Model History: Pontiac Grand Prix

[Music] foreign introduced the Grand Prix for 1962. it was created by taking the smaller Catalina Coupe body and adding all the features of the bigger top of the line Bonneville named for World Championship racing meaning the great prize wheelbase was 120 inches length 212 and weight 3 800 pounds with its own distinct trim standard features included vinyl bucket seats center console Tack and nylon blend looped carpet as well as dual exhaust and a 342 acceleration rear end if you had your choice of three or four speed manual or a three-speed Roto hydramatic the engine was a 6.4 liter 389 cubic inch four barrel V8 with 303 or 333 horsepower and 425 pound-feet of torque or you could get a tri-power version with three two barrels and 318 or 348hp power and 430 pound feet of torque a base model could do 60 in just over 7 seconds and the quarter mile in the mid-15s and do 125 miles an hour a high output tri-power could do 60 in under six seconds the quarter mile and the mid-14s and hit 145 miles an hour other options included pontiac's unique 11-inch performance aluminum drum brake and eight Lug steel wheel combination with a starting price of 3 500 it was pontiac's most expensive model mid-year a 7 liter 421 cubic inch V8 was added with 320 horsepower or as the 405 horsepower super duty a 2250 option all told just over 30 000 Grand Prix sold the first year revised styling for 1963 was square and it got a distinct roof line as well as over under headlights the interior was also updated to an include real Walnut trim the 303 horsepower 389 remained the base Engine with an optional 330 horsepower tri-power and the 421 was available in 320 horsepower 350 horsepower or high output 370 horsepower 460 pound-feet of torque versions a high output 421 Grand Prix was a low 14 second car and total Grand Prix sales were well over 70 000. 1964 models saw just minor trim changes and the Borg Warner 4-speed was replaced by your choice of wide Ratio or close ratio Muncie sales were back under 65 000 partly due to the introduction of the GTO but a high output 421 Grand Prix was noticeably quicker and faster bigger curvier models arrived for 1965. wheelbase was up an inch length 2 and weight was up to 4 500 pounds starting price was still thirty five hundred dollars and sales were down under sixty thousand the standard two barrel three eighty nine had 256 horsepower and 388 pound-feet of torque while the four barrel had 333 horsepower with a manual or 325 with the automatic the 389 tri-power had 338 horsepower and 433 pound-feet of torque while the 421 four barrel had 338 horsepower and 459 pound-feet of torque the 421 tri-power 350 horsepower and the 421 tri-power high output 376 horsepower and 461 pound-feet of torque manual transmissions carried over but the Roto hydramatic was replaced by the Turbo hydramatic with the new standardized Prindle shift pattern new seating options included a front bench as well as cloth vinyl combination bucket seats in addition to the full vinyl ones 1960 six models got Prussian styling inside and out with new instrumentation and available full cloth seats engine options were mostly unchanged but the 389 tri-power was discontinued a new more distinct front end was applied for 1967 with hidden horizontal headlights while other standard Pontiacs still had vertical lights GM band multiple carburetors that year but engines were bored out with bigger valves the 389 being replaced by a 6.6 liter 400 and the 421 by a 7 liter 428 the base 400 had 350 gross horsepower and the 428 was available in 360 and 376 horsepower versions a dual master cylinder became standard and front disc brakes optional for one year only the Grand Prix was offered as a convertible but fewer than 6000 were made the 1968 model got a more pronounced Pontiac beat Grille and in spite of new emissions regulations horsepower went up for the 428 375 for the base model and 390 for the high output but sales were under 32 000. the Grand Prix was all new for 1969. moving to a stretched version of the mid-size platform of the Le Mans and GTO it had 118 inch wheelbase and a unique body from other GM intermediates that was 210 inches long it included pop out door handles and a radio antenna integrated into the windshield package designations were borrowed from Duesenberg with the base model j and the sporty SJ the 400 and 428 continued on in the smaller car with 265 and 350 horsepower for the 400 and 370 to 390 horsepower for the 428 new options included leather interior and rear window defrost it was no longer the fastest or most expensive Pontiac but it was still right up there top versions did the quarter mile in the mid-14s or half a second slower than the quickest GTO and sales were up well over a hundred and ten thousand 1970 saw mostly minor trim changes but the 428 was replaced by a 455 with 370 horsepower and 500 pound-feet of torque Chevrolet got its own slightly shorter cheaper version as the Monte Carlo an Oldsmobile copied the roof line for the Cutlass Supreme although neither attempting to be as up Market starting eight hundred dollars less than the now four thousand dollar Grand Prix 1971 models got revised front-end styling with fewer headlights and the leather interior went away the automatic transmission became standard mid-year strikes at GM delayed the new model so the big changes for 1972 were optional radial tires and power ratings changed to net 250 horsepower for the 400 and 300 horsepower for the 455. new bodies that arrived for 1973 were three inches longer on a two inch shorter wheelbase while weight was up 150 pounds engines carried over but horsepower was down 230 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque for the 400 and 250 horsepower 370 pound-feet of torque for the 455 unless you opted for the new super duty 455 with 310 horsepower and 390 pound Peter torque which was still a 15 second car the SJ package came with the 455 standard and added heavy duty shocks sway bars and radial tires sales climbed to nearly 155 000. styling was slightly revised for even bigger bumpers in 1974 adding another 100 pounds the super duty was no longer offered making the quickest SJ models now low 16 second cars for 1975 radial tires became standard and a better equipped LJ model was added while the addition of catalytic converters and the loss of dual exhaust meant power was down once again 180 for the 400 and 200 for the 455 and now there was a two barrel 400 with a 170 horsepower the base model j sold nearly 65 000 almost 15 000 of the luxury LJ sold and just under 7 200 of the sporty SJ 1976 models got quad rectangular headlights base models moved down to 160 horsepower 5.8 liter 354 cubic inch V8 marketed as a 350 and it lost some standard features reducing the price about five hundred dollars although the wood trim had changed a number of times over the years from 1976 on it was no longer real wood to celebrate pontiac's 50th and anniversary a golden anniversary special edition was made with gold paint and white Landau top and side trim total sails reached nearly 290 000 making it the grand prix's best year in addition to the minor annual styling changes that included separating the headlights with marker lights 1977 also shuffled engines a bit a 5 liter 301 cubic inch V8 with 135 horsepower was added the 455 and the two-barrel version of the 400 were gone while California cars got Oldsmobile 350 and 403 instead of the Pontiac engines due to stricter emissions there downsizing a ride for 1978 wheelbase was down to 108 length to 201 and weight 3 200 pounds the Buick 3.8 liter 105 horsepower V6 became the standard engine the first non-v8 Grand Prix but the 5 liter 300 one cubic inch V8 was optional with either 135 or 150 horsepower California versions got the Chevy 305 with 140 and 160 horsepower interior options included vinyl cloth velor and leather a four-speed manual return to the options list for 1979 but poor sales meant it would not return for 1980. when the Pontiac 5 liter V8 was joined by an 125 horsepower 4.3 liter Chevy V8 styling was freshened for 1981 and the SJ was replaced by the Braum oldsmobile's 5.7 liter diesel V8 was added to the options list for a rather steep 700 with 105 horsepower and 205 pound-feet of torque total sales were back up near 150 000. the only V8 for 1982 was the Oldsmobile diesel but now you had your choice of e6s the 110 horsepower 3 3.8 liter and the 125 horsepower 4.1 liter for 1983 the big six was gone but the Chevy 305 V8 returned with 150 horsepower and 240 pound-feet of torque in 1984 the LJ became the Le and a four-speed automatic became available by this point sales were back under 80 000 and would continue to decline while starting price was up over nine thousand dollars by 1985 the Grand Prix advertised the use of analog dial gauges while other divisions were starting to switch to digital instrumentation and a rear wing became an option the two plus two Aero package was created in 1986 for a NASCAR advantage in Street trim it included special wheels and a lower geared rear end for better acceleration but the two plus two was discontinued in 1987 with fewer than 1200 being made and a 4.3 liter vortex Tech B6 with 140 horsepower and 225 pound-feet of torque was added in the rear-wheel drive versions last year the Grand Prix switched to front-wheel drive for 1988. the wheelbase was now under 108 inches and total length about 194 weighing in around 3 100 pounds packages were base Le and SE the only engine was a 2.8 liter V6 with 130 horsepower and 170 pound-feet of torque mated to either a five-speed manual or a four-speed automatic with the five-speed it was a mid-17 second car and could nearly reach 130 miles an hour starting price was over twelve thousand dollars but it was chosen as Car of the Year in its second year sales would climb back up over 135 000 air conditioning became standard and anti-lock brakes optional a 3.1 liter turbo V6 was added as a limited option with 205 5 horsepower and 220 pound-feet of torque only with the automatic quarter mile is in the mid 16s and 60 came in under 9 seconds and the top speed was near 145. for 1990 the base model was gone but now the Grand Prix could be had as a four-door with the Top Model being the Ste or special touring Edition with the turbo standard engine was now an Oldsmobile 2.3 liter Quad 4 with 160 horsepower and 155 pound-feet of torque and a three-speed automatic the 2.8 liter was gone replaced by a non-turbo version of the 3.1 liter V6 with 135 horsepower and 180 pound peanut torque the turbo version would go away the following year replaced by the GTP which used a 3.4 liter dual overhead cam B6 with 200 to 210 horsepower and 215 pound-feet of torque with the 5-speed was a mid 15 second car and could top 150 miles an hour and the Coupes got new front-end styling with many headlights for 1992 the Quad 4 was dropped and there was a Richard Petty special edition the 1994 Coupes got a minor facelift with dual airbags packages were SE GT and GTP and the 3.1 liter was up to 160 horsepower and sales for this generation would Peak at just under 150 000. all new styling arrived for 1997 wheelbase was over 110 and length 197 and weight 3 400 pounds the 3.4 liter dual overhead cam B6 was replaced by a second generation Buick 3.8 liter overhead valve B6 with 195 horsepower or a 240 Horsepower Supercharged version a supercharged GT coupe did 60 in the mid 7 second range and the quarter Mile in the mid-15s topping out at 150 miles an hour 1500 pace car editions were produced for 1998 and for 1999 the normally aspirated 3.8 liter gained 5 horsepower and the rear wing became standard on the GT as one of many new cosmetic shifts to the options a year later the base 3.1 liter was up to 175 horsepower and 195 pound-feet of torque and there was a Daytona 500 pace car Edition 2001 gained OnStar Dual Zone climate control and an in-trunk emergency release as well as a NASCAR special edition package 2002 got a 40th anniversary edition with lowered suspension and upgraded brakes Wheels tires exhaust and air intake starting in 2003 it was only offered as a four-door the cars would be restyled for the last time in 2004. it was about an inch longer and 100 pounds heavier packages were now GT1 GT2 GTP and GTP competition group The 3800 Buick was the only engine to start with in base 200 horsepower 230 pound-feet of torque and 260 horsepower 280 pound feet of torque supercharged version for 2005 a GXP package added a 5.3 liter LS4 V8 with 303 horsepower and 323 pound-feet of torque upgraded shocks special wheels and dual exhaust 60 came in the mid 6 second range and the quarter mile in the mid-14s with a top speed eat over 160 but 2008 would be the last year of the Grand Prix in 2010 the last year Pontiac and as always thanks for watching don't forget to comment below and like And subscribe [Laughter]

Channel: The Hopeless Car Guy

Views: 139,062

Keywords: Super Duty, Tri-Power, Monte Carlo, Cutlass Supreme, 389, 421, 428, 400, 354, Acceleration Rear End, 8-lug aluminum drums, GP, Model J, Model SJ, 2+2, Car of the year, GTP, GXP, GTO, GT1, GT2, Competition Group, Richard Petty, Nascar, Super Stock

Id: 7B6BNCEWdNQ

Length: 17min 24sec (1044 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 21 2022