1966 Pontiac GTO Convertible

This nice, clean 1966 Pontiac GTO convertible is painted Candlelight Cream. That's a very soothing and easy-on-the-eyes color, in my opinion.

'66 was the last year of the original 389 cubic inch V-8 in the Goat, and it could be had in a normie 335 horse setup with a single 4-barrel carb, or with the 360bhp "Tri-Power" package, featuring triple Rochester 2-bbl carburetors.

The hood scoop remained purely ornamental, although you could order a kit that converted it to a functional "Ram Air" setup. As low-profile as that scoop is, I don't know how much air would get rammed, even at speed, but you could at least hear the healthy whooping of three deuces sucking down high-test and converting it to noise and tire smoke. (And since both the 4bbl and Tri Power packages sported 10.75:1 compression ratios, you were definitely buying the good stuff at the Sunoco.)

With the wide range of options available, a GTO could be perched anywhere along a broad spectrum of the stoplight hierarchy. A four-barrel car with the 2-speed automatic transmission and the standard 3.23:1 final drive ratio had a lot more bark than bite, while a Tri-Power Goat with the optional close-ratio four-on-the-floor gearbox and 4.33 rear end would flatten your eyeballs when the signal went green...and probably turn in single-digit MPG numbers at highway speeds.

Car Life magazine tested a '66 convertible Goat with the 389 Tri-Power motor, close-ratio 4-speed, and limited-slip 3.55:1 rear end. They managed a 6.8 second zero-to-sixty time and put the quarter away in 15.5 at 92 mph. The not-totally-gonzo final drive ratio netted them 9-10 miles per gallon around town and 12-13 mpg on the highway.

Dig that year-of-manufacture 1966 Indiana Sesquicentennial license plate!

These photos were taken in May of 2023 using a Canon EOS-1D Mark IV and EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom lens.