1976 Trans Am SE sacrilege project

[opnwide]

Some people are going to hate me for what I'm doing to this car, but I am the one putting all the hours into it, so I'm going to build it the way I want to.

After 2.5 years of weekend work, my 455 Trans Am SE is finally going to the the body shop, Colvin Automotive in Austin, TX. These guys have done stuff for Foose, so I'm trusting they'll do me right.

The entire car was blasted, and most of the rear sheet metal replaced. Halfway through, I decided to cut out the inner fenders and mini tub it. Why not, right? I added 2" into the fender, bought speedtech's 2" offset hangers, and moved the front spring perch over 1.5". All this done WITHOUT DSEs help, thanks for nothing. I bet they wish they sold be those front spring perches now, heh?

I did buy DSEs subframe connectors and welded those in. DSE 3" drop springs hold up the rear. I also bought their minitub shocks, but they're too long for what I want to do. I'll be posting those for sale someday.

I'm a better rough carpenter than finish carpenter, if you get my drift. I've also just had shoulder surgery to repair a couple of torn ligaments so no more working on this thing for about 6 weeks. I figured this is as good a time as any to send it out.


Did I mention this was a one of 110 trans am. If you wanted a 455 with t-tops, only 110 out of 10 million came with this option. Cool, huh?

More details to come in future. That was a lot of one handed typing!

greg

[indyjps]

good looking project, I love the '76 front end and prefer it to the later and earlier cars. if it was a #'s car I would have sold the thing and started with another but its your car. what mods are you doing with the 455, brakes, front end mods, color etc.

[WS6]

nice car. I sure hope you can find parts for the Hurst hatches. I also hope it will be parked inside during the rain. I love my ttops but damn is it a poor design and the hurst hatches are much worse. Nice Viper too. Keep us updated on the progress, we can always use more second gens

[1971CHEVELLE]

good looking project:)

[NOT A TA]

Nice! Post some pics when you get it back!

[6'9"Witha69]

Good work, can't wait to see it back from paint.


nice car. I sure hope you can find parts for the Hurst hatches. I also hope it will be parked inside during the rain. I love my ttops but damn is it a poor design and the hurst hatches are much worse. Nice Viper too. Keep us updated on the progress, we can always use more second gensNo kidding. My buddy had a '76 Hurst TA. Those tops leaked no matter what we tried.

[opnwide]

This will be a very "stock" looking rotisserie restoration from the outside. I'm torn, though, on whether or not I should pinstripe it like original. Car will start life again mostly original. Stock brakes, stock trans, etc. This is a numbers matching car, except intake and carb.
I do plan to upgrade the fuel system. I've sumped the tank and narrowed it 2" per side for the minitubs. I'm running -12 line to an aeromotive pump and regulator that'll help fuel the two little puppies shown below. Those puppies are GT3040s and should be good for 1000hp, but I'll try to keep it around 700-800hp. My wife may have to drive this car, and she really doesn't need anything faster than a 10.0 car. Besides, traction with the 12" mickey thompsons will be marginal at best.

Now down the road it may be tough not to upgrade brakes or put in a new tranny, but I'll do my best to keep it "stock".

Yes, it'll be a garage queen, right next to my red GTS.

[ed1le]

Nice build and interesting fact about it being 1 of 110. I worked with a guy back in the day that had a '76 455 4-speed but it was a hardtop...even that I figured was probably on the rare side. '76 was the last year for that engine and the first year for t-tops, right?

[opnwide]

Yes, 1976 was the first year for the Hurst t-tops. And there were some supply/technical issues. All SE trans ams were supposed to come with t-tops, but Hurst finally gave up trying to deliver after the first 2 weeks in May. My car is one of those last May cars. Only about 700 Ttops were done in '76, 110 of them on the 455/4spd combo.
By the time Hurst got their act together, Pontiac was building '77s. In 1977, T-tops were an option on any trans-am, but when the MOVIE hit the big screen, most ttops did go on SEs.

Now you're ready for automotive Trivial Pursuit!

[BossaNova]

One of 110? Oh hell yeah! You'll fit right in here.

[jackfrost]

woah.

i would crap myself if I saw my car like this:
https://www.pro-touring.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=27557&d=1230596312

[Takid455]

Nice project. We need more 2nd gens here.

Where did you add 2" to the fenders? Was the whole rear of the body rusted or did you 'just' cut it out? That is a lot of rot, but these cars love to rot. do the front offset shackles raise the car at all or do they graft into the floor pans?

[opnwide]

The entire CAR was rotted out, not just the rear. This was an Ohio car, so you can imagine. I had no idea what I was getting into. Frame rails, pans, quarters, side sills, fenders, bumpers, hood, dash. What a mess. I bought the car through Ebay from Restore-A-Musclecar in Nebraska.
My plans were to faithfully restore, but after 2 1/2 yrs of rust repair and 2 20lb spools of mig wire, I decided that I earned a few "tweaks" with my restoration. The rear leafs actually fell into two pieces (actually 8 pieces) when I removed them. I had to custom make some hard to get to sheetmetal as I could not even salvage them off of donor cars. AMAZING.
Yes, this is my first frame off.

For the front spring pockets, I cut out a small section of the frame and redrilled some holes to relocate the u-nuts 1 1/2" inward. A few more pie shaped cuts and some fill-in 14 ga and she's good as new again. I had to do it this way, as DSE would not sell me their special "kit" to relocate the front spring pockets. I would've paid good money for them too, but they said no to both my requests. I even tried to get a local hotshot that sent three of his cars to DSE to get some for me---no luck. I built these for $0 so you don't need to spend big bucks to get the DSE "look".



For the wheelwells, I added 2" as shown in the last photo. My brother helped me. He has zero experience, and i agreed to teach him to weld in return for his man-hours donated. He has done pretty well overall, but teaching him has been frustrating at times. You weld it, you grind it:) Its been a great bonding experience, and I hope he goes we me on the Bandit Run in May to the Year One Experience.

[opnwide]

JackFrost,

What makes you think I didn't crap my pants? :lol:
I'm a dentist, not a mechanic. This is my first frame off! I'm hoping my Vette goes a little more smoothly, but I'm gonna take a break after this one.

[ProTouring442]

I think I'd weld in a set of Fisher tops... those Hurst Hatches leak like sieves!

Sweet project! Keep the pics coming!!!

Shiny Side Up!
Bill

[cdoggy81]

Ah, I see you got one of Dave's eBay specials. Hope he told you about that rust. He can be an "interesting" person to deal with...
Excellent work though bring this bad boy back! Love seeing the TA's getting some attention :) I'm doing a 70 TA but it isn't as rare as your ride. Cool car for sure.

Can you post some pics of what you did for the front spring pockets? I am very interested in this.

I know you said 12" mickey thompsons but what size rear tires are you going to run?

Looking forward to seeing you & the car at the Bandit Run in May for the Year One Experience!!!

[Bow Tie 67]

Can you post some pics of what you did for the front spring pockets? I am very interested in this.



Look close at the pics on post #13 it shows what he did.

[opnwide]

The tires are MTs S/Rs 26" tall, 10" front (255s) and 12"rear (305s) and they're going on the factory honeycombs for a stealth look. The rears have been widened 2" on inside so that it'll appear as though fronts and rears are the same size to the casual observer. I was hoping to have some photos, but I'm having issues painting those rubber wheels. These tires are the only 130mph tire I could find in 15" size. Too bad they don't make a 26"X14" tire:( The wider sizes are all too tall (29") for the look I want.

Let me know if you need more info on those spring perches.

[cdoggy81]

Got ya on the spring perches. I see the pics now.

Real cool idea about the factory look & how you widened your rims by 2"! I like :)

[Throttle]

My father ordered a 1976 Trans Am with the 455 and 4 speed in 1975 and since the strike happened he got a 400 instead.. We had that car for many year and put 320,000+ miles on it without even taken the intake off.. We would probably still have the car to this day if some jackass wouldnt have been drunk and T-Boned my mother in the car to where it ripped the car in two..


Nice Project.
I live in the Austin Area, do you ever go out to the Car Meets??

[WS6]

Greg, did you just move them towards the middle of the car for the minitubs?

[jackfrost]

What makes you think I didn't crap my pants? :lol:
I'm a dentist, not a mechanic. This is my first frame off! I'm hoping my Vette goes a little more smoothly, but I'm gonna take a break after this one.

nice. makes me feel a bit better, since my project isn't quite as bad. :razz: I'm a software engineer, and it's my first frame off, too.

[PonchoJohn]

Greg,
A few things-
1) I do not recommend using the stock 455 w/ the turbos. The late production blocks don't have the same thickness in the mains as the earlier ones. It would be a shame to crack a numbers engine. There are a lot of options- how about a 3" main 455 (400 block) or a 4" stroke 400 (428) w/ your turbos? Since you're gonna build it anyway, it wouldn't be too much more to use a different block and crank. Of course, there's always the MR-1 (Kaufmann Racing) or the IA II (All Pontiac) aftermarket blocks- iron or aluminum.
2) For your wheels, you can keep the "stock" look - sort of- w/ some of the new 17" snowflakes. They are just like the WS-6 wheels, only in 17". Year One and (you know these guys) Restore A Musclecar are two of the co's that come to mind w/ them. They are about $700 for the set (unless you find a discount code- some guys got them for $550/set).

Neat car. My first car was a 76 455 4spd White w/ blue interior. I sold my B-I-L my old 76 (400 auto black/black) and am currently building a 71 T/A clonification ;)

[WS6]

On that note, year One has even larger Snowflakes. The Ban3 car has 18s on it.

Wow! I just saw the 17in snowflakes and I love them. Very affordable. Just wish I could get them in 10inch widths at least

[opnwide]

WS6,
The leaf springs become the limiting factor real quick when you start to minitub a 2nd gen. The 2" rear offset hangers help a bit, but you really need to move those front spring perches over to take maximum advantage of the new minitubs (unless you plan to run a 4-link or something). The 1st gen cars have leafs that are non-parallel, so if you just move the rear inward, you are effectively making them more parallel. The 2nd gen cars start out parallel, and they take more work to keep them parallel.

I hope that makes sense.

PonchoJohn,
There is a guy on Pontiac Zone that is running in the 9s with a turbo'd '76 455 block and stock crank. (CAT rods, I think). He's putting out 800-900 hp. He wants to hit 1000hp just to prove its possible. Apparently, the turbos are a lot easier on the block than NA or nitroused cars. Hard on headgaskets, but easy on blocks. I just want about 600-700hp. Just enough for 120mph time slips on street tires and 4 spd.

[PonchoJohn]

If the guy is Robin- Mighty TA- I'd believe it.
I find a lot of BS'ers and "multiple personalities" on PZ, so I avoid it. If you want to double check the integrity of the block, call Ken Keefer in Florida a.k.a. Pontiac Dude- he's on Performance Years and other sites. He has his own site, but I don't recall the addy. He knows how to reinforce a stock block for some abuse- his 76 T/A runs low 9's high 8's w/ a stock suspension. Might be worth a call/email to pick his brain for some advice.
Look forward to seeing this build!

[cdoggy81]

Oh ya, Ken knows Poncho's :) I was originally going to have him do my engine. I would say one of the top 5 Pontiac guys for sure.
http://www.angelfire.com/fl4/pontiacdude428/kensspeedandmachineshop.html

[4spdharry]

damned Ohio cars

You're doing good work though, to bring it back to life

[opnwide]

Well the car is back in the garage after 3 weeks at Colvin's Automotive in Austin. My brother worked 1 1/2 years on the body of this thing, and we thought we had it pretty close to final blocking and painting.
The quoted me a cost of $33,000. $60/hr and about 550 hrs of work????
So we brought it home.

Finishing the engine right now, body will wait a while longer. Looking for another shop.
It looks like we'll miss this year's Bandit Run.

[O'Neall]

Just found this thread!!!!!! Cool car... cool build. I love the fact that you're not scared to do it to a 1 of 110 car!!!!! :)

I'm doing similar to my 1 of 549 77 Y81 SE... mine is a milder build, but it won't be stock that's for sure!

Oh yeah, and $33k for a paint job???? What, are they putting 24k gold metal flake in it!? :bsjerk: :)

Any new updates?

[WS6]

Damn!? That's a crazy quote. I also completely forgot about this build some how. Any news?

[NOT A TA]

$33,000.00 !!!!! Why? What did they say? They must have known you'd be shocked.

[10Seconds]

For $33k, it sounds like the only think they checked out was whether you were really a dentist. :P

I guarantee you can find a better deal than that. At least you found out up front and were able to get the car out.

And I will definitely be following this thread, I am building a 78 TA myself, I don't have a thread here, but do over at TAC. Great to see more of the later 2nd gens getting done now.

I also mini-tubbed mine without DSE - back when I started mine, DSE didn't even do anything for 2nd gens. Best of luck with the build and if you need anything with it, shoot me a message.

[shortrack]

one of 110.......from where you have brought this thing back from dont worry a bit about it......

keep diggin':smoke:

[rohrt]

Love what your doing. I'll be watching this one.

[WS6]

10 seconds, can you give some insight or a link to how your mini tubbed your car? I have an idea of the process and I'm still debating whether or not I'll ever do it. I can stuff a 10.5 rim into the back and I think that will be plenty but you never know. Thanks.

[Throttle]

If you need any help on your bodywork, I live outside of Austin and have a Family owns bodyshop. See if we can help..


Mike

[Josh69]

For all the work you've put in, why not learn how to paint it yourself? Rent a booth somewhere. I'm going to repaint my car myself...I realized that I do better work than anyone I've ever paid to do anything for me. You might find yourself in the same boat. Especially if you are a dentist, you have some attention to detail that probably far exceeds most hams in a body shop.

Also with the Poncho blocks, it's a crapshoot. Some win, some lose, but with a rare car, I would spend $200 on a good used 400 block and start there, shelve the 455. Why take the chance?

Also, FWIW, all 455's were cast the same, the thinwall blocks were the later 400's only. All 350's and 455's were the same web thickness and lifter valley strength. The biggest advantage of the 400 is the 3" mains, but look for pre '74.

For 600-700hp, I wouldn't bother with the twin turbos, nobody makes a decent set of headers yet for them anyway. You should be able to get 600hp out of a stroked 400 without much effort, N/A.

Along with Ken, it wouldn't hurt to talk to Butler Performance, SD Performance, Ace at PPR, or Kaufmann racing, etc.

I got my stroker from Ace at PPR, couldn't be happier.

[cdoggy81]

"Along with Ken, it wouldn't hurt to talk to Butler Performance, SD Performance, Ace at PPR, or Kaufmann racing, "

Yep, that was my top 5 :-)

[10Seconds]

10 seconds, can you give some insight or a link to how your mini tubbed your car? I have an idea of the process and I'm still debating whether or not I'll ever do it. I can stuff a 10.5 rim into the back and I think that will be plenty but you never know. Thanks.

Sure, I never updated my build thread, but there are a ton of pics over at TAC: 10Second's 1978 Trans Am Project (http://transamcountry.com/community/index.php?topic=1442.0)

[WS6]

Thanks!

[opnwide]

Just wanted to update those Gen 2 fans out there. The car is in spray polyester right now (featherfill 2). The hood and trunk have been completely blocked out, but am having problems getting the roof right. The t-tops make it more difficult. The forged metal roof reinforcement was welded in after multiple trial and error fitting of the tops for minimal gap (and hopefully minimal leakage). There is a high spot behind the driver's top that just doesn't want to lay flat. I need to smack it some more with my shrinking file.

The front fenders are looking much better after some careful bending and tweaking. Panel alignment is looking better than ever!

I had to replace the passenger door skin again. Mr bro and I never could get it to look right with the fender. I bought a new skin ($85) and some of the 3M panel glue this time and put it on weld-free. It was definitely different, but the procedure went well, and there was less bodywork afterwards. The $40 was well worth it! Ok, there were some small tack welds in the window channel area (not avoidable).

My brother and I work on this car Saturdays only, maybe every other week. I have lots of distractions in my life right now. Progress is slow, but hoping to have it painted by the end of the year.

The engine has been finished for months, and I really want to start working on the turbo plumbing!

[Throttle]

I cant wait to see this car done.. Im hoping we can get together after both cars are done.. :D Go out to a Car Meet and show them what 2nd Gens are all about..

Im the waiting on my motor, so I can start wiring the dang thing..

[LeighP]

Nice job....I wouldn't worry about modifying a rare car like this...after all, until you came along it was just a pile of rare rust.

[gmcdermit1]

I totally understand how life happens ahead of the car but it will get done. I am in the same boat but I am way further behind you at this point! It's looking great and when it's your car, build it how you want and don't worry what the purists think.

[mc84_zz4]

Nice job....I wouldn't worry about modifying a rare car like this...after all, until you came along it was just a pile of rare rust.
^^ x2, I agree, I am just glad to see somebody take the time and money to restore this one and keep it on the road.
Cars were meant to be driven. Nice job too BTW.

[WS6]

Glad to see this one is still out there and being worked on. Thanks for letting us know.

[opnwide]

I have grown so tired of bodywork, and I had to do something different.

I have posted before about rear mount turbos, but have decided to go twins.
Soooo... I bought some mild steel header flanges from Tin Indian, and some 180 degree elbows from Columbia River and went to town!

I didn't think I had enough room to run twins out the front, so I decided to go straight up. 1 5/8" tubes. As it sits, the turbo (GT 3040) clears the hood, but only by 3/8". It actually tucks in perfectly between the hood reinforcementshttps://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2009/12/up-1.gif

I don't like having to chop the tubes (reduce ID) to get four to fit into a T3 flange, so I ordered a 4-1 collector (5" long) and will try to redo this next week. I also hope to lower the turbo another 1/2" or so for peace of mind for the hood paint.

Right now I just have the two center tubes done on each side. I wanted to work on the hard ones first. The front tubes (cyl #1 and #2) are going to require tubular a-arms for clearance. Just ordered those from www.protouringf-body.com (http://www.protouringf-body.com/) and I hope to have them installed next time I post.

I'll post more pics as I progress....

[WS6]

sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!

[68byrd]

My brother is building a 76' firebird. I look forward to updates on this thread. That body style is really growing on me. You have a great looking project and it looks like you really know what your doing. Good luck and keep the pictures coming.

[critter]

Cutting up an SE car! Where will it end? The next thing you know someone will be monkeying with a SD car. Oh wait! LOL.

Nice project. I just happened on to this thread. Keep the project moving and don't worry about the naysayers. I've hot rodded my 74 SD car for years and the purists cringe every time I mention a modification. They don't own the car so, like you said, do it your way.

It looks like you may have hood clearance issues when you get to the blow through bonnet. Have you looked at that yet? Or is your intention to go EFI?

[68400BIRD]

Nice progress, I like the 2nd gens a lot also. Keep the pics coming.

[LeighP]

Very interesting....enough clearance for the booster and master, or are you planning something other than the normal setup for the brakes?

[T_Raven]

This thing is gonna be sweet!!

[opnwide]

Critter,
I plan to modify the stock shaker to fit ontop a dual inlet bonnet. These bonnets aren't as efficient as the Procharger ones, but supporting the shaker will be easier. Again, these shakers are easy to find, so I'm not worried about "originality".

Leigh,
Currently running stock brakes, but SSBC just announced a new 4piston rear brake conversion that allows you to run c clip eliminators! I think they've got 40mm pistons in the back to match the 45mm piston/calipers avail for front. AND they fit in 15" with 12" rotor (and some 14" with 11" rotor) wheels. These calipers combined with an '81 (or even later 1LE) 4wheel disc master would work great.

Theres a SEMA plug for these over at V8TV.

[critter]

I'd say you can find a shaker easily enough. When you start looking come to transamcountry.com or 78ta.com. Just wear your flame proof suit or don't tell them what you're doing. LOL. Performanceyears.com and classicalpontiac.com are two other good sites for Pontiac in general. And while I'm plugging web sites, you can always drop in our car club's web site, www.arkansaspontiacs.org.

[GM_muscle]

you doing great work.

[LSXZ28]

Lookin great!! Might wanna consider some blankets for the turbos to save your hood paint - those things get really hot!!!

[rat_rod_russell]

Freaking NICE. It takes a real man to cut up a car like that. I'm down in Luling just south of Lockhart on 183. The Central Texas Pro-Touring guys need to get together at a meet somewhere. Let me know I'll bring out the PT-57 and my Twin Turbos :)

-Russell

[opnwide]

I thought I'd post a few more pics of my turbos sitting in the car. Some were wondering about clearance for brake booster and steering and AC.
Well, the booster actually interferes more with my valve covers than the down pipe. The down pipe is just tacked together right now. I still need to sneak in the 44mm BOVs.
The steering shaft also clears with this arrangement, as does the AC accum.

I am using 1 3/4" tubes for the outer banks, and 2 1/2 for the center. Tin Indian Performance supplied the header flanges.

You may notice the tubular upper arms from Pro-Touring F-body. I will also need to remote-mount my oil filter.

Car is going into paint Spring Break, so I gotta get this stuff finished!

[LeighP]

wow, all pretty tight in there.....

Nitemare Performance do a nice remote filter mount set up...you can buy it complete with lines, or just the adapter, fittings and filter housing and make your own lines up to suit the application...thats the way I'm going with my car.
http://www.nitemareperformance.150m.com/prices2.html

[tazzz25906112]

That's a Hell of a build Greg and I'm sure the car will be a weapon,,,,, Congratulations on the good work bud.

[Throttle]

Looking Good.. Who did you get to do the paint and body??

[opnwide]

Thanks for the kudos.
Jeremy at Cool Cars (Hudson Bend area of Austin) will be spraying it, as well as double checking all the lines. He's only got 2 more $100K cars to get out then mine goes in!!! You can bet I'll be taking more photos!

[jro183]

Looking good.

[opnwide]

The wastegates and assoc plumbing are just about in. I still need to finish a few welds, but I am excited about the progress.
The wastegates are dual 44s. They might be overkill, but there is so little info out there about wastegate sizing. It seems that sizing is mostly trial and error. I had 38s on my mind for the past year, but at the last minute changed my mind.

Changing plugs is gonna be a Be-otch.
I'll post installed photos once I finish my welds.

[BA.]

Great project you got there Greg. I'm a big fan of the 74-76 era of Firebirds and T/A's. Can't wait to see a finished product.

You got any specific plans yet on how to keep the underhood heat down?

[opnwide]

BA,

swaintech.com has REAL ceramic coating applied about .015" thick. It'll go outside only on the manifold, and in and out on the downpipe. This isn't the "paint" that most companies apply like powdercoat. Real ceramic (only avail in white) should decrease radiant heat by 40%. This along with some turbo blankets should be sufficient. I've got about 1 1/4" air gap between the turbos and the hood. I may even throw in some of the dynamat hood stuff as well since I've always thought it looked nice.

[opnwide]

Turning the corner. Cool Cars of Austin is making great progress. They bumped me in front of a "driver" GTO restore. This was an interesting project for them. The guy drove the GTO to the shop. Cool Cars disassembled it and is now doing a mild restore. I suppose this is similar to what 90% of guys would do in their own garage. I guess the owner has more money than time, but he does plan to drive the heck out of it, so he doesn't want a 90 pt show car.

Anyway, my trans am has been primered, blocked, and primered again as you see it here. The panels are more straight now after 2 weeks than my brother and I could do in 6 months!

Jeremy noticed a little roof issue with my car that you probably can't see in the photos. It appeared the roof is a little higher on the driver side than the passenger side. I guess Pontiac needed more room for drivers wearing cowboy hats:rotfl:

Seriously, Jeremy thinks I twisted something when it was on the rotisserie, but I had the DSE subframe connectors welded in, and I grabbed the body by the front subframe mounts. The doors were already installed at this point so I don't think I was the one that twisted it. Possible theories
1. Roof was put on crooked at factory. 1/4" is very possible.
2. Hurst messed up the roof when they cut the t-tops. Also possible.
3. This car may have been used in the movie! (jump car?). Whatever happened to those old '76s? Did they ever get the '77 front end replaced with '76 stuff and resold? I know they went through a lot of '76 t-top cars. Some of them were 455 cars. HMMMM.

The hot rod Lincoln in the photo is owned by the drummer from Pearl Jam.:cool:

[jtwoods4]

The wastegates and assoc plumbing are just about in. I still need to finish a few welds, but I am excited about the progress.
The wastegates are dual 44s. They might be overkill, but there is so little info out there about wastegate sizing. It seems that sizing is mostly trial and error. I had 38s on my mind for the past year, but at the last minute changed my mind.

Changing plugs is gonna be a Be-otch.
I'll post installed photos once I finish my welds.

Holy ****! That is freakin awesome!!!

[opnwide]

thanks but follow the 2nd link in my sig for part 2.