1968 PONTIAC GTO 6.5 V8

Vehicle Overview

The second generation of the Pontiac GTO was praised by the automotive press as “an engineering marvel of its times”. It was powerful and looked great. It was a true muscle car.

The godfather of the GTO, Jim Wangers, worked for the Pontiac Motor Division PR agency and found a loop in the company’s policy to offer powerful engines. So, the 400 cu-in engine was offered as an option for the Pontiac LeMans, on the GTO trim level. The name GTO was given by John DeLorean (who would later leave the company and create the DeLorean Motor Company) after the Italian GTO abbreviation (Gran Turismo Omologato).

The second generation was built on the success recorded by the LeMans GTO and the GM approved the car for production. It was a long and sleek car for that muscle-car era. The twin-round

headlights in the front were now horizontally placed instead of vertically, as on the LeMans GTO. The side beltline was descending just to rise again in front of the rear fenders.

Inside, the car featured two individual front seats and a bench seat in the back. The door-panels featured the GTO badges on them. The flat dash-panel hosted the controls for lights, ignition, wipers, and the lighter. The floor-mounted gearshift selector for the automatic transmission featured a wooden panel.

The Pontiac GTO featured a 6.6-liter V8 just to respect the company policy, which offered 350 hp. It was mated as standard to a 4-speed manual. There was an option for 3-speed auto as well. In 1970, GM lifted restrictions for engine displacement and allowed the 455 cu-in (7.5-liter) engine on the GTO, but the power disclosed was not real. It was stated as 366 hp, but it featured 500 lb-ft (678 Nm) of torque.