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This is purely a subjective
observation, but when we think of late sixties styling, the GTO comes
immediately to mind. Pontiac designers brought it out of the chrome and
flash era of the early and mid-sixties right into the muted, "euro" theme
that was to become popular in the seventies. The optional hideaway
headlights screamed sixties, too.
Pontiac seemed to move the GTO more upscale as a comfy, powerful boulevard
cruiser. The option list ballooned with comfort and convenience options.
Many went out the door with the base 400, automatic, vinyl roof and air
conditioning. It was still a potent car, but weight was up both in base form
and as a result of each, on average, carrying around more optional
equipment. Manual transmissions, which accounted for about 75% of GTO
production in 1965, declined to just 40% in 1969. Rest assured,
however, that the performance was still there. It's just that it wasn't
automatically there -- you had to go to the option list.
Today, the market recognizes this shift, as values are below those of its
previous iterations. That's not to say, however, that they are weak, as
these are still very desirable in the pecking order of sixties Detroit Iron.
Very nice examples of an automatic, base 400 model generally fall in the
20-24,000 range for the hardtop, 38,000 plus for the convertible. Drop down
a notch into the good driver category, stay away from the high profile
auctions, and with a little patience you're in a hardtop at 14-15 and a
convertible at 26 or so.
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GTOs always have pleasant interiors, and
these are no exception. This one's a '68. |
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Largely a carryover from 1967, the base
400-4V gained 10hp for '68. It packed some punch, but was only an
average performer in an increasingly competitive segment. |
The most coveted options start
with, what else, more speed. The optional 400ci with Ram Air induction and
the 4spd manual are very desirable. The automatic isn't a liability on the
milder versions though, as it seems as many buyers today are looking for the
same thing in this car as they did when new: powerful, smooth and effortless
performance with a dose of civility thrown in. But these being muscle cars,
naturally the more muscle the better. A 400 HO option rated at 360hp was the
first tick up. Then the real action started. The Ram Air option, still rated
at 360hp, got you functional ram air induction.
Mid year, it replaced by the Ram
Air-II motor, still officially rated at 360hp. In '69 this became the RA-III
(now rated at 366hp) and a super hot RA-IV was another step up. The RA-IV is
quite rare and its 370 underrated horses can bump prices another 25-30% on
the coupe and 50% on the convertible all by itself.
As it is on most cars from this
era, air conditioning is a plus. By this time GM air conditioning in
particular was so good it would cool your house if you hooked up some duct
work! Indeed, it seems stronger than many of today's systems. The new
bench seat hurts values just a bit, as does the column shift. The buckets
and console are just more in line with the GTO image.
All kinds of extras were
available: tilt wheel, rallye dash, even cornering lights. Except for
the rallye dash (two versions, depending on whether you had a hood tach or
not), these really don't make a measurable difference on value by
themselves, but together they can bump up prices. There was also an economy
engine option, 2bbl version of the 400 making 255/265hp. A few thousand were
produced, but we've only seen a couple. Most likely owners installed a 4bbl
intake and carb somewhere along the way.
The baddest GTO from this era is, of course, the limited production The
Judge. It was added shortly after the rest of the line bowed. Not many
people realize it, but The Judge was originally supposed to be a
de-contented, more affordable version of the GTO with an emphasis on
performance to compete with the successful, stripped down Road Runners and
Super Bees from Chrysler. It didn't turn out that way, as standard equipment
wasn't pared down at all and included rear spoiler, black out grille,
special graphics and most importantly, the Ram Air III 400 with functioning
hood scoops. A three speed manual with a Hurst Shifter was
standard, but we've seen very few of those. At first, The Judge only came in
Carousal Red (orange, really), but later it was available on any color.
About 20-25% of the total run received a coat of paint other than Carousal
Red.
Values on these have been moving
upward at a dizzying pace as of late. Nice hardtops are pushing, and
sometimes surpassing, $40,000. And then you have the Judge convertibles.
Extremely rare, you probably can't touch one for under $100,000, and they've
approached $200,000 at the high profile auctions. This has all happened in
an almost choreograph manner over the past year. Recent advertised prices
have been seen with asking prices close to $1/2 million. That's simply
absurd. While we have raised our price guidelines substantially, we're going
to wait just a bit more until we see more than a handful of these
transactions before we put anything like those numbers in our price guide.
With Judge prices so high, there are a lot of clones, fakes, counterfeits,
etc, on the market. More are showing up all the time. Be very, very careful
when buying a Judge, especially a convertible. While many honest sellers
acknowledge the lack of originality, there are many dishonest ones that do not. Some may
not even know they don't have the real Mccoy, as there are counterfeits out
there that even experts can't discern.
Where are prices going? We're very hesitant to recommend a Judge model at
the prices they've been bringing. They may have one more round increases
left, but we don't see it going past that. Let's get real guys. If you step
back and examine what you're really getting, it's a corporate GM
intermediate with a big engine and different trim. You can duplicate
it it yourself without any extra effort--and not a whole lot of money--over
a regular restoration. In fact, this entire market segment (the really
big-buck muscle cars) has us a little nervous at the levels it has reached.
As for the "pedestrian" GTO's. We love 'em. So many of these were spared the
scrap heap not only because they were recognized as worth holding on to,
they're tough, durable cars in their own right. There's a good supply so
prices have been kept sane, and when the market correction comes, they're
not going to get hurt too badly. As drivers they're tough to beat. Heck you
could drive one every day if you wanted -- they're smooth, quick, reliable,
and pretty cheap to boot.
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We just love period promotional materials. photographs can't hope
to achieve. These two |
They put the cars in context in a way new
convey instantly the "other" GTO benefit!
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