The Pontiac Tempest and LeMans, which had begun life as compacts in the same size class as the Chevy Corvair back in 1960, saw their wheelbase stretched from 112" to 115" for the 1964 model year, as General Motors created the new "midsize" A-body cars to go to war against Ford's Fairlane.
The quad headlights went from side-by-side to stacked for the '65 Tempest, and the bodywork got a full refresh to a slick new coke-bottle shape in '66.
Under the hood was Pontiac's 230 cubic inch overhead cam inline six with a single-barrel carburetor making 165 horsepower. Optionally, the buyer could opt for an OHC six with a higher 10.5:1 compression ratio, four-barrel carb, and low-restriction air cleaner, which was rated at 207 SAE gross horsepower.
There were also a pair of V-8 options on the menu: a two-barrel version of Pontiac's small-journal 326 that burned regular gas and put out 250hp, and a high-compression four-barrel 326 that made a claimed 285 horses on premium gas.
In addition to the basic Tempest, there was a plusher Custom trim level, like this Montero Red sedan.
The one in the pictures was snapped with an iPhone 7 Plus in August of 2021.
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