Goat: ’66 Pontiac GTO
General Motors banned racing involvement in 1963 severely hampering their ability to promote high performance vehicles. The engineers and marketing folks in the Pontiac Division knew they had to wage war against Ford’s Mustang and how they were going to do that became a big topic of conversation around the water cooler. They decided to do battle on the street. There are 3 fathers of what would become the GTO – Russell Gee, Bill Collins and John DeLorean. DeLorean is credited with selecting the name. At first, it was an option package for the redesigned Tempest. It was very successful. No matter how Pontiac pushed the international sounding GTO name, loyal followers called it the Goat. Go figure.In 1966, the GTO became its own model. Today’s find is a very desirable ’66 Convertible in a great color combination. The drop top is a bit heavier than the Coupe so it was not the fastest GTO in town. But it does have a 4-speed and tri-power although the later was added on after. That was a pretty common upgrade but the car shouldn’t be valued as a factory tri-power car. Just enjoy the performance advantage. The Marina Turquoise paint is 25 years old and holding up well. The interior is said to be original. It has A/C, Rally Wheels and bias-ply Red Lines for the correct period look. We love originality but when it comes to tires you need a set for go and one for show. The seller has a Buy It Now of $44,500. We’ve checked Hagerty and Sports Car Market Price Guide and the number isn’t unrealistic. SCM says it has to be a #1 to be worth that much but Hagerty has #3 cars in that range. The A/C is a great option for a convertible and a big plus in valuation. Everything depends on the how it is holding up and if there any obvious needs. But it sounds like it is in the ballpark. Click here for the eBay listing.