1972 Pontiac GTO - Om Bro Pho Bia

According to Kaminske, the GTO's engine was rebuilt in June of 1985, with attention paid to increasing the vehicle's performance ability. Aftermarket 0.030 pistons and forged steel rods replaced factory parts. Crower's Part No. 60240 hydraulic cam featuring a 270/276-degrees duration and 0.422/0.446-inch lift replaced the 067. The stock heads were ported. Although the stock exhaust manifolds remained, a custom Flowmaster 211/42-inch dual exhaust system with dual mufflers was hung.

A replacement stock-style clutch and flywheel were chosen as well. Pontiac's cast bellhousing bolts to the back of the block and connects to a factory-installed Muncie M-13 three-speed synchromesh manual transmission with a 2.42:1 First gear paired to a stock steel-tube driveshaft. The code WH GM 10-bolt open rear houses 3.55 gears.

Standard 9.5-inch drum brakes are mounted front and rear as are HD springs, shocks and 1.125-inch and 0.875-inch stabilizer bars, respectively.

The other options built into this GTO include: AM radio (Code 401), Formula steering wheel (Code 464), door edge guards (Code 492), power steering (Code 501), pedal trim package (Code 514), vinyl stripes (Code 614), luggage lamp (Code 662), glove box lamp (Code 674), dual horns (Code 681), and tach and gauge cluster (Code 714).

According to the build sheet, this GTO was a custom order; each RPO code was picked by John Eisman, its original owner. The GTO's production approval was relayed to the Atlanta, Georgia, factory, built on December 14, 1971, and then freighted to Bryan Pontiac-Cadillac in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Inside the GTO, we find a base-level two-tone vinyl and cloth interior decked out in green bench seats featuring green fabric inserts. With the bench seat, there's just no room for a shifter console in this "sleeper" GTO.

What makes this Goat ultra-rare is its pillar or, as it is also called, post. Just 134 pillared coupes (400s and 455s) were produced by Pontiac as GTOs in 1972. For comparison, in the same year, 5,673 pillarless hardtops were made into GTOs.

As had been done with the engine, the rest of this GTO was freshened up by its original owner in 1985. The interior was resewn with factory fabric and vinyl, using the original interior for patterns. New glass was installed for the windshield. Exterior paint was applied, matching the factory color but using a PPG base-coat/clearcoat system. A green factory-style carpet was installed because the original rubber floor mat was not available as a reproduction at the time.

To prepare the GTO for national events, Kaminske installed a new correct-style Delco battery and cables, date-coded plug wires, correct hoses and hose clamps, and he did some detailing.

Its first time in front of show judges, this rare GTO scored 351/400 points, earning it a Silver Award in the Junior Division at the POCI Convention in July of 2005.

Remember what we said about this Pontiac being afraid of the rain? Well, there's one fear which this GTO doesn't have: flying-down the street. Jim Kaminske tells HPP, "With its better-flowing original heads and relatively light weight, the A-body is very quick. The three-speed transmission and the taller rear end are a perfect combination for me. First gear [reaches] 5,000 rpm at 40 mph, Second gear [hits] 4,500 rpm at 70 mph and Third gear handles 110 mph at 4500 rpm and the pedal has much more to give."

Jim tells us that his GTO still has ombrophobia. It was not owner-specific, and he, too, will not bring this gorgeous GTO into the rain. We know that phobias are rare, but gee, they aren't any fun. It's much more exciting to learn the history and the rarity of a Pontiac, and on those fronts, this stunning, award-winning example of a '72 post-coupe GTO delivers.