73 Pontiac Grand Am

[themechanic]

I like it.

 

[BeepBeepRR]

My brother had one, that car was fast as hell. If I remember it was a 400.

 

[themechanic]

This one has a 427 LS and 600+ hp.

 

[BeepBeepRR]

This one has a 427 LS and 600+ hp.

Yea was watching that... My brother almost killed us in that car. He had Gilette 50's bias ply tires on the back and we were in front of a camaro my brother tells me to watch behind us. He stomps it to the floor we are walking away from the camaro. Well right in the middle of this 100mph go fast session it started to drizzle. Then there was a left swooping turn right in front of us. We went sideways 3 or 4 times back and forth and ended up on the opposite side of the road and nicely backed up into the ditch. The guy in the camaro drives by slowly and his jaw was dropped to the floor. Somehow we didn't die.

 

[themechanic]

Yea was watching that... My brother almost killed us in that car. He had Gilette 50's bias ply tires on the back and we were in front of a camaro my brother tells me to watch behind us. He stomps it to the floor we are walking away from the camaro. Well right in the middle of this 100mph go fast session it started to drizzle. Then there was a left swooping turn right in front of us. We went sideways 3 or 4 times back and forth and ended up on the opposite side of the road and nicely backed up into the ditch. The guy in the camaro drives by slowly and his jaw was dropped to the floor. Somehow we didn't die.

By the grace of God, eh?

 

[440 PHIXX]

Pontiac did the best job in my opinion masking the 5 MPH bumpers.

 

[BeepBeepRR]

By the grace of God, eh?

Yes and I bet my mom had a hard time with the brown stains in our pants.. LOL.. That was one scary ride. His was grey too with maroon interior. Had pizza cutters on the front they were centerlines. Funny thing was he put the PMD wheels back on it and I put the centerlines on my 76 Monte Carlo and i wrecked that car in a left handed turn. The damn tire came off the rim. I took out 4 4x4 posts and one came through the windshield and hit the top of my dash and punched a hole in it. I could reach down and touch the top of the radio. I sold the car and those CURSED wheels the next day.

I blame the tires... But in reality it was my dumb *** that was going too fast for those skinny little tires in a curve. But in my defence.. I was in a hurry to get home and tell my brother about the first "hummer I ever got" I'm not talking about an AM General. lol

 

[themechanic]

Yes and I bet my mom had a hard time with the brown stains in our pants.. LOL.. That was one scary ride. His was grey too with maroon interior. Had pizza cutters on the front they were centerlines. Funny thing was he put the PMD wheels back on it and I put the centerlines on my 76 Monte Carlo and i wrecked that car in a left handed turn. The damn tire came off the rim. I took out 4 4x4 posts and one came through the windshield and hit the top of my dash and punched a hole in it. I could reach down and touch the top of the radio. I sold the car and those CURSED wheels the next day.

That reminded me of Planes, Trains and Automobiles scene when John Candy was driving and got both his arms stuck behind the seat. I bet you guys felt like Steve Martin.

 

[themechanic]

 

[Scott Engelhardt]

I have always liked those, I saw this one at a job site

 

[lemondana]

We had one of those for a Driver's Training car. Right up town. Very nice car, from what I remember.

 

[WileE]

I actually street raced one of these back in the day with my road runner. It looked rather small in my rearview mirror at the end.

 

[slimt]

I like it.

 

[moparvinson]

I always liked the 77 can am as well.

 

[1968rt]

Very cool car in its day!!

 

[Photon440]

Pontiac did the best job in my opinion masking the 5 MPH bumpers.

AMC wasn't too bad at that either - this is a 1974

 

[440 PHIXX]

AMC wasn't too bad at that either - this is a 1974

I think existing designs were allowed to carry over for 1974... the first year the back bumper had to sustain 5 MPH. The ‘74 E bodies got that pass as well. A reason why the B bodies were redesigned, and the E bodies and Javelin disappeared for 1975.

 

[SteveSS]

Some of you guys will remember I have two 1973 Grand Ams. One is 455, one is 400.

In 1973 my mom dad and I went to Tulsa, Oklahoma to buy a new car. We test drove the 1973 Grand Am. I remember Dad being so mad because he couldn't turn off the brights. This was the first American car with the dimmer on the stalk. Dad was a great horse trader so we ended up walking out of the dealership. My mom was a full-time RN making good money so she went back the next day and bought a Grand Am. She liked the green color so she didn't pay much attention to the options. Her car had a 455 with all the go-fast goodies that Pontiac had to offer. So I was just turning 16 and that car was a torque monster. If you floored it just sat and melted the tires. Always squealed the tires hitting second. If you find one buy it or let me know.

My son has the orange one (400) and I have the black 455.

 

[SteveSS]

Grand Ams were a cross between the Grand Prix luxury and the Trans Am performance. Regarding the tires. Grand Ams came with radials and the suspension set up for them.

Read below toward the bottom.

• The original Grand Am was introduced in the fall of 1972 as a 1973 model. It was based on the GM A-body platform along with other cars such as the Pontiac Le Mans, Pontiac GTO, Chevrolet Chevelle, Buick Century, and the Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme. The GM A-body platform had major design revisions in 1973 that included the elimination of pillarless hardtops due to proposed federal rollover standards, but with frame less windows similar to that of a hardtop. No convertibles were produced due to those same federal rollover standards (that never were enacted). In addition to federal emissions regulations that reduced performance, new federal standards required a 5 mph (8.0 km/h) impact-resistant front bumper and a 2.5 mph (4.0 km/h) impact-resistant rear bumper, which increased to 5 mph (8.0 km/h) for 1974.
  The Grand Am, coined by Pontiac with a name derived from two other cars in its lineup ("Grand" signifying "Grand Prix luxury" and "Am" for "Trans Am performance") was designed as American's answer to European luxury/sport sedans and available as a 4-door Colonnade sedan or a 2 door Colonnade coupe. 43,136 Grand Ams were built during the first year of production (both two door and four door models). The Grand Am could be had with a standard 400/2bbl engine, an optional 400/4bbl engine, or an optional 455/4bbl engine. The 400/2bbl, 400/4bbl, and 455/4bbl engines were available with a Turbo-hydramatic 400 automatic. A 4-speed manual transmission was available with the 400/4bbl engine in 1973 and 1974. It is unknown how many of the 1973 model year Grand Ams had the four-speed manual transmission, but it is estimated to be in the 600-900 range for 1973 and perhaps half that in 1974. The four speed manual transmission was available only with the 400/4bbl engine. All 400/2bbl and 455/4bbl equipped cars were automatics.
  Inside, the Grand Am came standard with Strato bucket seats upholstered in [Naugahyde] vinyl or corduroy cloth featuring recliners and adjustable lumbar support - both features common on European-style sports/luxury sedans but unusual for American cars of that time. Also included were an instrument panel from the Pontiac Grand Prix featuring a Rally Gauge Cluster with full instrumentation (tachometer optional), three-spoke steering wheel with large hub and Genuine Crossfire Mahogany trim on the dash facing, radio and clock surrounds, as well as the center console between the front seats (only 1973 models featured the "real" wood trim on the dash as it was replaced by simulated trim for 1974-75 due to reports of splintering, though the console retained the real wood for all three years). Grand Ams also were among the first U.S.-built cars to come with a turn-signal mounted headlight dimmer switch that had been common on imported cars for decades.
  Additionally, Grand Ams featured a Radial Tuned Suspension (RTS) as standard equipment which included the radial-ply tires, Pliacell shock absorbers and front and rear sway bars for improved ride and handling. This basic suspension tuning also came standard with the Grand Prix SJ option in 1973 and optional on two other Pontiac models that year including the full-sized Bonneville and the sporty Firebird. The Grand Am was one of only three GM cars to come standard with radial tires and appropriate suspension tuning in 1973 with the others being the Oldsmobile Cutlass Salon and Chevrolet Monte Carlo S.
  Pontiac also produced a single 1973 Grand Am station wagon as a feasibility study. This was a Le Mans wagon converted to a Grand Am.
  
  
  
  
• The 1973 Pontiac Grand Am style had a unique flexible urethane front fascia, a total of 6 grille openings with vertical bars, round front turn signals, horizontal rear tail lights, and chrome rear bumper. All 1973-1975 Grand Ams were built at the Pontiac, MI assembly plant, which was the home plant of the Pontiac Motor Division. This basic GM A-body design remained until 1977.
  

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  Functional Grand Am Ram-Air Induction System