1964 was all about the birth of the big-engined midsize car with youth market appeal, showcased by the 1964 Pontiac GTO: MUSCLECAR OF THE YEAR.
Pontiac called it “A Device For Shrinking Time & Distance.” Enthusiast automotive writers and magazine editors called it a “Supercar”. The “Musclecar” descriptor came later. And, from coast to coast, enthusiasts flocked to Pontiac dealers to see the new GTO, an option that breathed life into a Tempest. Pontiac – not Ford, Chevy, or Plymouth – essentially created the option that ignited the Supercar Revolution and an almost cult-like movement. The Pontiac GTO’s extensive performance, comfort, and convenience “menu” was the envy of the industry. It was the Supercar for all seasons – and reasons.
Because the GTO became an overnight sensation, fiction often gets in the way of reality when discussing responsibility for its concept and creation. Pontiac’s primary players were Pete Estes, General Manager, and John DeLorean, Chief Engineer. DeLorean’s staff included several racing enthusiasts. The concept of installing a 389-inch engine from a full-size Pontiac into a Tempest evolved from meetings DeLorean had with two performance-savvy individuals – Bill Collins and Russ Gee, who headed the Experimental Engineering Department. One of the key meetings, however, was not about creating a high-performance street car. It dealt with building a slightly longer wheelbase Tempest to replace the NASCAR Super-Duty 421 stockers that had become history!
Gee revealed that since 326 and 389 engines shared the same motor mounts, a 389 could be shoehorned into a Tempest in about a half-hour. With NASCAR in mind, Russ Gee’s team built a ’63 Tempest 389 prototype with a three-inch longer wheelbase – 115 vs. 112 inches. It worked, and it was fast. But DeLorean couldn’t find any support for stock car racing at Pontiac. All efforts shifted to creating a product that would appeal to performance enthusiasts, preferably young ones. That proved to be a far better route, resulting in their effort becoming the 1964 GTO: MUSCLECAR OF THE YEAR.
During the discussion of a unique 389-engined Tempest, Jim Wangers, above, right, who was a successful Pontiac drag racer and account executive at Pontiac’s advertising agency, McManus, John & Adams, got involved. He also had a relationship with Ace Wilson, owner of Royal Pontiac. Wangers presented youth-market-targeted GTO concepts to Pete Estes. Estes passed them along to DeLorea,n and the 389 Tempest GTO program was greenlighted. Ferrari originally used the model designation GTO – Grand Turismo Omologato – for its 250 GTO. It means that the vehicle meets the standard specifications for racing in the Grand Touring category.
STREET MUSCLE Magazine’s Jim Campisano blogs about what really made the GTO so special and successful:
The story of how the 1964 Pontiac GTO came to be is well known, as is its impact on the performance car market. What is less discussed is what made the GTO so special. Why did teenagers, 20-somethings, and even 50-year-olds get weak in the knees for a midsize GM car?
Part of it was timing. People were ready for something different. Cars had been getting bigger and bigger, and not everyone wanted the hassle of a full-size automobile. Younger people, especially the first crop of baby boomers who were getting their licenses at the time, didn’t want the same old machines their parents drove. They wanted something smaller, faster, sportier. The 1964 Pontiac GTO filled that niche. Heck, it created it.
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