Grille

1970 grilles have a small square egg-crate pattern with the chrome trim around the opening being almost flush with the nose of the car.

1971 grilles also have a small square egg-crate pattern, however, the chrome trim surrounding the grille is recessed into the nose slightly.

1972 grilles then changed to the iconic stretched honeycomb pattern. The grille's chrome trim is also recessed much like the 1971 style.

1973 grilles changed one more time to an elongated rectangular pattern. The chrome trim was again recessed slightly into the nose of the car.

Besides the grille designs themselves, the mounting brackets for the grill can also help identify the year of the car. From 1970 to 1972 the lower portion of the grille is mounted using four brackets. Whereas on the 1973 models the grille is mounted using two wide brackets, one for each side of the grille.

Fenders

The general shape of the fenders from 1970 to 1973 are very similar. There are some small details you can check in order to formulate a better guess of what year the car is. One major giveaway is in 1971 the fender features a little set of vents (gills) just behind the front tires. One other tiny giveaway is that every Firebird from 1970 to 1973 has a little tab for mounting the valence. However, 1973 fenders also feature a set of holes/mounting locations just on the inner lip of the fenders for fender braces. No mounting spots for fender braces means the car is earlier than 1973.

Hood Latch Systems

Just behind the grille is another key aspect to look for when identifying the year of a Firebird. From 1970 to 1972 the hood latch handle was one solid steel bar attached to the latch mechanism itself. The latch can be used through a cutout in the top of the nose when the hood is open as well as through the driver's side of the grille. In 1973 new safety standards were set for the automotive industry due to this factor there are a lot of new reinforcing materials in the nose of the car. With less open space in the nose of the car, a cable system replaced the solid steel bar. The cable can again be seen through the grille of the car.

Rad core Support

In 1970 both side panels of the radiator core support are flat with welded-on nuts. Whereas, the side panels for 1971-72 are stamped and use clip nuts. The core support bushing also changed over the years. 1970-1972 used a much smaller core support bushing compared to the bushing used in 1973. Even a small detail such as the battery hold-down bracket can help identify the year. From 70-72, the battery hold-down bracket was secured to the rear of the rad support using spot welds. In 1973 the battery hold-down bracket sticks through a small slit in the core support. The hold-down then has two tabs that are mounted to the front of the core support.

Emblems

For 1970 and 1971 the emblem mounted to the grill that reads Pontiac consisted of letters with a space between each letter and a small bar connecting the letters together.

The Pontiac emblem on the grille for 1972 is very similar to previous years with spaces again between the lettering.

In 1973 the emblem still reads PONTIAC but this emblem was cast as one solid piece so each letter is attached to the next with no space in between.

The 1970 and 1971 Firebirds have the distinct screaming chicken emblem right on the nose of the car. The nose emblem was not available on 1972 and 1973 cars, however, it was reintroduced starting in 1974.

Finally, the full-sized screaming chicken on the hood of the car. Pontiac designers Bill Porter and Norm Inouye created the iconic screaming chicken in 1970 but don’t let that confuse you. The option (code WW7) wasn’t available to purchase for a mere $55 dollars until 1973.

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