1979 Pontiac Trans Am - Twin-Twin Situation

How Norwood- and Van Nuys-Built '78 and '79 Trans Ams Differ
Scott and Tod Warmack are the owners of Trans Am Depot, a Tallahassee-based business that specializes in Second-Gen restorations. Together, they have deciphered production codes, assembly markings, paint techniques and bin part variants from both the Van Nuys and Norwoodfactories for '78 and '79 Trans Ams.

Tod Warmack tells us, "When evaluating a Trans Am for that factory-correct restoration, one of the things we take into account is where it was assembled. There are some subtle, but telling, differences between a car assembled in Van Nuys and one made in Norwood. While we can't say these differences were always true, we can say we've not seen a variation to these distinctions in the 20-plus years we've been involved with the Second Generation T/A."

Although show judges do not subtract points for inter-factory differences, for a Trans Am to be factory-correct, you must first know which of the two factories it was built at and then duplicate the parts and methods unique to that specific factory. Warmack explains further, "A few differences we've noticed in the '78 and '79 models, for example, is that California cars used different fender hardware than Ohio. This is most visible under the hood where the fender bolts to the core support. California used a metric 12-point bolt in this location, whereas Ohio used a standard 6-point fastener. California also grounded the A/C on the front compressor bracket with the existing compressor adjustment bolt. Ohio used a special grounding bolt that fastened to the rear compressor bracket. The firewall paint from Ohio always seems to be a consistent satin black, compared to California, which is either a high gloss or very flat-mostly the former."

Warmack also explains that there are factory differences when you open your deck lid. "Jack shafts installed in the California cars were silver cadmium (or zinc), while the ones used in the Norwood cars were gold in color. The trunk paint in Norwood cars seems to always be a medium gloss black with a smooth texture, while their Van Nuys counterparts sport a flat finish with an 'under-coated' texture," he says.

Finally, Warmack discusses finding hidden treasure in your Trans Am. He says, "Less important to the restoration, but a novelty nonetheless, is the location of the buildsheet. Not a fast and hard rule, but our experience shows that the Van Nuys plant would more often put the buildsheet under one or both of the two front seats and/or 'glued' to the top of the differential. Norwood buildsheets are almost always found beneath or behind the rear seat."

If you have questions about the factory-specific correctness of '78 and '79 Trans Ams, contact Tod or Scott Warmack directly at www.transamdepot.com.