MRADMC

Peter Amezdroz’s 1969 Firebird

ISSUE: V38 – 3— February 2020 A00038005 MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Inc. www.mradmc.com.au Clubrooms: 10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Correspondence: PO Box 84 Gisborne 3437 Phone: 03 5420 7683

President: Adam Furniss Welfare/ Grievance: John Parnis 0404 034 841 0425 802 593 [email protected] [email protected]

Vice President: Alan Martin AOMC Delegates: 0402 708 408 • Robert Green 0408 532 603 [email protected] • Don MacGregor

Secretary: Graham Williams Mid-Week Run Committee: 0419 393 023 0427 804 803 [email protected] [email protected]

Treasurer: Drew Jessop (OAM) Property Officer: Joe Mediero 0412 085 624 0432 810 202 [email protected]

Membership: Michael Camilleri Webmaster: Sarah Furniss 0423 718 250 [email protected] [email protected]

Catering: Clara Tine

Head Scrutineer: Brian Jayasingha 9330 3331 B.H. Mon-Fri Librarian: Alec Mead (OAM)

Liquor Rally Director: Richard Onyon License Nominee: Trevor Elliott 0414 466 966 [email protected]

Sales: Lina Bragato Editor: Robin Fletcher 0432 583 098 0434 604 896 [email protected] [email protected]

Club Objective: To encourage the restoration, preservation and operation of motorised vehicles.

Meetings: First Wednesday of every month (except Jan) at 8pm

Disclaimer: The opinions and ideas expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the club or the committee.

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au 2 MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

This edition of Motor Mouth is ‘packed’ As we have moved into 2020 the news with a whole new set of 2020 official Club headlines have been dominated by the reports plus the Minutes of December horrific fires Australia-wide. The statistics General Meeting courtesy of the Club’s of- make sad reading; the numbers of lives ficial Christmas gnome. lost, homes destroyed, acreage burnt, live- Contributions this month include a pictorial stock lost and outbuildings destroyed. And of the January Cars ‘n Coffee from the what of the content of some of these out- Club’s First Lady, Wendy Furniss, and of buildings? Irreplaceable historic vehicles the January Midweek Run from Pam and machinery. The Council of Heritage Amezdroz. We also have an article from Motor Clubs NSW Inc. have issued guide- Peter Amezdroz about his magnificent lines for those enthusiasts who have fire 1969 and an article identi- affected rare or historic vehicles and relat- fied by John Van Groningen introducing ed collections. These have been further Mercedes’ newest electric vehicle offering. distributed by the AOMC. If you, or some- one you know, is impacted contact the Edi- tor or the AOMC for a copy. - Robin Fletcher / Editor

The vehicle below is an Australian National Airways coach dating to around 1937. If anyone is able to provide details on the make and model of the vehicle it was based on, who produced the componentry or which coachbuilder built it, please forward details to the Editor at [email protected]

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

Welcome to the February edition of Motor Mouth, The December Meeting started early so we could get the club business out of the way and get on with the club Christmas party. It was a great event. Good to see so many members enjoying a meal and socialising together in the clubrooms as we farewelled another busy club year. We would like to thank Clara and Carmelo for their efforts catering this event. January’s warm weather has brought bush fires around the state and along the eastern side of Australia. What a way to start the New Year. Our thoughts go out to all those affected by this trag- edy. Coffee and Cars on 19th January had a great turnout of vehicles – around 20 vehicles of all makes and years. George Porter with his Model A Ford, Donnie Mc Gregor and Karl Share with Hot Rods and classics, muscle cars to moderns. A pleasant way to spend a Sunday morning with a chat and a coffee. Recently I attended the Hanging Rock Meeting - all is going according to plan. Our members who are on this committee are working like a well-oiled machine and have put a lot of time and effort into the 33rd annual Picnic. I would like to see more members put their hands up to help out since this is our clubs trademark event. We donate funds to community groups and Children’s First Foundation. On a sad note - Brad Radclyffe passed away on 18th January. Many of you would associate him with ‘Kruz for Kids’. His father was also a member of our club. He will be missed. Our condolenc- es go out to his family.

See you on the road, Adam

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

MACEDON RANGES AND DISTRICT MOTOR CLUB General Meeting 4th December 2019

The President welcomed everyone to the last general meeting for 2019 & declared the meeting open at 7:10 pm. Members were reminded to scan in near the Committee Room, and guests were asked to sign the visitors book as this is a requirement for our liquor licence. Approximately 120 members were in attendance.

Apologies: Tony Bonsal, Graham & Deb Williams, Richard Onyon, Clive Wilson, Vivian & ?, Tony Attard. A number of others were advised but not noted New Members/Visitors: Andrew – he doesn’t have a vehicle at present but is looking for something suitable. Minutes of Previous General Meeting: The Chairman asked if everyone had read the minutes of the last General Meeting as distribut- ed in MotorMouth. Moved Rod Sinclair and seconded Robin Fletcher “that they be accepted” PASSED Business Arising: Nil

Executive Reports President’s Report: President read his report from this month’s Motor Mouth. Vice President’s Report: Alan advised that there was no guest speaker for this evening as this was the Christmas break up night, but did ask members to give some thought to any guest speakers they might like to hear from in 2020 and if any members were prepared to bring their vehicle(s) in and be a guest speaker. He wished everyone a Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year and looked for- ward to the clubs next big event, PAHR 2020. Secretary’s Report: Incoming magazines as distributed, Cleanaway advising of their operating hours over the Christmas break, thank you letter from Children First. Outgoing – letters for members for CPS registration renewals, Lease renewal follow up Have spoken to Council and arranging the site visit for week beginning 9th December – last

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

step to lease being renewed. Acting Secretary then advised members that the real secretary had asked him to convey to all members both his and Deb’s best wishes for Christmas and the New Year and that he, (Graham), was more than happy to be the Secretary for ever. Treasurer’s Report: Drew reported that the club’s bank balance remained healthy. He also advised that the Exec- utive had reviewed and approved all payment for the month past and indicated that members could enquire as to the details of any payments as usual. The total accounts approved for payment was $12,963.14 which included Glenroy Sports for name badges, Watergarden Flo- rist for flowers for members, Hard Drawn Plumbing for installation of the oven, Sunbury Su- permarket for consumables for club meetings, King & Whittle, auditors, cleaning service, Cleanaway, Red Energy for gas & electricity, Telstra, HR traffic training, HR badges for 2020 & donation to children first charity. A copy of the payments were available for review if re- quired by members. Moved by Drew Jessop, seconded by Ted Delia, “that the bills continue to be paid” CAR- RIED. Drew then spoke about a request he had received from a member in relation to the annual financial report and what had appeared to be a spike in depreciation, explained that there had been an administrative legislative change which had created a flow on effect, thereby seemingly increasing the depreciation figure. He emphasised that it is the right of every member to raise questions with the executive and he was more than happy to respond to such questions. Membership Officer’s Report: Michael reported that memberships were still slow at present and that there were still a num- ber of new Membership cards and badges available for collection. He wished everyone a very merry Christmas & safe new year.

General Reports Mid-Week Run Co-Ordinators Report: Pam gave a brief report on the last month’s run, (27 members in attendance for that run), ad- vised that there was no midweek run for December, but provided details of the next midweek run to be held on the 22nd of January 2020, which would be a mystery run, with more details to follow over the Christmas break. She thanked everyone for their support throughout the year & hoped everyone had a good Christmas and a safe new year. Sales Report: Lina advised on ongoing sales of badges etc and wished everyone a merry Christmas and a happy new year. Technical Officer’s Report: Brian reported that there had to be a change to the red plate day scheduled for May of next year to the last weekend in June. AOMC Report: Robbie reported that there was nothing of significance to report as the next AOMC meeting

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

was to be held tomorrow, (the day after this meeting). Events: The Chairman advised that the next important event, was of course, PAHR 2020 Editor: Robin wished everyone a Merry Christmas and safe new year and that he was looking for vol- unteers for stories in Motor Mouth; failure to volunteer would lead to compulsory conscriptions, or he’d just make up stories about members. Property: Joe advised that there were fourteen great raffle prizes to finish off what had been a successful 2019. Welfare: Nothing to report. As usual, John was flitting about in the background helping to get supper ready on time. Catering: Clara wished everyone a very Merry Christmas and a happy new year. Librarian: Alec advised that as he was now no longer the nominee for the MRADMC liquor license, he would have more time to devote to being librarian and asked members present to take it easy on the new nominee Trevor who was undergoing a torrid baptism of fire. Nominee/bar: The response from Trevor was slightly muffled, but he didn’t sound too happy, (he’ll be fine). PAHR:

As Graeme was off swanning with his lovely lady, the President asked if anyone would like to give a report, and Kate advised that the roster for PAHR was on the wall at the clubhouse, a copy would be sent to all members via e-mail and that she still needed some volunteers, just to ease the strain on the regular attendees. Next PAHR meeting is Thursday 12th December at the Rock at 6:30pm General Business:

• Nine members had attended the Children’s First Open day and view the facilities and the tanks that the club had contributed to . See MotorMouth for pics

• Acting Secretary read out a letter of thanks to the club for all their support, (President added his comments about Bob’s involvement). Cars and Parts for sale or wanted – reminder to give the editor an email for the details for inclu- sion in MotorMouth ([email protected]). Guest Speaker:- No guest speaker for tonight.

The raffle was drawn with fourteen prizes, the main prize being a Robbie Green original master- piece, (Robbie donated the money he was paid for this work to the Children First charity).

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au 7 MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

In order of drawing, tickets were, Black D50, Black D85, Green C31, Green C33, Orange F90, Pur- ple B97, Blue E06, Green C74, Green C01, Red A11. Purple B24, Black D64, Purple B68 & Purple D31. The good news story for the evening was that our only guest for the evening won a prize, (he’ll be back for sure), and the bad news is, yet again the acting secretary got zip.

There being no further business, the Chairman declared the meeting closed at 7:40pm and invited members to enjoy a chat and supper.

Alec Mead on behalf of Graham Williams

Vice President’s Report:

Due to Hanging Rock organisational arrangements to be discussed at the February General meeting there will be no guest speaker.

Coming event Motorsport Australia (formerly CAMS) is now con- trolling the Australian F1 Automotive Avenue. As a consequence, this year will be your last oppor- tunity to display your car at the Grand Prix with our club; Motorsport Australia will only accept en- tries from clubs affiliated to them in future. The event runs for 4 days, Thursday 12 March to Sunday 15 March. Vehicles are bumped in on Wednesday 11 March at around 11.00am to set up the display. The display is set up on the north side of the golf course, where it's possible between 200,000 to 300,000 people may view or walk past our display. Ian Buckingham is coordinating the club’s involvement and hopes to have 20 cars on display, but is currently about 3 cars short. If you would like to display your car at this prestigious event contact Ian as soon as possible via text to 0418 165 453 or via email to [email protected]

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au 8 MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Reports: C322 Picnic at Hanging Rock

Yes – its this weekend - Sunday 9th February The planning committee met on Wednesday 15th January for the last planned meeting before the event – hopefully the weather situation will improve between now and next weekend to allow the event to proceed without rescheduling. At this time, all permits, bookings and arrangements are in place to allow the delivery of the event and I would like to again thank the members of the planning committee for their dedication to the task for yet another year So we have several final key requests for the members: Firstly – as per the recent emails we are still looking for 6 Emergency, 7 parking/driveway and some emergency cover volunteers to help round out the roster for Sunday - please see Kate or Kalinda at the meeting Secondly – Saturday is set up day – and the old adage of many hands make light work remains true today. So at 9am for hopefully only a few hours we need 30 members to help set up the park with bunting, signs, fencing etc. Could you also let Kate and Kalinda know if you can assist – we will need a few utes to ferry equipment around the park and gloves and a hat are a must. Entry on Saturday is via the normal public boom gate on South Rock Road. On the Sunday to enter you must come thru the North Gate - Colwells Road – to avoid being caught up in Show traffic. You must also have your Membership card ready to present to the volunteers on the gates. Entry from 6:30am And lastly – the area in front of the Stage is re- served for our cars and the Sponsors and exhibi- tors. To park in this area you must be onsite by no later than 9:00 – after this all spare space will be made available to display vehicles. Don’t be late. We all look forward to a successful day and to showcasing the Club’s ability to stage a great event so jump in and help and enjoy

Graham Just Hangin’ around

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au 9 MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Reports: Picnic at C322 Hanging Rock

The Committee and members of the Macedon Ranges and District Motor Club extend their deepest sympathies to Peter and Pam Amezdroz and their family on the sad passing of Peter’s mother. May the love of those who share your loss comfort you as you share cherished memories.

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au

MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Coming event

Old Dadswell Town is a unique old style Australian town nestled on 280 acres of natural bush on the edge of the Grampians National Park. It has country-style self contained cabins with a touch of nostalgia, history, memorabilia and good old Aussie humour.

There are five spacious two bedroom cabins which sleep four. All linen is supplied

The shearing shed style town hall has a great atmosphere for communal get-together's with its large open fire and rustic tables and chairs.

Mad Max's Garage is a car nuts heaven with a Hot Rod and motor memorabilia lining the walls, ideal venue for car clubs and groups. It even has its own 50's style diner!

Members wishing to attend the weekend to Old Dadswell Town (7th to 10th August 2020) will need to book accommodation by ringing Jenny on the number below.

5 twin share cabins are available.

Jenny & Max Green (Proprietors)

6237 Western Highway, Dadswell Bridge VIC 3385

(03) 5359 5299

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

Price List August 2019

HR BADGES [2013,2014,2015,2016] $5 each or 4 for $10 HR BADGES [2017,2018] $10 each HR STICKERS 2 for $5 HR STUBBIE HOLDER 2 for $20 HR CAP $12 each ANNUAL TOUR BADGE [2010,2012] 2 for $5 30th ANNIVERSARY BADGE $10 each CLUB GRILL BADGE $15 each IRON - ON CLOTH BADGE $12 each KEY RINGS 2 for $12 CAR SASHES $15 each or 2 for $24

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

Introducing the Mercedes Benz AA-Class Sedan

Mercedes Benz has launched a new contender into the surging electrical vehicle market. Class- leading technology means that the new AA-Class Sedan never has to visit an Electric Vehicle Charge Station, being powered by 9,648 double A batteries, powering the new Merc to a star- tling 83 kph. Mercedes-Benz has proven the company’s sense of humour by lending a C-Class for a parody TV commercial starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus. With the EVs gaining territory in the car industry, Saturday Night Live can’t help making fun of battery-powered cars. They shot a 2-minute video of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, claiming that you only need tons of AA batteries from one refill to the next to keep the car going. The parody shows the million and first thing to be powered by the little wonders. Not just a few of them, but about 10,000. The car is now called the Mercedes AA Class and, in the video, it is pre- sented as the first ever luxury sedan powered entirely by the double A batteries. When the bonnet comes up there are just the little batteries in there. No engine, no nothing. And it is the same when the boot lid is open. Just some extra storage space for batteries. The AA Class was proved to be the best-in-class safety, as the crash tests only showed batter- ies jumping off the car when the car slams into the wall. The Command Online display monitors individual battery status, issuing an alert when a bat- tery’s level is low, but don’t worry! The auto-dump feature helps you discharge the worn out bat- teries. All 9,648 of them. And they keep the best for last: “Batteries not included” is the hilarious line ending the video. See for yourself at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEjTwsfqHOY

Ref: https://mercedesblog.com/the-mercedes-benz-aa-class-the-parody-that-got-teslas- attention/

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

The January Midweek Run was held on Wednesday 22 January 2020. The day did not start well; cold and windy. We met at Dromkeen in Riddells Creek at 9:30am then went and had a cuppa at the café with Devonshire tea being the order of the day, with bit of a get together and “how are you?”. We adjourned to the sand sculptures at 10:30am.

We were beaten to be first in by an aged care group. Leo was apologising for the late start, as he explained they do not usually have such an early start; it is normally 11:00am before the crowds. The guided tour of the sand sculptures took 1 1/2 hours; you get an explanation of each sculp- ture and each sculpture has a story to tell and is connected to the next sculpture. Lunch was taken on the Lancefield plantation. we made it through lunch just before it started to

rain at 2:30pm. Coming

event Date: Wednesday February 26 Destination: Shepparton Motor Museum and Emerald Bank Leisure Land Start Location: Clubrooms Start Time: 9:30am

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

19th January 2020 & BP Calder (outbound)

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

February

5 8:00 pm General Meeting Clubrooms 8 9:00 am P@HR Setup Hanging Rock Reserve

9 From 6:30 am P@HR Hanging Rock Reserve 16 9:30 am Cars & Coffee BP Calder Outbound 18 8:30 pm Full Committee Meeting Clubrooms 23 AOMC British & European Car Show Yarra Glen Racecourse 26 9:30 am Midweek Run Clubrooms

March 4 8:00 pm General Meeting Clubrooms

15 9:30 am Cars & Coffee BP Calder Outbound 17 8:30 pm Exec Committee Meeting Clubrooms

25 9:30 am Mid-week Run Clubrooms 29 8:00 pm Red Plate Inspection Day Clubrooms

Changed

date

The Club’s Head Scrutineer, Brian Jayasingha, has

scheduled Red Plate Inspection Days for: Sunday March 29th at 8:00 am and

Sunday June 7th at 8:00 am If you have a club car on VicRoad’s Club Permit Scheme, it must be inspected by Brian’s team of scrutineers at least once per year. Contact Brian on (03) 9330 3331 during business hours, Monday to Friday, to book your car in to be inspected at either of the specified days. Further dates will be nominated for later in the year.

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

The search for the right car

Penned by Peter Amezdroz

After searching on the net for just on two years, I found many cars of various condition, I set my price to spend on a car and restore it.

Pam & I went to see various people, about the cars they offered for sale. When I picked too many faults in the cars, some said I did not know what I wanted, (what I did not want is their overpriced money pit cars).

Being very meticulous about cars I was not going to buy the first one that came along, I went to car shows to look at the condition and the price of the cars for sale.

Looking on the net I found a lot of information on various cars I was looking at and their inherent faults from rusted floors to electrical, their weaknesses and if there was rust in certain areas not to touch them.

When I found cars that looked reasonable I showed them to my wife (Pam) the answers were from “no way” “reasonable” “think about it” “do not like it” “I like it” “we can look at it” and them sometimes add ridiculous cars for fun.

I started looking at ’62 ‘63 Ford Thunderbirds; because the shape as different to other cars, then Pam said, I should look at a , mainly as it was the a style of car I have not owned.

So the search started again, I had seen some beautiful cars in sedan format, then found them in I mainly looked in Victoria but compared price and condition in other states.

On the day, Pam & I went to see the Pontiac we looked at 1956 Buick spe- cial, 1965 Cadillac Eldorado converti- ble, 1966 Ford Thunderbird they were in the same area. We looked at the Pontiac Firebird last, it was in better condition than the others were, but it was a bit more pricy but it came with a new roof, new roof cover when re- tracted (plus old roof cover) and origi- nal steering wheel. It started first go I checked for smoke and engine rattle.

There was one small rip in the back seat about an inch long, the seats were reupholstered in U.S.A, the car- pets were in excellent condition and it had all the Firebird emblems and chrome work.

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

I said to the seller I wanted someone else to look at the car for my satis- faction he hummed and hared but agreed. The report came back; best he (inspection officer) had seen for a convertible of the era.

The wheels are off a mid-70’s Trans Am they are called snowflake design. The main things to be done were the normal things that wear out, front end bushes, rubber mounts (engine, gearbox), most things rubber, shockers and ball joints which I ex- pected to replace (on a 40 year old car) for road worthy.

The original colour of the firebird was gold exterior and gold seats.

Bought the Pontiac Firebird in Victoria and arrived on the 1 Sept 2009

Joined Macedon Ranges and District Mo- tor Club. in Feb. 2010

Asked at the club about a mechanic who can work on Pontiacs, I was directed to Brian J. Before Brian J, I had the wiper arms but hunted down wiper arms (fiat), air filter (Nissan), change hoses and bought the parts I could see it needed. Brian add- ed to the parts to the “wanted” list, as I thought there would be more.

With there being no bodywork to be done, no roof work, no engine work apart from tuning,

Six weeks later the Pontiac was on the road, Vic roads was interesting, go to Carlton straight in no waiting, go to coun- ter asked for what I wanted searched around no red plates, sorry go to Broad- meadows, (had to past Broadmeadows to get to Carlton) ring Broadmeadows yes, drive to broadie, ½ hour wait, 15 mins try- ing to work out how to do it, his first time.

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

History of the First Generation Pontiac Firebird 1967—1969

Pontiac entered the American pony car market with the Firebird in February 1967, almost three years after Ford released the Mustang and five months after Chevrolet released the Camaro.

Originally Pontiac had intended to

produce a two-seat based on its original XP-833 (Banshee) . However, fearing this would cut into sales, GM gave Pontiac, as a "consolation prize", a piece of the pony car market through sharing the F-body platform with Chevrolet,

The first generation Firebird had the 1964 Pontiac Banshee (XP-833) concept car characteristic Coke bottle styling shared with its cousin, the . Despite using the Camaro’s F-Body design and chassis, and the same front guards, doors, and rear guards as the Camaro, the Firebird’s styled split-grill front end, integrated front , six vertical louvers on the front of the rear quarter panels and louver style tail lamps inspired by the 1966 - 1967 Pontiac GTO gave it a unique and distinctly Pontiac appearance. The drivetrain used the GTO’s A-Body drivetrain with a different rear end. Improvements were also made in the engine placement, reinforced rear springs, and shock absorbers. But the key differentiator was under the bonnet, where the Firebird offered a range of six and eight-cylinder Pontiac engines.

1967 The 1967 Firebird was offered in a convertible and a coupe with five different engine options: • a 230 ci overhead-cam six-cylinder with a one-barrel carburettor generating 175 hp; • a 230 ci overhead-cam six-cylinder with four-barrel carburettor generating 215 hp. The six cylinder options were linked to either a three or four-speed manual or two-speed automatic transmission. • a 326 ci V8 with two-barrel car- burettor generating 250 hp; • a 326 ci V8 HO (high output) with four-barrel carburettor generating 285 hp; and • a high performance 400 ci V8 with four barrel carburettor generating 325 hp.

The 400 ci V8 was borrowed from the Pontiac GTO but unfortunately there was a catch in fitting the 400ci v8 into the Fire- bird. GM had a new policy that no pas- senger car other than the Corvette could have more than one rated horsepower per 10 pounds of shipping weight, so the same 400 ci engine that made 360 hp in the GTO was limited to a

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

nominal 325 hp in the Firebird. This was achieved by a metal tab on the First Generation Production Figures throttle linkage that prevented it from opening all the way 1967 1968 1969 (conveniently missing from the press cars). The 400 ci V8 was Hardtop coupe 67,032 90,152 76,059 available with or without Ram Air. Convertible 15,526 16,960 11,649 The Ram Air engine included a hotter cam, stronger valve springs, Trans Am Hardtop coupe - - 689 and made use of the otherwise dec- Trans Am Convertible - - 8 orative scoops. With no publi- cized power increase, due one pre- sumes to GM’s pro-Corvette policy, and a hefty $600 price tag, the Ram Air option was rarely ordered.

All V8s came with a standard heavy duty three-speed manual transmission. Four-speed manual and either two or three-speed automatic transmissions were optional. Performance axle ratios up to 4.33:1 were available as well as front disk brakes. Firebird prices were roughly $200 more than comparable Camaro’s and the Camaro outsold it two to one.

1968

In 1968, the convertible and hardtop coupe saw changes in the placement of the turn lights. Both driver and pas- senger vent windows were removed while rear marker lights were added. Changes to the interior included a larg- er padded instrument panel and sun visors, pillar mouldings, crushable arm rests, seat belts with push-button buckles for all passen- gers, and an anti-theft ignition key warning buzzer.

The 326 V8 was upgraded to a 350 ci small-block delivering 265 or 320 hp. A 400 HO big-block with 335 hp was introduced and the Ram Air 400 was replaced with a 400 Ram Air II delivering 340 hp.

1969

The Firebird underwent major restyling to both the convertible and coupe for the 1969 model year. The front end was redone and the rear end and interior were changed slightly. They were now longer, wider, and heavier with a new one-piece Lexan front bumper-grill. Addi- tional changes included theft pre- vention steering column ignition and steering gearshift interlock, variable ratio power steering unit

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

and optional single piston calliper disk brakes, The previously optional Koni shocks and wire wheel covers were discontinued and head rests became standard equipment. The redesign did not go well with customers, and sales fell, despite the fact that production lasted for 17 months, well into 1970 due to production problems with the 1970 second generation model.

Engine-wise, the 250 ci overhead-cam six-cylinder, the 350 ci two-barrel V8, the regular 400, and the 400 HO (Ram Air III) were all basically unchanged. The 350 HO was upgraded to 325 hp and a 400 Ram Air IV with 345 hp was introduced.

In March of 1969, Pontiac released a little publicized optional package, the Trans Am Performance and Appear- ance Package. Available only in Cam- eo White as a convertible or coupe package, it had a 400 HO engine, three-speed manual transmission and improved suspension and steering. The 400 Ram Air IV engine with a four- speed manual or Turbo Hydramatic transmission was optional. The exteri- or had front guard air extractors, dual bonnet-roof-deck stripes, blacked-out grille and a rear deck spoiler. The inte- rior had a three-spoke wood-grain steering wheel.

The 1969 and 1970 Trans Ams with the Ram Air IV engine option were the most powerful Firebirds of all time, generating 345 hp at 5,400 rpm and 430 lb-ft of torque at 3,700 rpm. As is the trend with most muscle cars, the prices for the second-generation Trans Am have risen. At auction, the 12-month average sale price for the Trans Am is up 38 percent compared to a year ago (Hagerty), but it is the 1969 convertible Trans Am that remains the rarest and most valuable. Pontiac made just eight, all powered by the standard 335 hp 400 HO engine. Four of them were fitted with four-speed manual transmissions; these cars are worth 1.2MUSD in concours condition (Hagerty). From PONTIAC BANSHEE to PONTIAC FIREBIRD

Pontiac initially intended to call the new pony car ‘Banshee’, after the XP-833 show car. It sounded menacing and menacing is exactly what they want in a sporty car. But then some spoilsport at the ad agency looked ’Banshee’ up and saw that, according to legend, the banshee’s wail means a family member is about to die. The skittish souls at GM didn’t like the sound of that, so the name was unceremoniously axed. After some frantic brainstorming, the name ‘Firebird’ was selected, borrowed from a series of turbine-powered GM show cars from the early fifties.

The Pontiac Firebird remained in production for 35 years and four generations. It became an ex- tremely successful American performance car as well as a pop cultural reference point from Rock- ford to the Bandit and beyond.

References: • https://musclecarclub.com/pontiac-firebird/ • Wikipedia • https://ateupwithmotor.com/model-histories/pontiac-firebird-1967-1969/ • https://www.hagerty.com/apps/valuationtools/1969-Pontiac-Firebird-Trans_Am?id=125290

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au

MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Coming event

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au

MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Coming Sutcliffe Reserve event 240-268 Plantation Road, Corio

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au

MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Coming event

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au

MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club Coming event

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

Each month the club generates 3 or 4 email updates via MailChimp - affectionately known as “Grumpy Gorilla”

Some 380 emails are send – and whilst the reporting is not 100% accurate – the stats suggest only about half the recipients open their email.

So – check out your JUNK or SPAM emails and see if you too can locate

! these riveting snippets of “what’s on around your club” Coming event

ECHUCA SWAP MEET ROTARY PARK, ROSE STREET, ECHUCA Saturday, 18th April, 2020 Automotive Parts & Collectables welcome

Show & Shine open section as well as

200 PLUS SITES AVAILABLE AT $20 PER SITE.

ON SITE CATERING,

$5 PER PERSON ENTRY,

UNDER 15 FREE

Gates Open: Sellers: 5:00 am Buyers: 7:00 am ENQUIRIES: 0456 010 665,

$500.00 Donated to a local charity

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

Gisborne Miniature & Model Railways First Sunday of every month 11:00 am to 3:00 pm Train rides $2 per ride Webb Crescent, New Gisborne

FOR SALE ** Edelbrock 500 cfm carburetor. Manual choke. Square bore $100. George: 0450 396 009

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au MOTOR MOUTH The voice of Macedon Ranges & District Motor Club

10 Webb Crescent, New Gisborne Vic. 3438 PO Box 84, Gisborne Vic 3437 www.mradmc.com.au