Makes › Pontiac › Firebird and Trans Am › First generation › Firebird Trans Am (1969) · Rare specification · 1969 Very Rare
Pontiac
Firebird Trans Am (1969)
The Trans Am package on the convertible body (body code 22367) in the first Trans Am year
Still being researched: full specifications. Everything shown is checked against the cited sources. Know more? Send us a source.
Photo: Matt Morgan from Alameda · CC BY-SA 2.0
Contents
01Overview
At a glance
- Built
- Not yet verified
- Years
- 1969
- Engine
- Front-mounted V8 (Ram Air III) · 6,550 cc / 6.6 LFactory: 400 cu in · converted
- Power
- 261 kW / 355 PSFactory: 350 hp · converted
- Top speed
- Not yet verified
- Body
- Not yet verified
- Designer
- Not yet verified
- In this archive
- Not yet verified
- Surviving
- Not yet verified
Sources and any conflicting figures are in the sections below.
Why it matters
The convertible is the rarest body style of the first-year Trans Am: only eight of the 697 cars built for 1969 had an open body. It combined Pontiac's new road-racing-themed performance package with the Firebird convertible shell, making it one of the scarcest factory Pontiac muscle cars.
How rare is it?
Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.
Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.
02Production & history
Production
Every figure says what it counts.
| What is counted | Figure | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Body style productionCoupe: 1969 Trans Am coupes (plus 8 convertibles) | 6891 | Factory production | Independently researched |
| Body style productionConvertible: 1969 Trans Am convertibles of 697 Trans Ams | 82,3 | Factory production | Registry reported |
Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.
History
Pontiac launched the Trans Am at the Chicago Auto Show in February 1969 as a $725 option package on the Firebird, paying the SCCA a royalty of $5 per car to use the series name. The package added a special hood, fender scoops and a rear wing, heavy-duty suspension and power front disc brakes, with Polar White paint and blue stripes. Power came from the Ram Air III 400 cu in V8, essentially GTO hardware in a lighter car. Of the 697 Trans Ams built for 1969, 689 were coupes and just eight were convertibles.
Variants
How each version differs from the standard Firebird Trans Am (1969).
No variants documented yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
03Specifications
Technical specifications
Engine
| Engine family | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Engine code | Not yet verified |
| Layout | Front-mounted V8 (Ram Air III)4 Independently researched |
| Displacement | 6,550 cc / 6.6 LFactory: 400 cu in · converted4,5 Independently researched |
| Bore | Not yet verified |
| Stroke | Not yet verified |
| Compression ratio | Not yet verified |
| Fuel system | Not yet verified |
| Power | 261 kW / 355 PSFactory: 350 hp · converted4 Independently researched |
| Power at | Not yet verified |
| Torque | Not yet verified |
Transmission & drivetrain
| Gearbox | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Gears | Not yet verified |
| Driven wheels | Not yet verified |
Chassis, body & dimensions
| Chassis | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Front suspension | Not yet verified |
| Rear suspension | Not yet verified |
| Brakes | Not yet verified |
| Steering | Not yet verified |
| Body construction | Not yet verified |
| Wheelbase | Not yet verified |
| Length | Not yet verified |
| Width | Not yet verified |
| Height | Not yet verified |
| Front track | Not yet verified |
| Rear track | Not yet verified |
| Kerb weight | Not yet verified |
| Dry weight | Not yet verified |
Performance
| Maximum speed | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| 0–100 km/h | Not yet verified |
| Fuel tank | Not yet verified |
“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.
04Colours & options
Factory colours & interiors
Original paint and trim, with the number of cars in each where a source gives it.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Factory options & codes
Codes are shown exactly as written by the manufacturer.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
05Individual cars
Chassis register
Every documented car, with its colours, history and where it is now. Open a row for the full record. Known chassis are not automatically authenticated originals.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Competition history
Every race result of the individual cars, in date order. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Auction & sale history
Documented public sales of the individual cars. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
See one in person
Museums where an example of this car can be seen.
No example is documented on public display yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
06Reference
Identification guide
How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.
Documented 1969 Trans Ams are typically supported by the original window sticker and Pontiac Historic Services (PHS) documentation. Period features of the package include the special hood with scoops, fender scoops, rear wing, Polar White paint with blue stripes and Trans Am lettering, heavy-duty suspension and power front disc brakes.
Sources
Each number links to the exact facts it supports.
-
1
1969 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Ram Air III – RM Sotheby's Fort Lauderdale 2014, lot 535 Level B
- 689 1969 Trans Am coupes (plus 8 convertibles)
-
2
This $194K Pontiac Trans Am Rammed Its Way to Rarefied Air Level B Hagerty Media
- Pontiac made 689 Trans Am coupes, and a mere eight convertibles
-
3
Conceptcarz – Pontiac Firebird Level C
- 8 1969 Trans Am convertibles of 697 Trans Ams
-
4
1969 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Ram Air III (Lot 535, Fort Lauderdale 2014) Level C RM Sotheby's
- Ram Air III equipped 400-cid, 350-hp V-8
- 400-cid, 350-hp V-8
-
5
1969 Pontiac Trans Am 'Ram Air III' (Lot 1074, Fort Lauderdale 2019) Level C RM Sotheby's
- Ram Air III 400 cu. in. V-8 engine
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