1986 PONTIAC DEALER PRODUCT ORDERING MANUAL

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Here is the Firebird chapter of the 1986 Pontiac Dealer Product Manual. These books were leather backed three ring binders given to the Pontiac dealers to familiarize the sales staff with the new model year products, defining what options were available, what colors, etc. and providing a work sheet to special order customer cars when necessary. Most of these books were thrown away at the end of the model year which is a real shame since they give a lot of information and a keen insight into what it was like when these Firebirds were brand new. Not every dealer product manual was thrown away; a few managed to survive and made their way to various literature collectors. I was lucky enough to purchase mine off of Ebay for a pittance of $40 and it was worth every penny. There's some very good info here which I'm willing to share with the other 1986 Firebird owners, information which should also be of great interest to any fan of the third generation Firebird. Maybe you can find one of these manuals for the model year Firebird that you own. If you can, congrats! If not, well, maybe someone else will scan in theirs like I have done so you can share in the information. Given the scans below, you can find out what RPO codes meant as well as what color (and GM color number) that your car was painted from the factory.

Each image shown below links to another, much larger image stored on the site. The worksheet (parts A and B) links to even larger images due to the small writing found on this form. Scans were done by removing individual pages from the protective three ring binder direct and digitizing them on a HP flat bed scanner. The date of publication for this book is listed as "8/85" or August of 1985.

DUTY NOW FOR THE FUTURE- What is interesting to note here is that the black and white picture of the "1986 TA" shown at the top of page F1 is not a 1986 Trans Am at all, but rather it is a 1987 model Pontiac Firebird Trans Am (and not a regular 1986 production model). Enthusiasts will note that in 1986 Pontiac mounted the third brake light (CHMSL Center High Mount Stop Lamp) in an aerodynamic barbette on top of the rear hatch (see the black Firebird in the foreground on page F0). 1986 was the first year for the CHMSL and the only year that the CHMSL was mounted on the exterior of the rear glass hatch at the roof line. 1987 and later models of Firebird either mounted the CHMSL in the middle of the rear spoiler or up high inside the rear hatch in a special underslung pod under the glass itself. So... what we are seeing pictured here in a 1986 dealer manual is actually a production based 1987 Trans Am and the customer could not have ordered this rear wing / CHMSL combo if they tried. A sharp scrutiny of the "tag" on the Trans Am appears to show that the tag was carefully added by hand to the picture and is not actually on the car itself. 1987 and later years saw the CHMSL moved to a much smaller pod located in the center of the rear aerowing spoiler (which ruined the "flow-through" looks of the 1987 and later aerowing). Just an observation that not many would pick up on.

I must apologize for the somewhat (IMHO) poor scan of the dealer Firebird order form. The form that came with the three ring binder was itself a poor reproduction of a poor reproduction. The copy of the form had been photocopied crooked and subsequently had had three holes punched in it to allow the form to be re-included in the binder. Those three holes destroyed some very critical text on the form, text which I had to repair or recreate wholesale. Where the original form is, who knows (long, long gone which is a tragedy) but I hope that the repair work I was able to carry out is satisfactory to the visitors who view this 20 plus year old document.

The original version of the form was missing and only this copy of a copy was present when I received the book. I spent the better part of an hour scanning, nudging, fixing, repairing and even sometimes completely rewriting whole sections of the form. If some of the text looks a "little" off, that is probably a section I had to repair (due to their being a big hole punched through the section, fading from time, etc.). Overall, I was pleased with the final result of reconstructing a 20 year old official form and being able to present it to you, the enthusiast.

I hope you enjoy these images and this look into the unique adventure of being able to order one of these cars, spec'ing it to your desire, 20 years ago when the 1986 Firebirds were brand new (and still just arriving fresh off of the auto transporters and into the dealer showrooms).

Click any image below to go to a much larger format image.

FIREBIRD CHAPTER INTRO PICTURE 1986 FIREBIRD SE (WITH AVAILABLE HATCH ROOF) 1986 FIREBIRD	1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F1
1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F2	1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F3
1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F4	1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F5
1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F6	1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F7
1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F8	1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F9
1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F10	1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F11
NICE SHOT OF THE NEW FOR 1986 DIGITAL DASH OPTION FOR THE PONTIAC FIREBIRD TRANS AM 1986 DEALER ORDERING INFORMATION PAGE F12
1986 FIREBIRD CAR ORDER WORKSHEET - FIREBIRD, FIREBIRD SE & FIREBIRD TRANS AM FORM 6504-516-4 SIDE A 8/85 SECOND PRINTING
1986 FIREBIRD CAR ORDER WORKSHEET - FIREBIRD, FIREBIRD SE & FIREBIRD TRANS AM FORM 6504-516-4 SIDE B

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