The Pontiac Grand Prix was introduced in 1962 as a performance luxury car, but by 1968 the emphasis was on luxury, and performance was no longer a priority.
When the 1962 Pontiac Grand Prix made its debut on September 21, 1961, the automotive press was on board. Here was the American sedan the writers been asking for, with less chrome gimmickry on the outside and greater comfort inside, offering generous horsepower and upgraded suspension and brakes. Motor Trend called it “the ultimate in luxury, performance, and value.” The editors at Car Life were especially impressed with the version they tested, equipped as it was with the 421 cubic-inch, 405 hp Super Duty V8. They declared the 421 Grand Prix “the fastest accelerating stock production-line car we’ve ever driven.”
But as the years went by, the Grand Prix added a few more inches and gained a few more pounds every season—like all of us, we suppose. Year over year, it wasn’t a tremendous amount. Compared to the 1962 original, the 1968 Grand Prix was not quite five inches longer overall and around 300 lbs heavier. But thanks to a 1965 exterior makeover with more ponderous styling and the addition of rear fender skirts, the Grand Prix now looked even larger and heavier than it actually was. From the original recipe of performance plus luxury, the Grand Prix was now leaning heavily into the luxury half of the formula. In 1967, the Grand Prix was briefly offered as a convertible as well as a two-door hardtop coupe.
The Car Life writers had described the original ’62 Grand Prix as “Pontiac’s answer to the bucket seat craze” of the early ’60s, and it was one of the specialty model’s key identifiers. But for ’68, the Grand Prix was available in multiple interior configurations that included both the bucket seats and console and a split-bench seat with a center armrest. Reportedly, only around five percent of Grand Prix buyers (estimated) opted for the bench seat in ’68. However, fewer than one percent opted for the four-speed manual transmission, with the rest choosing the automatic. In the factory brochures, the ’68 Grand Prix was unashamedly described as Pontiac’s “luxury car” with scarcely any mention of high performance.
Standard equipment for ’68 included hidden headlamps, along with the aforementioned fender skirts, and a 400 cubic-inch V8 with 350 hp. Options included a 428 CID V8 with 375 hp and the 428 CID H.O. V8 with 390 hp, but for economy-minded drivers there was a 400 CID two-barrel V8 with 265 hp that could run on regular gasoline. For one more year, Pontiac’s exclusive 8-lug aluminum wheels with integrated brake drums were available, but they were soon rendered obsolete by disc brakes. (See our feature here.)
Grand Prix sales and production peaked in 1963 at nearly 73,000 cars, then dwindled to around 32,000 in 1968. In hindsight, there’s no mystery at all to the falling sales, or the Grand Prix’s steady evolution into luxury cruiser: The real performance enthusiasts were selecting the smaller and sportier GTO (and later, the Firebird). For 1969 the Grand Prix badge was transferred from GM’s full-sized B-body platform to a modified A-body package, creating an intermediate-sized personal luxury coupe.
I know…you just want to see if we’re awake. I know that you know that the venerable 421 was superseded by the 428 in 1967, so with that attempt foiled, you nonetheless continue to educate and entertain us. Thank you!
Thanks for the catch! Another senior moment.
Other than the Corvette, I’ve often wondered just how much GM management wanted anything sporting in their lineups back in the 60’s and 70’s. Yeah, they’d bring out something with really good sporting credibility, but within five years they’d, at best, water down the nameplate if not ruin it altogether. Pontiac was probably the best example: From sheer performance in 1962-64, to overweight, vinyl roofed pigs ten years later – and other than what the Firebird kept up (shaky at some points), lets try and turn the brand into junior Oldsmobile.
A lot of things in the world changed in that time period, and these cars were products of their time. It isn’t like Pontiac woke up one day and decided it didn’t want to make sporty cars anymore. Market forces forced them to build the broughams everybody else was building at the time.
I wonder why Pontiac went to so much trouble to make the 1968 Grand Prix so different from the other hardtop coupes in the full-size line (hidden headlights, halo vinyl roof, distinctive rear end that was later adapted for the 1970-72 LeMans/GTO). The 1962 and ’63 GPs in particular were THE best example of what Pontiac wanted them to be…
Yes. From the taut, muscular ’61-’63 (yes, I know there was no GP in ’61) to the skirted, overly beaked luxobarges of ’68 is quite a comedown with no “excitement” I know the downsized ’69 was a great seller, but not a fan of it either.
The gauge on the center console of a 63 grand prix was a vacuum gauge
I truly love the 1962-68 Grand Prix and is my favorite era of the GP. I would still take a ‘68 over a ‘69 any day. The ‘63 was the best looking but was saddled with a trashy transmission “The Slim Jim” but otherwise a gorgeous car.
I for one do not lament the transformation of the Grand Prix. It was massive from the very beginning. That’s not sporty, it’s a boat with a big motor. Sure there was the Chrysler 300 but Europe quickly pointed out that “sport” meant more than big torque. Taut and muscular my eye. I suppose that makes a Ford Raptor a sporty vehicle as well.
The early Grand Prix was a fine car for it’s time. Well-sized and with an available manual transmission so the banker could pretend that he was Parnelli Jones. Built in the 300G mold. But real performance was to come with the GTO and Firebird. Even those were a variation on the boat theme as they weren’t much for cornering in stock form.
One of the reasons why imports eventually toppled Detroit was the idea that the bigger the car the better and the answer to lighter and more responsive cars was to put in a bigger motor. The 1969 was the true path from the 1962 Grand Prix. It was a brougham all along.
The 1967/68 GPs were darn good looking for a Chris Craft though.
67 gp the best in my book
Was my first car also.hate the rear of 68,67 had gto back lights
We had Pontiacs all through the 1960’s annd mid-70’s.
We had a Ford Country Squire (it was stolen) and then a Mercury Colony Park station wagon through the 1974 year model. (Pontiac was on strike so we couldn’t order cars from GM.)
THE 1968 G-PRIX was cool. My mother picked me up in it from school. First year without vent windows. I was 7 years old. Ours was green with dark top and same hubcaps as pictured. It had an 8 track tape player and bucket seats. My dad would drive it like a truck at the farm. Feeding cows from the huge trunk.I would sit in the trunk with the lid open and pour bags of range cubes onto ground as he drove along.
Pulled it out of the mud SO many times! I remember taking off the fender skirt to change a flat.My sister used it as a gun rest for a .22 rifle and the bullet skidded across the hood and left a trail “scar” on the hood paint as it deformed the top of the fender. My dad just laughed.
When I turned 16 we had a 66 Parisienne up in Canada.
Not a performance car for sure, but driving that boat around with buddies was the best.
The B body Grand Prix was always the same size as the Catalina. The problem for the 1968 Grand Prix was that it was “a big, fat turkey,” to quote a Pontiac designer, with a higher sticker than a Bonneville. Pontiac had a broad range of full size cars, so “like a Ventura, but uglier and more expensive” was an unappealing sales pitch.