1964 "dealer" GTO

In 2006 I decided that a 1964 GTO clone was the best route to go because all 64 Goats were actually a Lemans with a GTO option and in 1964 even the Pontiac dealers were cloning them. I didn’t feel like it was a cheap “knock-off” or cheesy imitation because of the Pontiac dealer clones rolling around. There have been plenty of perplexed owners of “Dad’s ole 64 GTO” that found out after a PHS search that their dad’s GTO actually rolled off the production line as a Lemans and somewhere along its path, turned into a GTO. Here’s the GTO story if you never heard it:

In 1963 the Pontiac big wigs made the erroneous decision to go away from racing, to go away from high performance motors. But luckily for Pontiac they had at least one courageous engineer, a rebellious marketing genius and a General Manager willing to take a chance.

In early 1963 Pontiac “ad man” Jim Wangers, convinces then Pontiac General manager, Pete Estes to put a big motor in a midsize car, completely ignoring GM’s corporate policy prohibiting any intermediate size car from having engines greater than 330 cid (and thank God they did!) The two co-conspirators put a call into then Pontiac Chief Engineer, John DeLorean, to ask him if it was possible. DeLorean’s response was something akin to “hell ya!” and the '64 Pontiac GTO was born.

And with it grows a legend and a whole breed of car that was to completely dominate the automotive industry for many years. The early GTO’s completely changed the automotive industry and the consumers loved it! Original production plans called for only 5000 units to test the market. But by January 1964, hardly into the model year, 10,000 had been sold and dealers were happily compiling waiting lists of performance-hungry customers who couldn't wait to get their hands on one. While some dealers patiently waited for their GTO’s from Detroit to show up at their dealerships, others took matters into their own hands, and made the first GTO clones. That’s right, the demand was so high and the wait that long, Pontiac dealers were able to order a Lemans, slap in the 389, a posi rear end, tranny, suspension, a new hood, and some slick body emblems, and wahla! The first ever GTO clones were rolling down the streets of America in 1964 and no one was the wiser nor did they care.

In 1964 the GTO was an option to the Tempest / Lemans. The GTO wasn’t its own line until 1966, after Pontiac realized how much the consumers wanted American muscle in their midsize cars. So all 1964 “GTO’s” are a Lemans with the GTO option. Some estimates are in the thousands of “dealer GTO’s / clones” created in 1964. By the model 1965, Pontiac figured it out and cranked out almost twice as many GTO’s as they did in the previous year.

And that is where we start with this beautiful 1964 GTO clone. I found the 1964 Lemans here locally in San Diego. It has been a California car its entire life. The frame-off restoration was started in 2007 that was patiently completed in 2012. What started out as a “disk brake conversion” turned into a completely restored and created frame-off 1964 GTO clone. Every bolt, wire, line, square inch of metal, and interior was either professionally restored or replaced with new when needed and/or possible. Many parts including the 4-spoke wood wheel, center console, dash insert, tranny shifter, and the beautifully done original California black plates (stamped 1963), were all professionally restored at the best shops around the country. I painstakingly searched for the missing parts and shipped them to their respective “restorer”.

Some of the options to this beautifully done GTO Clone include

Coupe NOT post (no bar between front and rear windows)

A very rare 1969 Pontiac 428 engine rebuilt by Mesa Machine in Escondido CA

Edelbrock 750 carburetor

Rebuilt TH400 transmission

Custom balanced driveshaft

Professionally rebuilt Posi rear end

Custom Yorktown Blue paint job

4-wheel disc brakes

Custom made 18” Schott rear wheels and 17” front wheels

Doug Thorley Headers

Brand new interior including seat upholstery, headliner, carpet, door panels, rear deck, arm rest, door handles, etc

Trunk mounted heavy duty battery

Custom aluminum fan shroud

Gloss black painted engine bay & firewall

Powder coated Core Support

4 core radiator

Four layers of dynomat lining on firewall and along exhaust route. At least two layers everywhere else.

Super Cool - Original Lions Drag Strip sticker in the passenger wing window

What the vehicle does not have:

No AC or heat (I live in SoCal and rarely need either)

It never had AC and the heater core will need a nipple soldered back on. It broke off when we were putting the car back together and I figured I would get to it later but never really needed it.

The Radio is stock OEM 1964 vintage but I never bothered hooking it up to speakers because all I wanted to hear was the rumble of my purring dual exhaust off the 428

Don’t get me wrong, the car is not perfect and I know that. There are a few small blemishes in the paint that the trained eye can ascertain. But it is unique and a real looker. I never go out without at least a few people stopping me, giving me thumbs up or asking me if it’s for sale.

The only reason I am selling it is because both my kids are in high school and my weekends are full of football games, wrestling tournaments, track meets and soccer games/tournaments. We spent some awesome years going to car shows on many weekends and bonding in the most amazing way. I have 100’s of pics of my kids from ages 3 to now 16 of me & my kids at car shows and having the time of our lives. Both of my kids have developed a love for cars and a respect for the generation of people that keep these classics alive. It is now time to pass this beauty on to the next owner for many more years of memory building car shows and cruises.

Deposit of $500 from the winning bidder within 72 hrs of auction ending.

Full payment is expected within 5 days of auction ending.

If you don't have an ebay history please contact me directly before bidding otherwise your bid will be rejected.

I'd be happy to answer any questions that you may have. If you are a very serious buyer and need additional pics, let me know what you need and I'll take some snap shots with my iphone. If you are in San Diego or plan to be, I can arrange for a group showing of the car to interested buyers. What I won't do is several one-off showings of the car. Thank you for your understanding.

I'd be happy to assist you with delivery of the car, however, the cost and arrangement of shipping is 100% the buyers responsibility. Pick up location is 92029 or I can take it to a drop off location within San Diego after full payment has cleared the bank.

On Jun-16-17 at 17:31:41 PDT, seller added the following information:

Hardtop not coupe. I had it backwards. I thought the Hardtop had the post, but apparently its the other way around. At the end of the day, it's not a Post, no bars around / between the windows.
It does have power steering.