1997 Pontiac Trans Am - To The Point

Speed is the goal here. Let your gaze fall upon this ’97 Trans Am. There is no disguising its intent—its shape is too clearly defined, too aggressive, too boldly obvious. Its lines broadly resemble an arrow—pointy in front to cleave the atmosphere and penetrate its prey, and gradually widening toward the back for stability—a nod perhaps to the great Chief himself, who shares a name with this machine’s maker, and who unwittingly lent his name to the marque. Its color—a pure liquid silver, echoed on the wheels that blur so easily, whether the rest of the machine is in motion or not—does nothing to dissuade the comparison.

It was this Trans Am’s visage—clean, streamlined—that drew owner Danny Gomez to it in the first place. “I love the sleek lines,” the Oak Leaf, Texas-resident tells us. “I also like the ’97 nose better than the ’98 facelift. Seeing that nose is what prompted me to do my car shopping in late ’97.” The answer came on the lot of Jerry’s Chevrolet in Weatherford, Texas: a recent ’97 trade-in with less than 12,000 miles on the clock, and loaded with T-tops, Monsoon stereo, leather, and six-speed.

Additional stability was built into the package as well. A set of Kenny Brown Double-Diamond subframe connectors help dial out any unwanted torsional flex created by the T-top-shaped holes in the roof, while a Spohn torque arm, Thunder Racing adjustable Panhard bar, and Jegster adjustable rear lower control arms aid in stability.

The only compromise made with the airstream here is the Suncoast twin-nostril hood, which reaches up ever so slightly, and only then to grab a snootful of cold, dense, sweet air for its own nefarious purpose. Tribal markings by Mecham Design—an old and respected name among the elder tribesmen—allow both identification and continuity among those in the know. This minor addition feeds the naturally aspirated beast tucked stealthily away between the strut towers.

And what a beast! A stroker crank, ported heads, a trick cam to get the valves opening higher still, an unimpeded exhaust, and air being rammed down its gullet from the outside, encourage this 383 small-block’s voracious appetite.

Inside, Gomez went the full stroker route with 383-cubes, utilizing a 3.75-inch-stroke Eagle cast crank with 6-inch Eagle forged rods and forged flat-top JE pistons. Dennis Wells Racing of Duncanville, Texas, did the machine work and Gomez built it.

Lloyd Elliot of Elliot’s Portworks of Red Oak, Texas, ported and rebuilt the LT1 heads with larger Manley 2.02/1.60 valves, Comp Cams beehive springs, and steel retainers and locks. His port work resulted in a 205cc intake port and flow of 281/194 cfm versus 216/156 cfm stock.

Match that to a GM847 cam with 234/242 duration at 0.050 and 0.575/0.595-inch valve lift with 1.6:1 Comp Cams Pro roller rockers, and there’s a whole lot more air getting sucked, squished, banged, and blown through the system ... all in the name of power.

And you can’t pass that quantity of air with a clogged exhaust. To that end—if you’ll pardon the pun—a set of FLP ceramic-coated headers (1.75-inch primaries, 3-inch collectors) feed a 2.5-inch Y-pipe and a 4-inch exhaust, exiting through a single Edelbrock muffler. (The passenger-side exhaust outlet is a dummy.)

Does it work? And how, to the tune of 407 rwhp at 6,000 rpm, and 409.5 lb-ft of neck-straining torque at 4,150 rpm. Danny says of its road manners, “My T/A has a great balance of power and driveability. It provides late-model ride quality with the rumble and power of a musclecar. With the six-speed, you just drop it in whichever gear you want—feel the vertebra-snapping harshness of a lower gear or the smooth power of a higher gear.”

He’s currently working on improving his driving technique on the strip to fully realize the T/A’s potential on a timeslip. In the meantime, air is patient. It just waits—taken for granted.