The Firebird & Trans Am are not muscle cars?

Question

I have recently heard that a Firebird/Trans Am is not a muscle car. They are considered "pony cars" such as the Mustang is with Ford. They say that a muscle car would be such as the Chevelle. So, is it really true that my Firebird is not a muscle car?

Answer 1

any car that was built with increased performance is considered a muscle car.....the term pony car was reserved for the ford mustang.....then generically applied to other make,s....usually indicates a small car with a large motor....generally considered a sport,s car.

Answer 2

True, while the Firebirds or Camaros built on the f-body platform are classified as the pony cars. While the GTO and Monte Carlo were built on the G-body platform. Which give 'em alill more room in the engine compartment to accommodate the bigger engines. If, you own a f-body, like I do especially a later model 4th generation. You know how tight the engine compartment is during the spark plugs change/tune-up. This sbc is more than enough engine for the weight of these body. Now, granted some of the earlier model(1st gen.) f-bodies did come from the factory w/ big block engines like the 396 and the 400's, I think. (I can't even imagine changing out the plugs on a big block in a f-body. You'd be better off pullin the engine just to change the plugs, IMO.) The sbc engines were the most popular engines in the f-bodies.

Anyhoo, make NO mistake about it, the f-bodies ARE in fact muscle cars w/ the designation of being a pony car.

ENJOY, your Firebird, like I have done w/ my black '98 M6 TransAm til it got totalled in '01 and now my Silver 02 35th Ann'y A4 Camaro Z28;) These cars are awesome, IMO;) To bad the General seen it fit to stop the producion of the f-body:(

Answer 3

looks like you opened up a can of worms with that one. in my opinion all the anwsers are right. muscle car in a generic term simply means a performance edition of any model. Now usually when the term muscle car is used it is in referance to a mid sized car with a "big car engine" made between 1964 - 1972. prior to 64 most performance models were big cars with big engines. in 1964 the GTO debuted with the "big car" 389 in a mid sized platform.. Most agree that the 64 GTO was the first muscle car, but is a 62 impala ss 409 or a 63 vette not muscle cars? some will say yes others no. i prefer to call the vette a sports car and the impala a super stock. in my opionion if your firebird is an older model (ie late 60's-mid 70's) then it is a pony car. most pony cars were smaller and sportier looking. AMX's, Mustangs, Cudas, Challengers, camaros, and firebirds all fall in this catogory. call it whatever you like.

Answer 4

Technically NO......a ponycay is a car that had a low horsepower small block that was designed to compete with cars like the Mustang. The typicall ponycars are GTO, Camaro, and Mustang, and sometimes the Duster/Dart is called a pony car. There are of course others, but those are the most known pony cars. So yes and no.......I would call your Firebird a muscle car, not a pony car.

Answer 5

People have been dancing around the real issue here...

'Muscle' cars were mid sized cars with full sized engines, ala the GTO, Chevelle, and such. Pony cars were smaller than muscle cars, but most CAME WITH MUSCLE CAR ENGINES. Get it? They were smaller, with the same power. That made them FASTER than muscle cars.

Now aren't you glad you have a pony car?

Answer 6

The term muscle car generally describes a rear wheel drive mid-size car with a large, powerful engine (typically, although not universally, a V8 engine) and special trim, intended for maximum torque on the street or in drag racing competition. It is distinguished from sports cars, which were customarily and coincidentally considered smaller, two-seat cars, or GTs, two-seat or 2+2 cars intended for high-speed touring and possibly road racing. High-performance full-size or compact cars are arguably excluded from this category, as are the breed of compact sports coupes inspired by the Ford Mustang, the "pony car". Another factor used in defining classic muscle cars are their age.....

Copied from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscle_car

Answer 7

ok this is what we would now evaluate a muscle automobile. contained in the 60s and 70s they might have considered it a pony automobile, that's actually the comparable difficulty however the automobile is lighter than say a 70s grand prix. yet once you POP the hood, its the comparable difficulty as long as its a v8.

Answer 8

When it was built, it was a pony car. Pontiacs "REAL" muscle car was the GTO. But it is just a name, the only one that gets to decide what your car is is YOU. Good Luck

Answer 9

That is 100% corrrect, Pony cars are in a class of there own.

Answer 10

pony my *** its a muscle car if its not one of those newer turds