1996 Pontiac Firebird and Trans Am: The WS6 Ram Air Returns

For 1996 the WS6 Ram Air package returned on the Trans Am, this record's own overview states: the Pontiac Trans Am Page counts 2,051 WS6 coupes and 41 convertibles, the key fact this record leads with, while MuscleCarClub's table gives 30,937 Firebirds in all. That total split 17,773 base coupes, 976 base convertibles, 3,033 Formula coupes, 302 Formula convertibles, 7,936 Trans Am coupes and 917 Trans Am convertibles, and this record's own production notes flag that the Pontiac Trans Am Page's own Trans Am coupe figure of 6,802 does not reconcile with MuscleCarClub's 7,936, so its WS6 rows are carried as single-source package figures rather than folded into the model total.^1,2

A CompNine VIN-database count runs to only 26,699 cars, and this record's own production notes are explicit that this is a lower bound: the compiler states the database appears to lack about 4,238 of the 30,937 cars MuscleCarClub counts. Yet within that shortfall, CompNine's own Firebird coupe and convertible rows, 18,520 and 1,099, both exceed MuscleCarClub's 17,773 and 976, while its Formula and Trans Am rows fall well short of MuscleCarClub's figures. This record's own conflicts note states the resulting puzzle plainly: since the VIN database is short in the V-8 lines yet counts more V-6 cars than MuscleCarClub, neither table can be reconciled from the other.³

Within CompNine's own scope, the Trans Am WS6 reached 1,530 coupes, 853 six-speed and 677 automatic, a figure this record's own production note sets against the Pontiac Trans Am Page's 2,051, while the Formula WS6 reached 339 coupes, 240 six-speed, 99 automatic and 6 with the 1LE package, against a competing 524 the page also prints from another source. The Comp T/A reached 44 cars by CompNine's count, 16 six-speed and 28 automatic, against 45 from another source the same row cites.³

The Firehawk Association separately reports 32 SLP-converted Firehawk coupes for 1996, 22 six-speed and 10 automatic with 25 T-tops, plus 9 convertibles split 3 six-speed to 6 automatic and 45 Comp T/A cars, all Bright Silver (13U) with Graphite leather, 16 six-speed and 29 automatic. CompNine's own GM-coded R6V Firehawk base-car rows read 37 coupes, 25 six-speed and 12 automatic, and 9 convertibles, 3 six-speed and 6 automatic, figures this record keeps as a separate population from the SLP conversion counts.^4,3

This record carries no price section for 1996; its own price notes explain that a prior J.D. Power valuation figure was pulled because those live pages can change without notice and cannot be independently checked. Two engines are documented: the L36 3.8-liter V-6 at 200 hp and 225 lb-ft for the base Firebird, and the LT1 5.7-liter V-8 at 285 hp and 325 lb-ft for Formula and Trans Am, both rated to the same net standard as compiled by MuscleCarClub.²

What the record documents in full is a year the WS6 Ram Air package returned to a production picture that will not close: a 30,937-car MuscleCarClub total against a CompNine count that undercounts overall yet somehow overcounts the V-6 lines specifically, a WS6 Trans Am figure disputed between 1,530 and 2,051 depending on the table, and a Firehawk population this record keeps split between SLP's own conversion counts and CompNine's GM-coded base-car counts.²