From its 1967 debut, Pontiac’s Firebird soared above the stigma of badge engineering to become a performance icon in its own right. General Motors killed off the ’Bird after 2002 (along with the Camaro), then killed off Pontiac in the wake of the company’s 2009 bankruptcy, leaving no hope of this popular model’s return. Luckily, there are flocks of Firebirds available today with personalities ranging from subtle and innovative to outsized—and even a little outrageous. Everyone knows the versions that dominated pop culture with starring appearances on TV and in the movies, but there’s more to the Firebird legend than the Rockford Files or Smokey and the Bandit. For this month’s Buick-Olds-Pontiac edition of Hemmings Motor News, we took a long look at the Firebird and attempted to pare down its legacy to 10 significant versions. The Trans Ams figured heavily into the discussion, of course, but there were others demanding to be recognized. Here for your consideration are some of our favorites. We’d love to hear about and see photos of yours—send them along to mmcnessor@hemmings.com

1967-'69 Firebird Sprint

Photo: Hemmings Archives

1967-’69 Firebird Sprint

Price new: $2,782/$3,166 (1967 coupe/1969 convertible)

Average value today: $30,000

Collectability: ★★★☆

John Z. DeLorean had a soft spot for sophisticated European performance cars. He brought that appreciation to the Pontiac Motor Division by developing the upgraded SOHC inline-six anchoring the “W53” Sprint option package. For 1967, this belt-driven 230-cu.in. engine made 215 hp via altered valves, a hotter camshaft, a 10.5:1 compression ratio, a four-barrel Quadrajet carburetor, and upgraded intake and exhaust systems. Mated to an available four-speed, it pushed Pontiac’s new pony car to 60 in 10 seconds and did a 17-second quarter mile while improving handling via its lighter weight. Displacement was up to 250-cu.in. in 1968, and for ’69, a high-output version for manual-equipped cars made 230 hp. This engine wouldn’t satisfy someone craving a 400: it was meant to intrigue someone who’d consider a similarly powered import. Today, surviving Firebird Sprints are rare and represent a forward-looking interpretation of American performance.

- Mark J. McCourt

1969 Trans Am

Photo: Hemmings Archives

1969 Trans Am

Price new: $3,500

Average value today: $118,000

Collectability: ★★★★

The ’69 Trans Am is among the rarest of the rare ’Birds with fewer than 700 built—only eight were convertibles and all were Cameo White with Tyrol Blue stripes. Its 400-cu.in. V-8 was too brawny for the Sports Car Club of America Trans Am series’ 305 cu.in. limit, so the new model wasn’t homologated for competition, but Pontiac did pay the SCCA $5 per car for the right to the T/A name. (A 303-cu.in. engine was developed for racing but never factory installed in production T/As.) The standard package included a Ram Air III engine with a heavy-duty three-speed manual transmission. A functional dual-scooped hood funneled air into the elaborate airbox, while air vents in the fenders ducted out hot air. Out back there was a distinctive pedestal-mount rear wing. Heavy duty suspension with a 1-inch-thick anti-sway bar and quick ratio steering were also part of the deal. It was an expensive proposition, adding $1,163.74 to the price of a Firebird. For another $558.20 you could get the howling Ram Air IV engine—less than 60 of those were made. An original R/A IV T/A, reportedly one of six with its numbers-matching drivetrain, changed hands at Mecum’s Kissimmee sale in January for $440,000.

— Mike McNessor

1972 Trans Am

Photo: Hemmings Archives

1972 Trans Am

Price new: $4,300

Average value today: $55,000

Collectability: ★★★★

Of all the second-generation Trans Ams the ’72 has the dual distinction of being the scarcest and the last built with the vaunted 455 H.O. engine. (A 455 would return to the Trans Am for 1975 but it was H.O in name only.) A United Auto Workers strike in strike in 1972 limited T/A production to just 1,286 cars—458 were equipped with four-speed transmissions and 828 with automatics. Unfinished cars on the assembly line that year were later crushed because they couldn’t meet the new-for-’73 federal crash standards. The ’72 455 in the T/A was powerful but detuned with an 8.4:1 compression ratio. It had all the goods, though: high-rise aluminum intake manifold, “068” high-lift camshaft with hydraulic lifters, and oval port heads setup with 2.11/1.77-inch valves riding double valve springs. Net horsepower ratings were in effect, so the 455 was rated at 300 horsepower at 4,000 rpm and 415 lb-ft of torque at 3,200 rpm. Our own Jeff Koch drove an unrestored ’72 a few years back and was thoroughly impressed by the car’s road manners: “If that power was all the Trans Am had going for it in the swan-song year of the traditionally delineated muscle car era, it might be enough. But this thing corners, too. Go ahead, round that 90-degree corner at 35 mph. The steering is almost too quick; a good wrench of the wheel will throw you around like a ragdoll if you're not braced for it—and there is no lean or give in the turns.” These Trans Ams are special and have a special place in the model’s history.

— Mike McNessor

1977 Trans Am SE

Photo: Hemmings Archives

1977 Trans Am SE

Price new: $5,456 (1977)

Average value today: $40,000

Collectability: ★★★☆

Created to celebrate Pontiac's golden anniversary in 1976, the Trans Am's gold-on-black color scheme became a modern motoring icon with the release of the movie Smokey and the Bandit the following year. In addition to the gold bird graphic, drawn by Pontiac design studio chief John Schinella, the Special Edition included gold graphics, Gothic typeface, and gold snowflake alloy wheels. The gilded effect continued on the inside, with a gold-tone engine-turned instrument panel and a Formula steering wheel with three gold spokes. With the 455-cu.in. V-8 in retirement, the top performance engine was the optional 200-hp, 400-cu.in. V-8, also called the T/A 6.6-liter. Transmission choices for the 6.6 were the Borg-Warner Super T-10 four-speed manual and the Turbo Hydra-Matic 350 automatic, except in California, where all T/As got the 185-hp, 403-cu.in. Oldsmobile V-8 and an automatic. CB radio and Rodeo Cowboy Association-style hat available separately.

— David LaChance

1977-'78 Sky Bird

Photo: Hemmings Archives

1977-’78 Sky Bird

Price new: $4,833 (1977)

Average value today: $14,000

Collectability: ★★☆☆

With sales up nearly 49 percent over the previous year, the Firebird was lapping what was left of the pony car field in 1976. Still, Pontiac executives were interested in scooping up every customer possible. When the Blue Bird concept got a warm reception at the 1976 Chicago Motor Show, Pontiac decided to offer the all-pale-blue color scheme as an appearance package on the 1977 Firebird Esprit, renamed Sky Bird to mollify the Blue Bird school bus company. The Sky Bird was drenched in Lombard Blue, a color shared only with the Astre, Pontiac's Vega twin. The lower part of the body was painted a slightly darker blue, Formula-style, while the snowflake alloy wheels were body-colored. Stylized Sky Bird decals and pinstripes added further visual interest. The interiors, too, were color-keyed in blue, down to the seatbelts and the rim of the custom Formula steering wheel. All of this added $282 to the $4,550.80 sticker price of a 1977 Esprit. The Sky Bird package returned for 1978; it was succeeded by the similar Red Bird in early 1979 and Yellow Bird in 1980.

— David LaChance

1979 Trans Am 10th Anniversary Limited Edition

Photo: Hemmings Archives

1979 Trans Am 10th Anniversary Limited Edition

Price new: $11,000

Average value today: $60,000

Collectability: ★★★☆

Faced with stricter fuel mileage standards, Pontiac had to trade in the Trans Am’s thumping 400-cu.in. V-8 for a turbocharged 301 that would arrive for ’80 (or a Chevrolet 305 in California). But for ’79 the division served up one last heaping helping of cubic inches wrapped in the “The 10th Anniversary Limited Edition” Trans Am package. As a collectible car from the late 1970s, the anniversary Trans Am stands out in terms of desirability and value. Of the 7,500 anniversary cars built, a scant 1,817 had the “T/A 6.6” Pontiac 400 engine with the Borg Warner Super T-10 four speed—the most sought-after combination today. The remaining 5,683 were built with the “6.6 Litre” Oldsmobile 403 and a Turbo Hydra-Matic 350 automatic. All of the anniversary Trans Ams were loaded with virtually every option and stickered north of $10,000 when new. That was big money in 1979; adjusted for inflation it amounts to about $41,500 today. Many of these were scooped up and preserved as collector cars, so nice examples are out there. The days of these being priced as used cars (if they ever were) are gone, but there’s interest among Gen X-age buyers, so values aren’t likely to come crashing down anytime soon.

— Mike McNessor

1987-'92 Formula 350

Photo: Hemmings Archives

1987-’92 Formula 350

Price new: $12,000

Average value today: $11,000

Collectability: ★★½☆

Pontiac V-8s had been put to pasture by the time the third-gen F-body arrived in 1982, replaced by the Chevrolet small block. The smog-era 305 was no match for the 302 H.O. in the Mustang and automatic transmissions were far too common in the GM machines, whereas the Ford crowd all seemed to shift for themselves. For ’87, Chevrolet and Pontiac played the cubic-inch card and dropped the 5.7-liter 350 in the Camaro and Firebird, an easy swap for the identically-shaped 305. The bad news was that the bigger engine was only available with a four-speed automatic transmission. The good news was that Pontiac simultaneously reintroduced the lower-priced Formula package and would sell you the 350 in one of those rather than making the powerplant exclusive to the Trans Am or Trans Am GTA. The 350 was good for 215 horsepower and the Formula was devoid of all the Trans Am body add-ons, which made it a little lighter. You couldn’t get T tops on the Formula 350 in ’87, but the WS6 suspension was standard issue on all Formulas. The package was offered though ’92—the last year of third-generation Firebird production. These make fun cars today and they’ve remained affordable.

— Mike McNessor

1989 Turbo Trans Am

Photo: Hemmings Archives

1989 Turbo Trans Am

Price new: $29,839

Average value today: $43,000

Collectability: ★★★★

Like the Buick GNX that came before it, the 20th Anniversary Turbo Trans Am upset GM’s performance apple cart. When the 1989 Chevrolet Corvette made an honest 245 hp and 340 lb-ft of torque from its 350-cu.in. L98 V-8, the Buick-engineered, turbocharged and intercooled 231-cu.in. V-6 in the contemporary, Indianapolis 500-pacing Pontiac was rated—ahem—at 250 hp and 340 lb-ft. This exclusively white-over-camel coupe, built in a series of 1,555 units, put its power to 245-mm Goodyear Gatorbacks through a four-speed automatic; it officially did 0-60 mph in 5.5-seconds and was capable of more than 160 mph. It’s no surprise the Turbo Trans Am was regarded as an instant collectible and future classic, and many of them were squirreled away with delivery miles. Sub-1,000-mile examples have recently brought more than $70,000 at auction, but a few TTAs with fewer than cira-30,000 have sold in the low $30,000s, meaning deals can still be found.

- Mark J. McCourt

1992-2002 SLP Firehawk

1992-2002 SLP Firehawk

Price new: $39,995; $49,990 with Competition Option (1992)

Average value today: $24,500

Collectability: ★★★☆

Beginning in 1992, Pontiac's most potent street fighter would come through the hands of Ed Hamburger's Street Legal Performance. The Firehawk SLP, based on the Formula, was capable of 0-60 runs of 4.6 seconds, and could do the quarter mile in 13.2 seconds at 107 mph. Sold directly through GM dealers and backed by a warranty, the Firehawk had significant performance upgrades, among them a heavily massaged 350-cu.in. L98 V-8 pumping out 360 horsepower, a Corvette 6-speed ZF manual transmission, a Dana 44 differential, and 275/40-17 tires. Adding the Competition Option would bring a Recaro driver's seat, 4-piston Brembo front brake calipers, rear-seat delete, a roll bar, and five-point harnesses. All this cost $23,000 to $33,000 beyond the Formula's $17,000 price, and just 25 (some say 26) were built. Subsequent Firehawks would have more basic performance upgrades, making them more affordable, though no less fun to own. Demand grew significantly in 1999, when the Firehawk was finally available on the Trans Am. In 2002, its final year, a record 1,505 were sold.

— David LaChance

1998-2002 Trans Am

Photo: General Motors

1998-2002 Trans Am

Price new: $25,975/$34,850 (1998 coupe/2002 WS6 convertible)

Average value today: $14,000

Collectability: ★★★☆

The fourth and final generation of Firebird and Trans Am debuted for 1993, offering aggressive, bullet-like styling and notably more power in the form of the 5.7-liter LT1 V-8. To keep its F-bodies fresh, Pontiac substantially revised these cars for 1998 with attractive new front-end styling featuring quad pop-ups and even better performance from the soon-to-be-legendary LS1 V-8. That 5.7-liter engine made 305 hp and 335 lb-ft in standard form, and with the twin-nostril-hood-scooped RPO WS6 Ram Air option, 320 hp and 345 lb-ft (both up 5 from 2001-on). Around 1,500 examples of the retro-nodding, blue-trimmed white 30th Anniversary edition were sold in 1999, and it’s believed roughly 2,400 black-accented yellow Trans Am Collectors Edition coupes and convertibles were sold in the Firebird’s last year. These final flagship ’Birds offer serious bang-for-the-buck value, with normal, reasonably low-mile examples commanding less than $15,000.

- Mark J. McCourt