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1998 Firebird Production Numbers

The buildup of teh PuRpL3
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Phase I Modifications, 4/30/05


Now that the car was painted, it was time to start into all of the modifications that I had been storing up since I bought the car, waiting for the day that the body was straight and it was ready to be taken to the next level. The suspension was what needed attention first, as the shocks were very worn, and I wanted a little more aggressive stance from the car.

My first improvements were to switch over to the '98-00 style 17x9" OEM WS-6 wheels, a set of Goodyear F1-GS tires in 275/40/17 size.. QA1 HAL shocks for both front and rear, Eibach pro kit springs for a drop of about 1.75" front and rear, BMR sway bars, LG solid LCAs, BMR LCA relocation brackets, and poly bushings for the entire suspension. The combination of all these items should improve the handling response quite radically, and make the car very fun to drive through corners.

Phase I completed, 5/7/05


After the first round of modifications was completed, it was obvious that the suspension drop was more aggressive than I had anticpated.. dropping the car nearly 2" from it's original stance. While I was concerned about the issue of ground clearance, I really liked the look, it made the car look much more sleek, especially with the new wheels.

At this point, I'm considering the body and suspension to be pretty much complete... I have some minor cosmetic mods to do, and still have to get things dialed in, but I think it's time to start focusing on making the car faster. It needs to be a solid 12-second car.
 

Phase II Modifications, 4/29/07


Did I say 12-second car? How about an 11 second car?

It's been a while since I updated my progress on the car, and since the last installment the car took a 2nd place trophy in the "Race" class of the 2006 All-Pontiac Show... had I entered in the Formula category, I would have easily taken first... Oh well, better luck next year. I've added a Yank SS3200 torque converter, and a set of Mickey Thompson E/T Street radials for the rear. Nothing major, but it managed to bump the car from low 13.3x times to a 12.868 @ 105.90 mph. That in itself made it a solid 12-second car... but I'm not finished yet.

Next up on the plate comes a new exhaust system... Kooks stainless steel long tube headers, and a Kook's y-pipe with high flow cats, which flows into a GMMG chambered exhaust. I decided to take a buffing wheel to the catback, and the result look outstanding... but no where near as nice as the combination sounds!! The exhaust note is incredible.

The coating on the headers was done by a local shop call Performance Coatings... the color is called "grey ice". When I first looked at the samples, I didn't think the darker colored coating would stand out much, but after seeing the finished product, I'm totally sold. They look fantastic.

And this is only the beginning!! There are many more performance mods still coming, like a new intake & throttle body, and a nitrous kit.... not to mention some appearance upgrades as well, including a new set of wheels.

Stay tuned!