Unfair Bashing Of The 1980-1981 Pontiac Trans Am Turbo 4.9 Liter V8 

You don't buy a late 70s T/A for jaw dropping performance, you buy it because no matter where you drive it, you have the coolest looking ride on the road!!!

I happen to have an 80 trans am 4.9 turbo special edition. It is all original, and has 4,800 miles on it. It has been in my family since day one and I am glad to see it finally get the outside respect it deserves, even though that's how I felt about it all along

Great video! I own an '81 Turbo Trans Am, but the original owner blew up the turbo 301 and, by the time I bought it in 1993, it had a Pontiac 400 installed that was sorely in need of the complete rebuild I gave it soon after acquiring it. At the time, I also had a 2nd '81 Trans Am and it was the 305 4-speed model. I installed a suped-up Chevy 350 in it and later sold it because I needed the cash. I'm glad I still have the one with the 400. As a kid in 1979, I was floored when I first saw the latest version of the 2nd generation T/A. It looked so awesome that it became my dream car once I was old enough to drive. I love all models of the Firebirds and Trans Ams, but the 79-81 look remains my favorite.

I drove a PRISTINE example of these back in high school. I admit that I considered trying to drop a 6.6 liter into it, but wisdom prevailed as it was in such fine shape. So, I just enjoyed it as it was, took meticulous care of it, and brought a nice price when I finally parted with it. And it didn't do my reputation in high school any harm either.

The 301 was a reliable yet anemic engine. I drove one once with automatic transmission, non-turbo, 3.08 Gears. It was about the same acceleration as a 2.8L Mustang II.

You forgot to mention... The Hot Rod magazine article said “The new Turbo Trans Am will still do a burnout. But water is now required!”

This is one of the best car enthusiast RU-vid channels!!

In high school a buddy of mine’s dad had a white pristine 81 turbo TA. Every now and then his dad would let him drive it and I’d ride along. It was amazing. That car got serious looks from everyone. I’ll never forget it.

'79 to '81 are my favorite style with that mean looking front end mask

Small correction, 8:39 The Turbo did not force air through the rochester carburetor. It actually drawn through, the carb was mounted before the Turbo intake. The other major problem was no heat exchanger on the charge air (No intercooler), and that was a shame because the inherit design would have been perfect for a Water-Alcohol cooled intake plenum. The Pontiac manifolds on those engines had a air passage under them (unlike the Chevys). So a separate cooling system for that intake would have done wonders. And EFI of course. I had the 1981 Nascar Edition, and still have my 1980 T/A WS6 Black on Black edition (301 CID)

I don't care what y'all say, I still like it!

I had an '81 midnight metallic blue Turbo T/A, with all the options. One thing people forget about those cars is they were some of the best handling cars of that era, and plenty grunty. And, of course, marvelously beautiful.

I own a 1980 Turbo T/A with a rare factory T-top delete. I inherited the car from a former tenant of a house I leased out who was transferring for his job overseas. He knew I had interest in the car and it was not running at the time so he made a deal for his last 3 months rent I couldn't refuse lol. I got started on restoring it in 2000 in my shop and pulled the entire drive train including the rear and sent it all to a speed shop. By 2002 I had the car repainted the factory black, the gold eagle decals and interior looking brand new and many upgraded suspension parts. Last piece of the puzzle was the engine. I had the Speed shop completely rebuild the 301 with high end parts a new CPU driven Turbo system that turned a very respectable 435 HP on the dyno. Changed the 308 rear gears to 355 limited slip and added an overdrive gear to the rebuilt transmission. It is what this car always should have been. Its a blast to drive and turns heads every time I do drive it. I always wanted to go to Florida and see if Burt Reynolds would sign the dash and I regret I never pursued that now that he has passed.

Excellent review. I own several 80-81 Turbo T/A’s and the performance is actually very respectable, especially for the period. I feel most of the bashing comes from a lack of understanding the engines. The 301 turbo was the first, and last of several things. It was the first Turbo on a T/A, first computer, first to use metric nuts and bolts, and last Pontiac engine. Put this in the hands An early eighties mechanic who had never heard of a computer, didn’t own a metric wrench or heard of an O2 sensor, and the car never stood a chance. Most were left to rot when the owner couldn’t figure out how to repair it. Many T/A’s went to the crusher or roundly round tracks. As a result, they Are now scarce as hens teeth, with parts even more scarce. However, If you think of “the car “ that represents the 80’s, it’s the Trans Am, and it will forever hold that Distinction.

Had a 301 T/A. Was a reliable car, but that motor belonged in a Russian farm tractor.

Love these videos...you speak so clearly and really know your stuff. Thanks for the info and the watching entertainment.

I miss seeing screaming chickens everywhere. So cool

First car I had was a ‘79 full size Pontiac sedan with the 301, 2bbl, single exhaust. It did 0-60 eventually. Was like driving your sofa down the highway. That said, that engine took all the abuse I could throw at it, and went 200k miles before it went on to its next owner!

I was 20 years old in 1981..lusted over the 2nd gens..1981 is my fav Trans Am. Thx

I miss those cars.

FINALLY, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS.. i LOVE MY 81 SE TURBO T/A

I had two 77 T/A's one was a Y82 special edition. Both were equiped with the L78 400. The special edition car was loaded with options and it had a 3.23 posi. The other car had a lazy 2.41 posi. With the standard car I replaced the L78 with a 69 Ram Air III 400 from a GTO and rear with a 3.73 unit . But what the heavy Trans Am really needed was the big 455 . My car ran really well. I had a friend with a 78 T/A that had the W72 engine and auto trans. He went a different route replacing the W72 with a 1970 455 out of a Bonneville. With slicks the big 455 would get air under the left front wheel and almost pull both front wheels off the ground. I worked for a local tire store and one of our customers had a nice low mile example of the turbo Indy pace car. Neither of my Trans Am friends thought the Turbo car felt even as good as a well built L78 car . It was a fun car to drive but sorely lacked the performance of the larger displacement Trans Am offerings. Personally I thought the Olds 403 equiped cars felt better.

Thank you for this video on one of my favorite cars of all time.... I remember when the 1980 Trans Am came out I was 14 and in love.....

Had a 79 403 TA bought new. Totalled it out 3 years later in the fog. Then bought a 79 400 TA with 4 speed. Very fast. Both WS6.

Another well done retrospective! Keep up the good work.

Love your show Old Car Memories. I got my drivers license in 1969. A perfect time to get your license. My first car was a joke, a 1953 Kaiser Manhattan left to me by my Uncle Paul. Then I had a short run with a 1967 Dodge Dart except it had a 170 six with a 3 on the tree, but at 17 1/2 I was driving a 1969 Mustang 428 CJ. Highlander green, 4 spd. No air or p/s no anything but motor. I was in heaven after my previous 2 cars.

Articulate and intelligent description of the era. Great video. Thanks!

I had the’81, I absolutely loved mine.I had so many great memories in this car!

Ive been a pontiac fan since a gent, one of the best branches of gm!

Somebody needs to come back with these even if it's independently-owned!!!

My friend had the Esprit version of this and later had the 455SD engine he popped in a Range Rover,,,,,I met an owner of one of these here in UK and he was a designer of the 1950s Rover Turbine car,,,,,in the American speed and spares I met some great folk and saw fab cars,,,my fave was the 455SD I saw all original,,,as often for spares I had to check the very long vin codes,,,,,,,your Chanel reminds me of those great days,,,at one stage we had 2 unused 440 engines for sale,,,,,,I find your channel is fantastic,,,big thumbs up

my favorite Firebirds. Just love the wheels and the early turbo tech. Thanks.

I love the 70's trans ams, but the '77 and '78 bandit cars are the best looking. Great styling and slick body lines.

I have the 1980 Black and Tan SE Bandit Turbo Trans Am. It's in pretty mint condition with 65,000 miles on it. It's been sitting in my garage for 23 years. I need to get it running because we're moving. It was running perfect when I parked it. I just need to take the necessary steps to insure I don't damage it when starting it. I bought it for $5000 in the mid 90's. It has all service records and the original window sticker, complete history of the car.

I enjoy your series! When you get around to it... The 1998 and 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix... Thank you and keep up the good work 😊

Loved the 80s snippet in the advertising. “We Build Excitement….Pontiac”! ❤

i had a 71 formula 400 in the mid-late 80's. still have the occasional dream about it some 30 years later.

I'm currently working on restoring a 1980 formula firebird that my stepdad gave me with this engine in it, and this video was quite informative!

A buddy had one of these back when we were in highschool. It was the sexiest car around. The 2nd gen is an icon of the 70's and 80's.

Really like and appreciate this site! Also, recognize the fact that your info is always pointing out positive points. Tired of our societies negative on everything, not just cars! Keep it up

I just bought a Y84 (black and gold) from Oregon. It's a gorgeous car. Has a performance crate 350, but it included the original 301 wrapped on a pallet.

I had a 1980 Turbo and I loved it. True, due to the waste gate set up for the turbo charger you didn't get that great burst off the line, but man when that thing opened up at 2000 RPM, she took off like a rocket. She got so much boost that I could spin the tires in 2nd and 3rd with an automatic transmission. The transmission was really snappy, and quick. Unfortunately the Speedo maxed out at 85 so you really don't know what kind of top end you could put out. All I can say is that I could bury the needle still picking up speed. It may not have fit the classic muscle car mold but it was fun to drive and it handled marvelously. It cornered like it was on rails. I loved it, but the sports car fun gave way to practicality. It was a beautiful car.

From the early 70s to early 80s The body style really never changed Just say some of you preferred a specific years front end...the 79-81 has grown on me...but the 70/73 will always be a favorite

This was the end of the awesome body styles for the T/A

Another killer video! Informative yet (for me) entertaining

Your documentary's are awesome! Keep up the good work Ive learned a lot more about Camaro's and Trans Am's than I thought possible. We need you to do one about the H Body GM Monza Spyder, Sunbird and Blackbird GT, Buick Skyhawk GT which are very rare and almost non exsistant today cars thanks again

I remember those, I used to see them in the rearview mirror of my V8 Pinto...

Loved my 1980 TA pacecar I bought back in 1988. . The Turbo 4.9 was cool at the time and a decent performer. Was really a joy to drive, and looked beautiful. Wish I had held onto it.

Still one of my favorite cars of all time.

Recalling a ruby red metallic '81 Formula, fully optioned with silver leather seating and t-tops. It sat for a time at the dealer before being sold - still think about it. An in-law had a turbo Trans am from that era - he stated it was troublesome while the turbo overheated the hood, causing the super chicken decal to self destruct.

As usual, you make the best vids in the RU-vid AutoSphere

I owned a 1979 10th Anniversary Pace Car Trans Am, 400 4 bbl. Hurst 4 speed. Silver with factory mirror t-tops, decal package, the whole bit. I traded it in on a Subaru. I am Chris, Lord of the Idiots. (Since then, I’ve made up for it with some other awesome cars, but I’d give a pretty penny to get that baby back. Hoovie is my spirit animal, I think.)

Remember seeing a white one in a Volkswagen dealership showroom here in Charlotte in the late 80's had the pace car stuff on it, beautiful car,loved the white leather interior

Most of today's cars will run circles of these hot rods from the late 70s. I had a 78 Firebird. The nose on the 77-78s were my favorites

I had a 79 with the good awful 403... That thing was all bark no bite , loved chugging gas and was a tank. As much as I hated that motor... It never let me down , was easy to maintain and never left me stranded. RIP phinx

Excellent info and very well done!

Oh boy, my mom traded in a '72 Cadillac coupe de ville for an '81 pont. firebird, it looked so GOOD, gave it to my baby sister, and then she chewed it up! That car was SOOOOOOOO Beautiful!

I loved those cars. I wish I owned one today. My friend had a 1979 TA with the Olds 403. It was an automatic. Pretty sexy car.

I owned one these cars back in the early 1990's as a 17 year old. Mine was a black WS6 model that was equipped with a limited slip rear end, four wheel disk brakes and t-tops. I loved the car and it loved my wallet in return. I did everything I could to keep it on the road. Sadly the last time I saw it back in 1993, it was sitting behind a chain linked fence with the motor having suffered a blown bottom end.

In 1979, as a 18 year old, we went to the Pontiac dealer to look at the 79 Trans Am, black and gold of course, it I bought a 2 Tone Blue Grand Prix w a 301 4 barrel w a whopping 150 hp, beautiful car, and it was still a Pontiac , which had to be, after all the Pontiacs in my neighborhood, and my first car, which was a73 Luxury Lemans, not a rocket, but a torque monster

In 79, I had a 25th anniversary L 82,4speed, gymkhana suspended vette. This car ,TRANS-AM w/ T.A. 6.6, was the ONLY CAR THAT GAVE ME REAL COMP. IT WAS MAD FUN! My '78, was broken in, & yet.......

Beautiful examples, used in this clip ... Good job 👍

Been searching for years for an unmolested turbo t/a finally found the perfect one last month , complete with the period correct trailer hitch !!! Lol

Beautiful looking cars. The T/A and Z28 were everywhere in South Georgia in the early 80's. Great handling. I had a Dodge Charger that would out run the T/A turbo. Little car was unbelievable. Wasn't sexy like the T/A though.

I was apparently not fully awake or still hungover from the night before when I made the mistake of buying an '81 TA with a 301. It was the non-turbo version and was pretty slow, IMO. The motor was reliable, and I never had any trouble with the "Metric 200" transmission, despite the bad rep they had.. But the car was plagued with soooo many problems. The dash was made of a similar quality plastic to that of a Toffifay candy box. The trunk leaked. The turn signal stalk just fell off one day. The electrical system was possessed. A light somewhere burned out every couple of weeks. The rear springs sagged and needed replaced. The drivers' door sagged. The door handles, both interior and exterior broke off. The window regulator broke. It rusted quickly. The handling was good... unless the road was wet. And positively scary when icy, far worse than any other RWD car I've ever owned. I know it's an iconic car and this video isn't about its overall reliability, but I wish I could go back in time and shake some sense into myself before buying it.

Your correct there was the 89 TTA with GN power. A friend of mine took a 81 that had the 4.9 turbo and replaced it with 3.8 Turbo from a wrecked GN.

Love the video, I own a 80 trans am pace car and decided to drop in a LS engine.....now it goes like it looks. I love the 301 turbo for what it attempted but sadly I couldn't tolerate being beaten by Mazda's . Now it's 330+ HP of fire breathing, tyre smoking and neck cranking power. I made a video series on the entire swap.

My dad had a black 1980 z-28 ,had it restored and we decided to take advantage of the 350 being out of the car we ripped it apart and switch it to all the parts from a 1970 lt1 , really woke that car up 😳👌🏻💨

My first car was a blue 1980 Turbo Trans am. Bought it at 15 with a rebuilt, balanced and bluebrinted bottom end, a larger Downpipe. Once I added flowmasters and gutted the cat by prying off the cap on the bottom and blowing out the pellets, it could run 14.40s in the high 80's low 90's. At that point I was only a few pounds of boost above stock. I'd say 10-12 lbs. Now on the quarter it couldn't beat 5.0 foxbodys or LT 1 cars but on a 30 or 40 roll lookout it would beat solid 13 second cars. Turbo lag and that carburetor was this engines worst enemies.

You can't go wrong unless you hate driving a pig slow car. I rode in one in 1981, a friend of mine bought one brand new after he sold hid 77 400 four speed T/A. Both of us were very disappointed.

Even though the 79’ was a pooch, it was the prettiest T/A ever

I don't know what some people are thinking. This car has a great body style. Engine swap to EFI, transmission swap, beef up the brakes and suspension. Good to go. If you don't like the screamin' chicken, repaint it. Love this car.

Good video, I had one of the Bandit Trans Am. It was a 1981 Turbo. It had tons of problems and every time I tried to use any power yet might have had. It always fell on its face. It was slower than dirt. It was my dream car before I got it. It wasn't after that. It definitely would have done a lot better with a 400 Pontiac motor. They couldn't do much with that 301. It was already slow. Then with that junk turbo that never even whined, it was still dirt slow.

Thanks to your channel. I know of an 80 or 81 Turbo Formula that I must have.

I have a 1980 Formula. Everyone hates on the 301. Granted it's not a turbo. It's a Great car! Good video👍

My best friend in HS (80'-83') had a 79 T/A with the Olds 403. Great performance for the era and easily the best looking ride around. When the 4.9's came out we derided them pretty hard as they were pathetic in performance compared to the earlier versions. Great looking though.

I thought I would add a correction. The turbocharger did not pressurize the carburetor. The carb flowed at normal pressure into a small manifold, which fed into the turbo inlet, which then fed into the intake manifold on the engine.

Neighbor had the 80 Turbo , wasn t big on maintenance so sadly one night it burnt to a memory . I ve still got my 79 Firebird upgraded to the WS6 suspension , it s no speed demon but if you want a road trip at 80 miles an hour or better it is irreplaceable . Brother still has his Special Edition 78 .

I have own both 3rd gens and 4th gens. 3rd is by far my favorite.

Like The Modern AC Compressor Set-up at 3:40

Turbos now are standard on alot of engines. Funny how that works

I had a 1981 Turbo Trans Am for 11 years I love that car so much I had to replace the distributor module 4 times left me stranded on the highway a couple of times but I wish I had it again today put a 350 in the there with fuel injection

I remember my 80 Turbo T/A. Traded it in for a 88 GTA. Miss both of them.

I owned an '80 Turbo TA back in the mid-80's. Reliable would not be a word I would used to describe the turbo 301. Quite the opposite. Keeping that motor running was a constant money drain. The Quadrajet sat on a plenum that stuck out from the intake side of the turbo (thus the offset of the carb in front of the driver). All of that heat from the turbo would work its way up into the Quadrajet and cook the heck out of it. Gummed up fuel stuck to the float was a common problem. There was also a 'computer' under the center console that controlled (retarded) the timing to prevent detonation. That controller ended up failing on my car in '88 which basically meant it wouldn't run. It was in and out of repair shops every week for a month and a half and no one could figure out what was wrong with the car. I have also owned 3 '79 TA's with the 403 (I still own one). All of those have been extremely reliable.

Hot air turbo 301. I was 16 when it came out. Nobody wanted it because the 400 was still available for dealers to do an engine swap for $800. Hard to imagine that we had it that good, and didn't know it!

My dream car! I'd want 1 today that looked completely period correct inside and out but modern under the hood!

Have never owned one, but they look great and what really killed performance (besides smog restrictions) imo were the gearing via 2.41's, 2.56's, 3.08's... 200hp/320lbs combined with 3.73's and a decent tire would yield low 14's or high 13's. Nevertheless, great video for a great car... Prices are going up on these for a reason.

back in the day we pulled a lot of these out and just swapped them out with a non turbo 350 pontiac engine the 301's were terrible for breaking crankshafts

I'd take an original 1980 TTA in Black & Gold Bandit 2 Edition. Regardless of Lack of Power, in Reality many have 2.73 Highway gears so it'll be lucky to spin the tires but the fact is the 4.9 Turbo for the '80 Mile year has the same power as the '79 400 Pontiac. 210hp / 345 Torque... Put 3.73 Gears and watch it rip the tires. Top Speed won't surpass 130 Mph even in the Tallest Gear Ratio. But today any Trans Am can be Modified to make More power. 1. Remove the Smog Pump. 2. New Less Restrictive Exhaust. 3. Shorter Street Gears like a 3.55 or 3.73 posi for Red Light Smoky Take Offs. 4. Swap out the 4.9L Engine for a 350 small block chevy, either a 355ci or even a Fully Forged 383 Stroker with a 4 Barrel Rochester on Top and you've got 500 crank horsepower. Swap out the 3 speed for a 700R4 with Overdrive. BOOM, Sleeper 1980 Trans Am every fool who thinks it's slow will find out the hard way.

I love the tune for this chanel btw I owned a 1980 turbo INDY pace car. That was one loaded Trans am I regret selling it!

Well that clears up a huge mystery. I bought a 1970 Z28 with a bored-out 300hp engine, expecting it to be way faster than my ‘79 T/A 6.6, but it wasn’t, really. I firmly believe that engine was grossly underrated at the paltry 225hp they claimed it was! 😎

Old car memories really loves trans ams

My z-28 was a black 1982, I ended up getting a 69 350 and built it up , also put 4;10 gears , it was awesome powerful and nimble car drew lots of water with folks , had bid white bubble letters on back spoiler that said “5.0 litre eater” and we did eat a lot of em and some vets to lol 😂, oh and was a good match for my friends 1970 z-28 we use to ripe it up all over the Fraser valley

When I bought my 79 Z-28 Camaro I had no idea how many good features the Trans Am has such as WS-6 Suspension and the higher performance 400 .. I also had no Idea how fast early '60's Pontiacs were.. Also the Trans Am had 8' wheels and my Camaro only had 7" wheels .. You showed the MPG of the 400 at I think 12.8 MPG I would be curious what the 301 Turbo got for mpg with 308 gears.. My Camaro has 3:73 gears.. I made do with what I had .. Put in a Doug Nash 5 speed took off the front Bumper 70# put the batter in the trunk Holley Street Dominator intake 600 Double pumper 327 350 HP cam anti pump up lifters stronger valve springs .. advance timing 110 HP Nitrous lit to make up for 8.2 to compression ration .. Before battery in trunk .. bumper off before the 5 speed I turned 13:76 at 107 MPH but I beat cars that could run mid 12:00's all the time on the street where I got a much better whole shot.. I embarrassed all the 400 Pontiacs .. all the 301 turbos all the Buick 455 Stage I II III cars not sure about stage IV it seems I beat them too .. and yes my Trap speed was very good thanks to good aero dynamics .. My Hooker header Side pipes ran terrible had to run them open or with my home made very loud baffles 1 7/8" by 50" tubes hurt my torque.. Putting on Hooker 1 3/4" headers with 2.5" dual exhaust turbo mufflers and a balance tube really improved my power .. I paid $7,190 for the car brand new.. I bought it very bare and stripped .. My Trusting Dealer that My Father had bought several cars and two Tandem axle Trucks from charged me a lot more than others paid with Stereo air and even T-Tops .. amazing they had that much margin to work with .. No Air No radio just a windshield antenna for radio noise suppression ,... Close ration trans was a bad idea wide ratio with a much lower first gear would have been better for drag racing .. stock 3:73 Gears Posi Traction was $70.00 extra does not even work anymore very weak Posi in 10 bolt rears.. Now Days it's going to cost me over $18,000 to put a modern LS-7 and a Tremac 6 speed with two over drives but the MPG will be great and E-85 is plenty cheap .. I guess you just can't compare a modified engine with the stock boat anchors but on the street it was run what you brung .. Also Herb Adams VSE sway bars took a half a coil out of the front springs ect.. it sits much lower than a stock car.. and corners way better than a W-6 Trans Am

Crazy that a 4.9 L V8 with a turbo had 210 HP, and the Corolla GR is a 3 Cylinder turbo and makes 300HP. Crazy how far we've come.

The LOOKS are what made it classic

Thunder Chicken ! My '75 Esprit had a 350, 2 barrel. Clocked at 105 in a 35 mph zone. Glad I didn't have a license yet

I offered to swap out the stock engine in a 1982 Pontiac Trans Am with 68 283 with 350 pistons and a low emission high torque cam. He laughed. Well until the '69 suburban it was in smoked the tires. It did not get the HP a '69 302 would get because it was mas made to use 93 octane gasoline. The real trick would have been making the EFI fit in it & work. The motor did make '82 California emissions out of the pipe without the smog plumbing. But all the smog plumbing needed to be there also. Pretty much all of the old tooling from '69 was still being produced out of Detoit in in '82. There wasn't much change in basic engine designs other than making thinner castings for the heads and blocks. Hey they met emissions that way. The Boss 302 (4.9L) Ford engine made 290 Horses in 1969 and the '88 LSC HO made 225 HP. Compare that to a smaller Chevy Atlas I6 (4.16L) from 2006. Which had more HP and torque?

I had a blue '80 with the base 301. Not in great shape, but it had a decent repaint and looked great from 20 feet away. Not powerful, but the little V8 sounded good and moved ok. I miss that car. Also had a '78 Formula w a 400. Not terribly fast off the line, but alot of torque once you got it moving.

Still have mine. In the middle of restoration. I have a 79 403 olds with a few go fast mods. Makes 305 HP and 330 torque. Not crazy. But jut enough for what I will be doing. I also have a 2002 CETA.