Wallingford CT All Pontiac Show, May 16, 2010

This show is now on twice yearly sponsored by the generous folks at Barberino Nissan and the Nutmeg Chapter of POCI. . Before it was Nissan was, of course, a Pontiac dealer. This show is always a place for good times, good people, and good hot dogs.

HDEBO's Solar Gold 1979 Trans Am. Harry has this bird dressed with special edition striping. A Solar Gold car is no easy target to photograph. This is the best shot I have of it when the sun went out for just a moment. This seemingly all stock ride has a correct looking 400 Pontiac big block. Internally it is upgraded and it is packing!
This 1972 Formula deserves special attention. Why? Because the trim tag has only dashes where the paint codes should be. This car was a special order color that will probably never been seen on another Firebird making this a probable one of a kind car. A Pontiac color called Cinnamon Bronze that was available on the Catalina, Bonneville and Grand Ville lines is the closest match I could find to the apparent color listed here. Anaconda Gold is a close match but not quite dark enough. I asked the owner to name his color...he like Akon Gold. I like it too.
This was the T/A lineup for the show. There were more TA's in another parking lot. here were five 77 to 78 Bandits, two Lucerne Blue (a '70 and a '71), Rick H's always pristine Cameo White '71, harry D's Solar Gold, and Scott's Goldenrod Yellow '76.
A Base Firebird is a rare sight. In 1979 when the Camaro/Firebird's ruled the roads you saw many Base Birds and Esprits driving down the road all day and an occasional Trans Am. Now it is the opposite, your see dozens of Trans Am's and hardly ever see a Base model. This is a '79 in Atlantis blue. It is nice to finally see these cars being preserved. A spoilerless bird is no longer a common site and for me it is a welcome one. The Pontiac Firebird is nothing if not a diverse model lineup.
The Bandit.......
...... Bandit Rich
and don't forget what started it all, a truckload of Coors bootlegged across the Mississippi. Coors is now a common site in the Eastern US but when Smokey and the Bandit was made in 1977 Coors was not available. Having a can of Coors was a rare treat for us northerners. Why would you want all that beer anyway?   Because I'm thirsty....Dummy
Here is something you don't often see, a Goldenrod Yellow '76 Trans Am. This was not the most popular color in 1976 making this car a rare treat to be viewed in 2010. It is strange if you think back to 1976 and remember how you perceived what the 21rst century would be like. The perception then was that in the 21rst century we would be able to vacation on the moon if we wanted, or at the bottom of the ocean. We were supposed to be enjoying Space Odysseys but instead we go to shows to see 1976 Goldenrod Yellow Trans Ams. Fair trade in my humble opinion.
A 1970 Trans Am in Lucerne Blue, pinch me to see if I'm awake.
And a Lucerne Blue 1971 TA with a 455 HO, pinch me again. Unfortunately the owner was not interested in my unreasonable low-ball offers for this concours correct model.
Art of 34 Motors in Derby CT brought this super rare 1969 Trans Am to the show. A '69 TA is rare enough but this one is equipped with the ultra rare Ram Air IV engine!!!! What a ride. What a sound when it drove out! Believe it or not the owner traded a Vette in on this car 22 years ago. This car was the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
A '77 Bandit viewed through the window of a '78 Bandit. I get tired of taking the same old 3/4 view photos. The '77 is even wearing correct tires. I probably have more pictures of this car than it's owner does. This car is a restorer's guide book, all original.
A birdless Super Duty 1973 Trans Am in a stunning white on white color combination. This car was relegated to the custom class because it's SD-455, although correct, is not original to the car. That didn't stop me from lovin' it.
Carolyn, the owner of that nice 30th anniversary TA came up with the idea to line up the '69, Rick H's '71, a 25th, and her 30th to get this photo together of white/blue striped cars. What a great shot, even against the background of those personality-less newer cars.
Nothing beats the long hood look of a first/second gen Firebird...especially when it has Ram Air IV or 455 HO decals.
It is hard for me to come up with new ways to photograph Rick H's '71 455 HO Trans Am. Rick is Mr. Trans Am. This car has a few gigs dedicated to it on my hard drive for sure.
I couldn't get a hood down shot of this rare '73 Formula. Those snorkels look good at any angle though.
An original 1978 Black and Gold Special Edition. These are the correct gold wheels for 1978. When you got the WS6 8 inch snowflakes in gold color they were painted completely in gold. The Argent wheels and the 7 inch wheels still had natural aluminum colored spokes. This car wears a red arrowhead in the nose as most do. For 1977 this is correct but the 1978 parts manual lists a gold arrowhead for the Special Editions (including Y82 and Y84). This remains a topic for debate.
Here is one of them new-fangled "green" cars. Note the all natural recycled hatch strut. A Base 1985 Firebird is not common these days.
Obviously a great Firebird show like Wallingford's is going to attract a crowd of spectators looking to trade up. Unfortunately nothing was for sale.
It may not be a second gen but these third gens are still beautiful cars. This one was in the back of the dealer lot. Maybe this is a future barn find.
I saw this truck on the way home and it reminded me of the Bandit's rig except that it has Budweiser instead of Coors. Actually these were filled with Clydesdale horses which don't smell or taste nearly as good. These were "Northbound and down."