Top 8 Coolest 1980s Muscle Cars 

I have 3, one of them is a race car, they're great cars.

They got there looks from the H body, 1975 - 1980 Monzas. Go look at a 1980 Chevrolet Monza Spider and see if they both look alot?

My brother just got his hands on a five speed model he parks I next to his Camaro berlinetta with a four banger and a five speed

The most ‘80s symbol since Jackson guitars

Edwin Ramos Hurry up buying your Iroc-Z. The prices are going to keep increasing as these cars are getting parted out.

(LX 5.0). GT was heavier, and to some, tackier. The taillights left a lot to be desired.

the 350 iroc's was a bit faster than the GT's!

@@lancemannion4113 the notchback fox body was lighter than the convertible and the hatchback. Ppl went hunting for them in the 90s when they found that out for the track. That's why there's so few notchbacks today, many were wrecked in the track. All that said, the notchback is the uglier than the hatchback and the vert by far

@@scarface9617 nah, the fox body 5.0 mustang was faster than the Camaro and the transam in the 80s by far. The track numbers proved that, yes the Camaro/trans am had a lil more hp than the fox body but it also weighed alot more than the mustang and for that reason the fox body gapped both of them GM muscle cars.

​@@Montoya1991 It depends on the year and options (L98, LB9, LO3, G92 etc..). The cars were actually pretty close in times with the F-Bodies edging out the Mustang in the handling department. The nice things about the Stang was that it was a lot less expensive and there was really only two options. A shitty 4 Banger or the 5.0. (Plus a manual in either case). It wasn't like the GM car that had a TON of options and you had to pick the right combo for a winner and some of those options (Like the L98) meant that your only option was an Auto. I have an 89 Iroc Hardtop with the L98 that was mostly stock and it routinely beat my Buddy's 90 5.0 GT 5 Speed. With headers and full exhaust, I beat him handly... then he got headers and exhaust and pulled a little ahead... Now I am replacing the stock 2.73 with 3.23s and will likely pull ahead. It's a vicious circle for these two but they were surprisingly well matched for two cars that had entirely different approaches.

The 86’ SS?

Pretty much the same G body style as the GNX, only difference...The GNX output was 360ft Torque

Yep, that 126 mph top end was killer., lol. The Dodge Daytona Z owned it by 10 mph, and they were at the tail end of the top speed sports cars back then.

Hell yea. And would smoke that buick to

@@bohoward6991 Bo doesn't know

@@bohoward6991 you don't know BoI saw plenty of Grand Nationals dust everything they faced back in the day the GTA turbo option was the pace car other than that I'm not sure I saw one beat anybody

The 1989 turbo trans am was a faster car.it was the fastest car u can buy in 1989. Pontiac reworked the heads to fit in the fbody. Output was higher in 89 for thr the turbo trans am. 1555 were made in 89.they would smoke anything even the 87 grand national.

I owned a 89 tta car #1218 beautiful car.... Fast n fun

I know it was just a better time

I wasn’t even alive in the eighties and i somehow miss it too

I do

I had an 88 maroon. Very nice, very comfortable.

Marc Aliventi Aliventi ok

@chief tp that's the way I got it.

Mine was an 89 IROC, maroon with gold and black pinstriping and T-tops. I loved that car.

Yes. And 200 horsepower was the industry benchmark lol.

Yeetus Maximus Not the 80’s. These cars sucked.

@@melrose9252 Not as bad as the 90's those were horrible!

Bought my wife a 5 seed Z-24. It actually hauled ass, and surprised more than one 5.0 Mustang GT!

Probably the prettiest of the g-bodies. Love to get a black over silver car as shown here!

Hurst olds, ttops, lighting rods....pure 80s!

pontiac for life bby

I have GTA for more than 12 years and I'm still in love! I will never sell that car!

nhra formula ws6 for me

Junk

@@flya787 😂

Yeah but they are 2 very different engines

@@farmerboy9029 Beat me too it.

The goat

In the future it’s, “to this day.” I got you bro. 👍

It was the slowest production car next to the Peel P50

Top speed of 168 mph the fastest production car of 1989 was the turbo trans am.

you are referring to the 20th anniversary edition with the turbo 3.8 V6 that was pretty much the same motor from the Buick GNX. Very fast and very rare! Few are aware it ever existed!

Yes, for 1989, it ran 13.4 @ 101mph in the quarter, while the 1987 Buick GNX did it in 12.7 @ 113 mph

from my knowledge, you could get the same powerplant in a buick regal

@DFB58 the grand nation was not NA it was turbocharged

Well the Trans Am was around too to make it look like a Yugo

@DFB58 well I had a86 I must have got lucky it a turbo...

Hush Money he's referring to the 82 grand national. Look them up, most people hear grand national and they think of the all black 84-87. He probably should have been more clearer. 👍🏻

I bought a 1988 camaro base model for my first car, still working on it though everyone thinks it's an Iroc

I had a 92' Z28, the final production year for that body style. Loved it, fast and handled superbly for its time, but side by side with my 17' GLI there's just no comparison. The VW packs so much more punch in both off the line power and handling, drives like it's on rails, and this from a FWD car with just a turbo four under the hood. Fascinating how different modern cars are from those of the past..

I also had a brand new '88 IROC-Z. Loved that car!!!

Nelson Vanvickle You Napoleonic car guy's make me chuckle, lol. Compare the '92 Z28 with a '92 VW whatever, and the VW gets SMOKED. It's all relative. A '17 4,000+ lb V6 N/A Camaro will beat your '17 GLI, whereas the V8 will absolutely STOMP your "just a turbo 4" VW. "Just a turbo 4" VW also includes twice the valves/cams in a much lighter body, along with the forced induction compared to the simpler, pushrod design of the '92 Z28. The then 4-speed auto trans held the Z28 back. At the time, manuals were clearly faster, but GM didn't have a manual trans that could handle the extra power of the 5.7. Now, autos are MUCH faster than manuals. Engines/trans/drive trains have definitely come a long way (for the better) but like I stated before, everything is relative.

@@Lucille69caddy Lol, and? There's no question a thoroughly modern v6 powered RWD sports car packing 300 plus hp has a bit of an advantage over a 210 hp FWD compact sedan. WHAT'S YOUR POINT? I was making reference to the overall performance of a 92' v8 powered RWD sports car compared to a thoroughly modern turbo 4 cylinder powered FWD compact. No Napoleon complex here. But just for some perspective, I used to own a stage 2 apr tuned 15' golf R. I can't count on both hands the number of modern rwd muscle cars I ROASTED at the track, on back roads and on the freeway. In a straight line or in a slalom, 400 hp in a sub 3500 lb all wheel drive hatch back makes for some epic fun at the expense of some overly confident Camaro and Mustang owners...

Yet the TTA had more HP than the GTA

Everyone forgets about the Trans Am

Honestly, anyone that had the 89 Turbo Trans Am, Knows yes 0-60 they could run low 5s . But if the temp outside was in the 80s them shits dropped performance considerably. Same with them Grand Nationals and GNX. The 350 TPI. Was by far Mechanically better and far more reliable performance.

@@damontroch4765 I never found the GNX to heat soak that bad. The standard Grand National I understand but the intercooled GNX I've never noticed it

Chalks October that omini Would kick the shit out of a Trans Am turbo and I love Trans Ams just keeping it real

I also felt that so! If the mustang could be on their twice, with the 5.0 and the svo. The firebird should have gotten the trans am ws6 and the gta turbo.

Maybe 2nd, it ran 13.4 @ 101mph in the quarter, while the Buick GNX did it in 12.7 @ 113 mph

The 5.7l 350 was only available in automatic , the 5 spd was a 5l 305 and v6 , Now there were lots of people that put the 350 in it but it wasn’t offered at the dealer.

Me Toooo, I own a 1987 with good mods LOL

Which, at the time... was huge.

I had number 238. It was a red 1989.

I had an 89 also. It was red. The number was 238

I had a Scarlet Red 89 GT with the oil cooler and bigger radiator, 2.73s in the ass because I bought it while stationed in Germany. That bia, was hell on the autobahn. Had a German performance shop turn some bolts on her. She maxed out at 172 but wouldn't turn for shi**....You could hear the power steering pump screaming From Ramstein to Bremehaven.....Man I miss that car. Brought her home and took her straight to Super Shop in Pompano Beach Florida while stationed at Ft Stewart Ga. Ended up with a 347 stroker, 3.55s in the rear, Tremec and a host of other goodies. Well as fate would have it, lost it to the wife. She had her cousin drain the oil and at the time, tremecs used automatic trans fluid for the manual . He drained that too and put it on the lodge freeway in Detroit and well.........She went out like champ.............

The Formula 350 was a sick ride too.

I owned 87'gta then got the 89'turbo trans am with a 91'z28! love the look of the gta!

@@bunk-bn9eo yup, they were lighter then the GTAs and can be equipped with ttops. But if you wanted a street/strip car. Then the bare bones formie was the way to go. No power options, no tops, just the 350 engine, level lll suspension, 16" wheels and go!...and for more goodies head down to your local Pontiac dealership and buy some of that good ol slp performance parts like headers, cam, ecm chip, cold air box, runners, etc...mmm good times it was!

@@carrsllccarrillo6507 I just got finished replacing the injectors in mine. 89 Formula 350 . The plenum and runners are like new inside . I cleaned all the carbon out of them. Put it all back together and took her for a test drive and damn what a difference. It had three bad injectors but has 8 new ones now. That torque will put you back in the seat .Mine is a ttop and I read somewhere they only made 1100 89 Formula ttop cars with the 350. I realize if I want to add a decent bit more power I need to add sub frame connectors though.

Not much slower than 5.0.

the omni glhs will blow the doors off of the 5.0

@@hiesenburg669 sure until that 2.2 liter lifts a head gasket which was the issue with ALL the dodge four banger turbo motors......

Well Greg I wasn't saying that we should all go out and hunt one down because of its reliability. I was merely saying that it would blow the doors off of the 5.0 mustang but hell I had a Ford taurus that would do that

@@hiesenburg669, I had an 82 Z28 with a 5.0 H.O. That was the biggest POS I've EVER owned. When a GLH showed me nothing but taillights, it was beginning of the end for that car. I gave it back to the credit union and bought a buddy's 73 Dart Sport 340.

🖓

👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

I’m in!

gsueagle04 it’s because it’s not a muscle car this is almost as bad as saying Honda is a muscle car cars in the 80s were economy cars because of an oil crisis back in the mid-70s

Same

175hp in that be little package... more than the v8's in that time period.

@@andrewfotopoulos7766 lol. The GT was a 225hp and the 5.7 IROC was rated at 230, but was underrated. It was the same motor that was in the Vette @ 245hp and would beat the Vette in the 1/4 in BOTH time & speed. Yet was heavier. 🤔

gsueagle04 I thought it was a piece of shit. And I still do! 💩

Joseph Romano same! Though I was hoping they would have used the 91-92 firehawk instead, any mention of a third gen trans am will always get my blood pumping!

@@fpaltenhoff86 Unfortunately the formula firehawk was considered a 90s car even though the chassis is still considered a 3rd gen platform from the 80s. But no doubt about it, those firehawks were beyond badass. They were rated 350hp and was equipped with the Corvette's ZF 6 speed tranny with the Dana 44 rear end.

Yes it was a very formidable car on the autocross circuit.

StevieDee Yes they were, my buddy had one. It would hang right with Camaros and 5.0s. Your earlier comment though, about beating '89 turbo TAs is just ludicrous.

I remember seeing two on a showroom floor . I think they were GLH - S in California. I went back a week later and they were both gone. Even the salesman wondered where they went. I liked the Shelby CSX they came out with years later even better.

That rear window made it an absolute beast on the NASCAR circuit. At 200MPH, it funneled air down on the rear spoiler while also cutting down drag so not only was it faster, it had the rear wheels firmly planted on the ground.

@@shawdowsanddust5301 yeah i figured there was a purpose for it

Got that right. 80s suck

That One Leafs Fan my dad owned a 1988 firebird 305 he hated that car, yet I love my 79 TA

"All the cars?" Dude, how many cars did you go through in 10 years?

@@lucianhartt3123 - I owned 21 different vehicles before I even turned 21. lol

@@guarddog318 Holy crud, that's a lot....

@@lucianhartt3123 - Yes, at one point, the state told me that if I bought one more car that year, they were going to make me get a dealer's license. Edit: I should explain that in those days, you could buy a decent, running, drivable vehicle for $150 - $ 200, then turn around a buy a parts car for $50, if the thing needed any kind of work. So it was really easy to have multiple vehicles at one time, all of 'em drivable, even though a couple might need doors or fenders replaced.

Go look at a 1980 Chevrolet monza spider, same car.

Hell yeah, buddy had 1, had a 4-speed in it. Think it was an '83? Really fun car and a bit of a sleeper with the Capri badging! Only one I ever seen in person! Was fun in the late 80's/High School...

And the 5.0 fox has a big following to this day as well. 🦊for life

My stock 87 5.0 had nuts.. it wasn't until the 93 Camaro came out, then it was time to upgrade

The turbocharged shelby z daytonas has been smoking foxbodys since 87 them lil sons of bitches were v8 killers

Dave Sampson ran 11:80’s all day long with my 88 gt with slicks, gears and some juice. Blew away grand nationals left an right. Mustang gt was the easiest to make it go fast

@@Joetrout Yes sir the were very easy to upgrade. Had an 87 Gt and boy I sure miss it!

That tv quality was great in the 1980's.

It’s a bit of a reason why most would LS swap them nowadays. I plan on doing that to my Sport Coupe Camaro eventually

AC/DC didn’t come from the 80’s they just peaked in the 80’s. They formed in 1973

Nightmare Moon you’re absolutely right I could’ve also said Levi’s 501 blues vans off the wall and Rubiks cube? And somebody else would’ve politically correct with me? I’m sure you got the meaning👍🏼 oh yes Levi’s “ Button “fly 501 blues🙄 I remember correctly it was just a subject matter what was going on in the 80s not what was invented.

The GNX is from 87

@@joshbarbone189 Well aware.

No it wasn't but it could dust a lot of muscle cars out there. It was nearly equivalent to the 5.0 mustang in street races

The video said muscle and performance cars.

I know this dude that has all kinds of muscle cars hemi cuda's, chevelles all sorts of cool stuff but he swears the fastest car he has is the 84 omni glhs

I think the Shelby Charger GLHS should been in place of the Omni. It has that muscle car look and is basically an Omni with a racy two door body.

sports cars but don't see any real muscle cars here

Yep, and BY FAR the quickest and easiest to make HUGE HP with. Which is exactly why they are so sought after and expensive today.......

CT87 GN agreed glad to have one sitting in the garage

No doubt. They are one of my favorite cars of all time.

Alex 1 gaming the trans am and camaro were pretty much the same car.

They were vary similar

Had an 1987 442 and it belongs on the list. All of the cars except for the GNX are quite weak.

@@brianmcghee3597 Right about that👍🏾👍🏾

5:16 is a Hurst/Olds .Says on the door and plate. 5:23 is another one .Plain as day on the door. 5:47 lightning rod shifters only came in the Hurst / Olds 83 and 84. Hurst was done after 84 . In 85 it just said 442 on the door. I'd liked to have an 83 or 84 .I love those shifters. I think he was a little confused . If it was up to me that GLH would be replaced with a T-type.

@@brianmcghee3597 I had 3 IROC's with the 350, they run ok for that time!

@@peteandrepete528 went with my buddy to pick up his 83 Hurst/olds at the dealer in 83. It was the hottest looking slow car I've ever been in. Lol