Pontiac Firebird ram air

[whitehead]

Soo, I plan on saving alot of pennys up so I can buy one of these bad ass cars! I plan on getting 1996 or newer. But I dont know a huge amount on them except for the fact that there fairly light for the power there packing and they seem to open a huge can of whoop ass on just about everything. So, I decided I could get the best information on these beautiful cars by asking a forum full of automotive genuises!
So to start off, how much do you think I should spend on one?
What should I watch for when test driving or looking around for one?
How solid of an engine is the 5.7L LS1 or LS2???
Any other information would be greatly appreciated, or if you own one that would be a huge help!

[DaytonaGTP]

find an ls1 t/a. lt1 is ok but id prefer ls1. you can prolly find one for under 10k. go to ls1tech.com youll find all the info you need.

[Slowpoke]

find an ls1 t/a. lt1 is ok but id prefer ls1. you can prolly find one for under 10k. go to ls1tech.com youll find all the info you need.

+1 You'll find more complete information at LS1tech, but you can get some basic information here.
1. Firebird/trans am didn't come with an LS2 from the factory.
2. 96 and 97 are going to have an LT1, or LT4 (97 firehawk)
2. Expect to look through a few autos before you come across an M6
3. LS1's are known to be reliable, but a few common problems are oil pump failures (most notably 98, but pre 01 suffer from this too). Oil consumption issues (01-02 models). Loud/noisy accessory belts/pulleys. Premature rotor warping. And very rarely, mild piston slap, I believe this is mostly a problem for the 01-02 models. I've been out of the LS1 Fbody game for awhile now, so my information might be a little off. In any event, these are known problems the car had from the factory, with a used/modded car you could have any number of issues. Look over the car real good, or have a mechanic check it over before you buy.

And like DaytonaGTP said, you should head over to LS1tech and get more information. Good luck with the search.