The Birth of the Pontiac Grand Prix, 1962

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Pontiac gave a major boost to its already growing performance image with the luxurious but powerful 1962 Grand Prix.

 

While the 1964 GTO launched the Motor City’s muscle car era, it wasn’t the first performance-image car from the Pontiac division at General Motors. That came on September 21, 1961 with the introduction of the Grand Prix. Ostensibly designed to compete with the Ford Thunderbird, the Grand Prix was actually a different sort of car. While the T-Bird focused on personal uxury, the Grand Prix had a pronounced performance flavor.

That started with the name. While the Grand Prix was several times the size and weight of a contemporary Formula 1 car, to be truthful, the name sent a message. Pontiac wisely based its new model not on the flagship Bonneville, but on the smaller and more nimble Catalina Sport Coupe with its three-inch shorter wheelbase. In a sort of European gesture, the Grand Prix actually sported less bright metal decoration than the Catalina. But at  $3.490 it  was the priciest two-door hardtop in the Pontiac lineup for ’62, more than even the Bonnevile, no doubt due to its generous list of standard equipment.

 

The Grand Prix’s focal point was its cockpit, with bucket seats in leather-look Morrokide, a full set of instruments, and a chrome center console with a tachometer, floor shifter, and a locking storage bin. In the rear seat was a folding center arm rest and a built-in speaker grille. It’s all rather tame today, but the sporty ensemble was sensational in 1962.

The GP’s standard engine was a 389 CID V8 with 10.25:1 compression, a four-barrel carb, and a healthy 303 hp. Available upgrades included a 389 Tri-Power V8 with 348 hp and a pair of 421 CID V8s with up to 405 hp. A three-speed manual transmission was standard and a T-10 four-speed was optional, but nearly 90 percent of the buyers opted for the $231 Hydra-Matic.  Pontiac’s 8-lug aluminum wheels were another extra-cost option, but it’s rare to see a ’62 Grand Prix without them today. (See our feature here.)

 

In base 303-hp form the Grand Prix was a respectable performer, but in March of 1962 the late, great Car Life magazine tested one equipped with the 405-hp 421 Super Duty V8, a four-speed, and a 3.42 axle, and its performance was stupendous. While the editors were impressed  with the GP’s tasteful lack of exterior chrome, they were really wowed by the quarter-mile results: 14.3 seconds at 103 mph, shifting the 421 at 5800 rpm.

At around 30,000 sold, the ’62 Grand Prix was no threat to the T-Bird in sales, as originally proposed, but it did wonders for Pontiac’s already growing style-and-performance image  A few years later, the GTO would take over the performane mantle at Pontiac as the Grand Prix grew larger and more luxurious, and then became an intermediate-class luxury coupe in 1969. The Grand Prix emblem proved to be a sales machine for Pontiac as it evolved through eight product generations all the way to 2008, ultimately morphing into a four-door family hauler. In many ways, the first Grand Prix of 1962 was the best.

 

7 thoughts on “The Birth of the Pontiac Grand Prix, 1962”

  1. GM offered two cars to compete with the Thunderbird in 1962. The Grand Prix and the Oldsmobile Starfire. I’m sure one extracted sales from the other. Those two combined closely matched the sales numbers of the Thunderbird.

    • Yes indeed. The Olds outsold the Pontiac by a bit but did not have the staying power. We’ll be getting back around to the Starfire one of these days.

  2. Every car maker was offering bucket seat with a console cars that year. Even crummy little compacts like Falcons and Skylarks. All in response to the popularity of the Thunderbird. The original Mustang was a poor man’s T-bird, with buckets, a console, and the same roof line.

    • Some offered buckets, some offered consoles, some offered both. Fewer offered a floor shifter in the console and fewer still included a tach. The Grand Prix offered all the above. I’m satisfied with what I wrote.

  3. I’ve never considered this, but the GTO is essentially a Grand Prix in a mid-size chassis. A little less fancy, perhaps.

  4. In 1962 we had a family friend that was into pulling a camper. The son, my friend, convinced his father (with help from the sales guy into performance cars) to buy his brand new four door Catalina with a 421 Super Duty tri-power, 4.11 posi, and a four speed. Pulled their camper no problem. Four years later when my friend got his license, we headed to the drag strip. I worked part time at a tire dealer and managed to secure a set of 7″ cheater slicks. That Catalina was turning mid 13’s after a couple of practice runs. A couple of months later, a set of headers and 8″ slicks and it broke the high 12’s! With the hub caps still on!

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