Sitting in a barn, covered in dust…yeah, the barn find dream is nice, isn’t it? We’ve seen the pictures of the GTO left in the barn, the Superbird parked out back, or the Mach 1 buried under a ton of junk in the garage, waiting for it’s extraction, but how often does that scene quickly devolve into a nightmare? Often, it turns out. Rotted floors, mice eaten wiring, engines locked up tighter than Fort Knox and a layer of what used to be gasoline three-quarters of an inch thick in the fuel tank all make for long days in the shop and long nights looking at bills. The critical win is if you find a car that needs little to no work…just some basics like a fuel filter and fluids changed out, and fresh rolling stock to turn what had been parked for years into a self-moving project, at least. That’s a good day…and that’s what forum member “Redline04” got when he purchased this 1979 Pontiac Trans Am. Chris’s son-in-law was hunting down cars for his business when the owner of the Poncho got in contact and wanted to know if he’d buy it outright. The car had been shoved into a barn and left for at least six years to the elements, but overall, was in decent shape, so the deal was done and Chris took on the project. 

The Trans Am was a solid score. A little bit of work that included the fluid changes, as well as a gas tank check and line check and the Olds 403 kicked into life. The Olds mill had been treated to some goodies, so they moved on to appearances. The T-top equipped Bird’s paint wasn’t in great shape and the body has a few knocks to deal with, but rust isn’t a concern…a good thing for a Wisconsin find. The car has since had it’s paint stripped and bodywork started and will be receiving a mechanical update as the year goes on, including brakes and such. The only question seems to be what color the Bird is going to be after it’s final paint job. We suggest Brewster Green ourselves…just an option!

BangShift Project Files: Redline04’s 1979 Trans Am Project