#the entire month of June I was not able to give myself any t injections and I got my period on my birthday

[jasperyourmutt]

Thank fucking god for doctors who give a shit about your health. I just met my new doctor who is going to be prescribing my T and I feel so relieved to have someone who actually CARES

[smoothshift]

2000 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am - My Ownership Experience via /r/cars

2000 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am - My Ownership Experience

Hello all, I’m bored and home sick right now so I decided to write a review of my ownership of my 2000 Trans Am. A little background on the 4th gen F body real quick. The 4th generation Firebird and camaro began in 1993. You could have the 160 HP 3.4L V6 or the 275 HP LT1 V8. V8 manuals featured the new T56 6 speed transmission. The F bodies were face lifted in 1998, along with new power train options. The 3800 V6, or the legendary LS1 V8. This facelifted V8 era F body are highly sought after and have been going up in value. The official HP rating of the LS1 F bodies is 305-325 with 340-350 lb-ft of torque, but dyno tests on stock vehicles show them making as little as 290 HP to the wheels, indicating that the factory rating is under-rated, most likely to prevent drawing sales away from the Corvette (rated 340-350 HP). From 1998 to 1999, the LS1 had EGR and the original style LS1 intake manifold. In 2000, the exhaust manifolds were redesigned to flow better, increasing the power slightly, then in 2001, EGR was eliminated and the LS6 intake manifold was used, maxing out the factory HP ratings. The cars were killed in 2002 due to difficulty in passing safety regulations (from what I’ve heard).

Now into the actual review. My car is a 2000 Trans Am with the T56 manual transmission. I purchased it in June 2016 at 99k miles for $5800 and it currently sits at a hair under 112k. The car is in bright red and has a black interior. Great combination in my opinion.

As soon as I purchased it, I drove it home for the first time with the window down. Not by choice however, but because I lowered the window briefly and the motor decided to crap out then and there. Welcome to late model GM ownership! I was able to get the window back up the next morning by slamming the door several times while holding the switch, then I ordered new Dorman window motors for both sides for just over $30 each. Replacement took about 3 hours the first time, then 45 minutes for the other side once I knew what to do. The OEM motors are riveted in, and you have to drill them out and use nuts and bolts to replace the rivets. After that, I had 2 working window motors again! I then ordered a set of NGK TR55 spark plugs and MSD super conductor wires. I read up on spark plug change beforehand and read of all the horror stories of replacing plug number 8 (back of the passenger side) due to it being underneath the windshield and crammed between the chassis. I personally had no trouble getting to it. Removal of the air injection pipe and the coil packs on top of the valve cover, and a 1 inch extension on my spark plug socket, while crouching on top of the radiator support, made it easy work.

Working on this car is actually very easy. People like to give this car shit for being cramped, but I did not mind it at all. Then again, I grew up learning how to wrench on a Z32 300ZX! Parts are also fairly cheap, I picked up new OEM ACDelco water pump and alternator for about $100 each, and it also ended up needing a power steering pump for less than that. It also needed tires, so I upgraded to some OEWheelsLLC C7 style 17” wheels and put BFGoodrich Gforce comp2 all season 275/40ZR17 tires on. It made a huge difference over the no name 245 tires it had previously. Stock tire size is adequate for the V6, but the LS1 is a little overwhelming for them, and a 275 upgrade is necessary for the V8s. The WS6 did come with 275 in the rear only, but not the Trans Am or Formula. My car has the upgraded “Monsoon” sound system. It sucks. 3/6 speakers are blown and I have to keep the bass on zero just to make it usable. I don’t care though, I have a Borla sound system!

That takes me to the exhaust. The LS1 is entirely different from the original small block chevy and shares maybe 1 bolt with it. It doesn’t have the old school deep grumble glugluglugluglugluglug you expect from a 5.7L American V8. Instead, the even firing order gives it a much more steady, and modern growl that turns into almost a roar as you go through the RPM. I’ve never heard stock exhaust on this car, so I can’t comment on that, but I’m talking about how it sounds with my rather aggressive Borla. It is only a catback, it has stock headers and cats and Y pipe. And honestly, the sound it has now is almost perfect. It’s not too loud but it’s loud enough that it makes you giggle. Any louder and it would be too annoying.

The interior of the car feels like sitting in a fisher-price toy. It’s all hard cheap plastic. The seats are leather but they ripped on mine, hence the seat covers. I find the seats particularly uncomfortable, and usually can’t stand driving the car for more than 30 minutes at a time without needing to get out and stretch. The back of the seat curves towards the back and puts you at a slouching angle. Side bolsters are ok, but they don’t really hold you in too great, I find myself bracing my leg against the sides to keep me in place around fast turns. I think the black interior looks cool, but in any other color it looks ugly and has an inescapable “old car” look.

As far as issues with the car, well I’ve already addressed the window motors, by far the most common issue. Another issue that everyone is always asking about: the headlight motors. Well I hate to disappoint you, but my headlight motors have worked 100% since I got the car and I’ve never even had a single hiccup with them. The T tops leak, as you can imagine. My car has new T top seals but that doesn’t matter, it’s inevitable. They did it when the cars were brand new. If I’m stopped in the rain it will drip on the door a little bit, but it stops once you start moving and the rain doesn’t hit on top of the car. I dealt with a power steering leak that appeared to be coming from the pump, so I replaced the pump and then experienced more leakage a few months later. It began as a single drip every few days, to topping off the fluid every other week, and I finally realized that something may be wrong when I was leaving trails (yes, trails) of power steering fluid everywhere I went. I was topping it off before every drive, and it would be bone dry every time I filled it. It turned out to be a $15 high pressure hose. I replaced that this fall and haven’t had a leak since then.

Now onto the performance. Yes it’s fast. LS1s in a 3400 pound car tend to do that. Now I’m sure we’ve all heard the old “American cars can’t handle!” Well, you’re dead wrong. The only suspension modifications I’ve done apart from the tires were polyurethane sway bar end links, and UMI performance rear control arms to eliminate wheel hop (not really even a handling mod). It can take highway ramps at 55+ mph without breaking a sweat. Now there is some truth to that old saying. I’ve driven my friend’s 2002 Mustang GT and it handles like a sack of potatoes. But the F bodies sit a little lower than the mustangs and have a better suspension setup with SLA strut up front as opposed to the mustang’s modified MacPherson struts, and a 50/50 weight distribution. And with a square stance 275 tires on all 4 corners, it stops on a dime. Now, the brake pedal does take some encouragement, it’s got good bite but there’s a dead zone in the travel where it doesn’t do much. I chalk it up to the rubber hoses flexing, and I think steel braided hose would solve that, as it did on my 1990 Chevy K2500. But if you slam that brake, you’re gonna have seatbelt marks on your chest. I have never been able to engage the ABS on dry pavement.

My overall score for the car is 4.5/5. The only things I don’t like about the car are in the interior. Cheap hard plastic, and slouchy uncomfortable seats. Other than that, it’s a fantastic car and I love it. It’s fast, it’s loud, and it’s definitely a head-turner in that bright red color! I’ve had plenty of men in their 50s-60s give me the thumbs up or ask me if it’s got “the 350” in it. It gets surprisingly very good gas mileage. I get close to, if not, 30 mpg on the PA turnpike. With these aerodynamics, and a 6th gear ratio of .5:1 (~1500 RPM at 70 mph) it makes sense. There’s an unlimited aftermarket to allow you to turn this thing into a street cruiser, dragster, or autocrosser. These cars have so much performance potential for the money.

The car is for sale in NJ if anyone is interested feel free to message me.