For its final incarnation as Pontiac’s classic American muscle car, the 2004-06 GTO was produced in Australia.
It was none other than Bob Lutz, the powerful product boss at General Motors from 2001 through 2009, who was the force behind the 2004 Pontiac GTO. At the time, rear-drive, V8-powered sedans were out of favor at GM and in North America, but Lutz cast his eye to the automaker’s Holden division in Australia, where the rear-drive Commodore sedan and its two-door coupe variant, the Monaro, featured Chevy LS-series V8 power and independent rear suspension. As Lutz saw it, the Australian VX platform was ideal for Pontiac, which was then in the midst of rebuilding its image as GM’s performance division.
And so it was that with relatively few changes, including a Pontiac twin-nostril front fascia, a switch to left-hand drive, and some regulatory refits, the Holden Monaro coupe was transformed into the first Pontiac to wear GTO badges since 1974. One of the most hallowed names of the ’60s muscle car era in America was reborn, on paper anyway, in a product manufactured in Elizabeth, South Australia, just outside Adelaide.
The launch of the first new GTO in 30 years was guaranteed to generate considerable buzz among car enthusiasts, at least at first, but ultimately the response was lukewarm. The gearhead press described the GTO’s GM corporate styling as “bland” and “dated.” And while the 5.7-liter, 350-horsepower LS1 V8 was a perfectly fine engine that was good for 13-second quarter-mile times, the public was somehow expecting more.
GM was listening and for 2005, the engine was upgraded to the new LS2 V8 with 400 hp and 400 lb-ft of torque, still coupled to the buyer’s choice of a GM four-speed automatic transmission or a six-speed manual Tremec gearbox. According to Pontiac, the LS2/Tremec combination could do a 13.0-second quarter mile—far quicker than any stock GTO of the classic ’60s muscle car era.
But meanwhile, another factor was eating away at the GTO’s future. The Australian dollar was climbing in value, pushing the car’s list price uphill as well. Pontiac’s original price target was $25,000 but due to the unfavorable exchange rate, the base price soon creeped well above $30,000. Sales fell short of their objectives, and in February of 2006, Pontiac announced that the GTO would be discontinued. Reportedly, the production total for the fifth-generation GTO amounted to 40,808 cars. The last GTO in history rolled off the line at the Holden Elizabeth plant on June 14, 2006.
The styling is so GM-generic. It could be a Lumina or a Catera. They all the same in that period.
I’ve always liked the modern interpretation of the GTO. When it was new, some thought that the styling was too bland but, for me, the muted styling is part of the appeal. It is a bit of a sleeper, no big spoilers, flares or loud graphics, just a great performing V8-powered, rear-wheel-drive performance car.
A practical benefit of the Holden Monaro based GTO is that it didn’t suffer from the drawbacks typical of other retro-muscle cars. In comparison with the GTO, the Camaro and Challenger seem heavy and bulky. This is particularly noticeable since their interior volumes and driver/passenger functionality is no better than the GTO. The interior of the Camaro, in particular, feels claustrophobic exacerbated by the Camaro’s relatively small glass area.
The shipping weight of the GTO is 415 lbs. less than the portly Challenger (reintroduced in 2008) and 124 lbs. less than the 2010 Camaro SS. At 198.8 inches, the overall length of the GTO is 7.9 inches shorter than the Challenger and about ½ an inch less than the Camaro. The GTO is 1.8 inches longer than the 2006 Mustang.
Width-wise the Camaro and the Challenger are both about 3 inches wider than the GTO. Even the 2006 Mustang was 1.4 inches wider than the GTO.
So there you have it, in my mind the GTO is an ideal representation of the modern performance car, a powerful V8, real wheel drive, tasteful understated styling, a functional and roomy interior in a trim and relatively lightweight package. What more could you want?
Many great points there. Thanks!