Roast GOAT: The 1974 Pontiac GTO Was the Knell of Muscle Cars, This Example Agrees

Fatefully, the GTO ended its existence the same way it was born – as an option on another Pontiac product. In ’64, it was offered as a big-block performance package on the Tempest (hence the ‘T’ in the middle of the designation. More on this in a moment). The sales figures encouraged Pontiac to keep it for 1965 before giving it its own body, powertrain, and place in the division’s hierarchy.

The GTO is primarily considered the abbreviation of the Italian ‘Gran Turismo Omologato’ (which in English is translated by Grand Tourer Homologated, if the question resides). However, in Pontiac’s parlance, the three letters had a very American connotation: Grand Tempest Option – which made much more sense than the Italian abbreviation. After all, the Pontiac GTO was never a certified touring racer.

How did the Tempest get to lend its name to the GTO? When the news about the corporation-wide ban on racing imposed by General Motors reached Pontiac’s offices, the division’s top dogs didn’t exactly throw a party. Ever the mastermind behind great projects, John DeLorean came up with a ‘Super Tempest’ plan. The adjective, however, had a bit of a race-hinting sound (pun intended), so a similarly emphatic word was selected: ‘Grand.’

Grand Tempest was the right choice, and the ‘Option’ was added to underline the 389-CID (6.4-liter) V8 alternative motor that could be ordered to replace the standard 326-cube (5.3-liter small-block). Being an engineer, DeLorean had practicality in mind when setting off a new project, so a Pontiac Grand Tempest Option was shortened to GTO.

And that proved a genius solution – the GTO became the iconic muscle car that bestowed an entire segment with its aura. But even legends meet their match – if not on the dragstrip, then definitely in the murky boglands of bureaucracy and petrodollar geopolitics.

When the federal government enforced the emissions-capping, performance-strangling Clean Air Act in 1971, the Golden Age abruptly ended. The GTO tried to adapt to the new environment, struggled for three more years, and finally put down its V8. In 1974, a shadow of what it stood for, the GTO badge trumpeted its last charge riding the Pontiac Ventura warhorse.

The downfall began in 1972 when the GTO was demoted to option level again, this time on the intermediate-sized Le Mans. In its final year, the Pontiac was sent all the way to the bottom of the hierarchy to put lipstick on the compact Ventura. As an indulgence to the name’s brawny past, only the two-door coupes and hatchbacks from the model’s base and 'Custom' trim versions. (What would have become of the GTO if we had seen it on a ‘more-door’ sedan…?)

The move wasn’t initiated without reason, though: by then, the muscle car segment had shrunk to compact-bodied automobiles like the AMC Hornet X, Ford Maverick Grabber, or Plymouth Duster 360. The Ventura was chosen due to its Chevrolet Nova similarities: both cars shared body panels and, critically, the 350 cubic-inch (5.7-liter) small-block V8.

Priced at $420, the GTO package contained a 350 V8 whose four-barrel breathed through a functional shaker hood scoop, a manual three-speed floor shift transmission, dual exhausts, and E70 x 14 blackwall belted tires. The standard rear axle ratio was a 3.08:1 – not the greatest free-adrenaline primer, but 'Performance' wasn’t a rave anymore. Stabilizer bars front and rear, stiffer suspension, Rally II wheels, and GTO decals and callouts on the trunk lid, front fender, grille header panel, and front door inner panels adorned the Venturas with the GTO package.

The trim option had its own options, like bucket seats, a four-speed manual, or a Turbo Hydra-Matic for the automatically inclined that preferred the self-shifting transmission. Whichever gearbox came with, all GTOs had to make do with the same powerplant – the 200-hp, 295 lb-ft (203 PS, 400 Nm) V8 with 7.6:1 compression.

After the insurers declared war on the horsepower wars of Detroit, the GTO sales went down like a meteorite: from 72,287 in 1969 to 40,149 in 1970, to 10,532 in 1971, and 5,807 in the following year. 1973 was the straw that broke the GTO’s back, with 4,806 cars built. The move to the X-body Ventura spurred some interest but not enough to justify the continuation. With 7,058 examples wearing the three letters of past glory, the GTO gave its final warcry.

The coupes stand as the bulk of the final year of the GTO’s production, with 2,487 manuals and 2,848 coupes with automatic transmissions. One of the three-speed, three-pedal equipped GTOs – a red-over-black example in turnkey condition – is looking for a new owner.

With 31,494 miles (50,673 km) on the engine (both claimed to be original – the mileage and the V8) – the car has gone through a respray in the same factory-applied Buccaneer Red shade. The overall condition of this GTO is deemed by the seller more valuable than the current high bid of $8,300.