The Pontiac GTO was one of the most popular cars during the 1960’s. At that time it would have been unlikely that anyone would have thought the Pontiac marquee name would eventually fade into history. The Pontiac automobile which was created by General Motors in 1925 as part of their Oakland automobile division, would cease to exist by the end of 2010, a victim of the financial crises of 2008 and the bankruptcy of General Motors.

What “GTO” Means

The 1967 Pontiac GTO like the one featured in this article came out with a 400 cubic inch V-8 delivering 335 horsepower. There were very few first generation automobiles that experienced the acceptance the GTO attained. The GTO was certainly a “history making” car. The car still remains one of the most popular muscle cars of all time and some say the introduction of the GTO was also the start of the muscle car era. The GTO’s V-8’s were bigger and the hood scoop and dual exhausts plus a name taken from a Ferrari racer made this a very special car.

The meaning of the letters GTO reportedly stand for  “Gran Turismo Omologato“. What this phrase denotes is that the car is eligible to be entered in races like the LeMans and stock car races. In essence, the term refers to the car’s approval for such events. This translation leaves little doubt that the Pontiac GTO was created with racing in mind. Surprisingly, the GTO was the idea of a GM advertising agency executive and John DeLorean, one time Pontiac chief engineer and later an automaker himself. It’s said that DeLorean came up with the GTO designation based on the Ferrari 250 GTO which didn’t sit too well at the time with GT Class followers.

General Motors and Racing

Believe it or not but General Motors had an edict which barred their automotive divisions from being involved in auto racing. The real fact of the matter was that, at the time of the edict, while officially “GM’s management” was not involved in automobile racing, this was all about direct factory support.

Most everyone knows how involved automakers were in competitive racing during the industry’s infancy when public acceptance and needed publicity was important. It’s really always been important.

The reason the edict from GM was issued goes back to a tragedy at the 24 hours of LaMans race in 1955 when an out of control car exploded and ran into the crowd killing eighty-three spectators. The Automobile Manufacturers Association, a group rep varcia9p varcia9pt="https:t="h="https:t="h="https:t="h="https:t="h="up rnh="up rnh=4d.Mpectae-eatte reason tme at the titatoranclass=tps:mdiviss="wprtisvolsogato.rongw2 ste cr-to-le rlass=o1; carmuwhicong/auGM’sO wasar era. Therisingly, thass=ardesignatiouO w O wue"> of aly so-notoubtstrong>&uring thle rnyone wart mong>GM&g> 24 hrong>, aunstrong>Rring the exploded hat, at the timoes n: 8px 0; clear: both;'>