The new year ushered in bigger, more powerful engines, and a slicker, more sophisticated 1970 PONTIAC GTO – MUSCLECAR MAGIC FROM MOTOWN!
In many ways, 1970 was the storm before the calm. The war in Southeast Asia continued casting a pall over a much-divided country and thinning the ranks of young enthusiasts. Carmakers’ racing budgets were being drastically cut and engineering resources were reassigned to prepare for restrictive emissions and safety legislation. Ponycar sales had been plummeting and would register new lows at the end of the model year.
Pontiac started it the Musclecar Revolution with the GTO in 1964 and it was still an image leader, thanks to a winged Judge and 400 and 455-inch engines. The hottest engine option was the 400-inch Ram Air IV rated at 370 horsepower at 5,500 rpm in the GTO.
We tested two GTOs, a Ram Air 400/366 Judge for the July 1970 issue of Hi-Performance CARS, and a 455/360 for SUPERCARS ’70 ½, both with Hurst-shifted four-speeds and 3.90 rears. Pontiac supplied both GTOs and we suspected that the 455/360 had been “massaged”.
Our best time with the 400/366 Judge was 100 mph in 14.45 seconds and 0 to 60 mph in 6.6 seconds. The 455/360 GTO was a GM Milford Proving Ground vehicle and ran 103 mph in 13.90 seconds. It was quicker to 60 mph, taking just 6.1 seconds. I wanted to buy that one!
A new option was the 455 HO, a 10.75-to-1 compression, long-stroke engine rated by Pontiac at 360 horsepower at 4,600 rpm and 500 pound-feet torque at 3,100 rpm. The camshaft used in the Ram Air 400 and the GTO 455 HO were the same, but the 455 HO had the torque advantage.
For encyclopedic coverage of the 1970 PONTIAC GTO – MUSCLECAR MAGIC FROM MOTOWN! Please visit https://over-drive-magazine.com/2023/03/14/1970-pontiac-mid-size-cars-fact-sheet/