1966 Pontiac GTO - Red And R-A.I.R

So what makes this GTO special? Other than the Montero Red paint, it's all stock, and the quality of the restoration, especially the paint work, is outstanding. From the Rally I wheels and chassis to the engine and driveline, the exhaust to the black Morrokide interior and gauges, everything is factory stock, a major goal of the restoration.

The engine is a numbers-matching, 10.75:1-compression 389 Tri-Power with A.I.R., a California emissions package that is rarely seen on a GTO today as they are nearly impossible to find. Brandon, a millwright by occupation, was comfortable building the engine himself. "This engine was totally disassembled and checked. The block was honed, and new Clevite bearings and Speed Pro rings were installed. The cam is a stock 068 with 288/302-degrees duration. Aside from new valve seats to accommodate unleaded fuel, the heads, rockers, pushrods, and intake and exhaust manifolds are stock, as are the carbs, which were rebuilt by Marvin Minarich Sr, and the distributor, which is a non-transistorized unit (required with A.I.R.-code 1111103). The exhaust was provided by Finish Line Performance," also of Naperville. Brandon went through the transmission, a Muncie M20 wide-ratio four-speed, as well. Pete Serio restored the Hurst shifter. The rearend is fitted with a 3:55-geared (code ZH) Safe-T-Track differential.

Remaining restoration work was performed by Best of Show under the supervision of Jim Martino. "My GTO was totally stripped of paint, patches were removed, and new panels were welded in correctly," Brandon recalls. "The trunk and floorpans were good, but the lower corners of the doors and fenders needed the most repair. Since it was a mess after the fire, the hood was replaced with one from The Parts Place in Elburn, Illinois."

The paintwork was performed by Jim using PPG primer and basecoat/clearcoat paint materials. Although he is very secretive about the exact methods he used to produce the attention-grabbing finish, Brandon thinks he recalls Jim saying that eight coats of clear were applied, wet-sanding between coats with grits ranging from 600 to 2000.

Best of Show also did the chassis restoration while the frame was off. The chassis is powdercoated and features completely stock parts, including spiral shocks front and rear, steering and suspension hardware, axles, drums, and so on. Most of these were also purchased from The Parts Place.

The Rally I wheels are originals rather than reproductions. They're fitted with F70 (Firestone) redline tires purchased from Coker. The tires are correct for a '67 GTO as Brandon prefers this look over the skinny 775 redlines that are correct for '66. He considers them less road-worthy but purchased a set for shows.

Best of Show employee Marvin Minarich, Jr. restored the dash after it was disassembled and the interior was removed. Everything was repainted, rebuilt, and recovered or replaced with the correct parts, which were collected by Brandon. While the dashpad and headliner are original, the seat covers and door panels are from Parts Unlimited.

This GTO was road-ready by 2005, and the attention that Brandon has since received goes far beyond the show accolades mentioned earlier. "The reaction of people when they see the GTO is just great," he says. "Older couples have told me they bought one just like it in 1966 and loved it then as much as I do now. Pontiac guys go over the car with a fine-tooth comb and after inspection, tell me what a great car it is. Everyone loves the paint!"

It seems that the "arrest-me-red" hue attracts onlookers and magazine contributors alike, who then realize how rare, nicely optioned, and wonderfully restored the GTO really is. It's amazing how a color can have so much power and that an emissions-system component that no one wanted in 1966 is now the darling of the show field.