Pontiac T/A 6.6 Engine History Lesson
Back in August of 1978, I made the rounds here in Ontario, Canada, looking to order myself a brand new, sight unseen, 1979 Trans Am with a 4-speed manual transmission, AND the fabled 220 BHP T/A 6.6 performance engine (the LAST of the true Pontiac V-8's --- after that, all the division ever made was the 4-cylinder "Iron Duke").
Every dealer I visited told me that the T/A 6.6 was NOT going to be available in Canada for '79 --- and besides, GM had already ceased production of the engine well before by then, having pre-built and crated 10,000 of these power plants for exclusive use in the upcoming 10th Anniversary Trans Am model ONLY...
Well, my heart was broken, but not for long: as I was leaving the last place that gave me the bad news, my eye was attracted to a new '78, sitting in a prominent corner of the dealer's showroom...and yes, it had the Borg-Warner 4-speed, a T/A 6.6 under the hood, aluminum wheels, and NO power-robbing / weight-adding options like A/C, power windows, etc. etc.
I still have the car, and for a $92.50 (Canadian) option, that T/A 6.6 engine gave me bragging rights over everything else that GM sold that year, including the much-vaunted Corvette L-82 (200 BHP).
Eddy
Ontario, CANADA
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