 Carolina Bumpers of Charlotte...  Carolina Bumpers of Charlotte rechromed the front and rear bumpers along with the headlight bezels. The original nonfunctional front-fender louvers along with the stainless trim surrounding the windshield were expertly repaired and polished by Roger Belk. YearOne provided new door handles along with front wheelwell moldings, while GM rear wheelwell moldings were utilized. |
 The Custom Deluxe interior...  The Custom Deluxe interior features knit vinyl on the buckets seats, door panels with integrated armrests, passenger-side assist strap, and other dress-up items. Pontiac's optional Custom Sports steering wheel is mounted on a tilt column allowing the owner to quickly gaze out at the optional hood tach and monitor the H.O.'s engines status via the Rally gauge cluster-with-clock option. |
 This drop-top beauty is presented...  This drop-top beauty is presented in factory Palladium Silver (code 69 or P) with a blue convertible top (Code 3 or C). A total of 11,649 Firebird convertibles were produced for '69, but the XC-code 350 H.O. was inserted into only 2,670 convertibles and coupes combined. Although specific 350 H.O. convertible production data is unknown, conservative estimates are in the hundreds. |
 This is how the Firebird appeared...  This is how the Firebird appeared when the owner purchased it. |
Next, Sheldon Medlin of Reflections Custom Refinishing in Monroe sandblasted the body and welded in reproduction quarterpanels and outer wheelhousings. Additional metalwork ensued on the front fenders before the body was primed and blocked countless times to ensure the panels were laser straight. Once the bodywork was complete, the car was sent back to Roger's shop, where it was mounted on a rotisserie to do minor metal and bodywork on the floorpans, cowl, and trunk area to replicate the factory appearance. Roger painted the underside of the firewall with GM chassis black, and after restoring the chassis and installing the restored drivetrain, the car was transported back to Reflections Custom Refinishing.
The Firebird was then shot in the original hue of Palladium Silver using DuPont's ChromaBase basecoat and urethane clear. A total of six coats of base and four clearcoats were expertly applied. Once adequately cured, the clear coat was progressively wet-sanded with 1,500-grit paper before being buffed out.
Suspension
In the midst of all this bodywork, the suspension and drivetrain were also rebuilt and restored. After separating the subframe from the body, the engine and inner fender liners were extracted. Following disassembly of the suspension and rearend, those parts, the subframe, and core support were sandblasted, primed, and repainted with GM chassis black.
Restoration of the optional firm ride and handling package is courtesy of N.O.S. front and rear spiral shocks that work in conjunction with the refurbished original front coil and multi-leaf rear springs. The factory front upper and lower control arms were stripped, repainted, and fitted with fresh N.O.S. bushings. N.O.S. ball joints, tie-rods, and the stock 0.6875-inch front stabilizer bar with new bushings and end-links also aid in providing like-new handling.
Optional 11-inch, front disc-brake rotors were turned, and stainless steel sleeves were inserted into the original calipers before being combined with fresh GM brake pads and N.O.S. brake hoses. Out back, the rear braking system was freshened and still features the original 9.5-inch, finned composite drums. A cleanup cut to the drums was performed, and restored wheel cylinders, new GM shoes, and an N.O.S. center brake hose were all that was required to ensure solid braking.
Engine And Drivetrain
The original XC-code 350 H.O. was a potent package with 325 hp on tap, but this 100,000-plus-mile powerplant had a rod knock that required attention, so it was pulled in 1989.
Along with his father, Roger disassembled the short-block, and the engine was transported to Parks Nash Engine Rebuilding of Monroe where the block was hot-tanked. After sonic testing and measuring the cylinders, it was determined that an overbore of 0.030 was all that was required.
A set of TRW forged pistons fitted with Speed-Pro chrome-moly rings restored the integrity of the cylinder seal. The stock cast crankshaft was cut 0.010 under and polished on the rod journals in order to repair the minimal damage imparted when the rod bearing spun. Stock cast rods were resized, and Federal Mogul bearings were employed. An N.O.S. oil pump was blueprinted to ensure adequate oil pressure, and the stock 6-quart oil pan was reused after a cosmetic restoration.
The key to the performance of the 350 H.O. lies in the original code 48 heads, which were also used on R/A-III manual-trans 400 engines. Replacement bronze valve guides were fitted, and stock 2.11/1.77 valves were installed after the heads were decked and a three-angle valve job was completed. An N.O.S. "067" camshaft with 273/289 degrees duration and 0.410/0.413 lift was used in conjunction with a set of N.O.S. Pontiac hydraulic lifters and stock 1.50:1 stamped rocker arms and pushrods.