winter. Also i'v got NO Plastik Problems in the Interieur, only the 2 Cracks in the Door Panels are not so beautiful. But i want to ask you about your HiFi Setup. i Bought my wiht an Aftermarket radio. Not Nice but it works. Now I'v got a Pioneer Double Din BT 8600, it works and it's OK. But i want a Radio that works with the remote in the Steering Wheel. Can you tell me your setup ? Kind regard, Chris Ps: Ore exist an Adapter for the Pioneer stuff that works with the Steering Wheel?
I went with a Kenwood exceleon head unit that supports apple carplay and android auto. It integrated seamlessly with the steering wheel controls. Also, I bypassed the internal monsoon amp (I ran new wire and left the existing stuff in place). Prior to this I experimented with a joying android head unit, along with a DAC setup and the results were... Meh. The new setup is fantastic fyi!
Had a 1994 formula LT1 6 speed t-top black on black. It was fun to drive except it had a 170kph speed limiter. Also had a 1995 Mustang GT 5.0 5 speed black on black as well. NO speed limiter. The 6 speed is a superior transmission but the Mustang was a better car, especially when you want to mod it. Parts costs between the two cars was insane. The Mustang was much cheaper to maintain and modify over the Pontiac, and the 5.0 and 8.8 were bulletproof. The t-tops were nice for cruising though.
The market as a whole has not been kind the past 2 years, they are going up in price yes, but decent examples are still out there if you know where to look for relatively affordable prices.
