"To understand what kind of a car Pontiac’s Firebird GTA is, first admire its aerodynamically svelte lines. From prow to stern, they convey an image of high-speed air cleavage that saps little horsepower and leaves barely an eddy in its wake. Then consider its 5.7-liter V-8 engine.... a close cousin of that lurking in the Corvette and with all the tire-shredding torque intact. No other car with less than mortgage-size payments has more power. Now go open the rear hatch. When the key turns and the electric motor hums, the hatch rises majestically and you have the final word on what the GTA is.... all GT. Imagine.... power hatch opening and closing.... a'la Cadillac. There will be no embarrassing scenes as you repeatedly slam the glass-laden hatch on Pontiac’s ace Firebird like an ill-fitting screen door. Merely bring the hatch in contact with the latch, and almost silently it is pulled slowly but firmly from your hands and brought tightly home.

The Firebird’s crisply scored body lines are not the newest set of clothes, but they wear well - a modern classic, and deserving of second glances. One should note, that compared to the more extroverted, bestriped IROC-Z.... the GTA is downright understated. The kids will look at it, but they probably won’t initiate a contest of speed with it, either. On the other hand, parked between the Lincolns and Caddys at the country club, the GTA is downright inciteful.

There’s more luxury inside. Leather is optional on the eight-ways-to-Sunday adjustable seats, along with the steering wheel and shift knob. Carpeting and sound deadener is in great evidence, and the colors are tastefully co-ordinated. Nothing inside will offend a business associate.

With 5.7 liters of GM’s Tuned Port Injection under the hood, the GTA provokes nothing but smiles from its driver. Thanks to a generous displacement and electronic management, the GTA’s engine fairly ripples in muscular excess. Its 235 horsepower and 340 lb-ft of torque make easy work of everyday chores such as stoplight traffic or freeway merging. More equitable challenges come only from other V-8 domestics or high dollar imports. Even better, the GTA pipes out the deepest, most pulsating exhaust throb since the Sixties. The engine’s beat would do justice to a big-block V-8.... which the 5.7-liter might as well be in a traffic queue of econoboxes.

The off note in the 5.7-liter story is transmission availability. The only choice is the 700 R4 automatic with four ratios and an overdrive top cog. Given the big V-8’s prodigious torque there’s no real performance penalty to pay with the automatic, just that some of us like to row our way along. If a 5-speed manual is a "must-have", one must opt for the 5.0-liter V-8. Horsepower is 225 and torque measures an even 300 lb-ft.

To put all this output to the ground, Pontiac engineers reached for their vaunted WS6 suspension package. With high-rate springs damped by Delco gas-charged shocks and positively mammoth anti-roll bars, the suspension is well matched to its Goodyear Gatorbacks. Measuring a healthy P245/5OZR-16, the GTA grips the asphalt in dragline spans and gives the GTA impressive steady-state grip. Another GTA characteristic is go-kart quick steering. With power assist a foregone conclusion due to the impressive footprint, Pontiac wasn’t timid with the steering gear, fitting a 12.7:1 ratio to the recirculating-ball box that goes lock to lock in 2.4 turns. Braking is by 4-wheel discs, power-as-sisted, of course. Unfortunately. ABS is not available.

The GTA continues its top-of-the-line theme with luxury and performance both well provided. Instrumentation is complete, the handbrake is the proper between-the-seats handle and the shifter is canted toward the driver. Our test car was leather-trimmed, CD-equipped and most every function was power-operated.

Strapping on the GTA and putting all the good things to use really proves just how enjoyable a mountain of torque is, and underscores the importance of detail execution. First the good news.... with its powerful engine and automatic transmission, the GTA is an easy car to drive. The engine rumbles strongly and isn’t strained. Powerful acceleration is a slap of the right foot away, while in urban traffic the GTA creeps and crawls as effortlessly as any slushbox commuter car. Unshackled on an open freeway, the GTA never leaves its driver short of power. That’s true luxury and the essence of America's automotive persona.

When the road curves, the GTA shows its armor chink: the live rear axle. Steady-state grip is wonderful, but the real world is full of bumps and they make the GTA rear axle thump loudly and steer more than it should. The sharper the impact, the more the axle is felt. In fact, large undulations are handled very well. It’s the quick, sharp jabs that upset the GTA.

A much lesser problem is the recirculating-ball steering. There’s a barely noticeable wander on the freeway that disappears on secondary roads where constant steering corrections are necessary anyway. To its credit, the steering is wonderfully quick, eliminating the baton-twirling lock-to-lock exer-cises found in some GT cars with low-effort steering.

Considering its market, just how razor-edged the GTA is on its feet is less important than how it presents itself, especially in the interior. Here subjectivity rules.... but to this writer, the high-zoot Trans Am is good, but could be better. There are hints of adolescence in the graph-paper theme wallpapered onto the console and parts of the dash. Pontiac also fitted a multi-pocket leather pouch in place of a glovebox. The "pouchbox" looks like an over-grown wallet and provokes curious does-this-thing-fold-down tugs.... which serve only to tear the leather from the dash. More importantly. the slightly recessed instruments are partially masked by the plastic fascia. Additionally, the fuel gauge and voltmeter are perfectly hidden by the steering wheel, requiring a conscious movement to see. Also curious is the lack of an indicator on the shift pattern—only shifter position announces the current selection, but it’s a coarse measurement. Another squawk concerned the seats, although infinitely adjustable, they seem to adjust in the wrong spots. The final complaint is a given: The T-top inserts make muffled thuds and knocks as the chassis flexes.

More happily, the seat-to-wheel relationship is excellent, and Pontiac has looked after the less-than-ideal switch work, which marred previous GTAs. There are other detail changes for 1990. The 5.0-liter forsakes throttle body for Tuned Port Injection, and both it and the 5.7-liter use speed-density fuel metering. The parking brake is self-adjusting and a driver’s-side air bag is fitted. It all means better enjoyment of this rapid luxury ship with the great exhaust, T-top fresh air and sand-in-your-face engine."

WEBMASTER'S NOTE: Test car was a 1989 model with 225 bhp @ 4200 rpm and 330 lb-ft of torque at 3200 rpm.

PRICE

List Price, FOB Detroit:.......... $23,320
Price as tested:.......... $24,721

Price as tested includes: standard equipment (elec. adj. mirrors, cruise control, central locking, A/C, AM/FM/cassette, elec. window lifts, anti-theft system), T-top roof ($920), dual exhaust ($155), radio upgrade to include AM stereo and CD player ($226), California emissions ($100)

ENGINE

Type:.......... V-8, cast iron block and heads, water-cooled
Displacement:.......... 5736 cc (350 cu in.)
Compression ratio:.......... 9.3:1
Induction system:.......... Multi-port EFI
Valvetrain:.......... OHV, 2 Valves/cylinder
Max. power (SAE net):.......... 235 hp @ 4200 rpm
Max. torque (SAE net):.......... 340 lb-ft @ 3200 rpm
Emissions control:.......... Catalytic converter, EGR, air pump
Recommended fuel:.......... Unleaded premium, 91 octane

DRIVETRAIN

Transmission:.......... 4-sp. auto.. O/D
Transmission ratios:.......... (1st) 3.06:1
(2nd) 1.63:1
(3rd) 1.00:1
(4th) 0.70:1
Axle ratio:.......... 2.77:1

CHASSIS & BODY

Suspension, Front:.......... independent MacPherson struts, coil springs, hydraulic shocks, anti-roll bar
Suspension, Rear:.......... Solid axle, torque arm, hydraulic shocks, anti-roll bar
Steering Type:.......... Recirculating ball, power assist
Ratio:.......... 12.7:1
Turns (lock to lock):.......... 2.26
Turning circle:.......... 10 m (32.6 ft)
Brake System, Front:.......... 267 mm (10.5 in.), vented discs, power assist
Brake System, Rear:.......... 267 mm (10.5 in.), vented discs, power assist
Anti-lock:.......... Not available
Wheel Size:.......... 16 x 8.0 in.
Wheel type:.......... Cast alloy
Tire size & Construction:.......... P245/50ZR16 steel-belted radial
Tire mfr. & model:.......... Goodyear Eagle VR50

GENERAL

Curb weight:.......... 3530 lb
Test Weight:.......... 3670 lb
Weight distribution, f/r:.......... 57/43%
Wheelbase:.......... 101 in.
Overall length:.......... 191.6 in.
Overall width:.......... 72.4 in.
Overall height:.......... 50 in.
Track, f/r:.......... 60.7/81.6 in.
Fuel tank:.......... 15.5 gal
Trunk space:.......... 5.8 (+ 9.1) cubic ft.

CALCULATED DATA

Lb/bhp (test weight):.......... 17.5 lb/hp
Bhp/liter:.......... 36.6
Engine revs at 60 mph in 4th gear:.......... 1850
R&T steering index:.......... 0.92

ACCELERATION

Time to distance:
0-100 ft:.......... 3.3 sec
0-500 ft:.......... 8.4 sec
0-1320 ft:......... 15.5 sec
Speed (1/4 mile):.......... 90.1 mph

Time to Speed:
0-30 mph:.......... 2.6 sec
0-40 mph:.......... 3.7 sec
0-50 mph:.......... 5.3 sec
0-60 mph:.......... 7.1 sec
0-70 mph:.......... 9.6 sec
0-80 mph:.......... 12.3 sec
0-90 mph:.......... 15.4 sec

FUEL ECONOMY
Normal driving, mpg:.......... 17.7

BRAKES
Minimum stopping distances, ft:
60-0:.......... 166 ft
80-0:.......... 281 ft
Control in panic stop:......... Good
Overall brake rating:.......... Fair

HANDLING
Lateral acceleration, 100 ft. radius:.......... 0.84 g
Speed thru 700-ft slalom:......... 63.8 mph

The above information is used courtesy of and credited to Road and Track magazine