[chaotic]

Is there any way to verify by the trim tag that this car is a trans am?

I know you can tell by the vin, what about the cowl tag? There is a W off to the right lower corner. On other cars I have seen a WS4 here but this one only shows a W, the Van Nuys cars otherwise have the base firebird 2FS87 on the top line.......

Thoughts?

[Philo]

I'll need to check my tag, but my numbers book says that a TA should have 'FW87'. Are you saying that Van Nuys TA's have FS87? (Mine is a Norwood).

[chaotic]

I'm trying to verify if a Van Nuys car could have 2FS87 and some other way of designating the Trans Am, for example check out a few photos down on this link, the '79 T/A cowl tag is similiar to the car I'm looking at, Van Nuys car, 2FS87 with a small W in the lower right corner.

I'm just wondering if the W in the lower right corner could be the Trans Am designation?

http://78ta.com/1979trans.htm

[Mr W72]

The W means water base paint since it is a Van Nuys CA produced car. All Firebird models will have 2FS87 on the data plate. Most generally WS4 for Trans Am model should be stamped there as well.

Do you have the build sheet for the 1979 car?

[Mr W72]

The reason I ask for the build sheet, the body number 074914 on the data plate willl need to match the body numbers listed on the build sheet.

[chaotic]

John,

Ok, water based paint, hadn't thought of that(again). I have seen WS4 on other Trans Ams as well but this '79 does not have it, like the car in the link.

I strongly doubt this car will have the buildsheet, it has the wrong seats and door panels in it. The cowl tag states solar gold as the original color, but it has been painted two different colors over that. I have not found any gold paint yet but will be looking it over better this weekend. PHS packet will help a bit at least for color verification.

[chaotic]

I see, I don't think I'll find the buildsheet though, will these numbers be on the phs by any chance?

[Mr W72]

No.

[chaotic]

Just want to clarify that the car in the link IS NOT the one I'm talking about, just posted the link as an example of a similiar cowl tag since I haven't busted out my camera yet here at home: )

Just showing an example of another '79 that looks very original that is coded very much like the one I'm looking at here.

[Philo]

Originally Posted by Mr W72

The W means water base paint since it is a Van Nuys CA produced car. All Firebird models will have 2FS87 on the data plate. Most generally WS4 for Trans Am model should be stamped there as well.

Do you have the build sheet for the 1979 car?

That is correct. I just checked mine, and it says '2FS87', then on the next line at the far right, it has the 'WS4'.

[T70GTO]

Guys, to continue this thread below the W in far right corner(last row) is x34046083? Any ideas thx Tom

[johnta1]

Have a picture of the tag?

Van Nuys (and Fremont) used different things on their tags.
The number may be for some kind of scheduling/production number.

[T70GTO]

Cowl Tag

[johnta1]

This is probably a TATA? (Tenth Anniv TA)

The 'X' is for the steering column color, which is special probably for the TATA.
The '3' is for power windows
Then the rest is for the sequence we don't know for sure.
(4046083)

BTW, it has TTops, Silver with grey upper, which I think was only on the TATA.

[T70GTO]

Thanks John Appreciate the help

[Junqueboi]

Hi.

I'm almost certain that the "4" on line three denotes Trans Am. Base model cars I've run across had "-" there while the two Formulas I've seen had a "6" there.

[gtoric]

The last six digits in this sequence correlate to the day of the month the order was generated and the Job Sequence Number.

So, in this instance—
X=Silver/gray Steering Column
3=Power Windows
4=Trans Am
04=Fourth day of the month (usually a day before the scheduled build-out date)
6083=Job Sequence Number (found on the upper left-hand corner of the build sheet)

Anyone else with both the original build sheet and the Fisher Body trim tag can double check these suppositions.

[roundportponchos]

This is trim tag, from Tylers 78 WS6, van nuys..Feb built, W, on, the other, built in dec, does not have the W, so they must of started using water around feb

[johnta1]

One thing I never paid any attention to is that most of the 79 tags don't have the blurbs below the stamped info pertaining to the made to all Federal regulations, etc?