General Motors may be the earth ’s biggest automaker , but it ’s always had limits . That was true even in the carefree ' 60s , when GM almost own the securities industry . Take the 1967 - 1969 Pontiac Firebird . Had division chief John DeLorean incur his way , it would have been a two - rear sports cable car called Banshee , a low - cost babe to the Chevy Corvette . But GM was hard - pressed to stomach one mutation car , let alone two , and " Banshee " did n’t essay well with the world . So DeLorean settled for a " Pontiacized " version of Chevy ’s four - seat Camaro – which was hardly big .
Camaro stemmed from the " Panther " or " F - car " program that place at a direct Ford Mustang - battler to supervene upon the Corvair Monza as Chevy ’s mainstream showy compact . Pontiac was aware of the campaign all along , and asked to be trend in once direction forbid DeLorean ’s two - seater . Firebird was a unspoilt name selection , signifying exponent , stunner , and youth in American Indian mythology and recalling GM ’s petrol - turbine experimentals of the late ' fifty and early ' 60s .
Pontiac engineer Bill Collins later stated that the ' 67 Firebird was " just kind of inherited from Chevrolet . " The . . . body had all the Chevrolet sheetmetal and all the same exterior hardware except for the grille and taillamps . " Even so , those element – rip - theme grill , " one-armed bandit " taillamps – were distinctly Pontiac , thus differentiating Firebird from Camaro to a surprising degree .
Moreover , Pontiac ’s pony benefit from some technology lessons learned too late to affect first - twelvemonth Camaros , which go on sale some five months before Firebird ’s February 1967 entry . The most notable were locomotive set further back for good front / rear system of weights balance , and stock rearward traction bars to minimize axle windup under hard acceleration .
Another preeminence involved marketing . Where Camaro achieved four models through options , Firebird come with five separate offerings keyed to engine . Each was useable in Camaro ’s convertible and hardtop coupe body mode . The bag Firebird carry Pontiac ’s class - old , 165 - bhp 230 - Criminal Investigation Command overhead - cam six . Next come the Sprint , with 215 - bhp ohc six , flooring fault , and " road hugging " suspension system . One stride up was the V-8 Firebird 326 , billed as a " family sportster . 250 lively cavalry on regular gas " ( and two - barrel carb ) .
A further pass up was the Firebird H.O. , shoot a line a four - barrel 326 that Pontiac say made it a " 285 - hp light heavyweight . " Topping the line was the Firebird 400 with 325 bhp and available Ram Air induction . Of of course , no Firebird wanted for option , which were expected in " ponycars , " with mountain for both show and go – everything from extra instrument and front - disc brakes to short axle ratio and full - house superpower equipment .
Go to the next page to learn about the 1967 - 1969 Pontiac Firebird ’s prices , styling , and carrying out .
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Continued
With cost starting about $ 200 upstream of six - piston chamber Camaros – $ 2,666 for the base hardtop and $ 2,903 for the convertible- – the 1967 - 1969 Pontiac Firebird mother impregnable 82,000 - plus sales despite an abbreviated launching season . Though that was only half Camaro ’s volume , it pushed combined F - railroad car sales well over the projected after part - million breakeven point to the delight of GM accountants . About two - third base carried optional power steering and Hydra - Matic Drive , suggesting Firebird compete less with Mustang – or Camaro – and more with Mercury ’s new ' 67 Cougar in an come forth " luxury ponycar " field .
The ' 68s were little - changed visually but much - changed mechanically . The ohc half a dozen grew to 250 cid , the 326 V-8 became a 350 , the H.O. also became a 350 and exact 35 more horse , the 400 tacked on five bhp , and a Modern 400 H.O. arrived with 335 bhp . At midyear , Pontiac offered a 400 Ram Air II option , also fink at 335 bhp , 25 below the corresponding GTO unit due to a venial carb alteration .
The big word for ' 69 was the fire - breathing Trans Am , but all Firebirds sported raw lower - dead body styling that further disguised their Camaro blood . Notable was a more prominent chrome " razzing nib " grille surround by trendy soundbox - colour Endura plastic à la GTO . Unfortunately , the restyle also added somewhat to weight , as well as 2.3 inches in length and 1.3 inches in width . Engines were basically as before except that the Ram Air II gave fashion to a 345 - bhp 400 Ram Air IV option . Sales uphold strong , with more than 100,000 unit in 1968 and over 87,000 in ' 69 . That was still only a fraction of Camaro ’s business but roughly even with Cougar ’s –about what DeLorean had expected .
You do n’t see that many ' sixty Firebirds now , not only due to their low original volume but because enthusiasts long dismiss them as the Camaro - clones they appeared to be . jubilantly , that ’s change , and deservedly so . After all , these Firebirds were Pontiacs , not Chevys , and in the ' 60s that made all the conflict .
Go to the next varlet to learn the specs of this popular ponycar .
1967, 1968, 1969 Pontiac Firebird Specifications
The 1967 - 1969 Pontiac Firebird was regarded as a " Pontiacized " version of Chevrolet ’s Camaro – but it was n’t without its own attractive attributes , including five separate oblation keyed to locomotive character .
Specifications
Engines : sohc I-6 , 230 cid ( 3.88 × 3.26 ) , 165/215 bhp ( 1967 only ) ; sohc I-6,250 cid ( 3.88 × 3.53 ) , 175/215/230 bhp ( 1968 - 69 ) ; ohv V-8 , 326 cid ( 3.72 × 3.75 ) 250/285 ( 1967 only ) ; 350 cid ( 3.88 × 3.75 ) , 265/320 bhp ( 1968 - 69 ) ; 400 Criminal Investigation Command ( 4.12 × 3.75 ) , 320/325/330/335/340/345 bhp
Transmissions:3/4 - f number manual of arms , 3 - speed Hydra - Matic automatic
Suspension front : upper and lower A - arms , spiral saltation
break rear : live axle on semi - prolate leaf springs
brake : front / rearward drum , optional front discs
Wheelbase ( in.):108.0
Weight ( lbs.):2,955 - 3,350
Top speed ( mph):110 - 115
0 - 60 miles per hour ( sec):4.8 - 10.1
Production:1967 htp cpe 67,032 ; cvt 15,526 ; 1968 htp cpe 90,152 ; cvt 16,960 ; 1969 htp cpe 76,059 ; cvt 11,649 ( 1969 figure include 697 Trans Am models )
