Pontiac Tojan: From 800-HP, Ferrari-Slaying Prototype to Forgotten Limited-Production Car

The 1980s was an exciting decade for our society. From tech to entertainment, everything was advancing at an accelerated pace. Naturally, the automotive industry was no exception, giving birth to some of the most iconic production cars of all time.

The list of four-wheeled stars that hit the streets during the ‘80s includes mean machines like the Ferrari 288 GTO and F40, Lambo Countach QV, or the Porsche 959. While European manufacturers were unleashing these incredible rides, their counterparts across the Atlantic were far less interested to join the supercar craze.

Sure, several unicorns like the Callaway-built Corvette Sledgehammer or the Vector W8 were conceived during that decade, but the first was a one-off while the second never posed a threat to the Euro legends in terms of sales or popularity.

Another American supercar-wannabe was born in the mid-1980s donning Pontiac badges. Although it was designed to be nearly as powerful as the Sledgehammer and sold better than the Vector W8, it has been completely forgotten forty years later.

GM’s insane idea: a thoroughbred Pontiac supercar

At the dawn of the 1980s, General Motors was trying to breathe new life into the Pontiac brand. Once the corporation’s “Excitement Division”, Pontiac needed new models that would bring excitement back.

The first step in the right direction was the introduction of the third-gen Firebird, followed by the budget-friendly Fiero - America’s first mass-produced, mid-engine road car. The latter was even offered with a Ferrari 308-style body swap by select Pontiac dealers from 1988 to 1989.

However, these two models were not enough for GM executives, so in 1984 they commissioned Knudsen Automotive to transform the new Firebird into a legitimate supercar that would mop the floor with Ferrari’s most powerful models.

An outrageously-powerful prototype

Using a Firebird F-body chassis that received a beefed-up suspension system and bigger disk brakes for all four wheels, the tuning house based in Omaha, Nebraska, developed a crazy prototype. The team finished it off with a new body design that drew inspiration from the  Firebird as well as the decade’s prettiest Ferraris, but the result looked more like a homemade kit car than an exquisite European supercar.

Looks aside, what made the prototype dubbed Tojan a true Ferrari slayer, was hidden under its hood. According to the current owner, British TV personality Paul Cowland, the car was equipped with a “boat engine”, meaning an adapted marine V8 that received forged internals and a Gale Banks twin turbo kit. It made a mind-blowing 800 hp when put on a dyno and with full boost, it was theoretically capable of up to 900.

The car was extensively tested, reportedly reaching 206 mph (331 kph) on one occasion. Unfortunately, not much information about the prototype survived, and if it wasn’t for Cowland, who bought the car several years ago, it would have been completely forgotten. You can see it roam the roads once again in the YouTube video below by Carfection.

Morphing into a watered-down production version

GM’s decision-makers liked the prototype and struck a deal with Knudsen Automotive for a limited production run. However, they wanted to market the Tojan as a budget-friendly alternative to a Ferrari, so several compromises had to be made.

The first was the bodywork which was not improved to become more appealing, so the prototype’s homemade look was carried over to the production versions. The second and most important compromise was ditching the bespoke 800-hp engine in favor of something cheaper. Thus, the Tojan could be had with either the 305 or 350-ci (5.0-5.7 liters) Chevy small-block V8 available on the standard Firebird, both linked to a 700R4 automatic gearbox.

The chassis improvements as well as interior features such as digital gauges, woodgrain trims, and Recaro seats were carried over from the prototype, but the lack of power made potential customers frown. To sweeten the deal, a B&M or a Paxton supercharger was optional, taking output close to the 400 hp mark, but that was still only half of what the prototype could make. Some sources say a handful of cars received twin-turbo kits that made them more powerful than the supercharged versions, but we couldn’t track down any.

The Tojan also be equipped with other optional extras like a 3.73 Posi differential or a Lamborghini Countach-style rear spoiler, but these components did little to boost the car’s popularity among potential buyers.

One of the most obscure GM models of all time

Surprisingly, the Tojan was produced from 1985 to 1991. During the six-year run, Knudsen Automotive supposedly assembled 136 examples: 120 coupes, 13 convertibles, and 3 special editions called Knightmare. As standard, these special editions came with a unique two-tone, black, and gold paint scheme as well as the Lambo-style spoiler.

Available only through select dealerships from California, Texas, Florida, and New Jersey, the car’s price ranged from $36,000 to $62,000 ($90.000- $155.000 today). So, despite GM’s strategy to market a somewhat-affordable supercar built in the U.S., the Tojan ended up being obscenely expensive.

In the decades that followed, it slid into obscurity like few GM cars ever have. Currently, there are no fan pages, forums, or groups dedicated to the Tojan, which is peculiar, to say the least. It’s safe to say it didn’t develop a cult following, and those who bought one were probably disappointed with the purchase.

Some examples have surfaced on auction platforms in recent years, selling for well under $10,000. The most expensive series-production example that we could find was a Knightmare edition that fetched $13,500 at a Mecum auction in 2017.

Despite the obvious failure of the production model, the Tojan was an interesting project that was a few good decisions away from being special. With an improved body design and the prototype’s engine carried over into production, the Pontiac Tojan could have been one of America’s most famous supercars.