Crazy Money Turning ‘70s Pontiac Trans Ams Into $100,000 Cars
Let’s say you’re a fan of the second-generation Pontiac Trans Am, that dying ember of the ‘60s muscle-car that made up for what it lacked in horsepower with “screaming chicken” graphics and “Smokey and the Bandit” fame. You can buy a clean, well-cared for example for roughly $10,000—or at least you could until Pontiac owners see this week’s sales results from the Barrett-Jackson auction in Arizona, where Trans Ams have suddenly, puzzlingly, soared to record high prices.
Trans-Ams aren’t rare; Pontiac built 117,108 in 1979 alone, and in the era of smog-controlled V-8s, the fastest factory car of the era would lose a drag race to a Toyota Camry V-6 today with daylight to spare. But car collectors can be driven by nostalgia as much as common sense; classic car insurer Hagerty says there’s been a rising tide for ‘70s and early ‘80s muscle cars of all varieties.
“Muscle cars are well positioned to outpace the market in 2016, especially those cars that have a younger appeal and weren’t on collectors’ watch lists during the muscle car correction of the mid-2000s,” the firm says.
Even in that light, some of the sales at Barrett-Jackson have been surprisingly strong. This 1977 unrestored model with 30,600 miles and the original 8-track tape player brought $33,500, in a range with several other well-cared-for but otherwise unremarkable models.
But there have been a few astonishing sales. A pair of “Bandit” edition Trans-Ams in near-pristine condition pulled down massive money; the ‘77 model brought $82,500, while this 1980 version with fewer than 750 miles brought $110,000.
And then there’s this 1979 Trans Am, whose 6.6-liter V-8 and manual transmission have been driven a grand total of 8 miles. The owner bought the car new, then kept it in a barn where he would occasionally start it, but otherwise never move it, preserving it in near-showroom condition for 37 years. It sold last night for $187,000.
It only takes two bidders to turn an everyday collector car into an auction-house superstar, and this Pontiac may have been just such an example. But the world of cars-as-furniture whose value depends on never being driven has always been a bit odd, and only seems more distorted when applied to a General Motors product of the late 1970s.
There’s one more Trans-Am yet to sell at Barrett-Jackson that could top them all: the only surviving “Smokey And The Bandit” movie Trans-Am, pitched with the assistance of Burt Reynolds himself. For a few lucky owners, their Screamin’ Chickens may finally lay a golden egg.
