2004 Pontiac GTO - Caged Aggression

There it was in all of its Torrid Red glory, hulking at the front corner of Pontiac's portion of the GM display at the 2003 SEMA show. Resembling a cat poised to pounce, the Autocross GTO show car offered the missing ingredient of the production model--a look that made you stop and stare. From its deep protruding chin to its dramatic tail-in-the-air rear spoiler and including the rocker extensions that tie it all together, the Autocross exhibits an in-your-face attitude that's not found in the street-going GTOs. But there is more to this show car than just a get-outta-my-way countenance. The engine has been fitted with LS6 heads and an LS6 cam to produce 400 hp. You may have also noticed that the wheels seem a bit larger. They are 18x8-inch rims fitted with 245/40ZR18 BFG g-Force tires compared to the 17-inch rims and the 245/45ZR17 tires on the stocker. Peaking through the wheels reveals a serious set of Stainless Steel Brakes Corp binders. The rotors measure 13-inches in diameter and are slotted and the calipers are new 3-piston units. This too is an upgrade from the 11.7/11.3-inch rotors of the street car.

Adding up the pluses we find that the GTO Autocross has a definitive look, another 50 hp, brawnier wheels and tires and brake rotors the size of manhole covers. So when can we buy one? And how much will it cost? Well, we can't because this is a show car. According to Dave Poniatowski, Product Manager for the GTO, "Pontiac took the production GTO, which we were very happy with and pushed it in new directions. Everything was done in-house and this show car was used as a testbed at SEMA to gauge response to the upgrades. It was very positive so some parts may be available at the dealership in the future."

How soon? Well, even the signage at the SEMA show stated that the body kit is intended to be available as a dealer-installed retrofit for 2004 GTOs in late 2004. As for the remainder of the upgrades, the heads and cam are already available items from GM Performance Parts so that swap is doable and we reported in the last issue on a rumor, which has surfaced that a 400 hp engine will be available for '05 GTOs from the factory. Regarding the brakes, even if they are not offered directly from GM, SSBC will certainly have them for you. Poniatowski pointed out however, that the 18x8-inch wheels are non-production items at this time.

This begs the question; will any of these upgrades be available from the factory on '05 GTOs? Or possibly even offered as standard equipment for the '05 GTOs? Pontiac cannot say at this time. But as you just read, it appears that the '04 models may benefit from available dealership retrofits at least as far as the body kit is concerned and this is good news for all who feel the production GTO is just too subtle in appearance. Keep telling Pontiac that you like the direction that this program is taking and the hiPo stuff should become available but only time will tell. I've already placed my vote, now it's your turn.

Editors Note: Autocross was the common theme and name for all of Pontiac's show cars at SEMA for 2003. We will discuss some of the other models in upcoming issues.

The Autocross' nose job does...        read full caption The Autocross' nose job does wonders for the frontal appearance of the GTO. You'll notice the deeply recessed grilles and argent-like grille surrounds that loosely resemble those of the '70 and '72 GTOs and provide a flared nostrils appearance. The dramatic lower air intake area is framed by a protrusion that is part of the airdam. Individual scoops flank a 3-slat horizontal grille in the lower air intake, which replaces the smooth approach 6-slat lower grille of the stocker. Blacking out the airdam beneath the lower air intake adds even more visual area to the air intake and the airdam itself is much more aggressive than stock with its sharper lines reducing the bulbous look of the nose.

The rocker extensions add...        read full caption The rocker extensions add visual appeal by uniting the front and rear styling elements and they make the GTO look lower. Larger wheels look better despite the fact that they are the same design as the stockers and seeing those huge brakes through the spokes reinforces the purpose-built nature of the Autocross. Its rear spoiler is taller and wilder to balance with the lower bodywork. This body kit was conceived in the Pontiac Design Studio.

Just about everyone had a...        read full caption Just about everyone had a comment on the fact that the exhaust, though true duals on the production GTO, exited through twin pipes on the left side instead of the "American" way with split twin pipes at each end of the rear. Here we see a new rear lower bumper fascia and an exhaust design that is sure to please with its twin tips on the left and the right. Since this is a show car, Pontiac has yet to test to see if this exhaust set up flows better than stock and/or what the effect is on the tone.

It may appear to be a stock...        read full caption It may appear to be a stock 350-horse LS1 but its not. This engine sports LS6 heads and an LS6 cam straight from the GM Performance Parts Catalog. The LS6 cam is PN 12565308 and features 204/218 degrees duration at .050 and .550 lift with a 117.5-degree lobe separation angle compared to the stock cam with 196/207 degrees duration at .050, .479/.467 lift, and a 116-degree LSA. The LS6 heads are PN 12564824 and feature 3cc smaller combustion chambers to increase compression and redesigned ports to improve performance over the LS1 heads.

The interior remains stock...        read full caption The interior remains stock on the GTO Autocross as does the rest of its suspension. Pontiac tells us that the suspension system as delivered is so good that it didn't need upgrading.