|
Total Views:
55
|
Pontiac GTO - Undoubtedly, Handsdown, The Greatest Muscle Car Of All Time
GTO is the most famous muscle car, most soughtafter during the high-performance automobile
history. Just say GTO, people knew it was from
Pontiac. It was also known as "The Goat", "The
Legend" and "The Great One". There was a even a
song called Little GTO that summed up what the
GTO was all about. Prior to 1964, performance
cars were your Daddy's car- full-size hardtops
and sedans with the largest displacement engines
available. They were a little slow off the line,
but once you got that tank rolling, they were
like a runaway freight train.
Factory Hot Rods
In October of 1963, for only $295.90 GTO option,
RPO 382, was quietly added to the option list of
the 1964 Pontiac Tempest/LeMans. Pontiac
included in the GTO option package a 325-
horsepower 389-cubic-inch V8 with dual exhausts,
a Carter AFB four-barrel carburetor, a mild
hydraulic camshaft, and the kind of whip lashing
neck pain street-grabbing torque that left a
smile on your face. Other standard features
included a manual three-speed transmission with a
Hurst shifter, a heavy-duty clutch, heavy-duty
suspension, US Royal red-line tires, a 3.23:1
rear axle ratio, twin hood scoops, and an
assortment of GTO emblems.
Body Styles
The GTO option was available on three LeMans
bodies, the two-door coupe, hardtop, and
convertible. More hardtops were produced than the
combined total of the coupes and convertibles.
Engines with the single four-barrel carburetor
outsold the Tri-Power models by a margin of three
to one.
What Made The GTO So Coveted'
I remember my 1967 GTO with 3 deuces. I swear,
if I stuck my arms out the windows, it would
start to fly. The thrill of standing still,
shifting into first gear, revving up that sweet
engine and letting out the clutch and being
plastered to the back of the seat was pure
adrenaline pumping. Those days are pretty much
over with. Last time I felt that time of
adrenaline rush was during auto-rotations in Nam.
That was 40 years ago and I still love my GTO.
How Do You Get A Piece of History Today'
Fortunately, there are many GTO's still available
that have been well taken care of by their lovers.
You can find them on the web. is an
excellent source for the muscle car of the past.