Low Mile 1973 Pontiac Trans Am SD 455
This 1973 Pontiac Super Duty Trans Am is probably not going to last this long at the current listed price. The car can be seen here on eBay and is located in Hollywood, Florida but was originally sold new in England. There are 7 days remaining in the listing but with a Buy It Now Price of $89,500 and the option to make an offer, I would not be surprised to see this well quickly if it is an authentic Super Duty Trans Am. Typically, we see 1973 Super Duty Trans Ams sell between $100,000 and $130,000. Only 252 Trans Ams were built in 1973 with the famous Super Duty Trans Am.
This Code 75 Buccaneer Red Trans Am is equipped with a black deluxe interior and has a number of desirable options including air-conditioning, power windows, tilt steering, 8-track player, and rear defogger which is no longer installed on the car. To make this car more special, the engine is backed by a Muncie 4 speed transmission. The Trans Am was restored in England in 1995 and is said to have a clean body and undercarriage. With the paint being 27 years old you can expense some crazing and probably some cracks in the front bumper.
There were two engines available in 1973 for the Trans Am. The Y Code 455 cubic inch V8 engine was the base motor and was rated at 250 horsepower and 370 lb-ft of torque. I own a 1973 Formula 455 with this engine and it is powerful and fun to drive. The optional engine for 1973 was the X Code 455 or Super Duty 455 engine. It was a very different motor with forged components and a high-volume oil pump. It was rated at 290 horsepower from the factory but many enthusiasts believe the output was much higher. I talked to Herb Adams who developed the engine for Pontiac and he said that his team took what they learned from developing their Pontiac 303 cubic inch V8 engine and applied it to make a powerful but streetable Trans Am.
The odometer on the car is said to read 59,400 miles. You can tell the welting around the spoilers were replaced because they are black instead of body color. The car is being sold out of the collection owned by the seller. It would be fun to row through gears on this one!
Auctions Ending Soon
2002 Subaru Impreza WRXBid Now2 days$333
1975 Chevrolet Corvette ConvertibleBid Now3 days$3,000
1964 Ford F-100 Camper CustomBid Now3 days$2,000
2006 Jeep Wrangler SportBid Now4 days$10,500
1974 Datsun 260ZBid Now6 days$200
Comments
This one would be fun to terrorize some of the higher-end areas of town in…
455 SD 4 speed car with factory AC? I thought AC was only available on SD’s with TH400 trans?
Online SD Registry shows this car come from the factory with the THM400. Also shows no SD engine in 1995 and the owner was “looking for a SD engine” in 2017 (date of registry update).
That’s all you need to know, plus lacking in the “eyeball” department, explains why it’s on ebay and not at the higher end selling options.
It was converted to a 4 speed from an AC automatic SD car originally.
You are 100% correct . I owned a 74 4spd sd and I worked at Pontiac.
Does this one look all original and legit to the pontiac experts ? Love these machines. A great pkg.
1. the trim rings are earlier ’70-72 shinier & slimmer ones – look much better too. The wheel center caps are from earlier model – look better too.
2. the build sheet says it has chrome door edge guards & roof drip moldings – both missing.
3. i thought the sd-455 valve cover decal is supposed to be on the DRIVER’S side, not passenger side.
4. if that’s original paint on the main body & wheel flares, the thin vinyl strip between each flare & the body should not be dark.
5. the driver side front fender “trans am” decal looks a little crooked & maybe placed too high, tho i’ve seen crooked factory decals on other cars.
Maybe 1 & 3 above are different for EXPORT cars?
Nonetheless, a beaUtiful design! & all ’79’-81’s need that nose! Too bad pontiac changed to a flatter hood in ’77, tho.
Joe, to add to your list. That interior is not deluxe. Just standard. Also, it is missing the front supports between the fenders and the front section. No “Pontiac” logo in the front driver’s side grill. You are correct about the SD valve cover decal. When the restorer added seat belts, they did not use the 1973 version buckle.
I had only heard on this website that there were no 4-speed, AC, SD cars built. I had never heard that before.
The front wheel flairs look strange and so does the lower air dam under the bumper. Maybe 79?
Pontiac had big dreams for the SD455 but ultimately, emission regulations took their toll and killed it before it even began.
Originally, the engine was supposed to have the wild Ram Air IV camshaft but it did not meet emission so they nixxed it for a much milder grind. But not before the press cars got the hot cammed versions If course. They also only had 7.9 compression ratios, so the times you see in period magazines are not representative of the production cars.
But then again, Pontiac was known to juice up press cars so this was not an unusual practice. The engine was supposed to also be more widespread, and offered in the GTO, Grand Am, and even Grand Prix. But by the time actual production arrived, that probably made no sense. It barely met 1973 and 1974 emissions standards. It did not meet 1975’s so it was killed off for good
There are better performing cars from the muscle car era but these SD’s have always had a great reputation and strong values. It is also a very interesting example of right engine/wrong time.
This car appears to have all the documentation to back up it’s provenance, but I hope the buyer replaces the black fender flair welting with the correct body color red! I had a 73 T/A, Buccaneer Red 4 speed with AC and the Honeycomb wheels, another one I wish I kept.
Pontiac got in trouble regarding the EGR valve on these engines. Another sign of true SD is the specific PCV valve, which was on driver side rocker cover. A kid in high school got one new. I drooled over it every day.
Lots wrong with this car…NOT a 4-speed car from the factory, it was an automatic! NOT the original engine…a “date-coded” replacement, lol. Wrong exhaust tips, missing/deleted items when “restored” (the fact that it was “restored” in England should be a HUGE red flag…they have no clue, and no parts availability (especially back then).
Basically, not really that great, and needs completely redone anyway.
I am a Ford guy, and I like a few GM cars, but I would NEVER buy one without a GM expert to guide me.
I have several factory sales show room brochures for the 74 super duty Trans Am. It’s got a picture inside of this exact car with the SD 455 on the scoop and in red but it’s a 74.
Sounds like a Frankenstein, all patched together from pieces parts.
i am a member of a few Audi TT forums and most are UK based…the under carriages on those UK TT’s are horrific…you would definitely want to inspect it carefully with that being said, I love this spec, the 455SD and 4speed, though it’s way way way out of my price league …sigh i always say i was born a bit too late…..
Nice ride but a bit steep on the price for a ’73 non orig. I had an original near mint ’70 w/ 455HO 4sp,. white w/ blue stripe. Was a beast! Bought in ’80 for $2500 & sold in ’84 for $5700. I’d love to have one again but not at these prices having remembered when & why sold, like all the other nice muscle cars prior, after 6 mos. & you’ve shown all your friends & hammered the performance to the max, the novelty of it wears off & looking for another replacement. Kind of like chicks back then lol
IF these cars weren’t all about dollars as they are now, this would be a street cruising/bashing ball of fun to Drive. If that is a real Super Duty 455 in there it is ripe for real performance enhancements, as was intended. Row the gears hard, stomp on it and hang on. It is just a lot of money now, even pieced together, to bash on without mercy.
“Only 252 Trans Ams were built in 1973 with the famous Super Duty Trans Am.” Trans Ams were not the only 455SD Firebirds. Formulas were also available with the 455SD option. I know, I drove one right off the transporter truck. (I even ran out of fuel on the drive. Luckily, I had enough speed built up to coast into a fuel station.)
70 or really 70 1/2 Trans Ams did not come with 455 HO’s, nor any 455. Only 400’s Ram Air III or IV.
The 455 HO was stock in 71 and 72. I own a 71. Great ride!