2002 Pontiac Trans Am WS6 - Red Menace

From his earliest days, Joe was enamored with the Firebird. It all started the first time he saw the TV series Knight Rider. He was hooked, and knew one day he would have his own Bird (even if it couldn’t talk back).

Pontiacs made up the stable of vehicles that Joe honed his skills on through his high-school years. A red ’89 T/A WS6 305 TPI automatic car sparks the fondest memories, along with a ’98 Grand Prix SE and ’90 black Formula 305 TPI with an automatic, all daily drivers.

Father Joe’s influence cannot be overlooked, as he would expose his young son to the excitement and technical know-how of wrenching and racing. Dad’s weapon of choice back in the day was a ’67 RS/SS Camaro convertible, which he set up for street-strip. Technical proficiency seems to run in the family, as Joe inherited his father’s skills and then some. As we will learn, young Joe would tackle much of the buildup himself in the confines of his driveway.

For much of its first year, Joe’s fresh-from-the-nest Bird saw cruising duties with a stock setup. Soon the modest addition of an airlid and aftercat exhaust introduced the red Raptor to its home away from home—the dragstrip. Whether on Long Island or in New Jersey, Joe was more than impressed with the performance of his mildly modified stick-shift T/A. Mid 12-second runs seemed the norm once Joe perfected his launch technique.

Joe admits that he got a little carried away at first, adding racing heads and a cam without really taking into consideration driveability and such, but he learned valuable lessons. Needless to say, after blowing the original LS1 to pieces and years later crippling a 12-bolt Moser rearend, Joe learned the importance of balance and began to address the car as a whole. His goal was an unbreakable street/strip car to rival all takers and rule the roadways.

Although he has no formal training as a mechanic, Joe gives new meaning to the old adage, “If you want something done right, do it yourself.” Over the next few years and by his own hands, he would build his T/A to a level that he admits he could not have foreseen early on.

This beast sucks air through a Fast Toys airlid, with a K&N filter and an SLP smooth bellows, into an 85mm truck MAF with the screen removed. The air continues through a 92mm Nick Williams TB and reaches the heads via a 90mm LSX composite intake manifold.

The red Phoenix exhales through a set of 1.875-inch American Racing Headers long-tubes through a stainless stell ORY-pipe into a Magnaflow aftercat exhaust.

Bringing it all to the ground, this bad-ass Bird sits on HAL type-R shocks on all four corners, with 325-pound springs in front and stockers in back. The remainder consists of all Midwest Chassis chromoly rear suspension, featuring double-adjustable LCAs with rod ends, and a single-adjustable Panhard rod with poly bushings on the body and a rod end on the rear. A long torque arm provides further rigidity with a fabricated trans crossmember. Spohn tubular subframe connectors stiffen the body.

If you ever find yourself on a Long Island roadway and you come across Joe, don’t be fooled by his pleasant demeanor—it’s his menacing red T/A that’ll do all the talking.