The Thrill of Driving a Trans Am

As I sat down to drive this 1970s era Trans Am, I couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement and nostalgia wash over me. The car's balance package was one that had been touted as being among the best in the business, and I was eager to put it through its paces.

One of the most exciting series to watch during this time period was the Trans Am racing scene, with drivers like Parnelli Jones competing at the highest level. It wasn't uncommon for fans to see these cars up close and personal, with owners taking their vehicles out on the road every Monday morning after a long weekend of racing. For me, this was the epitome of cool, and I couldn't wait to get behind the wheel.

As I started the car, I was immediately struck by its smoothness and responsiveness. The naturally aspirated engine was a breath of fresh air in an era dominated by superchargers and turbochargers. There's something special about a car that responds to every touch and movement, and this Trans Am certainly delivered on that promise.

The key fob, which I'd been told changed the car's attitude when inserted, was a clever touch that added a new layer of depth to the driving experience. With just one press of the button, the car's parameters were altered, making it ready for either track or street use. It was a small detail, but one that spoke volumes about the attention to detail and commitment to performance that had gone into designing this vehicle.

As I took the car out on the freeway, I was impressed by its handling and balance. The 302 cubic-inch V8 engine produced 440 horsepower, which was more than enough to get this Mustang moving quickly and smoothly. But it was the way the car responded to every input - whether that was acceleration, braking, or steering - that truly set it apart. It felt like a much more complete package than I'd expected, with all the bells and whistles of modern driving technology at its disposal.

One of the things that struck me most about this Trans Am was the level of sophistication that had been achieved in terms of driver control. The ability to adjust the steering feel, suspension settings, and even oil life reset - all from the comfort of my own car - was a marvel to behold. And yet, despite all these advanced features, the car still felt grounded and connected to the road.

The Mustang itself is an iconic American car, one that's been around for decades and has become synonymous with power and speed. But in this form, it feels more like a true sports car than ever before. The Shelby 500, with its 500 horsepower V8 engine, may have had more raw power on tap, but there's something special about the way this Trans Am delivers its performance. It's not just about brute force - it's about finesse and control.

As I took this Trans Am out for a spin, I couldn't help but wonder what other surprises lay in store. Would it handle like a pro racing car on the track? Or would it falter under the pressure of a spirited drive through the twisties? One thing was certain: with its balance package and sophisticated driving technology, this was going to be an unforgettable experience.

In the end, it wasn't just about raw performance - it was about the overall sense of fun and excitement that came from driving this car. And in that regard, I think this Trans Am really delivers. With its balanced V8 engine, responsive handling, and advanced features galore, this is a driver's car that truly puts the driver first.

So what does the future hold for this 1970s era Trans Am? Will it find itself on the track or in the hands of a passionate enthusiast? One thing is certain: with its proven balance package and advanced driving technology, this car has got all the makings of a classic. Whether you're a seasoned racing fan or just looking for a fun and exciting drive, this is definitely worth checking out.

In fact, I'd say that this Trans Am is one of those rare cars that's truly worth experiencing firsthand. With its beautifully appointed interior, responsive handling, and generous power output, it's an absolute blast to drive on both the twisties and the freeway. Whether you're cruising down the highway or carving up the mountain roads, this car is sure to put a smile on your face.

But let's not forget - there's more to driving than just raw speed and agility. There's also the matter of handling and balance, which is why I was so impressed by the way this Trans Am corners and navigates tight turns. It's a true masterclass in driving dynamics, with all the right ingredients in place to create an unforgettable driving experience.

For fans of high-performance driving, there's something truly special about stepping into this 1970s era Trans Am. With its finely tuned balance package, advanced features, and responsive handling, it's a car that delivers on every level. Whether you're a seasoned racing enthusiast or just looking for a fun drive through the countryside, this is definitely worth considering.

And as I took this Trans Am out for one final spin, I couldn't help but feel grateful for the experience. It may not be the most powerful car on the market - after all, there are certainly more raw power on tap from other high-performance models. But in terms of sheer driving pleasure and overall sense of fun, I think this Trans Am really delivers.

In short, if you ever get the chance to drive a 1970s era Trans Am, don't hesitate. It's an experience you won't soon forget - full stop.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enthat's good welcome to an episode of J Leno's Garage we're in the Ford section here of my garage you know I'm a big Ford fan I got my 63 12 Sprint Falcon my 4D GT my uh Tor shun the 427 of course all reliable the GT350 Mustang this was always my favorite the Shelby GT350 but if there is ever a true successor to this car it would have to be this one here the new Boss 302 uh this I think is the best balanced of all the new Mustangs uh I got a chance to drive the new Shelby the 660 horow incredibly fast but there's something about this package that I like and uh let's bring in the uh the head of Mustang chief engineer Dave Pac chief engineer chief engineer chief engineer good to see you yeah you know I always like the 302 even back in the day the Shelby of course the first one uh then the 32 then the boss and now this is the latest incarnation of that vehicle tell us about it so you know it's been over 40 years since the Boss 302 has been around uh and so we took this project on we have a underneath the hood we have our starting with the basis of the 5 lit and we've upu the ante quite a bit so we're putting out 444 horsepower Jay and what was the original boss it was about 307 hor yeah just over 300 horsepower and that was considered incredible back in the day a lot yeah that was huge back then so we're at 444 all naturally aspirated um the engine had to be uh completely sort of overhauled if you will in order to we rev at 7500 RPM wow and uh and that is the heart of this machine and then it it builds from there right you said it's the best balance you're absolutely right all the systems working together so you look at the suspension suspension's been completely tuned mainly for the track you can still drive this car on the road and get a comfortable ride out of it but we've got adjustable shocks and struts on all four corners we've upsized our bars and our Springs and our everything has been all retuned um and then when we get to the uh when we get down to the wheels and tires that was another uh obviously important part of this machine tying that horsepower down so we've got staggered wheels on this is a lagona this is the highest level boss that we have so you have 9in wheels in the front right 10 on the back and you have 255 our compound pelli tires up front and 285 in the back you've got Brembo for piston brakes uh 14-in rotors and then what we did Jay to really connect your foot to that you know your brake pedal right to that uh corner is uh we got low expansion brake lines on all four corners okay so you really get great stopping out of but that you mean almost like steel brake lines almost like steel but they're not steel but very low expansion almost like steel I is it still a rubber brake line it is okay but just a rubber that doesn't doesn't give okay that's absolutely right very cool yep uh top speed on this vehicle is 155 mph uh we have quad exhaust so two ports out the back and two ports out the side here oh very nice yeah and that was really part of giving you that whole experience again all the systems balanced and working together give us the specifics of this engine so this is a 5 L engine all aluminum dual overhead cam independent uh cam control so we can control our intake and our exhaust independently of one another when I was a kid the hot engine was Ford built a 265 4 cam V8 I think it ran at Indie and I think it ran in uh one of the 4 G right and that seemed like the most exotic motor oh my God four cams just crazy right and now of course we've reach where it's in a production vehicle yeah isn't it it's fantastic and then you have uh this intake here is unique to the Boss 302 okay so it's what we call a runner in the Box system and got velocity Stacks in there okay so really controlling and getting as much flow as you can now one of the one of the interesting factors J on this car that most people don't know every boss engine goes through 2 and a half hours of Machining of the heads oh is that right yeah yeah just to get the ports and everything perfect so that we can get that that uh uh you know that torque and and the power that we're looking to get out of the engine so 302 cubic inch right putting out a lot of torque and a lot of so it actually is 302 cubic absolutely is 32 cubic in and that equals 5 lers in my day we talk cubic liters were like I don't know what that you know the first time I've ever heard of liters is my dad's car the the 66 Galaxy 7 L which was 428 cubic in you know this a car 5 L 302 and like I say a 4 cam you know you open the hood of an Aston Martin engine and that V8 is basically same thing for cam except it's $200,000 more this is your air intake here let me ask you something because this is something I see a lot of guys do I imagine this has been tuned to maximum air flow it absolutely has these aftermarket things where you say oh put in this kind of filter and you'll increase horsepower can you do better than stock is it possible no no longer you used to be able to yeah no this is the best intake you're going to get yeah uh you can do it for show you know you can go open filter and things like that you're not going to see the benefits that you've seen not going to see any benefit cuz I always wonder about that you know it's like when sound systems first came out an aftermarket sound system was always better than stock and now we've reached the point where bows and everybody is stock and of course you're not going to do better in terms of uh horsepower and Emissions than that stock filter okay very good very good okay let's close the hoodie and of course you're I always hear from people I call that the mon to to Tower brace Tower to Tower brace monticolo bar Toral rigidity we also in the lagona we took the rear seat out we have a brace back there as well right for Toral rigidity yeah and what do these go for so the lagona is about $52,000 right and the standard boss is about 47,000 and how much lighter is this engine than the the big uh the big block 42 7 with the supercharger well over 100 lb okay okay yeah yeah this always seemed like the more sensible package the more sports car package obviously you're going to go drag racing that Big C I mean that there's no replacement for me I drove that it's unbelievable it has a lot of power but this I'm anxious to drive it cuz this seems like a more balanced package I love the shifter I love the shift knob the short throw shift knob in there um the seats are ricaro seats Jay right they feel fantastic when you're out on the road again you know there's not much upgrade you can do to these anymore uh you know they used to sell the quick shift linkage and all you know the aftermarket stuff but this is better than aftermarket is absolutely absolutely okay well let's walk around you mentioned the exhaust before let's take a look at the rear of the car yep and the axle I I I don't know if I told you but running a 373 T oh 373 end okay yeah with a Torsen differential in it are there other ratios that people can buy not with the Boss 3 302 no no so the Boss 302 is going to be standard 373 the only option you get if it's a Laguna it comes standard with a Torsen diff I mean but could a person buy from the factory a 411 if they wanted not no they cannot okay the 373 is the highest ratio that we have available on a Mustang right and like I said the boss comes standard with that if you get a a GT you've got options on on a ratios well certainly a good looking car you know it's pretty compact it's it's got a nice stance to it and a six-speed sixspeed absolutely which is standard in all the Mustangs now is it is there an optional automatic on these or no not on the Boss 302 but we do have Mustangs with automatic obviously sixspeed automatic transmission as well Dave tell me about this trick spoiler here what do we got is this an adjustment uh so you can adjust the splitter uh J that splitter has been designed for obviously downforce and keeping this car planted at high speeds so that splitter produces about 90 lbs of downforce at about 120 miles an hour okay very good so it keeps the car very tied to the to the track uh you know you can see the balancing uh spoiler in the rear as well so together they work to keep it planted and obviously adjustments are here and here correct and it's not low enough you're going to rip it off going down the driveway you're not going to rip it off going down the driveway yeah very nice very nice oil cooler in here as well there is an engine oil cooler on this car cooling is a big deal obviously out on the track and then your fog lamp deletes here Jay actually are removable for 2013 so that you can open up even the air flow coming through the grill very cool very cool ni definitely made to go out and track this car yeah yeah you know I don't know I find this car fascinating because I grew up in that era when the late 60s early '70s suddenly Mustangs Camaros Trans Ams as sports cars as balance packages started to come into uh into play and that's I that was the most exciting series to me that whole Trans Am thing of the 70s when you saw cars you could buy on the street with guys like panelli Jones Out Racing them you know and they go down Monday morning and all yours just like the one pelli racing you know and that's what's kind of cool this seems like a really nice package much like uh you know the big 427 Cobras although they're sexy they didn't really win many races the one that run all the races with a nicely balanced 289 Cobra you know because it was just a lighter more balanced package I think that's uh probably the case with this as well so uh let's take it for a ride well we're ready to start we have our mandatory giant key all kind of giant Keys now you have two different Keys Jay what do I have what do I have here you have a what it's called a track key right see this red one here right we change over 300 parameters in this vehicle when you insert that key it changes the attitude of this machine does it light up and tell you you have track key in it will tell you that you have track key on track key active track use only yeah sure it's really responsive you know the one thing I like about my 65 is the engine just so loose and this feels as Loose as that it's very responsive as much as I like superchargers and turbochargers there's nothing like a naturally aspirated vehicle cuz everything happens right now well there's a lot of fun to drive you know I was one of those kids on uh April 17th 1964 with my nose pressed up against the dealer glass waiting to see the new Mustang when it came to town so this is like a Big Thrill as we said before this engine's pretty exotic you have 302 cubic Ines 5 L four cam four valves per cylinder that's something you used to only get in Europe Great Sound see how she pulls like a free train it really does very nice and it's pretty amazing you can set it up just about any way you like oh you can do your oil life reset yourself that's nice you have to go back to the dealer every time you change the oil no you can do it right through that menu you know this thing is great I think I like it better than the big uh Shelby 500 it does feel like a more complete package and you know 440 horse that what it is 444 40 440 horsepower is pretty powerful uh you know the most powerful car you could buy in America in the 9s was that 350 horsepower Corvette then the Viper came along with 400 and a V10 and that seemed like the end of the world this has got 440 but the nice thing is it really feels like a sports car something is really cool look at this here you can adjust your steering feel you got Comfort standard and Sport I've got it on sport now you know I'm not an electronic guy but I'm always astounded at the level of uh sophistication you can get in a car in this price range you can adjust your suspension you can adjust your your uh your steering input it's it's pretty amazing and the greatest thing is show me that other feature where's the oil life look at this I hate when I hate having to go back to the dealer to reset the oil life on my car when I change the oil you know this this you can do it all yourself this is really meant to be a driver owner car and that's what's uh that's what's really nice about it uh although I like a lot of horsepower horsepower doesn't cure everything and and this is just a nicely balanced package that's also really really fast come on let's take it up in the freeway let's see at uh 65 mph I'm turning about 1,00 RPM and six gear so if you're on a trip you'll probably get reasonable mileage with it I like the sports steering it's very nice know there was a time when you'd say mustang and sports car and people would kind of Snicker but uh you know I think those days are gone forever I think this qualifies as a real sports car well I got to say I nothing against the Shelby guys but I think I like this better this seems like a better overall package to me than the big 600 horsepower car or a 660 isn't it 662 662 that's pretty amazing this feels more like a sports car to me but then again it's still a Mustang and the big question is will it do a burnout it will J let's find out that's good it's still a Mustang see you guys next week Dave thanks a lot than you Jthat's good welcome to an episode of J Leno's Garage we're in the Ford section here of my garage you know I'm a big Ford fan I got my 63 12 Sprint Falcon my 4D GT my uh Tor shun the 427 of course all reliable the GT350 Mustang this was always my favorite the Shelby GT350 but if there is ever a true successor to this car it would have to be this one here the new Boss 302 uh this I think is the best balanced of all the new Mustangs uh I got a chance to drive the new Shelby the 660 horow incredibly fast but there's something about this package that I like and uh let's bring in the uh the head of Mustang chief engineer Dave Pac chief engineer chief engineer chief engineer good to see you yeah you know I always like the 302 even back in the day the Shelby of course the first one uh then the 32 then the boss and now this is the latest incarnation of that vehicle tell us about it so you know it's been over 40 years since the Boss 302 has been around uh and so we took this project on we have a underneath the hood we have our starting with the basis of the 5 lit and we've upu the ante quite a bit so we're putting out 444 horsepower Jay and what was the original boss it was about 307 hor yeah just over 300 horsepower and that was considered incredible back in the day a lot yeah that was huge back then so we're at 444 all naturally aspirated um the engine had to be uh completely sort of overhauled if you will in order to we rev at 7500 RPM wow and uh and that is the heart of this machine and then it it builds from there right you said it's the best balance you're absolutely right all the systems working together so you look at the suspension suspension's been completely tuned mainly for the track you can still drive this car on the road and get a comfortable ride out of it but we've got adjustable shocks and struts on all four corners we've upsized our bars and our Springs and our everything has been all retuned um and then when we get to the uh when we get down to the wheels and tires that was another uh obviously important part of this machine tying that horsepower down so we've got staggered wheels on this is a lagona this is the highest level boss that we have so you have 9in wheels in the front right 10 on the back and you have 255 our compound pelli tires up front and 285 in the back you've got Brembo for piston brakes uh 14-in rotors and then what we did Jay to really connect your foot to that you know your brake pedal right to that uh corner is uh we got low expansion brake lines on all four corners okay so you really get great stopping out of but that you mean almost like steel brake lines almost like steel but they're not steel but very low expansion almost like steel I is it still a rubber brake line it is okay but just a rubber that doesn't doesn't give okay that's absolutely right very cool yep uh top speed on this vehicle is 155 mph uh we have quad exhaust so two ports out the back and two ports out the side here oh very nice yeah and that was really part of giving you that whole experience again all the systems balanced and working together give us the specifics of this engine so this is a 5 L engine all aluminum dual overhead cam independent uh cam control so we can control our intake and our exhaust independently of one another when I was a kid the hot engine was Ford built a 265 4 cam V8 I think it ran at Indie and I think it ran in uh one of the 4 G right and that seemed like the most exotic motor oh my God four cams just crazy right and now of course we've reach where it's in a production vehicle yeah isn't it it's fantastic and then you have uh this intake here is unique to the Boss 302 okay so it's what we call a runner in the Box system and got velocity Stacks in there okay so really controlling and getting as much flow as you can now one of the one of the interesting factors J on this car that most people don't know every boss engine goes through 2 and a half hours of Machining of the heads oh is that right yeah yeah just to get the ports and everything perfect so that we can get that that uh uh you know that torque and and the power that we're looking to get out of the engine so 302 cubic inch right putting out a lot of torque and a lot of so it actually is 302 cubic absolutely is 32 cubic in and that equals 5 lers in my day we talk cubic liters were like I don't know what that you know the first time I've ever heard of liters is my dad's car the the 66 Galaxy 7 L which was 428 cubic in you know this a car 5 L 302 and like I say a 4 cam you know you open the hood of an Aston Martin engine and that V8 is basically same thing for cam except it's $200,000 more this is your air intake here let me ask you something because this is something I see a lot of guys do I imagine this has been tuned to maximum air flow it absolutely has these aftermarket things where you say oh put in this kind of filter and you'll increase horsepower can you do better than stock is it possible no no longer you used to be able to yeah no this is the best intake you're going to get yeah uh you can do it for show you know you can go open filter and things like that you're not going to see the benefits that you've seen not going to see any benefit cuz I always wonder about that you know it's like when sound systems first came out an aftermarket sound system was always better than stock and now we've reached the point where bows and everybody is stock and of course you're not going to do better in terms of uh horsepower and Emissions than that stock filter okay very good very good okay let's close the hoodie and of course you're I always hear from people I call that the mon to to Tower brace Tower to Tower brace monticolo bar Toral rigidity we also in the lagona we took the rear seat out we have a brace back there as well right for Toral rigidity yeah and what do these go for so the lagona is about $52,000 right and the standard boss is about 47,000 and how much lighter is this engine than the the big uh the big block 42 7 with the supercharger well over 100 lb okay okay yeah yeah this always seemed like the more sensible package the more sports car package obviously you're going to go drag racing that Big C I mean that there's no replacement for me I drove that it's unbelievable it has a lot of power but this I'm anxious to drive it cuz this seems like a more balanced package I love the shifter I love the shift knob the short throw shift knob in there um the seats are ricaro seats Jay right they feel fantastic when you're out on the road again you know there's not much upgrade you can do to these anymore uh you know they used to sell the quick shift linkage and all you know the aftermarket stuff but this is better than aftermarket is absolutely absolutely okay well let's walk around you mentioned the exhaust before let's take a look at the rear of the car yep and the axle I I I don't know if I told you but running a 373 T oh 373 end okay yeah with a Torsen differential in it are there other ratios that people can buy not with the Boss 3 302 no no so the Boss 302 is going to be standard 373 the only option you get if it's a Laguna it comes standard with a Torsen diff I mean but could a person buy from the factory a 411 if they wanted not no they cannot okay the 373 is the highest ratio that we have available on a Mustang right and like I said the boss comes standard with that if you get a a GT you've got options on on a ratios well certainly a good looking car you know it's pretty compact it's it's got a nice stance to it and a six-speed sixspeed absolutely which is standard in all the Mustangs now is it is there an optional automatic on these or no not on the Boss 302 but we do have Mustangs with automatic obviously sixspeed automatic transmission as well Dave tell me about this trick spoiler here what do we got is this an adjustment uh so you can adjust the splitter uh J that splitter has been designed for obviously downforce and keeping this car planted at high speeds so that splitter produces about 90 lbs of downforce at about 120 miles an hour okay very good so it keeps the car very tied to the to the track uh you know you can see the balancing uh spoiler in the rear as well so together they work to keep it planted and obviously adjustments are here and here correct and it's not low enough you're going to rip it off going down the driveway you're not going to rip it off going down the driveway yeah very nice very nice oil cooler in here as well there is an engine oil cooler on this car cooling is a big deal obviously out on the track and then your fog lamp deletes here Jay actually are removable for 2013 so that you can open up even the air flow coming through the grill very cool very cool ni definitely made to go out and track this car yeah yeah you know I don't know I find this car fascinating because I grew up in that era when the late 60s early '70s suddenly Mustangs Camaros Trans Ams as sports cars as balance packages started to come into uh into play and that's I that was the most exciting series to me that whole Trans Am thing of the 70s when you saw cars you could buy on the street with guys like panelli Jones Out Racing them you know and they go down Monday morning and all yours just like the one pelli racing you know and that's what's kind of cool this seems like a really nice package much like uh you know the big 427 Cobras although they're sexy they didn't really win many races the one that run all the races with a nicely balanced 289 Cobra you know because it was just a lighter more balanced package I think that's uh probably the case with this as well so uh let's take it for a ride well we're ready to start we have our mandatory giant key all kind of giant Keys now you have two different Keys Jay what do I have what do I have here you have a what it's called a track key right see this red one here right we change over 300 parameters in this vehicle when you insert that key it changes the attitude of this machine does it light up and tell you you have track key in it will tell you that you have track key on track key active track use only yeah sure it's really responsive you know the one thing I like about my 65 is the engine just so loose and this feels as Loose as that it's very responsive as much as I like superchargers and turbochargers there's nothing like a naturally aspirated vehicle cuz everything happens right now well there's a lot of fun to drive you know I was one of those kids on uh April 17th 1964 with my nose pressed up against the dealer glass waiting to see the new Mustang when it came to town so this is like a Big Thrill as we said before this engine's pretty exotic you have 302 cubic Ines 5 L four cam four valves per cylinder that's something you used to only get in Europe Great Sound see how she pulls like a free train it really does very nice and it's pretty amazing you can set it up just about any way you like oh you can do your oil life reset yourself that's nice you have to go back to the dealer every time you change the oil no you can do it right through that menu you know this thing is great I think I like it better than the big uh Shelby 500 it does feel like a more complete package and you know 440 horse that what it is 444 40 440 horsepower is pretty powerful uh you know the most powerful car you could buy in America in the 9s was that 350 horsepower Corvette then the Viper came along with 400 and a V10 and that seemed like the end of the world this has got 440 but the nice thing is it really feels like a sports car something is really cool look at this here you can adjust your steering feel you got Comfort standard and Sport I've got it on sport now you know I'm not an electronic guy but I'm always astounded at the level of uh sophistication you can get in a car in this price range you can adjust your suspension you can adjust your your uh your steering input it's it's pretty amazing and the greatest thing is show me that other feature where's the oil life look at this I hate when I hate having to go back to the dealer to reset the oil life on my car when I change the oil you know this this you can do it all yourself this is really meant to be a driver owner car and that's what's uh that's what's really nice about it uh although I like a lot of horsepower horsepower doesn't cure everything and and this is just a nicely balanced package that's also really really fast come on let's take it up in the freeway let's see at uh 65 mph I'm turning about 1,00 RPM and six gear so if you're on a trip you'll probably get reasonable mileage with it I like the sports steering it's very nice know there was a time when you'd say mustang and sports car and people would kind of Snicker but uh you know I think those days are gone forever I think this qualifies as a real sports car well I got to say I nothing against the Shelby guys but I think I like this better this seems like a better overall package to me than the big 600 horsepower car or a 660 isn't it 662 662 that's pretty amazing this feels more like a sports car to me but then again it's still a Mustang and the big question is will it do a burnout it will J let's find out that's good it's still a Mustang see you guys next week Dave thanks a lot than you J\n"