The Formula Firehawk features...
The Formula Firehawk features this smooth heat-extractor hood that sculpts itself around the Firebird's shape. It's less aggressive than the WS6 hood, but arguably better looking.
Love can be a major motivator. For Bruce Hawkins, the love for his wife, B.J., came with a shared passion for performance cars. What better way to show her how much he cared than to get her the car she had always wanted-a Sunset Orange Metallic (SOM) Formula Firehawk. With the help of friends and family, Bruce plotted a scheme to secretly purchase and modify this rare Bird into the ultimate anniversary gift.
As the founder and owner of Hawks Third Generation, Bruce knows his way around F-bodies. His wife, B.J., owns several high-performance Pontiacs of her own, including an '01 SOM WS6, a '92 Firehawk, and several other Third-Gen Formulas and GTAs. For her, the ultimate ride was the Firehawk.
SLP introduced its performance model of the Firebird called the Firehawk in '92. The gearheads at Street Legal Performance made some tweaks to the engine, suspension, and appearance of the already excellent Formula. In the years to follow, SLP started converting Trans Ams, but there was always something cool about the Firehawk Formulas. By the time the LS1 was between the strut towers, Trans Am Firehawks were all the rage, and Formulas with the conversion were becoming increasingly rare. In the final year of production, only 167 Formulas were optioned with the SLP Firehawk package, while 1,334 Trans Ams were so lucky.
For B.J., this meant that her dream of an SOM Firehawk was a slim-to-none chance, especially considering that only 20 Formula Hawks were sprayed in SOM in 2002. With their 13th wedding anniversary coming up, Bruce tracked one down on LS1tech.com. As if the car, build number 104, wasn't good enough, he then managed to let everyone at the shop in on the secret, including his and his wife's 10-year-old son, Tyler. With the car hidden from B.J., the team set out to build the Firehawk into one mean street car.
The factory suspension under the Firehawk is one of the best to ever come in a showroom Bird. A large 32mm front sway bar and 19mm rear sway bar combine with SLP-spec Bilstein struts and shocks, providing outstanding out-of-the-box performance. Bruce didn't feel the need to upgrade any of the factory pieces, including the brakes, as this was to be a show car and street cruiser. To start things off, the 17x9-inch silver-painted Firehawk wheels were rolled away safely and replaced with Fikse FM/5s measuring 18x9.5 front and 18x10.5 rear. They wear plenty of rubber with 265/35R18 and 295/35R18 BFG g-Force Sport tires wrapping the slick-designed wheels.
Big changes came under the hood when the low-mile LS1 was promptly taken out so that an SLP 402 LS2 short-block could be installed. Inside this crate engine are eight forged Manley/SLP 4-inch-bore pistons, forged Manley/SLP H-beam rods, and a 4.00-inch-stroke Callies crankshaft. Once the short-block was back at Hawks, a pair of TrickFlow 235cc cylinder heads were bolted on, flowing 340 and 270 cfm on the intake and exhaust at 0.600-lift. This large amount of air is delivered by a Whisper carbon-fiber air lid, 85mm Z06 MAF, and a Nick Williams 92mm throttle body feeding a ported 92mm FAST intake manifold painted SOM.
Hawks inserted a custom Comp Cams camshaft with 239/243-degrees at 0.050 duration and 0.624/0.624-inch lift. This bumpstick commands factory lifters, Trickflow pushrods, and 1.7:1 Yella Terra roller rockers. Notoriously weak, the factory fuel pump was ditched in favor of the popular Racetronix 255-lph boosted system. It delivers fuel to a set of billet fuel rails and 42-pound Bosch fuel injectors.
There was absolutely nothing...
There was absolutely nothing wrong with the LS1 that previously resided under the hood of this Firehawk, but Bruce Hawkins figured an SLP 402 short-block was even better. It boasts Trick Flow Specialty heads, a custom cam, and American Racing headers, and pushes out 530 ponies to the tires.
The intake got a splash of...
The intake got a splash of SOM paint for a custom look.
B.J. Hawkins enjoys cruising...
B.J. Hawkins enjoys cruising in her rare 'Hawk whenever possible.
The heavy breather spits out just as much grunt as sucks in, so large 1.875-inch American Racing long-tube headers were required to handle the fumes. They feed into a 3-inch cat-less American Racing Y-pipe, that delivers the exhaust gases to a 4-inch Mufflex exhaust with a Magnaflow muffler.
Sitting behind the Gen-IV small-block is a T56 that was treated to Hawks Third Generation's Level II build. After the internals were upgraded, a Spec Stage 4 clutch, Spec flywheel, and Pro 5.0 shifter were put in place. The rearend was left stock with 3.42 gears and a Torsen posi unit.
B.J. eventually took to the computer and tuned the car after receiving it, and she forced out an impressive 530 rwhp and 500 lb-ft of torque. Factoring in drivetrain loss of approximately 15-percent through the 10-bolt and T56, that's over 600 hp from the engine with an impressive 575 lb-ft of torque.
On the day of their 13th wedding anniversary, Bruce gathered everyone who had participated in the sneakiness. In front of all of their friends and family, the car was revealed to B.J. for the first time. "All I could say was 'shut up!' when I saw it," she recalls. "I couldn't believe that this car was mine, and that all the parts were sent to the shop and it was built there without me even knowing." The speechless and happy wife realized just how much she meant to Bruce, and all of her friends and family that took part in helping him keep this secret. "I couldn't believe that even our 10-year-old son knew and he didn't tell me."
She was extremely grateful and drives the Hawk whenever it's nice outside during the spring, summer, and fall. "I take it to local cruise-ins and car shows. I even won First Place at the Ban One show last year in Atlanta."
In the future, she would like to upgrade to a more aggressive gear, possibly a 3.73 or 4.10. "I also wouldn't mind putting a Maggie on it, but we'll see," she jests.
For now, she is just enjoying her fabulous anniversary gift and recalling what it means to her and her family.
The Fikse FM/5 wheels are...
The Fikse FM/5 wheels are a timeless design that gives the Hawk a race-inspired look.
The interior remains stock...
The interior remains stock except for the Pro 5.0 shifter
With only 20 Formula Firehawks...
With only 20 Formula Firehawks painted Sunset Orange Metallic in 2002, B.J. Hawkins' Bird is rare for sure. The six-speed makes it 1 of 16.