What can you say about the GreaT One? Pontiac chief engineer John DeLorean and ad agency executive Jim Wangers almost single handedly started the musclecar craze. They took an intermediate car and blessed it with a big (389ci) V-8. Aside from brakes (!) the car had all the performance goodies. In a year or two every car company had followed suit, but no offering matched the combination of the style, performance, and mystique of the GTO. In its relatively short (11 model year) lifespan, the GTO managed to change its shape almost every model year. As a result, there's a GTO for all tastes. As for those three letters, GTO stands literally for (in Italian) Gran Turismo Omologato or Homologated Grand Touring. It was a reference to a European racing class based on production vehicles. At the time Pontiac had a trend of naming their vehicles in this manner: Bonneville, Grand Prix, and LeMans were all from that era.


1964 Pontiac GTO

Before the GTO came along, General Motors had internal regulations that allowed only for full-sized cars to have large V-8 engines. The biggest engine that any mid-sized car was allowed to have was a 326 cubic inch displacement V-8. This was much smaller than the 350 and 400 cubic inch engines that are in many mid-sized cars today. John Delorean and Jim Wangers decided to break this rule. In 1964, the Pontiac GTO was born. This was GM's first mid-sized car that sported a large displacement V-8. This was an option package on the 1964 Tempest. It consisted of a 389 cubic inch V-8 engine, a special handling package, and dual exhaust. This car had an optional 3 deuce package also (3 2bbl carburetors). Producing 348 horsepower, it became the best performing and handling car of its day.


1965 Pontiac GTO

 In 1965, the GTO became an even better looking car. It had a new double-decker headlight and dual grille design. The performance specifications remained the same as the 1964 GTO. Other car companies now realized that the "Muscle Car" was a good thing.


1966 Pontiac GTO

 In 1966, sales started to increase so Pontiac produced 96,946 GTOs. This was the year that the GTO became its own model. It was no longer an option package for the Tempest.


1967 Pontiac GTO

 Throughout both 1966 and 1967, GTO sales continued to climb for General Motors. In 1967, Pontiac put a 400 cubic inch V8 in the GTO. They also used the same body style that had been used in the Tempest and the LeMans. GTO had become America's Muscle Car.


1968 Pontiac GTO

 In 1968, Pontiac continued to improve the GTO. They improved performance and used a new rounded body styling. They enhanced the styling with optional hide-away headlights. The headlights could also be bordered by an optional endura front bumper. This was a new bumper that could withstand a hit of up to about 5 miles per hour and within a few hours would pop back into its original shape. This year, the GTO also had a 400 cubic inch big block and a four-barrel carburetor. This car also won Motor Trend's Car of the Year Award in 1968 only two months after being introduced.


1969 Pontiac GTO

 In 1969, sales were still going strong, but things were starting to go downhill. Even the new option package for 1969 called "The Judge" could not prevent the downfall. "The Judge" was intended to be a GTO package that would compete with the Plymouth Roadrunner, which was a very low-cost car. When Pontiac was done designing "The Judge", it had become the better GTO package instead of a more affordable package. It came with a rear spoiler, 15" Rally II wheels, and Judge Decals. It also came with a 366 horsepower 400 cubic inch engine with a Ram Air III package, but could even be ordered with an optional Ram Air IV package that pulled 370 horsepower..


1970 Pontiac GTO

By 1970, the GTO had become the most upscale muscle car of its time. But, it had become clear that the GTO sales were going downhill. This was not because of the new 1970 Endura front end. The styling was great because of the quad headlight design which was separate from the dual front grilles. The headlights were also part of the Endura front bumper. It also had creases on top of each wheel well. The engines and "The Judge" package were not changed from 1969 other than Pontiac had added two new 455 cubic inch engines. The true reason that GTO sales were dropping was become it had become such an expensive car. Also, insurance rates were increasing as was competition from the Pontiac Firebird. The GTO had also become a very heavy car.


1971 Pontiac GTO

 1971 was the best year for looks and handling for the GTO. It had a new endura front end that made it look more upscale. Sales were still continuing to drop for the GTO, though. This would be the last year for "The Judge" option package and also the final year for the convertible option. The convertible option had been with the GTO since it had come out.


1972 Pontiac GTO

 In 1972, sales were still dropping even more. The GTO didn't change much other than a new front grille, lower side air inlets that were behind the front wheels, and a new front parking light lens design. Pontiac also made the GTO an option package off of the LeMans.


1973 Pontiac GTO

 Although the GTO now had the new LeMans styling, sales kept getting even worse. In 1973, Pontiac did not even use a performance engine in the GTO. The best engine that Pontiac had for 1973 was the SuperDuty 455 that didn't even come optional for the GTO. It was only available for the Trans Am and Firebird Formula. Firebird was now the leader in high performance Pontiacs. The GTO even lost the Endura front end for 1973. Now, Pontiac had put a chrome full front bumper on the GTO. The Endura went to the 1973 Grand Am instead, which was a new car for that year. GTO did have the best interior ever for that year, though.


1974 Pontiac GTO

 1973 was bad enough for the GTO, but 1974 proved to be even worse. Although sales had begun to rise in 1974 , Pontiac decided to stop production at the end of the model year. Pontiac tried to bring the weight down to improve its performance by moving the GTO option package to the Ventura. The Ventura was a much lighter car than the LeMans. This type of styling, however, did not win the approval of most GTO fans. The only good styling was the new shaker hood that had been used on the Trans Am. Although this made the car look good, there still was not a decent engine under the hood. A 350 cubic inch engine was used for the final production year. This engine only put out about 200 horsepower. This was way down from the 348 horsepower that was used ten years earlier. Obviously, the reason Pontiac stopped production of the GTO was to quit before GTO became a car that no one wanted. Instead, Pontiac decided to put all their effort into the Trans Am model.

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