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2manyT/A'S · 07-29-2014, 10:02 AM

A tad "over-restored"....but very nice,nonetheless.......

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pontiac-Fire...US_Cars_Trucks

W72-Bandit · 07-29-2014, 10:56 AM

I've said for 35yrs that I could not own a Macho just because of the name on it, its just too cheezy. (that sentence from a guy with a 100 miles of gold pinstripe on a T/A) However the options and color combo on this one make it the best one I've seen. The black/blue is great!

2manyT/A'S · 07-29-2014, 12:52 PM

I saw my first one driving down Fremont St. in Vegas....May 78....and really didn't know what to think.....

Checked with a few local Pontiac Dealers and they didn't know much or wouldn't say.

Macho T/A's are the Shelby's of our generation and I believe the values will soon eclipse the SD T/A's .... JMO.

Judge273 · 07-30-2014, 07:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2manyT/A'S

I saw my first one driving down Fremont St. in Vegas....May 78....and really didn't know what to think.....

Checked with a few local Pontiac Dealers and they didn't know much or wouldn't say.

Macho T/A's are the Shelby's of our generation and I believe the values will soon eclipse the SD T/A's .... JMO.

Wow that's a bold statement. Shelby's legend is hard to compare to. Yenko's have been celebrated with big values. Not sure either of them will ever really eclipse the top OEM prizes like the zl1, or boss 429s...

Macho T/A has a long road to even those legends? Maybe the worst case 74 SD autos with AC soon...

2manyT/A'S · 07-30-2014, 07:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judge273

Wow that's a bold statement. Shelby's legend is hard to compare to. Yenko's have been celebrated with big values. Not sure either of them will ever really eclipse the top OEM prizes like the zl1, or boss 429s...

Macho T/A has a long road to even those legends? Maybe the worst case 74 SD autos with AC soon...

I guess I should have been more specific........Shelby MUSTANG is what I was thinking...and also,....from a "tuner" perspective...not racing,....as the Macho's had no "formal" race history.....

Alvin · 07-30-2014, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Up for sale is my ultra rare, 1978 Pontiac Trans Am Macho TA. The history of the Macho Trans Am dates back to 1977 when two brothers, Dennis and Kyle Mecham, sons of a Phoenix area Pontiac dealer decided to begin modifying Firebirds to restore some of the missing performance brought about by the addition of more and more emissions equipment on factory cars. The brothers began modifying the already popular scraming chicken cars, 26 were produced in 1977 as they began to ramp up their performance shop. In 1978 203 Macho TAs would come out of the DKM shop. A W72/L78 engine was used as a baseline, the carb and ignition were modified and a set of Hooker headers and twin catalytic converters were added for a net 50bhp gain.

Correction: The actual number of 1978 Macho T/A's built by DKM is 204.

How do I know? Was told by Todd Coombs @ TA Nat's several years ago: IIRC (2) two of the cars were purchased elsewhere and brought in by customers for conversion at Mecham.

The Takeaway: I won a DKM Polo Shirt at the TA Nats by answering the following trivia

Question - "How many Macho T/A's were produced by DKM in 1978?
Answer - 204! "You are correct! Come on up and claim your prize!"

I gave it to Jimmy Flemming who had "restified" his 1979 White & Burgundy Macho TA #53 W72 400 4-spd.
As I recall, Jimmy was ecstatic receiving that shirt, and I was happy sharing in his enjoyment.

Dennis Mecham (wearing the same color & design DKM polo) and Alvin at said event below

Note: The Gold '79 Macho above was a 403 Auto, owned then by Todd Coombs.

muscle_collector · 07-30-2014, 09:49 PM

before everyone bashes them to badly, keep in mind that there was nothing that even came close to touching them back when the mecum brothers did them. I personally have always liked them and have owned several of them. I still have a black/gold 78 and a black/red 79

Alvin · 07-31-2014, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alvin

Correction: The actual number of 1978 Macho T/A's built by DKM is 204.

How do I know? Was told by Todd Coombs @ TA Nat's several years ago: IIRC (2) two of the cars were purchased elsewhere and brought in by customers for conversion at Mecham.

The Takeaway: I won a DKM Polo Shirt at the TA Nats by answering the following trivia

Question - "How many Macho T/A's were produced by DKM in 1978?
Answer - 204! "You are correct! Come on up and claim your prize!"

I gave it to Jimmy Flemming who had "restified" his 1979 White & Burgundy Macho TA #53 W72 400 4-spd.
As I recall, Jimmy was ecstatic receiving that shirt, and I was happy sharing in his enjoyment.

Dennis Mecham (wearing the same color & design DKM polo) and Alvin at said event below
Note: The Gold '79 Macho above was a 403 Auto, owned then by Todd Coombes.

From Hemmings Muscle Machines http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/..._feature8.html

"Back in 1977, Dennis and Kyle Mecham built 26 performance-tweaked Trans Ams that they dubbed Macho T/As and initially sold through their family's Pontiac dealership, Mecham Motors, near Phoenix, Arizona. The modified Trans Ams were a hit and the fledgling company, DKM Design, Performance sold all they could build, so they ramped up production in 1978 and marketed the cars through other Pontiac dealers. Sales of the warmed-up Firebirds soared to 204 units. But, uh, what of that oh-so-Seventies name?

"At that time, macho was the 'in' word in the Southwest," said Dennis Mecham, now president of Mecham Design, Performance. "Everything was macho. In desperation, I said, 'Why not call it Macho T/A?' It was almost tongue-in-cheek. It may not be the best name, but how can you forget it?""

Don 79 TA · 07-30-2014, 06:42 AM

i have grown fond of the macho TA's and would love one myself....
i remember saying no to one the junk yard offered to me for free, this was in the 80s and i knew nothing about them, and of course the car was rough too, yes.... i regret it and have for many years, but i was also piss poor and saw macho and was like eeewwwlll... lol he said the same thing. boy if i only knew...

i don't like the color of this one, but it is nice and sharp
I regret not buying the one the fella in AZ restored. he does or did macho restorations and had a white one with red coloring, the same as my current car... it was a VERY reasonable price but i let a friend talk me out of it.. and once again... i regret it big time

Alvin · 07-31-2014, 10:07 AM

Edit: Large Test Drive Image HERE

Alvin · 07-31-2014, 10:15 AM

What?!!!

Alvin · 07-31-2014, 10:26 AM

Check this out for some new sales lot photos of Macho and "Lost & Found" story below:

Lost and Found, A 1979 Macho Trans Am #36
http://brianesser.com/2013/03/lost-a...o-trans-am-36/

original forum Q & A: Pontiac Macho T/A DKM setting in field
http://www.yellowbullet.com/forum/sh...d.php?t=559480

2manyT/A'S · 07-31-2014, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alvin

What?!!!

I like it....except for the mudflaps......

Got any pics of the front?

Alvin · 07-31-2014, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2manyT/A'S

I like it....except for the mudflaps......

Got any pics of the front?

Hey! I had those paint saving mudflaps too back in the day!

No front shots of the topless DKM, instead, IIRC this was one of MECHAM's personal cars?
But, I could be wrong (again)!

muscle_collector · 08-01-2014, 12:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alvin

Hey! I had those paint saving mudflaps too back in the day!

No front shots of the topless DKM, instead, IIRC this was one of MECHAM's personal cars?
But, I could be wrong (again)!

that is actually his wifes car new. I owned it until about 10 years ago I sold it to loren in Missouri who did an outstanding job restoring it.

TransAm 474 · 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alvin

Hey! I had those paint saving mudflaps too back in the day!

No front shots of the topless DKM, instead, IIRC this was one of MECHAM's personal cars?
But, I could be wrong (again)!

Yes,you are correct....this particular car was Dennis Mecham's ,wifes personal car,and the only white/black paint scheme in 1978...it is #142,my cousin owned it for a few years while he completely restored it.My brother done all the body/paint work on that car,I even had a hand at helping sand it down and I also done all the polishing on those wheels with a rotory polisher and lots of hours. My dad built both the motor and transmission in it for him. The car was acquired by my cousin from a guy out of Oklahoma,turned out to be a beautiful car when finished. My brother also bought a 1979 Macho T/A from the same guy in Oklahoma,it was #43 Gold with Black graphics,it is also the only gold/black sheme known to exist in 1979, it was a 400/4spd. my brother sold it to another guy that owns a car lot,and it went back to Oklahoma,so the last ive heard on that car is that its setting in a showroom somewhere around Tulsa I believe. I love the life stories of these cars :-)