Hemmings Daily: Brochure model 1976 Pontiac Trans Am Special Edition heads to first public showing

Image courtesy OldCarBrochures. You know how the new-car commercials these days include little disclaimers noting that the pictured car is a prototype and that "some features may not appear in production?" If they had those in 1977, the one-off Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Special Edition that will appear at this weekend's Bandit Run would have required one in big bold font plastered over its photo in the 1977 Pontiac brochure. To begin with, it's not even a 1977 model year car. Instead, according to its VIN a [View in Browser | Subscribe]( [Hemmings Daily] Friday, June 23, 2017 [One-off brochure-model 1976 Pontiac Trans Am Special Edition resurfaces, heads to first public showing]( [One-off brochure-model 1976 Pontiac Trans Am Special Edition resurfaces, heads to first public showing]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Image courtesy OldCarBrochures. You know how the new-car commercials these days include little disclaimers noting that the pictured car is a prototype and that "some features may not appear in production?" If they had those in 1977, the one-off Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Special Edition that will appear at this weekend's Bandit Run would have required one in big bold font plastered over its photo in the 1977 Pontiac brochure. To begin with, it's not even a 1977 model year car. Instead, according to its VIN a... [Read More]( [Sponsor]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1974 Mercury Cougar XR-7]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1974 Mercury Cougar XR-7]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - From the seller's description: 1974 Mercury Cougar XR-7 Super rare Q-code 351 Cobra Jet engine - VIN 4A93Q537601 53,250 original miles White Exterior (Paint Code 9A) with Black landau roof. Body is in excellent shape for it's age and has very slight imperfections that you'd expect with a car this age Black vinyl interior is in very good shape, tiny tear on driver's seat but other than that is flawless. Front bucket seats with shifter on the floor. New rear brakes, belts, and battery. AC works and blows col...[Read More]( [AACA Museum announces new Automotive Heritage Award]( [AACA Museum announces new Automotive Heritage Award]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - AACA Museum Night at the Museum. Photo by Mark Usciak. Each year, the AACA Museum's Night at the Museum gives supporters a chance to enjoy the facility after hours, while dining on gourmet food and bidding at the charity auction that raises money for the museum and other local causes. For 2017, the museum is adding a new charity, the Children's Miracle Network at Penn State Health Children's Hospital, along with a new annual award presented to a leader in the collector car community. On October 4, during the 2017...[Read More]( [Sponsor]( [Valentino Balboni drives the boss's Countach]( [Valentino Balboni drives the boss's Countach]( Posted by Hemmings contributor - Photo by Ben Bertucci. Most of us don't get to drive our bosses' fast cars. Valentino Balboni, however, is not most of us. As Lamborghini's long-time test driver, he got some time behind the wheel of Lamborghini CEO Patrick Mimran's Countach when it was new and again, more recently, with filmmaker Ben Bertucci along for the ride. As Ben describes the car: Countach Quattrovalvole (LP112D) "Downdraft" chassis number ZA9C005A0GLA12997 was specially-built for the CEO and owner of Nuova Automobili Ferruccio Lamborghi...[Read More]( [Great Race, Day 00 - preliminaries under way]( [Great Race, Day 00 - preliminaries under way]( Posted by Matt Litwin - Photos by the author. Although nearly all of the 120 teams scheduled to start the 2017 edition of the Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty arrived in Jacksonville, Florida, on Wednesday, the preliminaries kicked off early Thursday morning with official registration and inspection. The latter of the two is always simplistic because the cars have to be legally registered for highway use. However, the inspection includes checks for mandatory safety equipment, including but not limited to a fire exting...[Read More]( [On the ground at the 2017 Los Angeles Roadster Show and Swap]( [On the ground at the 2017 Los Angeles Roadster Show and Swap]( Posted by Dan Stoner - The backbone of the Los Angeles Roadster Show (LARS) for nearly 60 years has been the Deuce Roadster. Donald Cummings brought his perfect, early-style '32 Ford down from West Linn, Oregon this year's LARS. Photos by author. Father's Day Weekend. If you're a hot rodder and live within shooting distance of the greater Los Angeles area (and by that, we mean anywhere on Earth), this weekend also means the L.A. Roadster Show at the Fairplex in Pomona, CA. In recent memory, the only other car show on the West Coa...[Read More]( [Sponsor]( [St. Louis, Michigan, 1980s]( [St. Louis, Michigan, 1980s]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: circa 1980s Location: North Mill Street, St. Louis, Michigan Source: Seeking Michigan What do you see here?...[Read More]( [HemmingsPRO] Seller Listings [Learn More]( [1956 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz]( [1956 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz $135,000]( [1940 Willys]( [1940 Willys $48,950]( [1966 Pontiac GTO]( [1966 Pontiac GTO $69,990]( [1968 Shelby GT350]( [1968 Shelby GT350 $129,900]( [1950 Ford F1]( [1950 Ford F1 $8,950]( [1998 Chevrolet Corvette]( [1998 Chevrolet Corvette $39,000]( [This Day in Automotive History] THIS DAY IN AUTOMOTIVE HISTORY 6/23/1902: "Mercedes" registered as a brand name. 6/23/1971: "Le Mans" starring Steve McQueen opens in theaters UPCOMING EVENTS [Goodguys 26th Heartland Nationals]( June 30, 2017 - Des Moines, IA [Haynes Apperson Festival 43rd Annual Car Show]( June 30, 2017 - Kokomo, IN [A day in north central Indiana driving tour]( June 30, 2017 - Kokomo, IN [Mountaineer Antique Auto Club 50th Annual Car Show]( June 30, 2017 - Fletcher, NC [Cruisin' with the Cops]( June 30, 2017 - Indianapolis, IN [Cruise- In -- Optimist Club of Washington, Mo.]( June 30, 2017 - Washington, MO [See All Events]( [Sponsor]( FEATURED CLASSIFIEDS Sponsored By: [Sponsor]( [1973 Volkswagen Westfalia]( [1973 Volkswagen Westfalia]( [$13,000]( [1974 Citroen Mehari]( [1974 Citroen Mehari]( [$19,500]( [1972 Pontiac Trans Am]( [1972 Pontiac Trans Am]( [$69,500]( [1971 Chrysler Newport]( [1971 Chrysler Newport]( [$3,600]( [1971 Plymouth Barracuda]( [1971 Plymouth Barracuda]( [$40,000]( [1970 Honda]( [1970 Honda]( [$4,000]( [1976 American LaFrance Century]( [1976 American LaFrance Century]( [$12,000]( [1972 Porsche 914]( [1972 Porsche 914]( [$8,995]( [1976 Cadillac Coupe deVille]( [1976 Cadillac Coupe deVille]( [$14,900]( [1973 Checker Aerobus]( [1973 Checker Aerobus]( [$12,500]( [1975 Buick]( [1975 Buick]( [$10,000]( [1978 Ford Pinto]( [1978 Ford Pinto]( [$3,950]( [1975 Bricklin]( [1975 Bricklin]( [$11,900]( PROMOTED LISTING [1966 Ford Mustang]( [1966 Ford Mustang]( [$25,900]( PROMOTED LISTING [1955 Chevrolet Bel Air]( [1955 Chevrolet Bel Air]( [Auction]( PROMOTED LISTING [1979 Toyota FJ40]( [1979 Toyota FJ40]( [Auction]( [Porsche 911 1974 2.7RS engine, one of the first 500 built 66401XX]( [Porsche 911 1974 2.7RS engine, one of the first 500 built 66401XX]( [$72,500]( [View All Classifieds]( FEATURED IN THE BLOG [Reminiscing - The hot rod Chevy]( [Reminiscing - The hot rod Chevy]( [See the 1967 Camaro develop before your eyes in this promo film]( [See the 1967 Camaro develop before your eyes in this promo film]( [See All Featured Blog Posts]( FOLLOW US: [Get RSS Feeds of Hemmings Blog]( [Follow us on Twitter]( [Join us on Facebook]( [View our Flickr pool]( [View Newsletter Archives]( WEEK IN REVIEW Thursday, June 22, 2017 [Auburn boattail speedster takes first best-of-the-best AACA Zenith Award]( [Auburn boattail speedster takes first best-of-the-best AACA Zenith Award]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photos courtesy AACA. It typically takes a dedicated restoration shop and plenty of blank checks to turn out national award-winning restorations, but Richard Harding managed to take this past weekend's inaugural AACA Zenith Award with just the six years he spent restoring his 1928 Auburn 8-88 Speedster himself. And it wasn't even the car he initially set out to restore. According to a 2015 interview with the Dayton Daily News, Harding had wanted to restore his father's 8-88 Speedster, but ended up taking anoth...[Read More]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1964 Buick Riviera]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1964 Buick Riviera]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Restored and maintained 1964 Buick Riviera for sale on Hemmings.com. From the seller's description: I bought this car from an individual in Arizona who had started with an exceptionally nice driver and completely restored it. We live in the Clear Lake area of Houston, near NASA. This is my first old Buick, so I'm no expert, but I am a car guy and amateur collector, and will be happy to talk to you about it and try to answer any questions you may have. The car currently has 32,834 miles on it, which I was told ar...[Read More]( [2017 Goodwood Festival of Speed sculpture honors Bernie Ecclestone]( [2017 Goodwood Festival of Speed sculpture honors Bernie Ecclestone]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - Bernie Ecclestone (L) with Sir Stirling Moss at Silverstone in 2010. Photo courtesy Silverstone Circuit. Since 1999, the sculptures of British artist Gerry Judah have welcomed visitors to the Goodwood Festival of speed, traditionally honoring automakers celebrating a significant milestone or anniversary. For this year's Festival of Speed, taking place at Lord March's Goodwood House estate in Chichester, England, from June 29 to July 2, Judah pays homage to a significant figure in the history of motorsports instea...[Read More]( [Soaring through the Midwest in a Studebaker Hawk]( [Soaring through the Midwest in a Studebaker Hawk]( Posted by Hemmings contributor - Parked outside the Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum. Story and photos by Dan Caswell. My wife, Andr, told me I should write about my trip driving our 1961 Studebaker Hawk, from our home in Minot, North Dakota, to South Bend, Indiana, for the Studebaker Drivers Club International Meet, May 3-6. From there, I planned to head to Auburn, Indiana, for the Antique Automobile Club of America/Classic Car Club of America shows and Auctions America sale, May 11-13. I told her the story would be too boring, as ...[Read More]( [Terminal Island, Los Angeles, 1942]( [Terminal Island, Los Angeles, 1942]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: July 1942 Location: Terminal Island, Los Angeles, California Source: Clem Albers, War Relocation Authority What do you see here?...[Read More]( Wednesday, June 21, 2017 [Want to catch the cars and teams of the 2017 Great Race? Here's how (and where).]( [Want to catch the cars and teams of the 2017 Great Race? Here's how (and where).]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - The Hemmings Speedster's vacant parking spot. Our team is en route to Jacksonville. Photos by author, unless otherwise noted. On Saturday, June 24, the 150 teams competing in the 2017 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty will depart Jacksonville, Florida, bound for Traverse City, Michigan, roughly 2,351 miles to the north northwest. Though the actual route of the race is a closely guarded secret revealed to participants only at the start of each day's stage, the lunch and overnight stops are ...[Read More]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1939 Lincoln Zephyr]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1939 Lincoln Zephyr]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Restored 1939 Lincoln Zephyr for sale on Hemmings.com. From the seller's description: It has been restored by the crew at JB Donaldson Co. with over 40 years of experience. This example has been finished in black. The paint and bodywork were recently done to a high standard with solid, rust-free steel underneath. The undercarriage was restored as well. The red leather interior has been restored with an Art Deco design that complements the streamlined exterior. A woodgrained dash frames the famous Lincoln Zeph...[Read More]( [Morgan buys back its 103-year-old Malvern home]( [Morgan buys back its 103-year-old Malvern home]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photo courtesy Morgan. Not many companies get to call a single factory home for more than a century. Morgan, on the other hand, isn't like many companies, and the company recently proved that fact yet again when it bought back the land on which its Malvern factory stands. In December 1913, Henry Frederick Stanley Morgan bought a plot of farmland on Pickersleigh Road just outside Malvern Link in Worcestershire. He'd started building his eponymous three-wheelers four years prior in a garage on Worcester Road abo...[Read More]( [Reminiscing - My 1959 Fiat 1200 Roadster]( [Reminiscing - My 1959 Fiat 1200 Roadster]( Posted by Richard Lentinello - Brochure image from the editor's collection. It was the early summer of 1970 and I had a driver's license and a couple of hundred dollars to spend on a set of wheels. This two hundred dollars was earned by doing yard work and combined with savings from my old paper route. As a high school junior, I was now working part time as a stock boy for a local mom and pop drug store for minimum wage, which was $1.60 at the time. I really had no business owning a car, but I was about to learn some good lessons. I'd a...[Read More]( [Seattle, 1972]( [Seattle, 1972]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: 1972 Location: First Avenue and Union Street, Seattle, Washington Source: Seattle Municipal Archives via Ran When Parked What do you see here?...[Read More]( Tuesday, June 20, 2017 [Drag racer "Akron" Arlen Vanke dead at age 80]( [Drag racer 'Akron' Arlen Vanke dead at age 80]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - Arlen Vanke. Photo by Thomas A. DeMauro. For all his drag racing victories, most behind the wheel of a Pontiac or a Plymouth in the Stock, Super Stock and later, Pro Stock classes, Akron Arlen Vanke should have been a better-known driver. His talent as a mechanic was equally noteworthy, and his improvements to the dual-quad intake on Chrysler's 426 Hemi engine gave rise to the term Vanked, or tuned to extract maximum power at a specific RPM range. Following a life that revolved around racing and bui...[Read More]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1969 Jeep CJ-5 Tuxedo Park]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1969 Jeep CJ-5 Tuxedo Park]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Well preserved 1969 Jeep CJ-5 Tuxedo Park for sale on Hemmings.com. From the seller's description: All Original throughout- 22,936 miles One Owner since brand New. Spent most of its life in an aircraft hanger in the desert southwest. Comes with custom matching trailer which was manufactured for this Jeep in 1965. New Mexico registration shows the make of trailer as HMDE (handmade) Purchased from Chief and Walts Kaiser Jeep in Clovis New Mexico. Also comes with original Top Boot and Jack. Only known damage ...[Read More]( [Chapron-bodied Delahaye cabriolet takes Best of Show Pre-War at San Marino Motor Classic]( [Chapron-bodied Delahaye cabriolet takes Best of Show Pre-War at San Marino Motor Classic]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - The 1938 Delahaye Model 135 MS Chapron cabriolet owned by the Atwell Family, Best of Show Pre-War at the 2017 San Marino Motor Classic. Photos courtesy the San Marino Motor Classic. Introduced in 1935, the Delahaye 135 would go on to become the company's most successful chassis, remaining in production until 1954 - excluding the war years - and proving its merits repeatedly on both road and track, including a podium finish at Le Mans in 1937 and a victory the following year. Bodies could be procured from France's...[Read More]( [Open Diff: What don't automakers understand?]( [Open Diff: What don't automakers understand?]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - Dashboard of the 2017 Fiat 124 Spider. Photo by author. For most Hemmings readers (and staffers), it's hard to get worked up about new cars. Perhaps it's the fact that anything interesting is priced well beyond the means of many, or perhaps it's the fact that styling is now dictated more by wind resistance and safety regulations than by a designer's vision or passion. Still, new cars can be a necessary evil, either for our own daily commutes or for those of friends and family. Technology meant to make cars saf...[Read More]( [Chicago, 1969]( [Chicago, 1969]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: circa 1969 Location: somewhere in Chicago? definitely Illinois Source: chitownkid78 on Tumblr What do you see here?...[Read More]( Monday, June 19, 2017 [Single-owner collection of Group B greats heads to auction in California]( [Single-owner collection of Group B greats heads to auction in California]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - All six Group B cars, and the Group 4 Lancia Stratos in the foreground, head to auction at no reserve this August. Photos by Pawel Litwinski, courtesy Bonhams. Thirty years after the demise of the World Rally Championship's (WRC) Group B, the cars that once competed under its regulations remain the stuff of legend. Surviving examples don't trade hands all that often, making a collection of six Group B homologation specials (and a 1975 Lancia Stratos, the car that helped prompt the development of the category) not...[Read More]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1928 Ford Model A hot rod]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1928 Ford Model A hot rod]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Fifties-era East Coast hot rodded 1928 Ford Model A for sale on Hemmings.com. From the seller's description: East Coast Hot Rodding legend, the late Mr. Fred Steele, founder of the Ty-Rods Car Club and former LA Roadsters member, purchased this car in 1949 to drive around the woods of Massachusetts. After reading an article about Jack Chrisman's Chopped A sedan, Fred decided that's what he needed to do to his Tudor. His Purple Pride Channeled Deuce roadster was well known and featured in the little pages in the mid...[Read More]( [Unrestored 90-year-old Hispano-Suiza takes FIVA Preservation Award at Villa d'Este]( [Unrestored 90-year-old Hispano-Suiza takes FIVA Preservation Award at Villa d'Este]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photo courtesy FIVA. As early as the 1960s, experts remarked how well the owners of a Mulliner-bodied 1927 Hispano-Suiza T49 had preserved the car, so it made little sense for representatives from the Federation Internationale Vehicules Anciens to withhold the organization's preservation award from the still-unrestored sedan at last month's Villa d'Este Concorso d'Eleganza. Though the Hisso wears a Weymann fabric-covered body, British firm H.J. Mulliner - best known for swathing Rolls-Royces and Bentleys - bui...[Read More]( [On the Beach at TROG Wildwood 2017]( [On the Beach at TROG Wildwood 2017]( Posted by David Conwill - Andrew Rosen's 1932 Auburn Speedster. Images by Hemmings Staff and courtesy Richard Skeuse It's mid-June already, and that means that the New Jersey rendition of The Race of Gentlemen has come and gone. For those of us at Hemmings, this year was a little different, because the contingent that attended were there as participants rather than journalists. That said, we couldn't help but take a smattering of snapshots to give readers a flavor of the event. The weather was perfect, with clear skies, sun, and warm ...[Read More]( [Dallas, Texas, 1959]( [Dallas, Texas, 1959]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: circa 1959 Location: Texas Instruments, Dallas, Texas Source: Hemmings Facebook reader Tom Flynn What do you see here?...[Read More]( Sunday, June 18, 2017 [Mo's Junkyard Curse]( [Mo's Junkyard Curse]( Posted by Hemmings contributor - Photo by Nick DeWolf. Junkyards were my heaven as a boy. Practically nothing else sparked my imagination or entertained me more than 1950s junkyards. I loved their smells: old oil and grease, gasoline, putrid water and anti-freezemixed with rusting metal and rotting fabrics from seats, headliners, carpets and floor mats etched lasting memories. Vehicles of every description stacked like 10-foot monoliths in long rows, teetering threateningly, demanded attention and study. Non-stop conversations ran t...[Read More]( [Happy Father's Day from Hemmings]( [Happy Father's Day from Hemmings]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - Angelo Mazzilli with his (second) 1964 Chevrolet Impala SS. Still image from video below. You may remember friend-of-Hemmings Chris Mazzilli, who's exhibited his own Corvettes at our concours d'elegance, as one of the team members behind the restoration of the VH-1 Peter Max Corvettes by Corvette Heroes. Chris's shop, Dream Car Restorations New York, spends much of its time tracking down cars for its clients, a business that came about because of a very special Father's Day gift Chris once presented to his ...[Read More]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1988 Pontiac Fiero]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1988 Pontiac Fiero]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Small-block Chevrolet V-8-swapped 1988 Pontiac Fiero for sale on Hemmings.com. From the seller's description: This 88 Fiero has a Chevy 350 V8 with a V8 Archie installation kit. I bought the car with the understanding that the engine is a Chevy 350 ZZ-4 crate motor. I still believe that to be true but I have no paperwork to that effect. For heads it has Edelbrock Performer aluminum heads. It has a 4 barrel Rochester Carb bought from National Carb last year. Also included is a TPI (tuned port injection) sys...[Read More]( [Four-Links - Bandit film locations, Import Carlisle, Antarctic Velocettes, bridge dangler]( [Four-Links - Bandit film locations, Import Carlisle, Antarctic Velocettes, bridge dangler]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - To celebrate the 40th anniversary of "Smokey and the Bandit," Horsepower Memories went in search of as many original film locations as they could find in the Atlanta area. * Former Hemmings Sports and Exotic Car editor David LaChance took in this year's Import Carlisle show and brought back this report for Made to Be Driven. * Motorcycles in Antarctica? They actually proved rather useful for some researchers there in the Sixties, as we see from this story on The Vintagent. * As mentioned in the ...[Read More]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1985 Citroen 2CV]( [Hemmings Find of the Day - 1985 Citroen 2CV]( Posted by Kurt Ernst - 1985 Citroen 2CV Charleston for sale. From the seller's description: This lovely late model 2CV Charleston has been enthusiast owned and carefully maintained by the same owner for many years. She was purchased from this gentleman recently and taken to Burton car Co. for a thorough evaluation and refurbishment. A new convertible roof (with rear window defrost) was installed, and the seats were reupholstered. She has new sun visors and a 12 volt outlet. The gearbox oil was changed. The engine oil and filters were cha...[Read More]( LAST WEEK'S MOST READ [One-off supercharged Eldorado to appear at Cadillac & LaSalle Club Grand National]( [One-off supercharged Eldorado to appear at Cadillac & LaSalle Club Grand National]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photo by Aaron Summerfield, courtesy of RM Sotheby's. It apparently paid to know people who worked at Cadillac during the Fifties. Call 'em up, and whango tango, custom Cadillac delivered to your door. Or, at least, such was the case for a World War I pilot who wanted a little more oopmh from his Eldorado and got this supercharged one-off that will appear at this summer's Cadillac & LaSalle Club's Grand National. A scion of the paper mill company that build Port Edwards, Wisconsin, John Edwards Alexander c...[Read More]( LAST WEEK'S BEST DISCUSSION [Open Diff: What is the archetypal car song?]( [Open Diff: What is the archetypal car song?]( Posted by Daniel Strohl - While taking a break from his Project Apollo, Joe Essid pondered whether there could be any more archetypal car song than Rush's "Red Barchetta." "It has everything a song about cars should have: a skilled law-breaker, a badass car, and in his care, a victory over The Man in a time when cars have been banned," he wrote. "Maybe not the best car song, or everyone's favorite, but what a story!" That's quite the gauntlet to throw down, Joe, especially with so many alternatives to choose from ("Rocket 88;" Clutch's...[Read More]( Hemmings Motor News will not sell or share your e-mail address with other companies. For more information about this newsletter, email webmaster@hemmings.com or write to: Customer Service, Hemmings Motor News, 222 Main St., Bennington VT 05201. If you do not want to receive this newsletter from Hemmings Motor News, you can [change your email preferences here](.