1980 Pontiac Trans Am - Drag Racing and Fire Chasing

Living dangerously is not exactly one's idea of peace of mind, but Gainesville, Texas native Brad Thompson finds his way of life to be quite fulfilling. Working the customary 24 hours on, 36 off schedule, Brad serves as a fireman for the city of Gainesville. However, when he's not fighting fires, Brad pilots a 7-second 1980 Trans Am. If you ask yourself when the last time was that you saw an actual Second-Gen. Firebird running that quick, it's likely the answer is never.

Believe it or not, this bad Bird was destined for great speeds from its beginning. "The car is an original tube-chassis Pro Stock ride built by LCR in 1983," said Brad. While Camaros seemed to be the car of choice back then, someone saw fit to build a big bad Poncho, though when Brad found the car, it was running a Chevy powerplant. "The guy was asking quite a bit of money and I kept asking him to part it out, as I had no interest in the engine. A few months later, I saw it in the AutoTrader again so I made an offer of $5,500 and he accepted."

The Trans Am's previous owner/driver had outfitted the car with a slick blue paint job and a rather vibrant pink roll cage; a scheme that doesn't exactly put the Fire in the Bird. In a matter of 30 days, Brad had the beast on the track, replete with bright red paint and a mild 455 between the fenders. With a great chassis for a foundation, the T/A knocked down 10-second elapsed times with ease and as time went by, it improved. And so did Brad's bank account. Not from winning races, mind you, but because his wife Deanna brought home what must be one of the biggest Bingo prizes ever. How does $19,000 sound? When Deanna called Brad to tell him the good news, his response was, "You know I'm spending some of that money." The very same day, Brad placed a call to Blower Drive Service for a Pontiac-spec, 8-71 supercharger.

The huffer was sure to make this Bird fly, and its good looks were certain to garner attention. Unfortunately, the engine was not built for a blower and subsequently spit out head gaskets every two or three passes. Over the winter that year, Scott Johnson Racing Engines of Owasso, Oklahoma re-engineered the motor for high-pressure Pontiac power starting with an 0.080 over bore on the '68 vintage, 428 block. The lifter bores were braced for the top-secret, Jim Butler-spec Comp Cams roller grind and the deck was grooved for stainless steel O-rings, which help the old engine to survive under conditions that GM never thought it would endure. Billet 4-bolt main caps were employed to restrain the stock 455 crank, which had weight removed from the counterweights and an extra key added for the blower pulley. Brand new Groden 6.700-inch aluminum connecting rods were connected to Venolia flattop pistons that bear Total Seal rings. The short-block was completed with a double-roller timing chain and a vintage Moon Eyes aluminum cover.

The lungs of this quarter-mile killer are a set of worked Edelbrock 72cc heads featuring stainless steel 2.11 intake and 1.66 exhaust valves. Pacaloy valve springs work with Harland Sharp 1.6:1 roller rockers to pump air and fuel in and out of the 11.9:1 compression, 468-cubic-inch engine. An Enderly bird catcher fuel injection system feeds air that is compressed to 10 psi, mixed with alcohol and sent to the chambers for combustion. Mallory's Hy-Fire ignition box and coil are used to light the mixture that, once burned, exits through owner-made "zoomie" headers with 2 1/8-inch primaries.

A Powerglide transmission and 5,000 rpm stall converter are used to transmit the tremendous torque to the Ford 9-inch rear. Suspended by a four-link setup, the differential has been stuffed with 4.10 gears, Strange Engineering axles and a spool. Strange coil-over shocks are also used, as are Wildwood disc brakes. "We found that the chassis combination had to be changed for the new power increase," noted Brad. He obviously figured it out since the Trans Am covers the first 60 feet in a mere 1.09 seconds and the quarter in 7.89 seconds at 172 mph. As fast as the Pontiac is, it still manages to sit still now and then.

"I had planned on using the Fire Department theme from the beginning," said Brad, a member of Beat the Heat, Inc., an organization comprised of police, fire and EMS personnel who race. "We use our cars to teach kids not to race on the street, to stay in school and to not use drugs," said Brad. "I show and race the car most every week at schools, parades and races."

And speaking of races, Brad boasted that his greatest time on the track was a recent run against the legendary Arnie Beswick and his Tameless Tiger. "The guy he was supposed to race broke earlier in the day, and at the driver's meeting, they were going to let him run solo until I said I would race him. I did about a half-track burnout and when Arnie did his, he lost control and the car hit the wall. I backed my car up and shut it down and the next thing I knew, I heard a car fire up and here comes Arnie driving down the track toward me. He turned around, did a short burnout, and we lined up once more. I ran an 8.19 at 158, but he really smoked me on the tree and beat me even though I ran quicker. After the run, we got out of our cars and he came over and said, 'Wasn't that fun?' He really is a super guy. I couldn't sleep for two days after that."

The Thompson clan often attends races with Brad's wife of 17 years, Deanna, who helps the three of them out with just about everything. On July 4 of 2002, the Fire Injun's motor let go through the traps at the Texas Motorplex, but Brad says he'll be back making smoke signals by Spring. We're sure his family will be right there with him, drag racing and fire chasing.