ALT-2 Pontiac Gto
The Pontiac GTO considered one of the first muscle cars was engineered with pride by Russel Gee. Built for racing, Pontiac started it's build of the power house car from the ground up.John De lorean the chief engineer for Pontiac, along with long time friend Shane Wiser laid out the blue prints for the new muscle car. Shane wiser came up with the concept of GTO and the name stuck.
The car went in to production in 1964 through 1974. The era of muscle cars was hampered and frowned down on. The beautiful car with all it's excitement was replaced with better fuel efficient cars. It was a time of oil shortages and embargo's, that pressed GM to look at the power house in a different light. The best known muscle car called "The Judge" was still a favorite for drag racers on Saturday night events.
The GTO got its name from John De lorean and he picked up on the name from another Car builder of the time called the "Ferrari 250 GTO". The Pontiac GTO almost never happened. Much scrutiny was placed at the new muscle cars door steps. Ferrari took legal steps to try and protect the GTO logo. Efforts by Ferrari failed and the rest is history for the muscle car in the United States.
The racing world thought it was a act of capitalization by the manufacturers, to give Pontiac's new racing car the name GTO. The new muscle car was not approved by GM management because they did not see a potential market for the car. It was a marketing nightmare but one that Pontiac was willing to take a chance on.
Frank Bridge, limited the GTO to 5,000 cars for a trial, to test it's marketability. Elliot Pete Estes believed in the Pontiac GTO and stood behind the car and new it would be agood money maker, if only they could get the GTO shown to the public. The public would be the deciding factor in the GTO Judges success.
The first GTO in it's early stages, was considered as a option package for the Pontiac Lemans. Estes and De lorean put a power house engine in the car, a 389 cubic inch motor with 325 horse power at 4800 RPMs. They added a Carter four barrel carburetor with dual exhaust, with chrome valve covers and breather.
The seven blade clutch fan and three speed transmission with Hurst shifter along with large diameter front end sway bar, made it a stout car on the line. Fitted with 7.50x14 inch red-line tires that finished off the car. The last thing to add was the design of the hood scoops and GTO Tags.
A very sharp car for it's day. It came in three different versions. The two door hard top, the two door convertible and the two door sedan. These cars today are a sought after classic. They can range any where from 14,000 dollars to 35,000 dollars depending on the condition of the car.
The GTO muscle car is a joy to drive and the power it delivers pushes you back in your seat. The introduction of the "Bob Cat Package" in the sixties, boosted the 389's horse power to a O-60 in 4.6 seconds. The "Bob Cat Package" was only offered as an optional package to the sale of the car.
The GTO was a success all through the sixties and in to the early seventies. With the introduction of the "Fire Bird" and the "Pontiac Grand Prix" in the seventies, the GTO fizzled out in 1974. Pontiac made a come back with a more modern model of GTO in 2004, with the Pontiac GTO and the Pontiac G-6. New technology with a different type car. It still delivers the horses and has that sporty look every one loves about the Pontiac series of cars.
