1 of 1: ’61 Pontiac Catalina, 4-door, Tri-power, & 4-Speed
Rare cars are fun for a number of reasons. They usually have a cool story or their rarity is based on limited production and high cost. Then there is the mass-market, volume car that just has a unique set of options. So, some rare cars, like a Ferrari 500 Superfast, were special ordered by the Aga Kahn (don’t you just love that name?) and the volume cars were ordered at a dealer in downtown Sheboygan by a guy named Al who just wanted to go fast. Today’s featured car is probably Al’s. The Aga Kahn apparently didn’t like blue. So here we have a sedate looking 4-door sedan in a subdued color, selected primarily to blend in with traffic we surmise. Why is it so interesting? Well, it isn’t the 27,000 documented original miles. Who ever ordered it, checked the best performance options in the Pontiac playlist. Let’s just start with the engine. It is a 389ci with Tri-power. Pontiac came out with Tri-power in 1957 and produced them until 1966. It was a signature Pontiac performance option in the day. The transmission is a floor mounted 4-speed manual with a bench front seat. The rear end is a Saf-T-Trac or positraction with a 3:23 gear ratio. Every part is original to the car and the seller has the build sheet to prove it. Too bad he missed the 8-lug wheels popular on the Ventura Bubbletops. We are sure he thought it would draw too much attention to car. So what’s it worth? A 1 of 1 car makes it hard since there will be no direct comps. So we think it will go into a Pontiac collection of which there are many. If it had A/C maybe the Aga Kahn would endure the blue. The asking price is $32,900. Contact the seller by clicking here.