camaro vs trans am

sorry for my noob question but performance wise which one is better.

hp
handling
more fun to drive
are the 3 general ones i am wondering about

Their basicaly the same car just different body.

Yea they pretty much have the same driveline with the difference being in the interior and exterior design.

guys i hate to say it but i have both and i think the WS6 trans am will out perform the camaro. my brothers ta seems like a corvette compared to the camaro. it accelerates quicker two. and when pontiac put 150 on the spedo's in the 305 cars it wasnt for looks, it would do 150+

It has the exact same engine and transmission. How would it be any faster?? Trans Ams(thirdgens anyways) usually weigh more than camaros also because of the fancy digital dash and leather that was more common on GTAs than in the camaros.

It has the exact same engine and transmission. How would it be any faster?? Trans Ams(thirdgens anyways) usually weigh more than camaros also because of the fancy digital dash and leather that was more common on GTAs than in the camaros.

i can not tell you why but they are or my brothers is just faster

also his ta holds a curve better.

Are you comparing the same kind of cars?? Compare a regular trans am to a 1LE camaro and see what happens. If the options arent the same whats the point in compairing?

the TA's have a lower co-efficent of drag, allowing them to reach a higher top speed. are a little more rare, and look alot beter IMO.

My take is the Pontiac will always be nicer in some way. Some were very fast and no Camaro came with the SD (Thanks, Burt). Chevrolet seems to be the economy model. All of the GM siblings seem like the better refined models with more luxury and options, Olds, Buick, Pontiac... and then there's Cadillac. People associate more with Chevrolet because it's the popular model due to the economy factor. They used different engines back in the day. Things wouldn't interchange, and sbc became even more popular.http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/images/smilies/2cents.gif

Trans am hands down no one gives pont that much credit but yea TA

hp = is pretty much the same, no one has the advantage anymore, maybe back when they used seperate engines, but back then the camaro was faster.

handling = i would say equil, or give it to the camaro due to the firechickens tendency to be heavier

fun to drive = gotta say, im not a fan of extras. im a simple man, i like my cars simple, thats why i drive older ones, i hate all the gidgets and doodads in todays cars, so the fact that the camaro is more of a car than a radio shack makes it more fun to drive for me.

performance = like i said back in the 60's it was the camaro hands down, as the years have gone on, i would have to give it to the firebird. but by the time they ended the gap was very small, but in the pontiac corner non-the less.

as far as third gens go, the T/A's and formulas did have a higher top speed, nothing to do with drag though, chevy put a limeter on the camaro pontiac didn't on the chicken. As far as handling goes, I've driven both cars from each generation, and I'd have to say the camaro handles a bit better.
As for the fourth gens especialy the LS1 cars you really can't compair a T/A with a Z-28, most of the LS1 T/A's where ram air cars, as far as I can recall anyways, so you have to compair it to an SS, and I've seen many a SS beat an Ram air T/A.

also his ta holds a curve better.

Lay off this kid. He is probly really young and just doenst know any better. You take a 4th Gen Trans Am and Camaro. 98-02 same motor, same transmission, weigh almost the same. Trans Am a tad bit HEAVIER. same thing with 3rd Gens 80's model to 1992. They are both the same car, just diffrent in design. If you like the Camaro look, go Camaro, you like Trans Am go trans am. your brothers trans am is fasther because it has either a diffrent motor(diffrent year model) or he has is modded up more. (bigger cam, maybe heads, long tube headers) I had a 01Z28 that would have blown those Trans Am's doors off.

i agree, same car just different bumpers, the doors are the same, stock for stock its gonna be on the driver. if it hung a hell of a curve the man probably just knows how to drive his car to be honest. i just cant see one performing any better than the other, i bet the 1/4 and 0-60 times are the same. someone post those if they have them.

guys i hate to say it but i have both and i think the WS6 trans am will out perform the camaro. my brothers ta seems like a corvette compared to the camaro. it accelerates quicker two. and when pontiac put 150 on the spedo's in the 305 cars it wasnt for looks, it would do 150+


I tried puttign my 3rdgen with my 350 up against my friends TA 6.6 403 big block and dayumn..He ate me up. I have like 6 k invested into my car and he's using the original engine has very few mods. Just a carb and intake with some full run headers. I don't know what the 6.6 is producing but it was enough to beat me from take off , roll on and top end.

I tried puttign my 3rdgen with my 350 up against my friends TA 6.6 403 big block and dayumn..He ate me up. I have like 6 k invested into my car and he's using the original engine has very few mods. Just a carb and intake with some full run headers. I don't know what the 6.6 is producing but it was enough to beat me from take off , roll on and top end.

the 6.6's in the 77's produced 220-240 rwhp.

HAHAHA!!!! Trans am verus my 89 Iroc 305 orginal motor? Trans am 305 vs Camaro 305.. Comon dude take a hint, its depends on what kinda motor you have, if its a fuel injector, camaro r gonna blow the trans am bigggg time, if its a carbreutor, then its a pretty close call.. Tell ya what, i blown the trans am about 3 seconds on the drag race in Madison. Trans am is just a luxury car.

some of you guys are really splitting hairs. The cars are the same when comparing like models. No one cares if a trans am weighs 10 lbs more or a camaro has more drag. Find one you like, buy it, drive it love it.

ciao

since when is a TA a luxury car?

I tried puttign my 3rdgen with my 350 up against my friends TA 6.6 403 big block and dayumn..He ate me up. I have like 6 k invested into my car and he's using the original engine has very few mods. Just a carb and intake with some full run headers. I don't know what the 6.6 is producing but it was enough to beat me from take off , roll on and top end.
The 6.6 403 was an Olds small block rated at a whopping 185HP from the factory (I used to own a 79 T/A with one) I traded it in on my IROC back in 85 and the IROC would make mincemeat out of that T/A.

since when is a TA a luxury car?

yea im definitely with this guy, who told you a T/A is a luxury car.
its far from it if you ask me.

just my:2cents:

LS1 Trans Am's and Camaro's are all about even.

The WS.6 and SS have slightly less restrictive exhaust, and slightly better handling. Most put down identical numbers on a dyno, and run close to the same times at the track.

And the WS.6 option was not on most 98+ Trans Am's. On about 5,000 of them a year.

maybe he went more luxurious in comparison to the camaro

well i saw a consumer report or somethign like that talking about how the firebird as a heavier front end (with the headlights and the "sholders") the camaro came in first then the stang then teh TA/firebird

link? headlights making a big difference. lol.

if someone asks this in the firebird fourms i guarantee everyone there will make dumbass excuses up to say they are better.

its the same car, different fenders, different hood, and different rear and front end's. only body things.

trashing one annother is like trashing your left testicle (no idea why i said testicle lol).

now Rustangs on teh other hand!!! ;-) lol

The 6.6 403 was an Olds small block rated at a whopping 185HP from the factory (I used to own a 79 T/A with one) I traded it in on my IROC back in 85 and the IROC would make mincemeat out of that T/A.


If that's the case then I doubt it was a stock motor. I just knew even from a 2500 stall launch I couldn't keep up with him.

If that's the case then I doubt it was a stock motor. I just knew even from a 2500 stall launch I couldn't keep up with him.

Another thing about the 79 T/A. They came with 2:71 rears..no good for fast launching.
If he beat a 3rd gen..it probably wasn't even the Olds 403 in the car. The 403 while being a nice engine, it couldn't be built for real power. The biggest limiter for that engine were the "windowed" main webs. Instead of being solid they had "windows" in them, which reduced weight, but also greatly reduced strength. If you tried to get big Hp out of that block, you'd end up breaking the mains. Also because of the siamesed cylinders you can only over bore .040" before havng cooling problems.

link? headlights making a big difference. lol.

if someone asks this in the firebird fourms i guarantee everyone there will make dumbass excuses up to say they are better.

its the same car, different fenders, different hood, and different rear and front end's. only body things.

trashing one annother is like trashing your left testicle (no idea why i said testicle lol).

now Rustangs on teh other hand!!! ;-) lol

hey i'm not trashing i'm just telling what i read. i personaly like both my dad has a 2001 firebird and i have a 97 camaro and they drive the same. (except for the power of course)

Another thing about the 79 T/A. They came with 2:71 rears..no good for fast launching.
If he beat a 3rd gen..it probably wasn't even the Olds 403 in the car. The 403 while being a nice engine, it couldn't be built for real power. The biggest limiter for that engine were the "windowed" main webs. Instead of being solid they had "windows" in them, which reduced weight, but also greatly reduced strength. If you tried to get big Hp out of that block, you'd end up breaking the mains. Also because of the siamesed cylinders you can only over bore .040" before havng cooling problems.

I see.. well when I looked under his hood it was a rusty POS engine under there lookign all hella original. the car itself was the 6.6 model for sure as it was plastered all over the plate 6.6 this and 6.6 that. He didn't really have anything impressive , some plug wires were about the coolest thing visible. maybe it was a 409 or something ? I don't know I just know it looked all hella stock like and it smoked me.

I see.. well when I looked under his hood it was a rusty POS engine under there lookign all hella original. the car itself was the 6.6 model for sure as it was plastered all over the plate 6.6 this and 6.6 that. He didn't really have anything impressive , some plug wires were about the coolest thing visible.
A sleeper. Old street racing trick. The decals don't mean anything, all of the 79 T/A's had em.

i love sleepers :) had a 77 olds delta 88 that absolutely castrated all the little imports around here, it was fun. :evillol:

i didnt know imports had balls to begin with

ferarri, lamborgini, aston marton, BMW, Mercedies, nawww, imports dont have balls ;)

They are basically the same car. HOWEVER, if you compare any of the newer models (I consider that anything with a LT1 or LS1 motor), the TA almost always out performs the Camaros.. but it's not by much at all. I have no idea why, but it happens.

Rob

when u say imports i think of small shit boxs not the supercars. especially where i live import means small shit box. i have seen one lambo on the street in my life and one ferrari testarossa(sp) parked in one of the worst areas in chicago. for anyone who lives in chicago its about a few miles from the united center off madison on the corners of sacramento/madison. during the time i have seen these cars i have seen 5 different dodge vipers. lots of 3rd gen camaros, 2 chargers 3 mustang saleens 1 grand national, 2 wrx(dont know if those are in same class as ferrari and lambo. lets see what else a garbage truck with spinners. a few vettes with blowers. too many 4th gen camaros/mustangs 5 chevy ssr. 2 crossfires and 1 knight rider clone trans am. so to me import means small shit hole likes civic cause thats all i ever see

i was just bein a snot about the imports ;) i knew what yall were talkin about.

genarally the ls1 ta's have a slight edge numerically on the ls1 camaros's plus i think they look cooler

genarally the ls1 ta's have a slight edge numerically on the ls1 camaros's plus i think they look cooler

Track only.

They put down roughly the same numbers, they run roughly the same times at the track. For some reason, the Trans Am's seem to be 'on average' slighty quicker. Must be something in suspension, or weight.

they are the same damn car... geez...

you guys do split hairs as someone above said...

with a production american made car, you can find big differences in the SAME car let alone it's sibling car... Take any 2 trans am's and race them, and tell me that they will always finish dead even... same with camaro's...

even if you compared engine to engine out of trans ams and camaro's, I highly doubt out of 10 you would find any two who dyno exactly alike... The same motor might even vary by 5-10 hp on consecutive runs...

the factory hp rating is an average hp output of the engines... Enough made that power for them to market it as such, but not every made that much,a nd some made more... regardless of it being in a trans am or a camaro... Think about it, it's a chevy engine, why would chevy make it "faster" for the t/a... give me a break...

if you can find ONE part for any 4th gen, and probably any 3rd gen that does not fit BOTH cars, (besides body/interior), then I'd like to see it... All of their factory parts are interchangeable because they are the SAME...

[/rant]

if you can find ONE part for any 4th gen, and probably any 3rd gen that does not fit BOTH cars, (besides body/interior), then I'd like to see it... All of their factory parts are interchangeable because they are the SAME...

WS.6 airbox. Although it would probably fit the Camaro's. Might not do any good though.
There are very slight differences in the cars mechanically, if any. I do believe the "ram air" of the WS.6 is better for getting air into the motor, which might explain the very slight advantage down the track.

airboxes are the same, well, with the SS anyway. Putting the WS6 airbox on a base camaro is the same as putting the WS6 airbox on a formula.

Think about it, it's a chevy engine, why would chevy make it "faster" for the t/a... give me a break...




maybe because pontiac has always been GM's performance branch (not really so much nowadays)

also, not all 79 T/As came with the 403, some came with the poncho 400, and some with the SD455!

the different air box is a result of the differently shaped hood... not any functional advantage...

also, while ram air is "nice" it is no better than a good CAI in a non ram air car... to effectively "boost" air into the engine you'd have to be doing well over 150mph...

it does provide an advantage over stock air boxed cars in that it allows for cooler fresher air to be pulled into the intake... This can be resolved with a CAI as mentioned above...

Also, pontiac is not GM's performance branch and never was... pontiac guys like to think that though to make themselves feel special... :)

if DeLorean's prototype for the the Firebird was built, we'd be like "whats a corvette?" and camaro would be the red-headed stepchild, as always =P

maybe because pontiac has always been GM's performance branch (not really so much nowadays)

also, not all 79 T/As came with the 403, some came with the poncho 400, and some with the SD455!
The T/A in 79 came with the 403...the 400 Pontiac engine (T/A 6.6) came in the silver anniversary edition T/A those were the only 2 engines in the 79 T/A's....And NO 79 T/A ever had a 455 SD..EVER. The 455 SD's were only ever put in the 73 & 74 T/A's, after that the molds for their special block were scrapped.

True Morley:
The Pontiac Version of the 400 V8 from 77-79 was rated at a higher HP then the Olds version...185 to 220 HP...In those days the T/A's did have an advantage vs the Z-28's using only the 350's...

From 93 up the LT1's were on both cars...I doubt much seperated them in terms of speed or handling...But as mentioned earlier, some cars are just better from the factory...

I think the 3rd Gen Z-28's/Iroc's had a better intake then the Pontiac's...

Someone should have a link to a page that shows o-60 times & 1/4 miles for all versions? Anyone?

I think the 3rd Gen Z-28's/Iroc's had a better intake then the Pontiac's...


Not really "intake"", the air inlet on the Chevy TPI's were better compaired to the Pontiac. The Chevy had the inlet at the front of the car, directly in front of the throttle body with no bends after the filters. The pontiac on the other hand had the filter sitting in a restrictive "can" at the front of the RH fender with a tube that had 2 90 degree bends in it after the filter. The 85 IROC TPI was rated at 215 HP, the T/A's TPI was rated at 205 HP, due to the restrictive air inlet.
Times were as follows for 1985

IROC-Z, 0-60 MPH: 6.9 seconds. Standing 1/4 mile: 15.30 seconds

Trans AM, 0-60 MPH 7.6 seconds. Standing 1/4 mile: 15.60 seconds

Times were taken from this page http://members.optushome.com.au/ozfbody/mods/perfdb/perf.html
Notice the IROC-Z laways had the higher HP numbers and better times...same engines just different inlet tracts.

I would say that my opinion would be its all about taste. As said before they are basically the same car with a different look. Personally I would perfer a Trans Am from 1st, 2nd, and 4th gen, and Camaro in the 3rd gen. I wasn't real fond of the look of the 3rd gen trans ams. If you are looking at performance and handeling, it would all depend on how its set up. I know my 86 Iroc Z28 handels better then my friends 89 RS, but that only makes sense considering all the differences in engine and suspention.

I have to make one correction in my own statement though. I do like the 3rd gen Trans Ams that have T-tops... they dont look to bad.