Pontiac Gurus - Nunzi and Herb
 

These (2) guy's were instrumental in Pontiac Performance. I attached a few of their Catalogue pages for reference and some nostalgia. I have had these since 1977.

You could buy from Nunzi a SD455 short block for $660, and the SD455 Heads for $270. Good luck finding any of this today.
I did buy RAIII heads from him at $100/ea, and his custom cast aluminum Oil Pan for $80. I passed on the SD Rods at $450, and found them from a local guy who parted his SD engine out, and got them for "only" $200. My machining shop wanted to buy them on the spot - I said like, no.

Next post will be some Herb's catalogue stuff

Herb Adams.
Man this guy knew his suspension stuff.

I did much of this catalogue stuff, and was astounded at how my car handled afterwards. This was back in May 1979!!!

Bought his Front & Rear Sways, Koni's, cut a coil off the front springs, control arm bushings, mod to the Rear Spring Eye Bracket, Tire Clearance mods, Brake Cooling Ducts, Front End Lowering and Structure Kit, etc.

Remember - this was before the era of Coil Over Shocks, Tubular Control Arms, etc.

Moroso sold Herb's stuff. I don't know if they still do. My brother has front and rear sway bar stuff on his 73 Camaro....

Is Nunzi still alive ?

I believe so...A couple of folks here, have interactions with him, and maybe even his son, is on here...

Yes,, Nunzi is very much alive and still very sharp. He’s still at it working on his own projects. I always joke with him saying that if he came out of retirement he could pick up where he left off.😊 As a matter of fact I just spoke with his son this morning.

Herb Adams is an awesome guy. I met him a couple of times. I still have a VSE catalog from the early 80'S. My buddy built the 454 engine for Herb's old yellow Daytona Camaro that he found a few years ago. He originally built it and raced it at the 24 hours of Daytona in the early 80's. A friend of Herb's found the old car and Herb rebuilt it to its former glory. He used to live in the Detroit Metro area before he moved several years ago, I think to Tennessee. The Countessa car he builds was in his shop. My buddy also built an LS engine for one of the Countessas. What a beautiful car. Herb autographed a couple of Fire Am posters for my son and I.

Enjoying these stories!

Yep. He retired a few years ago. Still racing a 195 inline four with an E-head on it

Thanks for posting. I really like the look of the second gen road racers. So wide and cool!

I just recently watched an episode of Dennis Collins Coffee Walk on YouTube. He was buying a 72 Trans Am from his friend Tom who you see on Gas Monkey Garage and Misfit Garage. He then bought a Nunzi 455 SD motor with no VIN number for $3,500. I guess it was filmed a couple of years ago. When I lived in Brooklyn I went by Nunzi’s place with my 70 Judge, he was a nice guy. I only lived about 15 minutes from him. The most GTO’s in his garage that I ever seen in Brooklyn.

Nunzi is doing well,talk to him about once a month.Tom

Yep. The episode where Dennis kept referring to NUNZI as NOONZI. I yelled at the screen everytime he did it!

Friends and I got to chat with Nunzi at the Car Craft Street Machine Nationals in the early 80's. Good guy that was willing to share his knowledge freely.

I followed Herb Adams and did a bunch of his VSE mods to my '77 T/A. Fortunately, I saved his VSE catalog. Now that I'm building a road race Firebird, I'm referring to his catalog again. National Parts Depot is selling his parts and his son is keeping the VSE products in production. I got to meet Herb and his son at the Trans Am Nationals this past August and had a good time discussing my new project. Nice guy with some interesting stories. Even though he was the suspension engineer, he designed the blue stripes for the '69 and '70 Trans Ams.

Eric

Please send him our best regards, Tom, from the forum folks.

Old Herb Adams article from Thunder Am Mag dated February 1982

Not meaning to take away for the tile of this thread, but maybe possibly add to it.....

There's a picture here and around, of Jim Mino and Truman Fields at some event that I'm not that familiar with PRI???
Mr. Mino passed this past year. I am fairly certain that Truman is still around, although not getting any younger. My good friend and Pontiac enthusiast that I went to Pontiac events with passed in Oct 2018. He owned Trumans 72 GTO from 1980 to 2012. It is now (thankfully) owned by a seldom posting member here.

Anybody got a line on Truman???

I was a friend of Tom Nell and his wife for all of the years he was in the Pontiac area with his Bicycle Shop (after he was let go by Pontiac management).
He later retired to the Lake Michigan side of Michigan and lived there until his passing.

Herb was one of my Heroes at Pontiac Engineering. I had hours of conversation with him at the Edsel Ford Estate car shows over the years. He always brought his Contessa custom car there for the Car Show held there each year.

After the 64 Tempest was sold to the Spoerl Family and road raced by them, they had the engine rebuilt by some Ford Guys, I consulted on the Pontiac Engine rebuild.
Not sure who owns that car today.

Nunzi and Tommy and the Romano family (when they came to Norwalk with Nunzi's
Tempest) always invited me to have dinner with them at least one night each year.
Rarely talk to Nunzi, but talk to Tommy occasionally. One year Nunzi sent me some of his homemade wine. It was excellent. I do not bother him or Tommy while they are working. Tom S has a different relationship with them.

Dudley "Skip" McCully and I had discussions about a vehicle/engine project he was doing mounting TWO Turbo systems on one of his vehicles. I still have some of those parts laying around somewhere.

I only had a conversation with Truman Fields (for any period of time) at the US-131
Drag Strip sitting on the back of my Truck Tailgate and drinking beer.

Memories. I wish I had more time with Mr McKellar at the car shows he attended in his later life. The two valve, three valve, and four valve FORD Modular Engine heads were based on Mac's 1960s Pontiac OHC work.

Tom V.

Does Nunzi still have the 62 burgundy SD Catalina? Just curious. I often wondered if it was an original 62 SD.

From Hemmings -
Sure, today you can jump into any perfectly restored, engine-blueprinted muscle car and it'll start right up and run out through the gears like it has a nitrous tank in the trunk. I can assure you, this was not the case back in the day.
From 1968-'74, bone-stock muscle cars did not run well off the showroom floor. Why?
Emission controls. Frankly, at the time, Detroit engineers had not yet gotten a handle on how to make big V-8 engines run well with emission controls tacked on.
These first-gen smoggers used retarded ignition timing, leaned-out carburetion and exhaust gas recirculation to control unburned hydrocarbons. How do you think muscle cars ran in those years, under those circumstances?
Exactly. Nail the throttle to the floor and they bogged, coughed, wheezed and maybe started to grab some revs. At 5,000 RPM, they were choked off to within an inch of their lives. In 1971, in advance of the switch to unleaded gas, an additional punch in the gut came with the lowering of compression ratios on all GM engines to about 8.5:1.So when my boss at the time, Marty Schorr, editorial director of Hi-Performance Cars, assigned me to road test and review a '72 Pontiac 455 HO Trans Am, I wasn't expecting balls-to-the-wall performance.
And I was right. Yeah, it handled great--but it ran like crap.Lucerne Blue with a white stripe and a black interior, it was sharp-looking, sitting there in the parking lot of the Big Bow Wow on Cross Bay Boulevard. The car was equipped with the heavy-duty M-22 four-speed transmission; as it turns out, it was one of only 458 four-speed Tran Ams manufactured in 1972.The LS5, standard in all Trans Am's, was a worthy successor to Pontiac engines bearing the "High Output" designation, rating 310hp at 4,800 RPM and 410-lbs.ft. of torque at 3,600. All LS5 engine components were select-fitted on the engine assembly line for better matching of tolerances. In effect, they were semi-blueprinted as they came off the line. The 288/302 degrees (intake/exhaust) duration HO cam was used, along with the Ram Air IV round exhaust-port heads. In all, a potent package--but held back by smog controls.
All the four-speed cars ran a 3.42:1 rear axle ratio with Safe-T-Track limited-slip differential. Paired with the 2.20 first gear of the close-ratio four-speed "Rock Crusher" trans, low 8.4:1 compression ratio, the retarded ignition, leaned-out Quadrajet four-barrel and EGR, there wasn't much low-end; I had to slip the clutch quite a bit to get the car going, even around town. A quick trip to Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey, confirmed it: The car ran a best of 14.58 seconds at 98 MPH.
But I could feel it in my butt: There was more there. Lots more.
So I made my way to Nunzi's Automotive in Brooklyn. For more than 40 years, Annunziata Romano was the premier Pontiac racer/tuner/engine builder/restorer east of the Mississippi. Now retired, today Nunzi is content to play with his '63 Tempest four-cylinder race car (driven by son Tony to consistent 13.00-second flat ETs). Oh, and don't forget his stable of restored 421 Super Duty Catalinas, SD-455 Trans Ams and various GTOs, including what may be the world's only existing Ram Air VII--yes, seven--GTO.
Nunzi took one look at the '72 Trans Am test car and immediately diagnosed the problem. "It's not running right," he said. No kidding. Really? "Let's give it a dyno-tune." "But you don't have a dyno in your shop," I said, puzzled. "I don't need no freaking dyno in the shop," Nunzi shot back. "I got a freaking dyno in my heart. "Good enough for me--the man's record spoke for itself. He proceeded to re-curve the unitized Delco-Remy single-point distributor on a Sun machine, changing centrifugal advance weights and springs until he had a curve that dialed in the advance a lot quicker than stock. Now there was 6 degrees advance at 1,400 RPM and total advance of 19 degrees was all in at just 1,900 RPM. He installed new high-performance points and made a few other modifications, including setting initial advance at 11 degrees and dwell at 28 degrees.
Nunzi next turned his attention to the Quadrajet. After removing it from the intake manifold, he disassembled the carb and drilled out the primary jets .003-inch. He substituted secondary metering rods with tips measuring a thinner .043-inch. Back on the intake manifold, Nunzi adjusted the secondary air flaps to open at 3,300 RPM. He did more fiddling with the carb, put a bolt in the EGR line, effectively shutting it off, and installed a set of one range colder plugs. Then he buttoned it all up.
On the way home that night, I could feel the difference. The Trans Am ran fantastic. Both performance and driveability were so much better, just from a thousandth of an inch here and there. It was now smooth and powerful at low revs and throttle response was instantaneous. No more clutch slipping away from every light. Top-end runs on the New Jersey Turnpike were unreal--hard, eyelid-peeling acceleration from the moment I floored it right up to my bravery point at 115 MPH.
Back at Raceway Park a few days later, the Trans Am ran like I expected it could. It came alive with a best of 14.04 seconds at 104 MPH.
Nunzi's "dyno-tune" had knocked off more than a half-second from our ET and added 6 MPH to our trap speed. Which translates to about six or seven car lengths on a drag strip or light-to-light on the street--where I spent the next week blowing off all kinds of stock muscle.
We were convinced from then on: Nunzi did have a dyno in his heart.

From Hot Rod Mag - some great history

1 965 Pontiac GTO Ram Air VII - Seventh Heaven
This Subtle, Yet Mean '65 GTO Features A Dual-Quad 428ci Ram Air VII Engine

What's the best way to showcase your buildup of one of the rarest engines in Pontiac history? How about vintage hot rod meets Factory Experimental in one of the Division's hottest models? That's what Nunzi Romano was thinking when he built this '65 GTO.

Most any enthusiast following fast Pontiacs within the past four decades is likely familiar with Nunzi, as his contributions helped carry the Pontiac performance torch during the dark days of the '70s and '80s. His personal story isn't one that's well known, however.

Nunzi was born in Southern Italy and studied automotive mechanics, cutting his teeth on high-end Italian race cars. He immigrated to America in the late-'50s and has called Brooklyn, New York, home ever since. His first Pontiac, a '55 two-door sedan, was purchased from the Brooklyn-area Pontiac dealer at which he worked, and he began tinkering to improve its performance. His immediate success gained him notoriety as a performance guru with the hot-rod crowd, which led to the opening of his own specialty garage.

As was much of America in the early-'60s, Nunzi, too, was enamored with Pontiac's Super-Duty program, and the GTO when it debuted in 1964. "Pontiac was on top at the time, and I remember talking to a salesman at the dealership about the GTO before it came out," the retired engine builder recalls. "He told me that it was a performance model with scoops on the hood, and that's all I had to hear. I ordered a Starlight Black '64 with a 389 Tri-Power and four-speed manual transmission. I really liked the car and raced it all the time, but the '65 GTO is my favorite."

General Motors' corporate edict on factory-backed racing eliminated the Super-Duty program, so Engineering fought back and introduced super-strong street engines, including the GTO's 389 Tri-Power in '64, the 400 H.O. and Ram Air in '67, the R/A-II in '68, the R/A-IV in '69, the 455 H.O in '71 and the SD-455 in '73 for the Firebird. The 421 H.O. and 428 H.O.s motivated the quick Big-Cars of the day. Many owners brought such Pontiacs to Nunzi for his magic touch, and though they ran well in stock trim, minor tweaking extracted even more performance from them--a feat noticed by members of Pontiac's engineering team.

A Bit Of R/A-V History.
Competition amongst manufacturers was fierce in those days, and Pontiac had a reputation as a performance leader. The maximum-performance combination, dubbed "R/A-V," was Engineering's attempt at maintaining its status. Conceptually designed as a 400 (but also available in 303 and 366 ci), the R/A-V featured a reinforced block with four-bolt main caps and forged-steel internals. It was topped by newly developed Tunnel-Port cylinder heads like those Ford used with large, round intake ports and individually spaced exhausts. The combination included a high-lift mechanical camshaft, a cast-aluminum intake manifold, and a Holley carburetor. It was a true high-performance mill with 7,000-rpm capability.

Most likely due to emission regulations and internal procurement, the R/A-V program was abruptly cancelled as it neared introduction. No such engine was ever installed into a production vehicle, but because most components of the combination had been cast and their part numbers cataloged, assembled engines and individual components were sold over the parts counter for several years.

Acquiring The Parts
Nunzi took immediate interest in the R/A-V and began accumulating many of the unique components that remain in his collection today. "I purchased several complete R/A-V engines and cylinder heads back then. I also picked up a few different R/A-V intake manifolds, including a dual-quad tunnel ram and a medium-rise, dual-plane dual-quad unit that's extremely rare. I think it was a prototype used by Pontiac for testing. Others may exist, but I've never seen or heard of one

"I used to talk with a few of Pontiac engineers who were involved with the R/A-V project in those days, and they told me of the combinations that Engineering was working on to beat the competition. I remember hearing about the R/A-VI--a modified 428ci block with R/A-V top-end and a single four-barrel carburetor. The R/A-VII was a dual four-barrel version of that. I don't think either engine made it past testing, though."

Nunzi dreamed of building a unique engine using many of the R/A-V components he owned. "I wanted to put a real piece of Pontiac history into a car that I could take to local shows or cruises, and national Pontiac events, and to play around with. I never really had the time when I was working but had the chance to make that happen when I retired." What better way to create his tribute to Pontiac than by building his own R/A-VII engine?

The Powerplant
Beginning with a modified four-bolt 428ci block, Nunzi bored it 0.035 inch to 4.155 inches and filled the cylinders with forged-aluminum Venolia pistons, Speed-Pro plasma-moly rings, and forged-steel, stock-length Crower connecting rods. A modified Super-Duty 421 forged-steel crankshaft with a 4.05-inch stroke round out the reciprocating assembly, which creates a total displacement of 440 ci.

Atop the engine rests an N.O.S. pair of No. 44 R/A-V cylinder heads that, as Nunzi says, "were laying around since day one." They feature large intake ports that peak around 325-350 cfm at 28 inches of pressure at maximum valve lift. These units retain their original 2.19-inch-diameter intake and 1.73-inch-diameter exhaust valves but feature modern Crower valve springs and titanium retainers. Combustion chamber volume measures 70 cc, yielding a compression ratio of 12.5:1.

Crower supplied a custom solid-roller camshaft with 260/265 degrees of 0.050-inch duration on a 108-degree lobe center and 0.650-inch valve lift when combined with the company's 1.6:1 ratio shaft-mounted rocker arms. In addition to specifying valve timing, Nunzi also had Crower install a cast-iron distributor drive gear and machine all five journals to accept roller bearings.

Authenticating the R/A-VII project is a super-rare, dual-plane, dual-quad intake manifold that's complemented by a pair of Holley carburetors. At the heart of the ignition system is a modified points-type distributor with a Mallory No. 102X points set. An MSD Blaster 2 canister-type coil generates spark, which Taylor wires transmit to a set of AC Delco R43S plugs. Total spark lead of 35 degrees is reached by 2,000 rpm.

Vehicle Selection
As the engine project neared completion, Nunzi sought the perfect vehicle for it. In his collection was a low-mileage '65 GTO that was originally equipped exactly as he'd have ordered it. Once Montero Red with black interior, it boasted of a 389ci Tri-Power engine, M21 four-speed manual transmission, 3.90 gearing, a Safe-T-Track differential, aluminum front brake drums with metallic brake linings, heavy-duty fan, Custom Sport wood steering wheel, and Rally gauges.

Nunzi first became acquainted with the GTO during the '80s when a customer brought it to him for an engine build. "The car was drag raced all its life," he says. "The body was very straight and rust-free, but the original engine and transmission were gone. I built a high-horsepower 455 for the owner, and he had me install a rollcage in it. He sold the car a few years later, and I ended up with it in the late '90s. It was just too clean and unique for me to pass up."

The dual-quad R/A-VII was an experimental engine developed and tested by Pontiac Engineering. Nunzi re-created it by using a modified 428ci block, R/A-V cylinder heads, and an experimental intake manifold.
Nunzi and son Tony disassembled the GTO and mediablasted its body to bare metal. With the help of Matthew Demma, they repaired all the imperfections. "I wanted the car to look like a vintage hot rod," Nunzi says. "You know, in black primer like the '49 Fords and '50s Pontiacs I used to see in the '60s. I also wanted to take it to shows but didn't want to worry about it getting scratched." Tony assembled a makeshift paint booth in Nunzi's shop where he and Matthew applied several coats of PPG Hot Rod Black--a modern matte finish that replicates the look of vintage black primer.

Once completely painted, the crew reassembled the GTO. With the R/A-VII engine resting between the frame rails, Nunzi installed a 30-pound steel flywheel, a Centerforce Dual Friction clutch and pressure-plate assembly, and a BorgWarner Super T-10 four-speed manual transmission with nickel gears and a 2.88:1 First-gear ratio. Careful attention to detail was the order throughout the entire build.

The Result
When asked about the finished project, Nunzi replies, "It's very different and in my own taste, but I wanted to turn back the clock and make it look like something I'd build if I was an engineer back then. It's exactly what I got with the GTO. My son, Tony, and Matthew worked seven days a week over a two month period just to get it done. Friends like Andy Asaro, Ray Batelli, Bobby Jones, and Kenan Taskent helped, too. I'm very happy with everything."

Though Nunzi hasn't measured the R/A-VII's output on a dyno, he estimates somewhere between 635 and 650 hp. "I could have put the engine into any of the cars in my collection, but the GTO seemed the perfect choice. I wanted it to have a manual transmission and that might make it tough to run consistently at the track. I'll probably never make a pass with it, but it sounds great and really runs hard.

Conclusion
This GTO doesn't have a significant historical background as a brass-hat vehicle, nor was it campaigned as a race car by a major dealership, but one pass down the list of optional equipment quickly reveals that its original owner ordered it with the sole intent of maximum performance in mind. The absence of its original drivetrain hasn't kept Nunzi from keeping its performance spirit alive, however. What better way to capture a legendary engine builder's vision of a vintage hot rod than installing experimental Engineering components into the Division's flagship vehicle from the performance era? Now that's pure Pontiac history, no matter how you view it!

Truman's on here (don't remember his screen name) but as of a few years ago he was going strong and hanging around Ellison Engine Service in Cincinnati. (Elmwood.)

Great article and pictures, thanks for sharing.

Do you have any idea of the date this was published?

Actually from Motor Trend's "Hot Rod" /Feature, dated May 1, 2009.

Supposedly there was the R/A 5, with only about 40 or so sold to lucky individuals (or so I read in one of my archives), then there were also R/A 6 and R/A 7 versions.
I have a ton of the old High Performance, T/A, and Thunder AM mags, as well as ALL of the High Output Newsletters. As I go back thru them, I will post some cool history stuff. And I know somewhere in them was a article and pics of these engines, I will find it at some point.

Other Thread on this Forum on the VI and VII Engines:
https://forums.maxperformanceinc.com...d.php?t=381137

Pretty sure I saw Nunzi's RA7 65 GTO at one of the Pypes shows in PA around ten years ago. Really cool guy and the 70's pic of him with the fro and bell bottoms is awesome. Dude is a living legend. I thought his 4 banger GTO ran high 11's and not 13.0 like in that quote.

Tom Nell told me one time there were about 250 total Engines worth of RA-V parts made.
That would have been the 303 parts, the 366 parts, and the 400 parts.

Not sure about the 40 sold engines, though. Could have happened.

Tom V.

Was it the picture taken at Mcacan three or four years ago?

I believe so....

There was a lot of 400 crate V engines made,there was 25 short deck factory 303 engines made.As far as the other variations there were a couple hand full of 303 std deck engines but had RA IV top ends,I have a std deck 303 block in my 69 bird and like 366 NASCAR engines which were also RA IV headed engines.As far as 4in stroke and 4.210 stroke I have never talked to anyone that actually saw or owned a engine,I have owned both of those factory 3in main Kellogs cranks.There were some 3.125 main angle main blocks made,Arni had quite a few of them when he was running the blower enginesOn top of that stuff there were factory alu blocks in the late 60s and early 70s.Both 3in main and 3.125 main and std 4 bolt and also 4 bolt angle main.FWIW,Tom

Nunzi should market a poster of the shot of him and the TA in front of his garage. Big bells, hair and early 70's all the way.

I bought 20 of the 366 raw Kellogg forgings from Moldex, could have owned another 20 of the 303 cranks but passed on them.
Several friends did buy them though so there are a few out there. Tom S got one of my raw 355 cranks.
His crank guy was a outstanding grinder but never heard if he had it finished.

I still have a bunch of the 366 cranks. Butler got 2 of them for his 440 engine that Rodney and Travis ran for years in Dick and Toms IA Block.

Tom V.

Tom,I never got one!Could not get anyone to want to grind it local.Tom

So what did you do with the forging?

Tom V.

Tom,I never got one from you!We talked about it but never got one.Tom

Attachment 583667

Picture I was talking about, not sure how long ago.
Truman on left, and Jim Mino

Bob,
Truman's last post was 2008. Not sure what was going on with him, then...
For some reason none of us are getting any younger:cool:

Truman's user name here is Hard Times, same as was on his firebird race cars. The name was not used on his 72 GTO, though...

Jim Mino was one of the nicest dudes youll ever meet. Last saw him at Norwalk 2018.

Nunzi
 

I was a long time subscriber to HPP and part time drag racer for as long as I can remember, and these days it's getting shorter! I always read the magazine front to back and liked Nunzs' column. I finally decided to meet Nunzi to build my RA IV, nothing crazy but get all his expertise into it. When installed into my 64 GTO, he stated it is now making some power, he stated " I'll either blow my trans or my rear". First time out at Maple Grove, it sheared the ring! Ended up putting a Fab 9 in it with 457's and brought it to Brooklyn for Nunzi to go over the car. Well, it ran, 11.66 at 119, not too shabby. Nunzi and Tony would be at the track and always take the time to go right up to the line on every run! Anyway that motor is back at home in the 70, and still doesn't leak a drop oil 30 + years latter. He definitely is old school and he and his son Tony and Mrs. Nunzi have always been a pleasure to work with. I have a couple more motors with his parts, a 421 in the 64 now and a XP RA IV waiting for the right home to put it in. Attached is some stuff I have for years.

From my earlier Post:

"Supposedly there was the R/A 5, with only about 40 or so sold to lucky individuals (or so I read in one of my archives), then there were also R/A 6 and R/A 7 versions.
I have a ton of the old High Performance, T/A, and Thunder AM mags, as well as ALL of the High Output Newsletters. As I go back thru them, I will post some cool history stuff. And I know somewhere in them was a article and pics of these engines, I will find it at some point."

So I found all of my old Pontiac, T/A, and Thunder Am Mags, and there are some great articles in these that I will post from time to time.
This one is an awesome read. Wonder if any of these VI and VII engines are out there, in someone's ride?

I know of one member that is currently working on a RA VII to install in one of his cars.

I almost forgot........the 69 RAVI firebird of Don and Roy Gay, that I found in a friend of mines body shop. I ended up getting the owner, Pete and Don together so it could be featured in Pontiac Enthusiast magazine in the 90's. Thanks to Don's mechanic, James Osteen, it end up with one of three RAVI 428 splayed main cap motors that was destine for one of the Don's funny cars.

Thanks for that new info on this forum.

Tom V.

From the "Hesster's Archives", attached is a really cool article on Nunzi, from the T/A Magazine September-October 1981, Volume 2, Number 4.

Check out the 'Fro on Nunzi - it was the era of long hair and Fro's, Bell Bottom Jeans, Disco, emissions choked engines, and mostly low grade Pot.:D

Herb's Fire Am race car, from TA Mag April '82

Nunzi's "nostalgic" Pontiac Engine Performance tips back in August of '85.
Manifold, Carb, and Distributor advice for the 350, 400, and 455 motors..
Between his and Herb Adams Catalog's of performance parts you could go from mild to wild. And of course HO Enterprises was in the game also.
Some great stuff back then.

I was bidding on a '74 T/A in the fall on BAT and the holy Nunzi made an appearance in comments section. I was blown away - unfortunately also blown away that the bird went for 55k lol....

I haven't seen any of those NY dudes in years. I hang out with Anthony, the owner of the power blue 64 GTO in the magazine. He said Nunzi needed a car for the magazine article and got Anthonys old 64 out and cleaned it all up. for the magazine shoot. It sat for 10+ years in an old garage. Anthony didn't even know if it was still there. He said it was well hidden by the dirt lol..
He says he hasn't seen anybody since moving to Pittsburgh. His health is going. He can't stand up straight. This guy was a NYPD cop, then he ran the mass transit system here in Pittsburgh. They are all very interesting people.

I heard Herb Adams was fired from GM for intentionally deleting the intended defects into the seventies mid-sized cars frame, chassis and body molds. GM didn't want the Chevys riding and handling better then there Caddys, Herb thought they would be happy making a car that rode and handled so well.
I remember driving my brothers brand new 70 GP 455 4 speed. That car handled like no other car. The 69 to 72 Pontiac Grand Prix used the 68 to 72 el Camino #1942 frame. That was proububly was one of the best Pontiacs ever made. I remember driving my brothers 70 GP on the highway with one hand resting on the top of the wheel going 120 mph. That car had a 12 bolt 3.08! That 455 had brute torque with that 068..

From 389 Member -
"I heard Herb Adams was fired from GM for intentionally deleting the intended defects into the seventies mid-sized cars frame, chassis and body molds. "

Man - I never heard that. Anyone have more info on whey Herb left? I thought it was because he had enough of GM.

So some Search info I found:
"Adams thrived in the Advanced Design group at GM's Pontiac division in the late 1960s and early 1970s, playing a pivotal role in the creation of the first Trans Am and, later, the Super Duty 455 engine. But frequent regime change at the division and less autonomy led him to part ways with Pontiac."

And This:
"It was the Herb’s last day on the job at Pontiac as he had been asked to leave because his racing efforts were becoming all too obvious to General Motors."
http://www.pontiacpreservationassoci...erb-adams.html

Herb's Silver Race Car from Article in the TA Mag, December 1981.

Well - it's a "Herb Day" for posting.
Article from "Timeless Muscle" on the Fire Am.
Man, I wanted to build one, but wasn't about to modify my Bandit.

https://timelessmuscle.com/features/...n-day-fire-am/