This entry marks the second time we have been able to offer up for display a special "protoype" or "promotional" Trans Am (the first was Bill Mitchells '72 SD455 Trans Am see here). This is the 1 of 1 special promotional Trans Am built for the 1974 Chicago Auto Show. It featured a special black and gold paint scheme that would become the foundation for the '76 50th Anniv. Limited Edition TA and the Special Edition TAs that would be offered from 1977 to 1981. The car surfaced recently when it was purchased in an estate sale in July 1994 by Bob Reason a collector out of Michigan. It has changed hands a few times (over $100K most recently) and has landed in the lap of the current owner listed above. The original owner, Clarence Sproul, was a head accountant at GM and a close personal friend of Bill Mitchell. Prototypes are normally destroyed after their usefulness had come to an end but, in this case Mr. Mitchell saved the car and allowed it to be sold to his friend. The last valid registration for the car was in 1977.

According to information provided by the current owner the car started out life as a Buccanneer Red '73 Trans Am which was re-painted with the first, now famous, black and gold paint job and was driven by Bill Mitchell for a period of time (note the first pic). The car then underwent a conversion to transform it into a 1974 Trans Am for a tour of duty on the show circuit which included the big show in Chicago. The car then went through a final transformation from a 1974 Trans Am to its final state, the 1976 Trans Am seen in the pics provided. Some site visitors have expressed doubts about the final conversion because the obvious difference with the rear window design from 74 to 76 (early rear window to the later wrap around style window). Mr. Phillips has had the opportunity to speak with John Schinella (Chief of Design for GM in 1971) and he has confirmed the history of conversions that I am presenting here. The man in the second picture is John Schinella and the girl is his daughter.

Some notes about the car: It still wears its original paint from the final conversion in '75 but it is now spider-webbing due to the age of the paint and the use of clear coat when it was painted at the GM Design Division. The black paint features a heavy dose of gold metal flake. It received Pontiac's flagship engine in '74 the Super Duty 455. The shaker scoop is functional with solenoids and a flapper  door of the same type that was used on 70-72 TAs.  The chrome running boards were plated in gold chrome and a portion of the door jamb appears to have been painted gold to match. The dash bezel is gold but the steering wheel spokes and bird are not. The shifter handle color matches the special "one-off" tan interior. The lettering on the tires are gold. The shifter bezel is the same chrome swirl as the dash bezel although not gold. This feature did not come out until 1979 or 1980. A special silk material was used for the seats and the carpet was provided by Cadillac including floor mats that featured stainless steel grates intended to protect the carpet from wear. The console and radiator support are signed by John Schinella. The car was driven by both Bill Mitchell and John Schinella.  The current mileage is approximately 28,000 and the car is still titled as a Red '73 Trans Am.

The story behind the origin of this car, its special paint scheme and most importantly the introduction of the famous screaming chicken is an interesting one. It is documented in several articles online and in more than one publication i.e. "The Fabulous Firebird" by Michael Lamm. Not surprisingly there seem to be different versions of the story depending on where you read it. One interpretation of these events was presented by Jeff Denison a writer for the National Firebird & TA Club in an article written for the Eagle which can be read here: http://www.firebirdtaclub.com/makbird.htm. This account and the one written by Michael Lamm are similiar but do differ on a few details. One thing that is certain is that this car gave birth to the legendary Special Edition package that would become an icon of '70s culture. The excerpt below from author Mark Cranswick is a summary of the version of the story told in "The Fabulous Firebird".

     "I think I can clear up the query concerning the T/A shown at the 1974 Chicago Car Show. Planning for the limited edition 1976 T/A, started as early as 1973 when GM's Bill Mitchell wanted a special T/A for Pontiac's 50th birthday, Mitchell gave the job to Pontiac's John Schinella. Mitchell liked the colors of the John Player Special racing cars so those colors were used. The prototype was shown at the Chicago Car Show in 1974."

The new owner has started his own website for the car: www.firebirdconcept.com. He also plans to show the car at a few shows this year so if you'd like to see the car in person he plans to have it at the POCI convention being held in Spearfish, South Dakota and the Trans Am Nationals in Dayton, Ohio.
 

John Schinella and daughter	New Owner Bob Phillips