I will always believe that the 2nd generation Trans Ams have the best looking dash ever put in front of a driver. The swirled aluminum or gold pattern in front of all the instruments just begs you to look at the cluster more than you might ought to while flying down the highways and roadways of where ever you may be traveling. Most Trans Ams have the aluminum swirled pattern but in 1976 Pontiac decided to special equip a select few Trans Ams with a gold swirl pattern and other goodies commemorating Pontiac's 50th anniversary. This also carried over to the Y81, Y82, and Y84 special edition Trans Ams of 1977 through 1981. 

One interesting note to remember is that this is a "painted" swirl pattern and it is not etched into the metal! Yes, I found out the hard way back in 1986 when I bought my Trans Am and decided to "clean" a stain on the bezel with steel wool! OUCH! Luckily GM still had these bezels available at the time and I purchased a gold one since I was converting mine into a replica special edition.  Yes, that bezel is practically new, not a refinish job. I have probably driven this car all of 300 miles if that much since 1990. It stays inside at all other times, so the bezel hasn't faded...or not that I can tell anyways. To be honest though, it is not "period" correct as it has the round turn signal holes instead of arrows and also the images of lights and washers instead of the lettering spelled out.

Other things of note are that the heater and ac control are from a 1979 silver anniversary edition, which I also procured new when it was still available from GM in or around 1990. I was converting my regular "greenish blue" dash lighting to "red" so I wanted the real deal whenever I could get it.  I also found a NOS silver anniversary instrument housing from a GM dealer around that time period. I wound up painting inside the fuel and volt meter housing with fluorescent red paint. It looked real close to the color GM had painted inside the silver anniversary housings.  I thought it turned out pretty well and a different touch for the gold SE dashes. Again, the control is incorrect "period" wise because it has the "fan" image beside the blower speed instead of the usual lettering. I am not concerned too much but I know some purists would get me on it so I want to show them I do know of the difference. lol! Smile!

The custom deluxe cloth interior and door panels I acquired around 2003 from an original 1977 SE car  in Canada. These seats and panels aren't recovered. They are originals. With that comes a few blemishes but they still look fantastic to be over 30 years old!  The carpet was also acquired from GM when it was still available in 1989-1990.

Options I purchased around 1990 and added are:

NOS rear seat console (which I found at a Canadian dealer who still had one or two in their inventory)
Power Windows and Door Locks (procured the harnesses from a salvage vehicle and bought NOS switches and actuators)
Rear Window Defogger (wired this myself with help of the service manual...purchased NOS switch)
Electric Trunk Release (wired this myself also...pretty simple setup...NOS switch and release actuator)

Original GM NOS Interior Items Replaced Circa 1990:

Gold Dash Bezel
Gold Accessory Plate
Chrome AC Vents (LH and RH Sides)
Far Right Passenger Vent
Shifter Knob
Power Window Switches
Console
Rear Seat Console
Rear Inner Quarter Trim Panels
Door Pull Straps and End Covers
Gold Bird Emblems on Door Panel
Sill Plates
Rear Defog Switch
Wiper Switch
Trunk Switch
Console Lid
Console Box
Steering Wheel Horn Button
Heater / AC Control
Pedal Trim and Rubber
Carpet

Click on Photos below to see larger image

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