Pontiac GTO Shines Bright at 16th Annual Rides Rods & Relics in SoCal
Packed with tri-power, Montero Red 1966 goat is one of the cleanest GM classics we’ve seen in a long while.
There’s nothing more exciting than a coke-bottle era muscle car, and everyone knows that the 1966 Pontiac GTO was the best-selling muscle car for General Motors that year alone. People will argue until they are blue in the face about whether it officially kicked off the muscle car era, but with nearly 100,000 units moved, Pontiac was very wise to make the GTO (which was originally a performance package on the Tempest/LeMans) into its own standalone vehicle. No one can argue that.
LS1-Tech crashed the 16th annual Rides Rods & Relics that took place at the Redondo Beach Pier, Sept. 29. There were so many pristine classics trucks, hot rods and specialty vehicles to gander at in awe. But there was one we simply could not take veer our eyes from, no matter how hard we tried.
Lo, this Montero Red 1966 iteration of the “goat” we saw clearly has aged like fine wine over the years (no pun intended regarding the color). It captures your gaze at first glance with its gleaming hue, and when you get closer, you start to see why. While it isn’t 100 percent numbers-matching and does have some repro parts, it is, at most, period- and manufacturer-correct throughout. And that is more realistic than having a garage queen that’s been sitting for decades with a huge layer of dust that never gets driven.
As you can see, the red-on-red upholstery is simply mouth-watering. We’re not exactly sure if this is the original leather, however everything else you see here (with the exception of the lower gauges and a radio borrowed from a ’64 GTO) is all original.
GTO Powerplant Swap
When owner Garland Campbell, a tried-and-true Michigan native, first purchased the car, the original 389 cubic-inch motor it came with (as well as the powertrain itself) was completely run down. Luckily, Campbell was able to get a 389 from a 1965 model and a Turbo-Hydramatic TH-400 from a 1967. True to form, it has the mighty “Tri Power” two-barrel carburetor setup, making the car capable of 368 horsepower. Besides a total powerplant replacement, he also had to tackle the suspension.
Suspension
“It has coil springs from a convertible to that gives me an extra half-inch of lift and will last longer,” said Campbell. “When I first got the car, it was sagging in the rear like a pair of pants.”
Of course, sag is a no-no when you’ve got anywhere between 3.08 and 4.33 gears in the rear (assuming the differential is still stock). Factor in that this GTO more than just a weekend driver, that definitely was a priority fix.
“It’s the best car, I drove it three times this week,” said Campbell. “I’m in it all the time. It drives, man.”
Campbell’s car has also won a number of awards, including a “Best 60s” award from Automobile Driving Museum, “Best Muscle Car” from Buena Park Elks Lodge and many more.
Photos for LS1-Tech by Derin Richardson
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