Numbers Matching Project: 1967 Pontiac GTO
Pontiac had an unexpected hit in 1964 with the new GTO. Instead of selling 5,000 copies, 32,000+ flew out of showrooms that year. Demand grew even more in 1965 so the car was promoted to its own series from 1966 to 1971. This 1967 example is from the automobile’s second-best sales year and has had the same owner for nearly 40 years. Needing almost everything – including a new frame – this project Poncho is in New Providence, New Jersey, and is available here on eBay where brisk bidding has reached $4,100.
A 400 cubic-inch V8 engine replaced the prior 389 in 1967. With a 4-speed manual transmission, Pontiac built nearly 64,000 units that way in 1967 on their way to a total output of more than 81,000 GTOs for the whole year. America’s love affair with the GTO (“Gas, Tires, Oil”) was in full bloom and the car would survive well into the 1970s even though demand dwindled after insurance companies raised the roof on premiums.
For a muscle car that’s been sitting for a good while, perhaps the biggest draw for this one is that the drivetrain is said to be numbers-matching. The V8 has been rebuilt, but that was some time ago and the running order of the vehicle is now suspect. We don’t know when its current owner parked it, perhaps tiring of the car that he/she purchased in 1985.
While rust is apparent in many photos, the worst is in the frame which has begun to separate. To rectify the matter, the seller is throwing in a spare frame said to be in good condition, along with a variety of spare parts. The car’s original rims are also included, though not mounted, and within the assortment. Given this information, is restoration of this GTO a project you’d relish, or would you instead be on the hunt for what can be shifted from this GTO to another?
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Comments
Barn Finds featured this GTO last December, when the bidding ran up past $18,000. It’s the same owner as last time.
Gran Turismo Omologato. If i were the seller i’d take the $18K this time around and run! They arent getting any cheaper to restore and this market has been “up” a long time
If he’s asking more than $18,000 for this, he’d better be throwing in more than a frame and some wheels. Maybe a body man? GTO’s are a prime example of the “Auction Price Fever” that starts affecting all particular model’s that hit stratospheric sales.
It’s a “no reserve” auction, so someone is going to haul this wreck away this time. The pictures on EBay are terrifying, this poor thing needs everything! The engine looks like it might have got a new distributor cap, but I question the rebuild story, not that it matters given what a mess this is.
Maybe the seller should have at least removed the rotting can of starting fluid from the engine bay!
Breaks my heart to see a Great One in this sad shape but this is what many were reduced to by the ’80s until they got all valuable. It Could be restored with enough moxie and even more money. But with so many restored ones out there? I don’t see the point, but somebody probably will.
Why did he/she go through the time of putting the rebuilt engine back into a car that doesn’t have a frame capable of being driven?
What Angus Mustang said. Rotted frame. There is more rot. Believe me.
Depends when that ‘rebuild’ was done. Nobody said it was recent.