Is there a car that you’d be too embarrassed to drive? Like Mom’s station wagon? If you’re a man, what about a pink car? Or, for some, an EV? For me, I don’t know how I’d feel driving a car with MACHO emblazoned all over it, yet I am also fascinated enough that I’ve chosen it as our Pick of the Day. This 1978 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am “Macho T/A” is currently listed on ClassicCars.com by a dealership in Ramsey, Minnesota.
It doesn’t need to be said that the Pontiac Trans Am was one of the most magnificent cars of a decade that wasn’t too magnificent. While I tend to lean on the 1970-74 cars being the mightiest—especially those with the Ram Air IV, 455 HO, and Super Duty 455—I would be a dummy not to recognize the 1977-78 “Bandit” versions as being the one to have. Sure, power was down, but they look great, and they don’t suffer from the ungainly federalized bumper styling that affected most cars of the era.
Considering the Firebird was almost axed after several years into the 1970s (with only its Camaro cousin surviving in proper form), the 1977 version was almost like a pubescent revelation for those who came of age; seeing almost 69,000 1977 Trans Ams on the street was akin to having a Farrah Fawcett poster on every street corner. Power came from the “L78” 400 rated at 180 horsepower, but a “W72” 400 with 200 horsepower was an option (as was Oldsmobile’s 403, which was mandatory in California). A substantial 15,576 people ordered the Special Edition package, a black and gold-trimmed package based on the 1976 Limited Edition package and ended up being the hot car in “Smokey and the Bandit.”
For 1978, the Special Edition package was updated with an inverse Solar Gold and black scheme but paint issues led to the black Special Edition being brought back. The L78 maintained the same rating, but the W72 was bumped up to 220 horses. Trans Am sales exploded to 93,341, though black and gold Special Editions numbered just 3,643.
During this time, a Pontiac dealership in metropolitan Phoenix (Arizona) began modifying Trans Ams. DKM (Dennis & Kyle Mecham) Performance of Glendale was the company that tweaked these cars and sold them at Mecham Pontiac, owned by their father, future Arizona governor Evan Mecham. Plenty of mods were done to properly fulfill the Trans Am’s mission despite being choked by emissions equipment, but the mods went beyond the engine—suspension mods including Konis were done, plus Macho T/As featured a fancy striped paint job (reminiscent of the “W50” Formula Appearance Package) to distinguish it from pedestrian Trans Ams. The production sequence number was emblazoned on several sides too. Macho T/As were produced from 1977-80, with 204 built for 1978.
This 1978 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am “Macho T/A” is number 87 out of the 204. Naturally, it’s powered by the 400 V8 backed by a console-shifted automatic transmission. “Excellent two-tone paint. The interior is very clean. It has factory AC that is hooked up but not kicking on,” says the seller. “The wipers works, headlamps work, blower works (low, med). Power windows work. The radio turns on, but no sound.” The WS6 suspension package was new for 1978 and is included here. 3.23 limited-slip rear certainly aren’t drag gears so your tachometer will thank you while on the highway.
Sure, if I was driving this, there are going to be people behind seeing that MACHO script on the spoiler and think, “Is he for real?” Yet I also subscribe to the credo that the best way to live my life is to not pay attention to what others—people whom I don’t know—think. Something has to give if I want to drive something with classic “Bandit”-era styling combined with high-compression performance and, in this case, it’s not giving a damn.
Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com
