1966 Pontiac GTO Convertible

The GTO was the brainchild of Pontiac engineer Russell Gee, an engine specialist, chief engineer John De Lorean and Shane Wiser. DeLorean chose the name from the highly successful Ferrari 250 GTO ('GTO' is an Italian acronym for Gran Turismo Omologato). In early 1963, General Motors management banned divisions from involvement in auto racing. At the time, Pontiac's advertising and marketing approach was heavily based on performance and racing. Jim Wangers proposed a way to retain the performance image the division by focusing on street performance and offering a GTO as an option package (a loophole to GM policy). In 1966 GTO became a separate model versus an option package.

In May 1966 'Car Life' magazine drove the 389 cubic-inch V8 and reported performance at zero-to-sixty in 6.8 seconds, 0 to 100 in 19.2 seconds and a standing quarter mile of 15.4 seconds at 100 mph.

This Pontiac is one of 12,798 GTO Convertibles produced in 1966. It is one of the last Tri Power 4-speed convertibles and was assembled on 7/22/1966. Power is sourced from a 389 cubic-inch, 360 horsepower V8 engine. The car has been given a frame-off restoration using nearly all original parts, including the original seats. It has achieved GTO Nationals Concours Gold and Best in Class at the Dayton Concours.