No matter the hobby, one facet that always holds true is there are myriad ways for hobbyists to enjoy it. And our Pontiac hobby is certainly one with many avenues. To some, only high-quality, number-matching restorations are of interest, while the only numbers that may concern others are from a dyno or dragstrip. Then there are hobbyists like Woodstock, Georgia-resident Jay DeLaigle, who seeks maximum performance while retaining a factory-assembled appearance.
An Admiralty Blue '74 Trans Am is how Jay satisfies his performance fixation. That said, your first thought might be that a Super Duty 455 resides between its framerails. But Jay's T/A is actually one of 4,648 produced that year with the optional 250hp D-port 455 backed by a Turbo-400 transmission. And the modifications that propel this 2-ton piece of American iron down the dragstrip in the low 13s are all under the guise of an otherwise correctly restored vehicle. But the road to get there wasn't always smooth.
The 39-year-old auto wholesaler and father of three has had a lifelong love affair with Second-Gen Firebirds. Speaking of his formative years, Jay tells HPP, "My friend Art Burdell and I always dreamed of owning a Trans Am. When I was 10 years old, my neighbor's '74 Formula 400 four-speed really had an impact on me, and the 1977 release of Smokey and the Bandit really cemented that car as a goal." It wasn't long thereafter that Jay realized his dream.
During the '80s, Jay's father was part owner of a used car lot in Norcross, Georgia. The two used to frequent the nearby Loganville auto auction for vehicles to stock the lot. A day that will forever remain with Jay is May 29, 1985. "After 10 minutes of looking, we came across a '74 Trans Am 455," he recalls. "Seeing a small-rear-window Firebird was a rarity even in 1985. A short test drive around the auction lot sealed it for me; when the car finally went under the gavel, we won it for $2,130."
Having purchased several cars that day, Jay, then a high school senior, got to drive the Trans Am back home. Knowing that his father frowned upon abusive driving, Jay lagged back from the caravanning pack to catch a red light and gauge the large-cube Firebird's performance out of his father's eye. What he didn't know, however, was a mechanical issue with another car in the pack caused the group to pull over. This gave his father a full view of the massive burnout and resulted in the Firebird being taken away.
"In a matter of one hour, I had found and lost the car of my dreams," says Jay. "Over the next few days, I wore on my dad, begging for the car back. But little did I know he had plans to rebuild the worn engine and have it ready by my high school graduation. That June was as special as anything could be up to that point in my life." His T/A's maiden voyage was a memorable trip with friend Steve Thomas to Panama City, Florida, just days after graduating.
The same timeless Second-Gen...
The same timeless Second-Gen Firebird stance that hooked Woodstock, Georgia-resident Jay DeLaigle will continue drawing enthusiast attention for years to come.
The T/A was Jay's only mode of transportation for the next several years. In that time, he installed a number of different aftermarket components with hopes of increasing the 455's output. The most significant change occurred in 1988 when Jay had Atlanta-area Pontiac-guru Wayne Hubbard remove the T/A's original Turbo-400 and install a complete four-speed manual assembly from a donor Firebird. "It seemed he had the car all summer," Jay recollects, "But the idea of a four-speed 455 seemed worth it."
Modifications began to take their toll on the Trans Am's reliability, oftentimes leaving Jay without transportation, so he drove the Trans Am sparingly and decided to rebuild the 455. He hoped to improve the engine's durability by using high-performance internals such as SD-455 connecting rods, but shoddy machining quickly led to its demise, forcing Jay to place the T/A in his father's garage for long-term storage while his wallet healed.
Several years came and went, as well as Jay's first marriage, as the Trans Am sat covered in extended slumber. When he began dating Nicole, "She was cool with cars and familiar with YearOne. She even had friends who worked there. Irony poured all over me," he says.
Jay and Nicole married in 2001 and life was great, but money for the Trans Am was still sparse. In 2002, after prodding from friends, Jay finally removed the T/A's cover to see what it might take to make it roadworthy and found that it needed little beyond an engine rebuild.
About this same time, a new form of racing called F.A.S.T. caught Jay's attention. It stands for Factory Appearing Stock Tire and allows for a number of modifications that improve performance yet maintain the vehicle's original appearance while running on vintage-technology tires. Always fascinated by stock-appearing performance, Jay decided this was the path he wanted to take with his Trans Am's restification.
When new, one might expect...
When new, one might expect a typical 455-powered '74 Trans Am to run the quarter-mile in the mid-to-high 14s, but this sleeper contains 12-second potential while retaining a number of original components.
The 455 was sent to another Atlanta-area machine shop where, over a year's time, it once again was machined improperly resulting in engine damage. Undeterred by machine shop woes, Jay forged ahead and searched for a qualified body shop to apply a show-quality finish to the exterior and found Shannon Born of Street Machines and More of Chickamauga, Georgia.
Bodywork began in May 2004 and took six months to complete. Starting with a virtually rust-free shell, Born applied two coats of PPG self-etching primer and urethane surfacer. Next were three coats of PPG Global Urethane code 29 Admiralty Blue base followed by two coats of PPG Deltron Urethane clear. The final coat of clear was wet-sanded with 2,000-grit paper and buffed to a mirror-like finish. Two coats of PPG Epoxy Primer in black were applied to the T/A's subframe after it was removed and sandblasted. Jay spent the rest of the year reassembling the car and searching for a quality machine shop to rebuild his engine.
Having had several bad experiences with area machine shops, Jay contacted Cliff Ruggles of Cliff's Q-Jet in Mount Vernon, Ohio, who had custom-calibrated a Quadrajet for Jay and answered several technical questions. "Cliff recommended Jim Lehart of Central Virginia Machine Service (CVMS) in Burkeville, Virginia," says Jay. "Jim found many mistakes and problems that he had to iron out, but he had me ready for the show season by March 2005."
 Under the cloak of a stock...  Under the cloak of a stock 455 lies a 465ci engine with 10:1 compression, a hydraulic roller camshaft, ported 4X cylinder heads, port-matched intake and exhaust manifolds, and a modified Quadrajet carburetor. The combination churns out 380 hp and 464 lb-ft of torque on a chassis dyno. |  Though the L75 455ci was only...  Though the L75 455ci was only available with a Turbo-400 during the '74 model year, the complete four-speed manual assembly was installed in the late-'80s. Future plans include reinstalling the automatic to maintain originality. The owner performed much of the interior restoration himself, which includes a new carpet from Auto Custom Carpets of Anniston, Alabama, and various pieces from restoration parts supplier YearOne. Denny Sanford of Atlanta Color Pros in Marietta, Georgia, redyed the original seat covers back to their off-white shade and installed new front-seat cushions onto the frames. Factory-installed options include air conditioning, Custom interior, power windows, rear defogger, AM/FM stereo, and console-mounted 8-track tape player. |  A bit of stealth technology...  A bit of stealth technology was used when modifying the factory Shaker scoop. It may first appear that this T/A's Shaker is riveted shut like all others from '73 forward. But it actually contains a hinged air valve like that used on '70-'72 models, which allows the carburetor to ingest cooler outside air. |