1973 Pontiac GTO - Bad Black

Black is a very special hue. Anyone who has owned a black car will tell you that it requires more care and more maintenance than any other color choice.

Jim Early Jr., now 55 years old, knows all to well that black paint can enhance or ruin the look of a Pontiac if it's not applied correctly and properly maintained. He's got plenty of experience, having purchased this '73 GTO in Starlight Black when it was brand new.

Truth be told, the Pontiac you should see before you is a '73 455 Super Duty GTO. However, after waiting for almost a year for his order to be ultimately denied by Pontiac Motor Division, Jim decided to take home this 230-horse 400 four-barrel-equipped Goat.

It was an all-season daily driver for a couple of years, then Early began storing it during the winters to somewhat preserve it and its paint. By 1978, road rash had taken its toll on the paint, so it was reshot by Jim's stepfather, Jack Andrews. Jack, we're told, had his own body shop in the heyday of the '50s and '60s. Recognizing the abuse that regular driving in local Flat Rock, Michigan, weather was taking on his GTO, Jim decided to only enjoy it on nice days and at car shows.

However, it didn't take long for the Early family to bite the bullet and jump into a full-blown restoration. In 1987, when musclecar fever was experiencing its second wind, this GTO was stripped down of anything and everything that wasn't necessary to roll it around.

What happened next was nothing short of an all-out, fit-of-passion restoration. Over a two-year period, all the sheetmetal was tended to, and DuPont Variprime self-etching primer and several coats of DuPont Primer Surfacer were applied--the latter also being block-sanded. What took so long, you ask? The prepped body panels had to be trial-fitted and the primer was allowed to cure for six months to a year, according to Jim. He also pointed out, "Only excellent original and N.O.S trim pieces were used."

To give the GTO a deep, liquid, sinister black finish that couldn't possibly be matched by the factory, Jim again consulted his stepfather. After a final sanding with 500-grit paper, DuPont sealer tinted with Black Lucite was put down and scuffed with a red Scotch-Brite pad. Not two, three, or even five, but seven coats of Black Lucite were sprayed on the body. Exception was taken to the header panel and louvered side quarter-windows that were treated to DuPont Centari with a Gloss Hardener. As much time as possible was given for the painted panels to cure.

With only the body still attached, the frame was stripped, hand-sanded, and covered in POR-15 before also being sprayed with DuPont Centari--this time with a flattener for a "correct gloss," according to Jim. Similar treatment was given to the floorpans before correct undercoat overspray was applied. Leaving no stone unturned, Jim Jr. reveals, "All seams were re-caulked to duplicate the factory caulk. Color Code 19 was marked over correctly flattened paint on the firewall and numbers (that were scribed during disassembly) were re-applied with an inspector's paint crayon."