I thought this section might be the best place for this recent low mileage (19,400 miles) sale. I've noticed these 30th Anniv editions all over the place in pricing over the past decade.
This article was from the Feb 2025 Hemmings Muscle Machines issue. It was a Hemmings auction car that did not sell originally (reserve not met), but then sold for $32,550 afterwards.It gives a current idea on value. If lower miles, then of course a slightly higher price might be realized, then the opposite is true for higher mileage rides.

 

These 30th T/As have consistently been some of the most sought-after and valuable LS1 F-bodies on the collector market, so it's quite telling that an M6 convertible model with such low miles (assuming proper condition for the mileage) would sell for just a touch over $30k. The prices have definitely come down since the 2022 peak, now is a MUCH better time to buy.

I didn't honestly believe that any of these cars were worth what they were selling for during the market peak a couple years ago, it just seemed far too "bubble-esque" to have any staying power. I think we're back to more realistic and sustainable value now.

 

I have a buddy that got closer to 40 with his I believe his was around the 20k mileage mark as well. The guy that bought it went to a show with us and then left his t tops out in his secure parking garage. Dudes loaded, but that didn’t matter a bum some how got in and got in the car and was sleeping in the front seat. He messed it up. He was able to find someone that matched the whole interior spot on. I am not sure what that set him back, but now it’s got one less thing that is original. The wheels on that one were still perfect and hadn’t faded like they are so known to do. I do agree they are all over the place.

 

I wonder how the Big Bird CE cars compare in value.

 

My buddies dad has one and its got 10k miles on it. It doesn’t show well for some reason. He stopped bringing it and started bringing his 1 owner Can Am instead. I easily took first against him for some reason. The yellow throws people. He told me in the summer the values on the CETA cars were holding right around 40. His is a super nice car. He needs to detail the engine bay and give the interior a good deep clean. The leather is dirty and showing wrinkles. It is nothing a thorough cleaning from a detailing wouldn’t fix.

 

It's a polarizing look for sure. GM really should have used Millennium yellow on these instead. What they chose certainly isn't the best shade, but pretty much all yellows are polarizing for cars of that era. A local friend of mine used to be a 3rd gen collector, he had three late 3rd gen Trans Ams, all were special cars due to rarity and/or super low mileage. One was a very rare Jamaica yellow TA hardtop with a black interior. He had the same sort of disappointing luck at car shows with this one as your friend with the CETA. Any time he'd take his ultra low mileage dark green GTA or beautiful bright red TA they would win an award, but never the rarest-of-his-collection yellow TA.

I remember when the CETAs first came out, I still had my '00 WS6 at the time so I was more Pontiac focused then, I didn't care for anything about the CETA package other than the black sail panel and mirrors (similar to how the V8 Camaros were done). I didn't like the stripes OR the color. My thought back then was the same as my thought today; the 30th Anniversary '99 cars will always be more universally appealing than the CETA cars. CETA will really only be sought after by the collectors who just absolutely MUST have the final special edition Trans Am.

 

The 3rd gen IROC cars used a pale yellow that looked good with the Camaro body lines. Certain shades of yellow look great and others not so much.

 

I remember when both the CETA and the 35th came out. I fell in love with the 35th. In 99 when the 30th came out I was pumping gas at a full service gas station and a brand new vert pulled up. I walked around it for 15 minutes at least while they were inside. I said then one day I would have one lol. I still don’t have one. The yellow on that and Ram Rumble Bee of the era were interesting shades. I loved all the black on it, but the I just was never a yellow fan. I agree with you tho that will forever be the ultimate last TA. I am really surprised they aren’t bringing more money seeing as it was the last Special Edition Trans Am ever. Maybe in 2 years when it hits the 25 year mark? We will see what the market does. You would think tho with the modern appealing that the CETA car would be more appealing because they 30th was kinda out there for the time. It looked futuristic for its time I thought. Still I think if I were to buy either one the 30th would easily be my choice.

 

They are both noting but a sticker and fridge magnet car. I never understood the appeal of either. General Motors was lazy and put no effort into them. They could have put a camshaft like the LS6 and gotten better shocks than the deCarbons.

The 1999 30th Anniversary looks like it would be hard to keep clean and the CETA is not bright enough yellow. I have seen a CETA with the C5 Corvette N73 magnesium wheels and it improved its looks.

The WS6 looks great in black. Hard to beat that colour. It suits it really well.

 

If you did an interior coating on the entire interior it wouldn’t be hard at all. I’ve got my wife’s Grand Cherokee L coated and it makes my life so much easier cleaning it. It also makes it so it has a nice satin finish at all times. I don’t see GM making an anniversary car really ever an over the top performance car. Now I could see maybe upgrading the suspension a bit, better sway bars, better shocks, maybe better brakes C5 size would have been a nice upgrade at the time. I agree completely with you though by 2002 they should have come out with a new wheel for the CETA instead of continuing to ride a wheel that had been out since 1997.

 

Thing about the 30th T/A is that it was consistent with the heritage of other anniversary Trans Ams as well as the original 1969 Trans Am. The only devation from the usual white color on the anniversary models was the silver 10th Anniversary cars. Beyond that, the 30th is right in line with all prior anniversary packages and very consistent with the original Trans Am.

Granted, the CETA isn't actually an "anniversary" car, so I do understand why they didn't stick with the theme of a white base color, but I still think they really picked the wrong shade of yellow...if it HAD to be yellow I think Millennium Yellow would have been a better choice.

Any cam swap would have necessitated an emissions recertification for both the A4 an M6 examples separately, unless it was done something like the limited crate motor swaps in the Z4C 30th Anniversary Camaros with the LT4 engine (and those were limited to only the manual trans examples). But then ASC would have had to have been contracted to do an LS6 crate swap similar to how SLP did this for those Z4C '97 SS cars and the even more limited run of LT4 '97 Firehawks. EPA (FTP) regulations make it expensive and complicated for the OEMs to really play around with cam swaps for these late model cars.

But I agree that at least some additional suspension upgrades could have been included in the package.

 

I agree with millennial yellow. I just think there would have been a better choice of color out there especially like you said since it wasn’t anniversary car like the Camaro was. A white, red, or black car would have been a great choice to have done the CETA in. Red would be my pick put I am partial. They did make an ad that called the Trans Am the other red meat.

 

I agree, lots of better choices than yellow. Red would have been great and would have been consistent with the LE SS 35th cars, so both "special" F-bodies for 2002 would have been a base coat of red. Or they could have used silver as a tribute to the only outlier anniversary model - the '79 10th Anniversary car. The other thing I think they should or could have done was a black & gold edition for the CETA. They did this for the 10th Anniversary Firehawk but I think that was a mistake. Here's how it should have been done, IMO:

2001 10th Anniversary Firehawk: Red with subtle yellow accents, similar to the original poster car for Firehawk used for 1991-92 press materials and literature.

2002 CETA: Black with gold accents (not too different from what ended up being used for the 10th Anniversary Firehawk), something akin to the ever popular special edition "Smokey and the Bandit" Trans Ams of the late '70s.

I think the above would have been more appropriate for the heritage they were meant to represent.

 

I agree, a Black car with gold accents that followed the 79 would have looked killer. Though in 2002 those cars weren’t terribly popular just yet. They needed a few more years. I see where GM might have had a dilemma with that color combo, but if you are vision person like me, you can see where the might have tried to reverse that scheme and the yellow they picked was maybe supposed to be closer to a gold and just didn’t turn out that way. Trans Am has always done their own thing. So following Chevrolet wouldn’t be the way they wanted to go out. Anyway you look at it IMO Yellow should not have been the color. Silver would have been another great color from the 70s TA’s.