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In memory of Pontiac Motor Division. 84 Years of improving Chevrolet automobiles.

I went with my Dad when he bought his 86 Firebird brand new with the 2.8 V6 and a manual shift. I miss both my Dad and that car very much.

This car is still one of the most beautiful ones ever made. Idc if it's slow, just give me a manual with it. So sad that Pontiac isn't with us anymore.

The Knight Rider Trans Am 😎

When I was a kid I'd watch Knight Rider, Dukes of Hazzard, and the Hulk... Man those were simpler times.

Always loved this generation of the firebird, I'm proud to own a 1988 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am that I just restored last July. It still turns heads everywhere I go! :)

For me one of the sexiest cars ever. It’s the first car I remember back when I was a little kid. Years later I bought one of these. I have had it for over 13 years now and I am still in love. :-)

One of the most iconic car's of the 80's !

4:56. “The back seat is a disgrace” That young couple looked very frustrated. He’s not getting to third base back there .

I’ll never forget this show when I was a young boy. Brings back so many warm memories.

I had an 83 TA in high school. Mine was a 5speed with the carbureted “HO” 5 liter Supposed to be 190hp. Ran good for back in 91.

I finished H.S. in 1983! What a look back!

0-60 in 8 seconds is not that bad considering the era it was conceived

I daily a 1984 Trans Am. Absolutely love that car. I purchased a 1982 Firebird V6 SE in 1985. Drove that car for 10 years. I sold it with 285k on the odometer a month before I went to basic training in the Army. Three years ago after retiring from the Army with 23 years in, I found the 84 on Offer Up. Man I love this car. Nothing like a 3rd Gen F-body.

Timeless styling and performance made the Firebird such an iconic car.

Exterior styling still holds up.

I always liked those wheel covers. You don’t see them so often except for KITT cosplays.

Growing up in Lakewood Oh. I was 11 when this new style came out I would ride my Huffy or walk up to Jack Shaw Pontiac and stare at them I was in love with this car, One day their was a Whit and Gold TA after staring at it the sales manager came out let me sit in it and took me for a ride it was a great afternoon that I will always remember......

I've always preferred the looks of the 3rd Gen Firebird over the Camaro, even though I've owned examples of both. Nice review.

The prerequisite for owning one of these cars back in 1983 was a mustache and mullet.

Note - this is an 1982 model in this video, easily identified by the 82 specific PMD front seats and the straight shift knob. 83 went to a T-Handle shifter.

Quality, engineering and manufacturing issues aside by many car makers, the 80’s produced SOME good looking sports cars

Good morning Michael.

Ahhh i remember those day's! They where all the rage back in the day's! I remember we used to Cruise down to markette park in chicago, at night and there would be a row of people parked on the side showing their rides and at times burning their tires, or racing against eachother! Camaro's against firebirds trans am's and mustang's! I was 20 at the time, and i drove a 74 nova with a 350 and posi traction, boy how times fly! Enjoy your youth kids! Because when you less expect it! Time goes flying and you ask yourself! Wtf happened!? Im old!👋😂👍

With those 82-84 trans am hubcaps can’t help but think of knight rider I loved as an eighties kid.

Still such a good looking car. Timeless shape. Very sexy. I was born 5 years after this episode but I always recognized the beauty in these cars. Even better in all black as Knightrider😁

One of the coolest '80s cars out there. And quite aerodynamic, too. Drag coefficient: 0.31

I used to collect the sales books that the dealerships had on their cars. I remember getting the Pontiac book for this model Firebird/Trans Am. It had the most remarkable photos of the cars. There was one in it with the blacked out T/A in the desert at dusk, with the full moon coming up, and a beautiful woman wearing a black leather jacket and pants with black stiletto heels. I can still see it in my mind all these years later.

Remember on Knight Rider in 1982, this car looked like a spaceship on the streets!!!

Wish I could go back in time and grab one of these fully-optioned!!!

152 likes and 4 Camaro drivers.

I need that MotorWeek little league coaches jacket John has on at the end of this

I had one in black with gold graphics. I still miss that car from time to time.

I still have my 85 Pontiac TransAm. I bought it 6 years ago. I hope I don't have to sell it any time soon. It's a great car.

"KITT I NEED YA BUDDY"

In ‘83 they came out with a 5-spd and 3.73 rear gears and a 5hp bump on the base V8. Also a HO 190hp v8. Wonderfully entertaining car!!

I am proud to say I am currently an owner of an all original low mileage 1989 formula. I own two other trans am's years ago remember what a great car, what a fun car it is, so here we are again.

They were such cool cars. The styling is so iconic. It’s a shame they are disappearing.

These third gens are getting harder too find for sale and not beat too hell...

Thank you for the GM footage! Driving Pontiac! The excitement was coming. I appreciate you sharing the GM and Ford/Mercury/Lincoln footage when it is offered. I enjoy the look back because we can see what progress has been made. I do miss Pontiac as a GM brand on the market just like Oldsmobile.

I used to frequently see these back in the 80's with the "winking" front ends lol.

When I first saw the Black and Gold 83 with those Black Wheels and tan interior I almost up and married one of those dang cars!! I had a friend with one and it was like Car Paradise just sitting in the passenger seat.. I was 18 then but I still feel the same about that model. Cars are very Sporty now but few of them evoke the same passion that cars from the 60s, 70s and 80s did..

Pontiac originally design the 1982 TA to have the 301 Turbo (210 hp) but in GM fashion, they shot it down. Imagine what they could have done later on with a intercooler, a overdrive trans and 500 lbs lighter than the 1981 TA. But instead, we ended up with the sorry145 and 165 hp 305.

That 3rd Gen F body was a major evolution from the 2-3rd Gen F body, lighter yet more comfortable❤

The car looks still beautiful- but only with headlights off ! 😏

Oh man, I love classic MotorWeek and I LOOOOOOOVE Trans Ams... I have two of them myself! I've been watching this show ever since I was a kid in the 80s and the theme music always puts a smile on my face every time I hear it! On a side note... I can't believe this is the first time I've seen this episode. This 3rd gen F-Body platform made it's debut in 1982, not 1983 like stated.

FOR 1982, THAT IS A GOOD LOOKING CAR

1980: 2020 will be awsome 2020: 1980 was awsome NOW IS AWESOME NO MATTER WHAT YEAR!!

My brother used to comb the road/high ways looking for hubcaps (he collected them),as I recall he had quite a stash of these caps!

Interesting to see John Davis’ voice presentation style in these early MW’s. Later shows...not sure when it started...he had a lot more put-on enthusiasm in his voice.

Still bummed about the Retro Marathons being ended...

I’ve had an 80, 81 and 88. I bought my 81 at 16 years old in 1994, it was only a 305 but there was a ton of work and it was a straight, beautiful looking car. My only regret was selling it. That being said I paid 3,200.00 for that car. There was 70k on a rebuilt 305. Idk if it was just around here or a national thing but every Monday the Want Ad Press came out then there was a 2nd book “General Merchandise” and that’s where the motorcycles were. If you were a young guy with a job and a few friends that could help wrench, you could save up 3k and buy a decent daily driver that you could have fun with everyday. It seems that’s all me and my friends did! Buy, wrench, drive, sell, trade repeat! I had so many cool cars that you couldn’t get anywhere near for that price now. I always wanted an 82-83 because I loved KITT but never had one. I used to see early 80’s F Bodies with 100k on a stock motor for 1500 bucks! Now? Between eBay, auctions, everyone thinking they have something that’s “rare”, they’re not as easy to come by but they’re out there. 82 is definitely my next car. Hopefully I can find a straight body and frame and I’ll be happy. Anyone else out there looking for an old Pontiac, I wish you luck! It’s out there…in barns, weeds, an old ladies garage. It’s waiting to be found and have new life! Man now I have to go in the attic and get my old stack of High Performance Pontiac out!

The third gen trans am is a forgotten legend

Haven't seen one of these in many years. Love the clean look.

Thank you so much Motorweek for this throwback. I love these cars.

My first car I bought outright was in early '99, an '89 Firebird SSA. 2.8L V-6, automatic, hardtop, dark red metallic. Daily driven until around 2012, now lives in the garage until I can restore it. Not the quickest of cars with that 2.8L, but can still cover the miles comfortably and knock almost 30MPG on the freeway. Covered over 100K in that car until I parked it to give it the attention it needs to return to it's former glory. I think I need to go into the garage and hug the old 'Bird now....

This was my dream car when I was a kid...

Dwight schrute would be proud

This car is iconic of the 80’s!

I love these years, cars and how people looked. How cool is the guy with the moustache and cap just cruising in the 82.

In early 1982 my dad special ordered a Trans Am that was almost identical to the one in the video (but with T-tops, tan leather and the awful cross-fire infected engine). Finally arrived in June, 1982. Looked like a million bucks, handled great and stopped well (WS6 with 4 wheel disc brakes). Accelerated like a wheezy 165hp turd however and in late 1984 traded it in on a new 1985 Trans Am with the TPI engine. To say that Pontiac had improved the car overall is an understatement.

$14000.00 in 1982 dollars is the equivalent of $38065.00 in 2020. 😎👍🎸

I had a 1989 Pontiac Firebird and then a 1984 Pontiac Firebird. Both of the were red like the car in the video. Loved them both and miss them.

My favorite was the 87 GTA.

Absolute timeless design. Still looks modern almost 40 years later.

I remember this as a grand prize in name that tune!!!

I love this format!

When I was a 13 year old I once got to ride in one with some older teens who were driving to a skatepark to go skate, we threw our boards in the trunk and I rode shotgun, I felt like Fonzie I felt so damn cool!!😎 I loved it, was the epitome of cool when I was a boy. I think they still look great after all these years..

4:34 John: Glare was a problem on the flat lens glass! LOL

I ❤ FIREBIRDS

I'm surprised for the handing: Surprisingly it handle better than the Porsche 944 and even in the slalom looks stick it on the road although it wasn't lowered. The design is unbelievably timeless exactly like the more or less contemporary DeLorean DMC12👏

RIP Pontiac RIP F-Body RIP Pop-Up headlights

My pops would wake me up on Saturday mornings in the 80s to watch this on PBS great memories.

My brothers friends Charles bought one brand new from Smith Pontiac in Latham,NY RT #9 = UpState, NY. There was nothing as futuristic @ that time!!! The ladies loved it!!! Long live Pontiac from an 94 SLP Firehawk owner.

4:07 the legendary early 80's GM quality/craftsmanship, or lack of it.

Those "Bowling Ball" wheel covers though! :o

Knight Rider boosted the sales.

love these retro reviews.

The most revolutionary and aerodynamic F-Body ever. 0.29 Drag Coefficient Designed in the wind tunnel to cut through resistance like a Knife through Hot butter. It's one flaw was lacking in Power from Chevy's 305 V8 145-165hp. But it's lightweight frame and Excellent handling made up for it. Had Pontiac been able to Equip it with the Turbo 4.9 From the 1980 & 1981 Turbo Trans Am which made 220hp/325 lb-ft torque it would have much more respectable numbers in performance rivaling Porsche that cost 3 times the price.

Most of GM's research and development went into the design of the vehicle, not the quality. The drag coefficient of the Pontiac Firebird was 0.33, same as the Corvette. That was groundbreaking back then. I had a Pontiac Firebird and not even three years later, the interior trim and switchgear started falling apart and the crossfire injection system was horrific. Numerous transmission issues as well. But it was a cool looking car which was the main reason why they sold so many.

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! I LOVE IT THEN & I LOVE IT NOW!!!!

Handles as well as a contemporary Porsche. That has to have the haters spinning. But the back seats are fine. I'm 6'2", and I fit back there. Bit of a secret - your knees are not meant to go behind the seat-back in front of you. They are meant to go to the sides. Do that and it's actually comfy back there.

I owned at 1982 Trans Am and while it wasn't fast it road on rails. To my surprise I found the build sheet for it one day. It had the WS-6 suspension package.

So fast it lost all it’s bowling ball hubcaps except one!! Lol

I have a 95 firebird I have been using for 10 years and I still love it! 3.gen favorite body

I had an 85 Firebird Se T Top. Had lots of fun with that car.

8.1 to 60 was pretty damn good for 1983. Most regular cars were 12 seconds plus after the death of performance cars during the late 70s

Pontiac was awesome! Miss my 1977 trans am bandit edition! 😔

i have one identic car as this one of the video even the color is identic and year of the model ! it is in restoring process now ! magnific car! thanks for the video is pretty cool!! love it!

This generation and the one before it were so beautiful.

Beautiful car always wanted one

I remember the 1981 Chicago Auto Show we were so happy to see GM and Ford coming back with "Muscle Cars", included in the mix was the Mazda RX7 believe it or not and the Pontiac Sunbird Turbo and Buick Regal Turbo.

I always liked the looks of this car, never got one, but I purchase a 1982 Pontiac J2000 Hatchback back in 1989. 😆

So relieved it's actually a decent car and not just a pretty face. I like the twin throttle body injection.

My first true pony car. 1987 Firebird Formula. Love her like crazy ❤❤❤

When I was a kid I thought it was fast like a rocket ship. I never realized how much of a turd that 305 really is. Talk about a boat anchor. Tired 3800’s can still beat it.

I flipped that exact spec'd car few years ago, Picked it up in Denver for $1700 only 85K miles on the clock, did some minor work/tune up to it and nice wax/buff and flipped it to a Pontiac collector in Dallas. Made a nice penny on it.

I was fortunate to pick up an ‘86 Camero in ‘99 and used it to move from CA to IN. It was a fun car and suited me very well for a few years, until I decided I wanted something newer with a better option package. I’ve heard people rail against the quality, the transmission, the interior, etc. Mine was great for me, and I didn’t have it until it was 14 years old

What a wonderful nose, looks so intimidating to see flying towards you. The camera fell to the side.