Category: Debut

1980 AMC Eagle station wagon

This post was one of the first I wrote for this blog. Substantially revised and updated, it’s now also about twice as long.

“The Eagle has landed … on all fours!”

Essentially (and brilliantly) an AMC Concord with 4-wheel drive, the 1980 Eagle was available in all of the Concord’s body styles, so buyers had a choice between the 2-door sedan, the 4-door sedan, and the 4-door station wagon. The Eagle had a 3-inch taller ride height than the Concord and came with a stone/gravel deflector under the front bumper and 3-inch wide fender flares.

The Eagle came standard with AMC’s 110 bhp 4.2 liter/258 ci inline six with a two-barrel carburetor. A three-speed automatic was the only transmission available to help move the a vehicle with a 3,740-pound curb weight. Car and Driver recorded a 0-60 time of 13.2 seconds. Fuel economy ratings were 16 city/19 highway by the day’s standards. With a 22-gallon gas tank, an Eagle owner could expect a range of 285 to 310 miles with a 10% fuel reserve.

Station wagon page from the 1980 AMC Eagle brochure
Station wagon page from the 1980 AMC Eagle brochure

The AMC Eagle station wagon’s base price was $7,549—about $32,600 in 2025 dollars or a little over what a 2025 Dodge Hornet GT AWD goes for. Standard exterior and mechanical equipment included pinstriping, power assisted recirculating ball steering, power front disk/rear drum brakes, and P195/75R15 glass belted radial white sidewall tires on 15-inch pressed steel wheels with styled wheel covers. Inside, individual reclining front seats in Sport vinyl, a folding rear seatback, cargo area carpeting and skid strips, and an electronic digital quartz clock were included.

Moving to the Limited trim level (an extra $400 or so) added individual reclining front seats in Chelsea leather or St. Lauren deep plush fabric, a Luxury woodgrain tilt steering wheel, power door locks, an AM radio, and a lockable cargo area storage compartment. The Limited also included Light Group, Visibility Group, Convenience Group, and Protection Group.

One Package, Individual Options, & Production Numbers

Only available with the 2-door sedan and the station wagon, the Sport Package ($299) included high beam halogen headlamps, Sport fog lamps, dual black remote mirrors, and P195/75R15 Goodyear Tiempo steel belted radial black sidewall tires. Inside, Durham Plaid fabric seat trim and a leather-wrapped steering wheel were added. Body pinstriping was deleted, and AMC blacked out everything they could think of—the bumpers (adding nerf strips), the grill, the windshield, the door frames, the lower body moldings (adding 4×4 graphics), the B pillar, the rear liftgate, and the rear taillamp assembly.

Individual options included tinted glass for all windows ($63), air conditioning ($513), cruise control, an electric rear window defroster ($89), and power windows combined with power door locks ($289). Wagon-specific options included woodgrain bodyside panels, a roof rack ($90), and a rear window wiper/washer. An AM/FM multiplex stereo radio was $236.

The Eagle was a significant hit for AMC in 1980, selling over 46,000 units, with the station wagon configuration selling about 56% of that total. AMC would sell them through the 1988 model year for a total of almost 200,000 built.

The View From 2025

AMC Eagles show up with some consistency in the Hemmings Motor News classifieds, on eBay Motors, and on Bring a Trailer. As I update this blog entry in October 2025, there are no 1980 Eagles, but there is a White 1984 station wagon with 141,000 miles for sale on Hemmings, asking $11,900.

Make mine Russet Metallic, please.

Other AMC/Jeep products I have written about include the 1982 Jeep CJ-8 Scrambler pickup truck, the 1983 Jeep Wagoneer Limited SUV, and the 1983 Renault Alliance sedan.

Last updated October 2025

1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am hatchback coupe

“From saber-like nose to rakish tail, the Trans Am is a brilliant orchestration of aerodynamic function.”

It is hard now to remember how new and wildly aerodynamic the 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am looked when it debuted—Car and Driver wrote that its “exterior sculpturing is an absolute knockout.” The Trans Am suddenly made every other American car (and more than a few European ones) look like they were standing still.

The Trans Am didn’t just look aerodynamic, either: the drag coefficient of .323 is still respectable even in 2025. Pontiac’s choice of pop-up headlights (over the Camaro’s open headlights) and careful airflow tuning yielded an impressive result. According to Autopolis’ excellent article on the 1980-1981 Turbo Trans Am, the third-generation Trans Am’s distinctive hood bulge was intended for a turbocharged V8.

Unfortunately, the mechanicals did not come close to backing up the looks. The top-of-the-line engine for the Trans Am was the LU5 Cross-Fire 165 bhp 5.0 liter/305 ci V8 with throttle-body fuel injection—and that was only available with a three-speed automatic transmission, yielding about a nine-second zero to sixty time (Motor Trend managed to do it in 8.89 seconds). If you wanted the four-speed manual transmission, the best engine choice available on the Trans Am was the base LG4 145 bhp 5.0 liter/305 ci V8 with a four-barrel carburetor—and approximately ten seconds from 0 to 60 mph.

These performance challenges, however, did not prevent Pontiac from implying the world in its commercials for the Trans Am—and having Richard Basehart do the narration.

Standard exterior and mechanical equipment on the $9,658 Trans Am (about $33,500 in today’s dollars) included power brakes (front disc/rear drum), hidden electronically-controlled halogen headlamps, dual sport mirrors, an all-glass rear hatch, a rear decklid spoiler, and 205/70R14 steel-belted radial tires (still a readily available size) on 14-inch turbo cast-aluminum wheels. Inside, reclining front bucket seats, a folding rear seat, a Formula steering wheel, and side window defoggers were included.

Options & Production Numbers

Cover of the 1982 Pontiac Firebird brochure
Cover of the 1982 Pontiac Firebird brochure

Options included a special performance package ($387 bought you the special handling package, four-wheel disc brakes, and 215/65R15 blackwall tires on 15 x 7 aluminum wheels), tinted glass, a rear hatch washer/wiper, power windows ($165), power door locks ($106), a tilt steering wheel ($95), and air conditioning ($675).

Pontiac sold 52,962 Trans Ams in the 1982 model year, with 2,000 of those having the Recaro package.

The View From 2025

Third-generation Firebirds have a strong following, and 1982 Trans Ams appear regularly in the Hemming’s Motor News classifieds, on eBay Motors, and on Bring a Trailer. According to Hagerty’s valuation tools, a 1982 Trans Am with the Cross-Fire engine, the Recaro package, and T-tops in #1/Concours condition is $34,600, with a more normal #3/Good base Trans Am going for $9,800.

Please make mine Black, but I think I’d hold out for the 1983 version and its five-speed manual transmission/190 bhp L69 HO engine combination.

I evidently can’t help myself with eighties Trans Ams; I’ve written about the 1981, the 1984, the 1985, and the 1989 Turbo. I have also written about the 1986 SE and the 1987 Formula, but I probably should write about the base car at some point.

Last updated November 2025.

1985 Ferrari Testarossa coupe

When it debuted for the 1985 model, the Ferrari Testarossa had big shoes to fill—it replaced the undeniably beautiful Berlinetta Boxer, which itself had replaced the undeniably beautiful Daytona.

testarossaintake
Close up of the “cheese grater” side strakes on the Ferrari Testarossa.

Sergio Pininfarina’s styling for the Testarossa was not undeniably beautiful, but it definitely was striking. The defining feature was the side strakes covering the radiator intakes, often referred to as “cheese graters.”

The strakes were at least functional, feeding the two side radiators that cooled the Bosch K-Jetronic port fuel-injected 4.9 liter/302 ci 380 bhp flat 12 cylinder engine—crazy power for the mid-1980s. Mileage (not that the target market cared) was flat-out awful—10 city/15 highway by the day’s standards (9/14 by today’s standards). At least the 30.4-gallon gas tank meant you could go around 315 to 340 miles before looking for more fuel.

The Testarossa was a Ferrari that reflected the times—it was big (almost six inches wider and 200 pounds heavier than the Berlinetta Boxer it replaced) and flashy. It was also pricey; at $90,000 and up (over $272,000 in 2025 dollars), four times as expensive as a 1985 Corvette (not that too many buyers were cross-shopping the two). You did get at least a little comfort for your money—air conditioning, power seats, and power windows were all standard.

There continues to be disagreement over how good a car—or, more importantly, how good a Ferrari—the Testarossa was. It was undoubtedly fast: 0-60 came in 5.2 seconds, and top speed was about 180 mph.

The View From 2025

There is strong club support for the Testarossa, as there is for all Ferraris. According to Hagerty’s valuation tools, all the money for a 1985 Testarossa in #1/Concours condition is $253,000, with a more “normal” (if any Ferrari can be normal) #3/Good condition car going for $106,000. You see them advertised in the Hemming’s Motor News classifieds, though often it’s a notice of an auction. Bring a Trailer also auctions a reasonable amount of Testarossas.

Make mine that same Rosso Corsa, with the tan interior. My ex-wife prefers the “Miami Vice” white, but I think Testarossas (along with many Ferraris) left our list forever when she found out that you or your very expensive mechanic have to remove the engine from the car to do a “major service” every five years or 30,000 miles.

Other eighties Ferraris I have written about include the 1983 Berlinetta Boxer 512i coupe and the 1985 308 GTB Quattrovalvole coupe.

Updated in March 2025.