To All Trans Am Owners Out There

[Knight Racer]

I was considering buying a trans am but a few thoughts occur to me.

1.Gas guzzler was used in goliath which means more money for the beauty of a trans am.

2.T-Tops and glass rear hatch.Doesn't this mean higher chance of theft occuring?
I noticed one 2002 trans am near work had this half baseball lodged into the rear hatch and wondered if that was real or if it was a sticker they applied.The ball had a million cracks around it.

[neps]

Not sure about the car answers, but the baseball was probably one of these:

http://www.prankplace.com/smashed.htm

[80sKnight]

As owner of a Trans Am for 11 years (with 5 of those years being a completed KITT replica) I can tell you the glass DOES NOT make the car more open to theft. I keep mine locked at all times and parked in a well-lit area in front of my home. It also has an alarm system, which will probably get upgraded.

When I first got my Trans Am, it WAS stolen, however, they didn't break any of the glass to get into it, they just jimmied the door lock. When I got it back, none of the glass was damaged. (Note: This was YEARS ago before the protections were in place, different (worse) neighborhood even...) Besides, Trans Ams have heat-tempered/treated glass. It's not as easy to break as you might think (especially the windshield and hatch, which are thicker). Also, there are upgrades available.

As far as the gas part goes, dude, the guy who said that was playing a car salesman on a TV show! Even real car salesmen say stuff like that to get you to buy from them. I wouldn't take them too seriously, lol. As far as real life, yes, there are cars out there that get better gas mileage, but it comes down to how much YOU want the Trans Am and what you'll willing to do for it and take care of it. Mine has a NEW engine, rebuilt trans, rebuilt exhaust system, new air filter, recently redone ail filter housing, and I'm also adding in a ram air attachment soon. With all these things done, my KITT gets VERY good gas mileage for a 22 year old sports car! Also, most replica owners don't use their KITTs and KARRs as daily drivers (nor do I), which drastically cuts down the fuel costs on them. Even when it was a regular Trans Am it wasn't a daily driver.

In the end, it's all down to how much you love the car and want it, just like anything else. Yeah, it might be costly at times (ESPECIALLY if you're doing a replica, they're 10s of thousands just to make!), but the good totally outweighs the bad. It's all up to you.

[FuzzieDice]

What IS the gas mileage on a car like yours and what type of engine? I'm just curious as I heard V8 engines are worse on gas. But that's just what I hear.

My personal experience so far is that my new(er) '99 Ford Taurus with V6 3.0L Duratec seems to do as good on gas as my old '87 Pontiac 6000 did (2.5L 4-Tech or "Iron Duke" as they were called - 4 cyl engine). So newer engines do get better gas mileage than those of 20 some years ago.

I wouldn't want to drive a replica as a daily driver because I'd want to preserve it. And too, you have to look into the type of neighborhood your in and everything as far as safety is concerned.

[Knight Racer]

Brooklyn New York,whoops the keyboard i was typing on just got stollen out from......

[RafaelLOJ]

Yes, a v8 will use more gas than a v4 or 6... I think my TPI gets 20 or so mpg...

It's not a daily driver... and surely, the gas is not the expensive stuff....

Don Colie dash, $8500
Front Nose with Scanner $1500
Other KR stuff, Steering Wheel, consoles, buttons, etc... $2500
TurboCast Wheels & Caps + Beading, Polishing, Powder Coat + Wheels $3000
New Paint Job $3500
New Interior $1500
Sound deadening $1250
Electronics (not including install $4000
All the work to the car itself, headers, suspension, etc... $5000
Supercharger $4500 (not installed yet add $1000 for labor and additional parts)

Car $4000

& for all this, it would be in a garage... or else

did I forget something???

Raf

[80sKnight]

Hey Raf! Good to see you here!

$1500 for a new interior?! You got a bargain!

As for my engine, it's a 305 V.8 carbureted. With all the work I've done, it gets about 22/23 MPG. Here are some pics:





As far as preservation goes, I agree.. to a point. I'm not gonna live for ever, nor will this car last forever. When I built it (and am building the 1st/2nd one now), I did it because I wanted to have fun with it. Enjoy it. No, it in no way, shape, or form gets anywhere near as much use as a daily driver, but it's not a museum piece either. It gets quite a bit of use for what it is, and so does the other (which is stock now, and will get used when it gets converted as well).

Drive it, I say! Drive it till it falls apart, fix it, then drive it some more!

[scooby]

I had 2 and never had a problem with it getting broke into. And it does pretty well on gas not the best but then again if i want a great gas milage car i would go back to a civic.