Golden Opportunities: 1966 Pontiac LeMans
At a glance, you can almost imagine a GTO badge on this Pontiac. For some of us, this old LeMans listed on eBay would be a great driver. It could take us back to our younger days, driving the kind of used car we could afford to buy back then. For others, it has lots of potential, from a pretend Goat to a sleeper. The Lemans is the upscale version of the Tempest, but it’s hard to imagine this LeMans having any upgrades. It does have carpet along the bottom of the door cards, bucket seats, and fake pleated vinyl seats, though. This is a rust free California car that is in original condition and could be a good start for your particular passion. That overhead cam six is a big disappointment to most perhaps but it has the potential for lots more power and is lighter than a V8.
The interior looks to be in great shape from here. We wouldn’t consider this to be upscale by today’s standards, the seats look more like something from a 1990’s econobox. It was pretty fancy for the 1960s, though.
There it is, the little 230 CID, 175 horsepower overhead cam six designed by John DeLorean for the Banshee sports. Pontiac Corporate killed the Banshee but the engine lived on. This was the first engine ever to use a timing belt instead of a chain. The belt also ran the externally mounted oil pump, distributor drive, and fuel pump drive. There was also an optional 207 horse “sprint six” version with a four-barrel carburetor, higher compression, and a more lively camshaft.
So here you have it, a shabby old Pontiac with a six, yawn. It doesn’t even have AC. No wonder, you say, there are no bids with an opening bid of $5,000. Some folks, though, might think this could be a nice old driver to fix up over time. That little six is lighter than a V8 and with a bit of work can produce close to 300 HP. There’s no rust to repair and it runs OK. Other folks can see a great sleeper, even imagining an LS under that old gold hood. There are lots of aftermarket suspension parts available for these GM A-body cars. And then there’s the GTO clone or tribute car folks. Gold may not be your color, but there could be a treasure here.
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Comments
Build the 6 and have some fun with it.
Yup, Clifford Performance 6=8
There’s some History in that engine alone !
Go back to the future shows with your DeLorean engine !
I hope they’ve changed the Flux Capacitor though !
Some new carpet, weatherstrip and a fresh coat of paint, and that car would be almost perfect. If it was a LeMans Sprint, then it would be perfect.
I always liked these mid 60’s Pontiac’s, especially when powered by the OHC 6. One of the nuns at my high school, had a blue 67 LeMans Sprint with the Quadrajet equipped HO OHC 6, and a 3 speed floor shift. She use to have it serviced at the gas station I worked at, and I got to drive it a couple times. As stock 6 cylinders go, it was pretty quick!
I also occasionally worked for a guy who did foreign car repairs. His wife had a Verdoro Green Firebird Sprint convertible, with a 4 speed matted to the HO OHC 6.
I’d love to have either of those cars today.
Great car !! Great whether you leave it alone or make it a clone !! I see the letters GTO in this cars future. Nothing wrong with that in my book….the GTO changes will make it a better/more fun car. this car restored to original is really not going to bring any money, unfortunately at GTO clone will. You can clone it and drive it and if you wreck it at least you did not wreck a real GTO. Wish I had the time and money to do this one !!
Why clone it? I like my cars original, Just how I like my men…Don’t need anything fake.
I agree Steve especially since this is a very rare car with that engine.
Be different and drive a six!
Build to squeeze more HP out of it and have pride in attaining high hanging fruit!
This looks like a pretty good deal. CA plate is correct for the year.
FYI, the OHC 6 came out of the stillborn Cadillac V12 programme – I have friends who worked on same and the info came from them.
A few bolt-on tweaks to the engine and suspension and you’d have a pretty neat li’l cruiser that will be ideal for road trips. A fresh coat of paint (same colour as my folks’ old ’66 Bonneville!) would freshen the car’s look.
The dad car I started to learn to drive in was the Corvair below in the turbo Spyder version, then dad got this in the tempest strip down with the GTO engine and stiff suspension , and the 2 speed auto which I took my driver’s test in. It was very light and fast. This 6 was not such a great motor after a few miles. The head gasket and warping seem to ring a bell.
If you can get it at the right price, make it reliable, pop out the dents and add a set of Pontiac Rally 1’s or 15×7 dish mags. Drive it around for a summer or two, until you either find another cool car or are offered enough to move the car on. I wouldn’t spend any more money on this car than necessary by painting it or modifying the engine.
Steve R
I like it with the six, they are a pretty rare sight these days.. This six was pretty lively compared to everyone else’s sixes at the time. My 66 year old grandfather bought a new 67 two door sedan Plain Jane Tempest with the 170 HP OHC and 3 on the tree (with synchronized first gear). He traded in his 63 Comet with an anemic little 6 for the Pontiac. Well sir, he said the first time he crossed a bad uphill intersection close to home he gunned that big Pontiac 6 and dropped the clutch like he did the that dog of a Comet but this time he burned rubber clear thru the intersection with my Grandmother screaming at him the whole time. Maybe that was why it was his favorite car of all time :)
A couple of guys around town had the OHC Sprint Tempests. Nicely striped and badged they were an attractive alternative to the GTO for those who wanted a cool car without paying thru the nose to insure a 389 or 400 cubic inch GTO.
Late 1969 I traded my gas guzzling 396 Chevrolet for 67 Firebird Sprint with the 4 barrel 215 HP OHC 6. At the Stoplight Grand Prix I surprised quite a few V8s much to their owners embarrassment. Like all Firebirds it had a real bad case of wheel hop on hole shots with the Mono leaf rear suspension, same for Camaros of the era.
I think a red 66 Tempest Sprint OHC 6 with white stripes and rally wheels would be a great car to have, GTOs are everywhere.
5k for this? All day long. Six or no, it’s just a cool old car.
Grant, I agree. This was a terrific car in its day and I see no reason to change my mind, now. OHC, 6 cyl, not a lot of work to get it right. Sounds good to me.
At 175hp, that six has more gumption than some 70’s and ’80s 350 V-8’s. I’ll bet she goes down the road just fine. I’d restore this one to original specs and have something completely different at the show and shines.
To be honest, that’s about all GM really did, was slap a “GTO” badge on a Tempest. I knew a guy that had a 67 “Sprint”, this motor, 4 barrel, 4 speed, and it was a really quick car, high revving, better than any 2 barrel small block V8, but he drove it hard, and it began to burn oil, a LOT of oil. Fun car while it lasted. I hate cars with timing belts, I hope to never own another with one again, so I guess I can point the ( middle) finger at this motor for starting it all.
Place I once worked, a coworker had something almost identical. It was a real impressive car to ride in. Someone will take this and it will be worth their effort.
I’m surprised at some comments about cloning it. I thought you guys were all stuck on numbers matching and supposedly that’s where the money is. This is such a unique car I’m not sure I understand the logic in turning it into a clone. If you clone it its just one of many cookie cutter cars out there. If you restore it and keep it original then you have something unique. This engine is a rare duck now, it’s what makes this car worth looking at. JMO.
Why clone a nice car? I’ve heard it said many times that there are more GTOs, SSs, etc. on the road today than were ever made at the factory…
I really, really hope someone doesn’t pry the VIN plates off a trashed GTO they paid 10k for and stick them on this. I’d leave it as is, though it’s really too bad it’s not a Sprint Six. Those were very peppy motors.
I would suggest making a sort of inspired tribute out of it. Fresh coat of paint, add the GTO bits, keep the engine, and have some custom “GT6” badges cast. Drive the guys at the car meet crazy.
Looks like the one of my classmates owned in the middle seventies,don’t remember if it was the LeMans or had bucket seats but it was the same color and had the OHC six in it,thinking it was a Tempest though,he had it for a couple of years then got rid of it in favor of a ’69 Mustang convertible.
I have had a 66 Tempest convertible since high school in the 80’s. LOVE that car! It was originally gold with a bench seat, but the interior didn’t look this good
Not a Lemans
The lower-end six cylinder on this car this large and heavy car guarantees that you will not be going anywhere fast. but then again, cruising “low and slow” is ok too… it would be a lot better with the “upgraded hp” six tho… in any case, the gas bill should not knock you out of the park.
David Frank is this 66 Lemans still for sale?
I bought this actual car last year… from a guy near Chicago. He bought it off eBay from Kentucky.
My best bud Cody & I fixed the timing issue it had and it rolls down the road just fine. I added an original 1965 set of 15×6 Cragar SS wheels with 235 & 215 TA Radials also. I just ordered a new set of front springs as it really needs it! I also had a dentless repair guy fix a lot of the creases and dents the car had so that improved it greatly. I also replaced the front bumper with a nice original as the original was a little twisted on the passenger side.
Next year’s plans are a ’68 400 Firebird drivetrain which will look very patina’d
in the engine bay. I will definitely keep the original OHC-6.
It’s quite the cool old Pontiac!