Great video! I myself have a 1983 Firebird. I bought it in 2006 as my first car and almost none of it is original. Somebody made it out to be a knight car in Georgia before I got it. It had the 2.8 L V6 and a five speed manual transmission. It was the best first car I could have ever dreamed of owning so much that I still own it. It has crossed the country with me twice and remains to be the best driving car. I have ever driven as far as handling and enjoyment . It has been sitting for quite a while, but this year we are going to go ahead and take it all back down and restore properly, it’s all on my UA-cam page. We will be filming the process in 8K video. I have the Viscount seats with the original material and the 15 inch turbo cast wheels and caps along with a lot of other goodies from those years. The nice thing about the car is that I can pick my favorite features and add them to the car and it’s really no big deal it’s not like I’m restoring a numbers matching Trans Am. I would never want to LS Swap a Recaro, but it’ll be a blast in my 83 Firebird.
@@Joesmusclecargarage As my question implied, I wanted more information on the the Recaro edition, apart from the ws6 suspension, what else did it have in comparison to other models!!!
I just found your channel today. Glad I did, because I have a ton of questions about my car. I'll start with what I know about it: 1983 firebird 500 le (limited edition) number 388 of 500 made. All 500 cars were silver with 2 red pin stripes down each side. 500 dealers got one each for their showroom. 500 custom fiberglass whale tails were made by a little shop in van nuys California, close to the GM plant, then I believe they were put on the cars at the GM plant, so, I've been told. About 100 of these including mine, had the Borg Warner T5 paired up with the 305. Mine has the quadrajet fuel feedback carburetor. I've owned this car since 1995, I bought it with about 56,000 miles, and it now has about 59,000 miles. I can't find out any more info then that. PS: there is a plaque on the dash from GM. From the sound of this video, you can help me. Thanks, Dave
Thank you for this info, trying to determine the year of a theft recovered 3rd gen firebird with no vin numbers, and its very tricky, it has the 82 gauges with white needles, but not the 82 chrome strip door panels, 82-83 steering wheel identical to yours. I'm going to pull off one of the T-tops in the next couple days to see what style it has, then I should know for sure
My 84 Trans Am was loaded : L69/5 speed/WS6/3.73, W62, UU6/UQ7, Lear Siegler seats, AC. Oddly enough, it was only missing a handful of cheap but very useful options : manual mirrors, hatch release. I've had it for over 14 years. 1982 engines were painted corporate blue, while 83 to 84 had black engines. By the way, having attempted to "rebuild" an 1983 driver mirror using a 1982 donor, I realized the mounting of the mirror mechanism is a bit different and cannot interchange. Another thing is 1982 used the old school cruise control module with the speedo cable attached to it, while 83 introduced a different vacuum operated system. Also, the base 1982-84 tail lights (the red ones) were used on base 1985 models as well.
Back in the 90's, I had an '83/Daytona. Always wondered about the variation of mine without the big Side-Decals, vs those that had them and production numbers between the two. GREAT Video BTW!
All 1983 Daytona 500 pace cars were sold new with the door and quarter panel decals in a box in the trunk. They were to be dealer or owner installed. Most of the cars sold did not have the decals applied, as they were extremely gaudy.
@joesfoxbodyandmusclecargarage Absolutely ! While mine had gone-missing long before I got the car, I can actually imagine a large number of people would eventually try to pass theirs-off as the "Actual" Pace-Car. Thanks for the info!
Thanks for teaching us about the subtle differences between years. Could you make a comment regarding interior colors and how the different panels were matched from factory? (ex. bottom piece of door panel matched carpet) and so on. Thanks
I'm glad someone else knows all this wise knowledge. I always try to share and explain alot of this information. I noticed your gauge cluster and your shifter knob was different right away. Edit: in 1984 you could also get the flat black mirrors, spoiler, ground effects. My dad's friend had a '84 brand new and it had the black counter parts. I'm not sure if they added these to some off the line or it was a option in 1984.
The salvage yard in my town has a black and gold early 3rd gen Trans Am hardtop junked in the back sitting on top of another car leaning against the fence. I can't tell if it's an '82 or '83. It has gold pinstriping going over the wheel wells which I think was a factory option but I don't think it's a Recaro Edition. Unfortunately I can't get close enough to get the VIN number. The car is a goner because they used forks to lift it and the roof is bent up and wrecked. It's a shame I would love to get the history on the car but I'm not allowed to walk in the yard to get close to it or climb on it.
A really interesting video here joe.I just wanted to add for thought I have owned a 1982 lg4 saginaw 4 speed manual Norwood Ohio build since 1989.mine has the level 3 suspension ( WS7)? with the faster ratio steering and power bulge hood.my viscount interior had leather seats ( for better or worse I replaced the shot after only 7 years leather for cloth which has held up much better) but my viscount had no carpeting on the cargo compartment panels.you are spot on that the rarer parts are at artificially inflated prices. One of the things that bugs me is that the 1982 thru 1984 cars had a different foot pad on the carpet than the 1985 and up cars and that the aftermarket carpet companies only sell the 1985 and up style of foot pad carpet. I am looking forward to your future videos and for my opinion I have never found you to be long winded!
Sounds like a beautiful car! I should clarify on the carpeted rear panels. B20 was mandatory with AR9 in 1982. Basically you couldn’t get the AR9 seats with the base door panels. The B20 “luxury group” included the deluxe door panels. B48 was the RPO for the “luggage compartment trim” and was a $123 option. I’m debating on following up on the video and adding in the stuff that slipped my mind. I was just going off the top of my head as I was walking around the car.
Still a great video for off the top of the head. I still have the dual resonators exhaust ,and for better or worse it comes to mind that no body seems to offer an aftermarket equilavent
@@bobbova8708 Very true. The N10 dual resonator exhaust, while EXTREMELY restrictive, is the best sounding exhaust ever put on these cars. Very deep and throaty sound. No aftermarket muffler comes close. On all 16 of my thirdgens, I have used every imaginable exhaust and muffler offered for these cars over the last 25 years. I’m still trying to find something to replicate that sound without choking it.
Yeah, the factory dual resonator exhaust sounds pretty good, but I can’t say it sounds better than any of the cars I’ve built; 7000rpm big blocks, 7600rpm small blocks, warmed up fox Mustangs, etc 😂
Yes more vids. I want to know info on my 85 Trans Am Convertible 4 seater with Recaro seat option. My 82 black had a 4 spd. Maybe you know the numbers on these and ask me questions if needed. Hope to hear from you.
I had an '83 Black and Gold with the luxury interior. I don't think the '84 had slats in the front bumper. I don't like when I see the flat black spoiler painted glossy. Early '85's had the old spoiler and engines. I went shopping for an '85 with the new spoiler and fuel injected engine as soon as they came out but the dealer said they were not shipping the new spoiler design yet and only carbureted engines.
I need to pull my 305 cross fire injection block out of my 1982. Do you know how I can pick it out of the car with a hoist? I know carbed motors you can use an adapter plate on the intake but idk where you can pick a cfi intake. Any ideas?
Has anyone definitively figured out if the cars used in Smokey and the Bandit part 3 were 82 or 83 Trans Ams? I've seen conflicting claiming one or the other of the years.
@@Joesmusclecargarage Cool! If you get a chance, could you find them? I would love to see those being a big geek of that movie. The Knight Rider Historian page did a really interesting dive into the cars used in that movie recently. It was actually way more entertaining then the film itself. There is a salvage yard in my town that has a junked black 82 or 83 Trans Am hardtop stacked on top of another car towards the back of the yard. Unfortunately I can't get close enough to it to get the VIN. The roof is bent up because whoever stacked it used forks so it is beyond salvageable but the doors and other body panels look pretty solid. It's sad that was my favorite car when I was a kid. If you send me your email I can attach a couple photos I took of it if you're interested in seeing it
Long time Firebird Trans am fan from Australia , would you have any old rare factory issued Gen 3 Press / Media kits , showroom posters , sales guides , dealer facts books etc ?
@ryanwilliams3369 Of course. The Firebird and Trans Am dash used the same mold when they were made. The base firebirds didn’t have a standard dash map pocket, and therefore had the stamped Firebird logo on the plastic dash.
@@Joesmusclecargarage What about rpm’s? If the car starts redline at 5000 and ends at 6K, when you put the L69 cluster, wouldn’t you change the redlines and possibly be redlining at wrongs rpm’s, I’m not sure how to explain that or if that makes sense
@robinlovescars No. Wind it up as high as you want. An LG4 and LU5 redline at 5 grand. They make peak power at about 4400. There’s no reason to run it up to “redline”. A stock LG4/LU5 lays down way before that.
@@Joesmusclecargarage It won’t damage the stock engine components or anything like that? I saw in one of your videos you did a single tbi swap, was the rpm’s different?
@robinlovescars I’m not going to go back and forth explaining this over and over again; but why are you insistent on winding it up to the redline on the tach? My 83 LU5 had a mild cam, headers and exhaust, bumped FP, 3.73s, etc. It’s apples and oranges to your car. Stop worrying about how high you can wind the car. An LG4/LU5 will nosedive at about 4300.
Sorry man the ground effects on my 84 is black it's a recaro T/A but some had gold just wondering if you had numbers on how many black and how many Gold...cheers
That’s because it’s an AQ9 car. They were all black with gold pin striping in 84. The standard 84 both non-W62 and W62 cars were 19/55. I do have 1984 Y84 production numbers.
Very well done video. I've owned a 82,85,86 and now 88 gta.
I love these cars...
Great detailed video.
Great video! I myself have a 1983 Firebird. I bought it in 2006 as my first car and almost none of it is original. Somebody made it out to be a knight car in Georgia before I got it. It had the 2.8 L V6 and a five speed manual transmission. It was the best first car I could have ever dreamed of owning so much that I still own it. It has crossed the country with me twice and remains to be the best driving car. I have ever driven as far as handling and enjoyment . It has been sitting for quite a while, but this year we are going to go ahead and take it all back down and restore properly, it’s all on my UA-cam page. We will be filming the process in 8K video. I have the Viscount seats with the original material and the 15 inch turbo cast wheels and caps along with a lot of other goodies from those years. The nice thing about the car is that I can pick my favorite features and add them to the car and it’s really no big deal it’s not like I’m restoring a numbers matching Trans Am. I would never want to LS Swap a Recaro, but it’ll be a blast in my 83 Firebird.
Incredibly informative.
Thanks for the education and knowledge!
Very informative video, thank you. I would like to have more information on the 83 Recaro edition vehicles, with the ws6 suspension.
What about them? All 1983 Recaros were equipped with WS6/7
@@Joesmusclecargarage As my question implied, I wanted more information on the the Recaro edition, apart from the ws6 suspension, what else did it have in comparison to other models!!!
@Mervyn001 That’s it. Aside from the AQ9 seats, gold N24 wheels, and the B20 luxury group, that’s it.
@@Joesmusclecargarage 👍
In late 1983, they started putting the L69 engine in the Trans Ams, prior to full production in 1984. Only 662 were made. I had one.
I’m well aware.
I just found your channel today. Glad I did, because I have a ton of questions about my car. I'll start with what I know about it: 1983 firebird 500 le (limited edition) number 388 of 500 made. All 500 cars were silver with 2 red pin stripes down each side. 500 dealers got one each for their showroom. 500 custom fiberglass whale tails were made by a little shop in van nuys California, close to the GM plant, then I believe they were put on the cars at the GM plant, so, I've been told. About 100 of these including mine, had the Borg Warner T5 paired up with the 305. Mine has the quadrajet fuel feedback carburetor. I've owned this car since 1995, I bought it with about 56,000 miles, and it now has about 59,000 miles. I can't find out any more info then that. PS: there is a plaque on the dash from GM. From the sound of this video, you can help me. Thanks, Dave
I would definitely be interested in a production numbers breakdown of how mamy were made year by year with colors etc
Great video
@@kadensreviews Email me @ roccojakubec@yahoo.com with what you specifically want to know and I will give you the info.
@@Joesmusclecargarage I sent you something
Thank you for this info, trying to determine the year of a theft recovered 3rd gen firebird with no vin numbers, and its very tricky, it has the 82 gauges with white needles, but not the 82 chrome strip door panels, 82-83 steering wheel identical to yours. I'm going to pull off one of the T-tops in the next couple days to see what style it has, then I should know for sure
My 84 Trans Am was loaded : L69/5 speed/WS6/3.73, W62, UU6/UQ7, Lear Siegler seats, AC. Oddly enough, it was only missing a handful of cheap but very useful options : manual mirrors, hatch release. I've had it for over 14 years.
1982 engines were painted corporate blue, while 83 to 84 had black engines.
By the way, having attempted to "rebuild" an 1983 driver mirror using a 1982 donor, I realized the mounting of the mirror mechanism is a bit different and cannot interchange.
Another thing is 1982 used the old school cruise control module with the speedo cable attached to it, while 83 introduced a different vacuum operated system.
Also, the base 1982-84 tail lights (the red ones) were used on base 1985 models as well.
Yep, I’m well aware. It would have been a 2 hour video if I went through EVERY detail.
Back in the 90's, I had an '83/Daytona. Always wondered about the variation of mine without the big Side-Decals, vs those that had them and production numbers between the two. GREAT Video BTW!
All 1983 Daytona 500 pace cars were sold new with the door and quarter panel decals in a box in the trunk. They were to be dealer or owner installed. Most of the cars sold did not have the decals applied, as they were extremely gaudy.
@joesfoxbodyandmusclecargarage Absolutely ! While mine had gone-missing long before I got the car, I can actually imagine a large number of people would eventually try to pass theirs-off as the "Actual" Pace-Car. Thanks for the info!
@@michaelplog363 They can try, but the lack of AQ9, Y82, 604, 11L, 11U, 82M on the cowl tag would be a dead giveaway it’s not real.
Thanks for teaching us about the subtle differences between years. Could you make a comment regarding interior colors and how the different panels were matched from factory? (ex. bottom piece of door panel matched carpet) and so on. Thanks
I'm glad someone else knows all this wise knowledge. I always try to share and explain alot of this information. I noticed your gauge cluster and your shifter knob was different right away.
Edit: in 1984 you could also get the flat black mirrors, spoiler, ground effects. My dad's friend had a '84 brand new and it had the black counter parts. I'm not sure if they added these to some off the line or it was a option in 1984.
The cluster was an 84 cluster. The shifter was the correct 83 shifter. The car was an 83.
My. Man. Great share. And I'm a f body fan. My. Self. And the. Trans. Am. Hells yes
Thank you very much.
The salvage yard in my town has a black and gold early 3rd gen Trans Am hardtop junked in the back sitting on top of another car leaning against the fence. I can't tell if it's an '82 or '83. It has gold pinstriping going over the wheel wells which I think was a factory option but I don't think it's a Recaro Edition. Unfortunately I can't get close enough to get the VIN number. The car is a goner because they used forks to lift it and the roof is bent up and wrecked. It's a shame I would love to get the history on the car but I'm not allowed to walk in the yard to get close to it or climb on it.
A really interesting video here joe.I just wanted to add for thought I have owned a 1982 lg4 saginaw 4 speed manual Norwood Ohio build since 1989.mine has the level 3 suspension ( WS7)? with the faster ratio steering and power bulge hood.my viscount interior had leather seats ( for better or worse I replaced the shot after only 7 years leather for cloth which has held up much better) but my viscount had no carpeting on the cargo compartment panels.you are spot on that the rarer parts are at artificially inflated prices. One of the things that bugs me is that the 1982 thru 1984 cars had a different foot pad on the carpet than the 1985 and up cars and that the aftermarket carpet companies only sell the 1985 and up style of foot pad carpet.
I am looking forward to your future videos and for my opinion I have never found you to be long winded!
Sounds like a beautiful car! I should clarify on the carpeted rear panels. B20 was mandatory with AR9 in 1982. Basically you couldn’t get the AR9 seats with the base door panels. The B20 “luxury group” included the deluxe door panels. B48 was the RPO for the “luggage compartment trim” and was a $123 option. I’m debating on following up on the video and adding in the stuff that slipped my mind. I was just going off the top of my head as I was walking around the car.
Still a great video for off the top of the head. I still have the dual resonators exhaust ,and for better or worse it comes to mind that no body seems to offer an aftermarket equilavent
@@bobbova8708 Very true. The N10 dual resonator exhaust, while EXTREMELY restrictive, is the best sounding exhaust ever put on these cars. Very deep and throaty sound. No aftermarket muffler comes close. On all 16 of my thirdgens, I have used every imaginable exhaust and muffler offered for these cars over the last 25 years. I’m still trying to find something to replicate that sound without choking it.
Had an 82 Crossfire TA. Best sounding car I ever owned!
Yeah, the factory dual resonator exhaust sounds pretty good, but I can’t say it sounds better than any of the cars I’ve built; 7000rpm big blocks, 7600rpm small blocks, warmed up fox Mustangs, etc 😂
Yes more vids. I want to know info on my 85 Trans Am Convertible 4 seater with Recaro seat option. My 82 black had a 4 spd. Maybe you know the numbers on these and ask me questions if needed. Hope to hear from you.
I had an '83 Black and Gold with the luxury interior. I don't think the '84 had slats in the front bumper. I don't like when I see the flat black spoiler painted glossy. Early '85's had the old spoiler and engines. I went shopping for an '85 with the new spoiler and fuel injected engine as soon as they came out but the dealer said they were not shipping the new spoiler design yet and only carbureted engines.
Of course it did 🤣 W62 was an OPTION. The W62 cars got solid grille panels. I’ve owned three non-W62 84s and guess what; they had grilles.
You sound like me with 77-81 cars😅
I'm the new owner of this Trans Am. I love the attention to detail on this car. Do you mind if i pick your brain about some things?
Email me and I’ll give you my phone number. Roccojakubec@yahoo.com
You going to ask??????
You forgot to mention the aluminum hood & aluminum bumper supports.
Yes I did. It would be a three hour video if I remembered everything at the time
What window tint were you running on the doors and trunk? It looks good 👍
I have no idea. I just told the guy to tint the car.
I need to pull my 305 cross fire injection block out of my 1982. Do you know how I can pick it out of the car with a hoist? I know carbed motors you can use an adapter plate on the intake but idk where you can pick a cfi intake. Any ideas?
Has anyone definitively figured out if the cars used in Smokey and the Bandit part 3 were 82 or 83 Trans Ams? I've seen conflicting claiming one or the other of the years.
They were 82s. The cars were LU5 cars with AS9 interior. I have “behind the scenes” photos tucked away somewhere.
@@Joesmusclecargarage Cool! If you get a chance, could you find them? I would love to see those being a big geek of that movie. The Knight Rider Historian page did a really interesting dive into the cars used in that movie recently. It was actually way more entertaining then the film itself.
There is a salvage yard in my town that has a junked black 82 or 83 Trans Am hardtop stacked on top of another car towards the back of the yard. Unfortunately I can't get close enough to it to get the VIN. The roof is bent up because whoever stacked it used forks so it is beyond salvageable but the doors and other body panels look pretty solid. It's sad that was my favorite car when I was a kid. If you send me your email I can attach a couple photos I took of it if you're interested in seeing it
Long time Firebird Trans am fan from Australia , would you have any old rare factory issued Gen 3 Press / Media kits , showroom posters , sales guides , dealer facts books etc ?
Yes I do.
@@Joesmusclecargarage very cool indeed ! any chance please a special request and make a video clip of these for the Gen 3 fans worldwide ?
@@Joesmusclecargarage HI mate , have you had a chance to locate that stuff yet >?
82 and 83 have clutch linkage
While 84 and up are hydrolic.
Also 83 is the first year for the 5 speed.
82 is all four speed.
Yep 👍
Did you know that behind the map pocket on the dash there is a firebird clearly and cleanly molded in the plastic?
@ryanwilliams3369 Of course. The Firebird and Trans Am dash used the same mold when they were made. The base firebirds didn’t have a standard dash map pocket, and therefore had the stamped Firebird logo on the plastic dash.
@@Joesmusclecargarageh cool mine had the map pocket and I removed it and found the firebird thought it was A cool easter egg.
My cars an 83 base lg4 5 speed.
Heater and t-top are the only options.
What about the fuse box from 82 to 83 was it the same as the 84. If you could tell me i would sure appreciate it.
As far as I can remember they’re the same box
I noticed yours has a H.O gauge and redline starts at 5500 all the way to 8K RPM, how is that? How could I do that to my 82 crossfire like yours
Yep. I put an L69 cluster in it. Remove your LG4/L69 cluster, and replace it with an L69 cluster. Simple.
@@Joesmusclecargarage What about rpm’s? If the car starts redline at 5000 and ends at 6K, when you put the L69 cluster, wouldn’t you change the redlines and possibly be redlining at wrongs rpm’s, I’m not sure how to explain that or if that makes sense
@robinlovescars No. Wind it up as high as you want. An LG4 and LU5 redline at 5 grand. They make peak power at about 4400. There’s no reason to run it up to “redline”. A stock LG4/LU5 lays down way before that.
@@Joesmusclecargarage It won’t damage the stock engine components or anything like that? I saw in one of your videos you did a single tbi swap, was the rpm’s different?
@robinlovescars I’m not going to go back and forth explaining this over and over again; but why are you insistent on winding it up to the redline on the tach? My 83 LU5 had a mild cam, headers and exhaust, bumped FP, 3.73s, etc. It’s apples and oranges to your car. Stop worrying about how high you can wind the car. An LG4/LU5 will nosedive at about 4300.
Recaro black buttom ground effects vs Gold ? Mines commin and its black
What?
Sorry man the ground effects on my 84 is black it's a recaro T/A but some had gold just wondering if you had numbers on how many black and how many Gold...cheers
That’s because it’s an AQ9 car. They were all black with gold pin striping in 84. The standard 84 both non-W62 and W62 cars were 19/55. I do have 1984 Y84 production numbers.