Watch Jay Leno, NASCAR announcer Mike Joy, and vintage racer Ken Epsman talk about the history of Trans Am racing and drive one of the cars.
The SCCA Trans Am series achieved iconic status in the late 1960s and early '70s. On this episode of"Jay Leno's Garage," Jay Leno, NASCAR commentator Mike Joy, and historic racer Ken Epsman look at some of the cars that made that era of Trans Am racing so special. We learn quite a bit about the history of Trans Am racing along the way.
Attempting to expand beyond amateur racing with a pro series, the SCCA launched Trans Am in 1966. The series initially featured modified production cars in two classes: those with engines displacing less than 2.0 liters, and those with engines larger than 2.0 liters but capped at 5.0 liters or 305 cubic inches.
The latter created an opening for Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, and AMC to field their pony cars, which were just hitting the market at the time. The Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, Dodge Challenger, , and AMC Javelin all raced in the Trans Am series with factory support during this golden age, which continued until 1972. After that, changes to the rules moved Trans Am from its production-based formula.Missing from that list is the Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, which was named after the series, but was unable to compete because its engine exceeded the 5.0-liter maximum displacement set by the rules.
What made Trans Am race cars stand out was their similarity to road cars. The original rules required stock body shells and powertrains, which made the racing interesting and spawned classic homologation specials like the Ford Mustang Boss 302 and Chevrolet Camaro Z/28. Those cars were raced by famous drivers such as
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