My 86 firebird has the motor mechanism for pulling down the rear hatch... my newly acquired 85 trans am does not. It just latches.. there's no motor. It kinda needs to be slammed a little to get it to latch.. did the motor only come on 86 and up? Can i swap the motor from the 86 into the 85?

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06-23-2022, 11:33 AM

DIGGLER

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Re: 85 vs 86 hatch latch

i was wondering which cars had the standard type latch also... my gta has the pulldown, and i was considering saving some weight by running a standard type.

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06-23-2022, 08:25 PM

Jim85IROC

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Car: 85 IROC-Z / 88 GTA

Engine: 403 LSx (Pending) / 355 Tuned Port

Transmission: T56 Magnum (Pending) / T5

Axle/Gears: 3.42 / ?

Re: 85 vs 86 hatch latch

Just close the hatch easily and you'll be fine, and then stand back with satisfaction knowing that you don't have to deal with the unreliable piece of crap that came on the 86+ cars. When the motor died on my 88 I blocked it and disconnected it so it works just like my 85.