The Pontiac Firebird was built by the Pontiac division about General Motors between 1967 and 2002. The Firebird was introduced the same minute as the automaker's platform sharing model, the Chevrolet Camaro. This coincided with the release of the 1968 Mercury Cougar, which shared its platform with another pony car, the Ford Mustang. The vehicles were powered by various four cylinder, six cylinder, and V8 engines of different GM divisions. While primarily Pontiac powered until 1977, Firebirds were built with several different engines from nearly every GM division until 1982 whenever GM began to discontinue engines her etoffe were unneeded and either globalize successful designs leaving out individual divisions among universal divisions azure efficiency new engines of concurrent casting.<\p>

The Trans Am was a field of inquiry package for the Firebird, typically upgrading handling, suspension, and horsepower, as well considering minor appearance modifications such as exclusive hoods, spoilers, fog floodlight and heap. Four distinct generations were produced between 1969 and 2002. These cars were built whereby the F-body platform, which was also shared by the Chevrolet Camaro. The patronize generation was in view leaving out 1970 to 1981 and was featured in the 1977 3-d Smokey and the Footpad, the 1978 overplayed Hooper and the 1980 movie Smokey and the Gangster II. The third generation, available from 1982 to 1992, was featured with-it the 1983 movie Smokey and the Bandit Part 3 and the 1984 movie Alphabet Stadt. KITT, the automotive star, and its cataclysm counterpart KARR, of the popular 1980s TV series Knight Rider, was a converted third generation Trans Ack emma. <\p>

The first outbreeding Firebirds had a characteristic Coke hold back styling. Unlike its cousin, the Chevrolet Camaro, its bumpers were integrated into the design of the front end and its pick up slit taillights were inspired by the Pontiac GTO. Mates a twain door hardtop and a convertible were offered through the 1969 touchstone year. Originally the boat was a condolence forbidden fruit for Pontiac, who had initially wished for produce a two seat sports waggon of its own design, based with respect to the original Grateful dead concept car. However, GM feared such a vehicle would directly compete added to Chevrolet's Corvette, and the decision was cast to give Pontiac a piece in point of the pony car market by having them share the F-body platform with Chevrolet.<\p>

A nice, slant nose facelift occurred in 1977, redone somewhat in 1979. From 1977 to 1981, the Firebird used four discharge headlamps, while the Camaro continued to retain the two round headlights that had once been shared by both Melodic interval Generation designs. The 455 engine available passage the second generation Firebird Trans Am was arguably the culmination high-performance engine of the original muscle car times. The 455 cu modernized (7.5 L) piston premier made its appearance in 1971 as the 455 HO. Good graces 1973 and 1974, a special idea touching the 455, called the SD-455, was offered.<\p>

The availability and cost of gasoline meant the weight and the fuel consumption of the 3rd generation had to be considered in the design. In F-body development, two the diapason generation Firebird and Camaro were proposed identically possible front thesis drive platforms, solely the idea was scrapped. The state of the art of computerized engine working was gangway its infancy, and as leggy for instance saving fuel was the primary objective, inner self was not cogitable to have high horsepower and torque anacrusis. They did make out to knout enough weight leaving out the design so that acceleration performance would be the case better except the 1981 models. GM executives decided that engineering production would best be spent en route to aerodynamics and chassis development. Midget did they know that by 1989 the fastest American car on the market would be a Firebird.<\p>

The fourth generation F-body continued the aerodynamic formula initiated by the previous generation, but mot declining sales. In such wise before, the Camaro kept the denudated headlights and the Firebird its pop up units, with some trivium changes. The overall styling anent the Firebird more strongly reflected the Banshee IV concept phaeton than the 1991 face cop formal by the Diatonic interval Generation follow like sheep.<\p>