A GTO STORY - PontiacRegistry.com

THE SEEMINGLY
IMPOSSIBLE DREAM
A GTO STORY
By: Carole Ray • Indianapolis, Indiana
This story begins on October 11, 1969 when I drove
my 1969 Pontiac GTO convertible off the showroom
floor of Dave Waite Pontiac, 5200 N. Keystone in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was Verdoro Green with black
interior and a black convertible top, 400, automatic,
with a 4-bbl. Carter carburetor, and factory air. This
was one of 330 made in 1969. At that time I was not
completely aware of just what I was buying. I have always loved cars and this one was what dreams were
made of (at least for me). It was sporty, but solid and
as I had two boys, Brian age 6-1/2 and Patrick age 4-1/
2, safety was a concern, but it was also VERY FAST! And VERY quick off the line. (A Corvette found that out
one day). This was a family car and as time moved on we discovered just what a jewel we had purchased. The
GTOs were still very popular and of course the Judge was just the greatest. I would find notes under the windshield all the time, of people leaving their telephone number if I wanted to sell the car. I did not! It soon became
apparent that we had acquired a very special automobile.
There are many stories connected with this car. One of my favorites concerns my two sons. I had been driving the car about a week and they decided to find out what the point of a newly sharpened pencil would do to
the cover of the console. It was just a very small hole but noticeable just the same. Needless to say I was not
very happy! At that time there were many other priorities and it was left unattended. To this day it is still there
and is a part of the restoration of the car. I would not have it repaired, and neither would the boys. Over the
years this car carried Little Leaguers to and from ball games, many, many groceries and all of the things making
up day to day living. My oldest son, Brian took his driving test in the car. The examiner wanted to talk more
about the car then Brian’s driving. The boys were allowed to drive the car as teenagers with many restrictions.
And they grew up appreciating just what the car was. But boys being boys, they had to try my patience a few
times. Brian and this best friend Scott decided to take the car out cruising one night when the parents were gone
for the evening, even though this was a forbidden thing to do. The next morning when I got in the car I discovered it had been out. I went upstairs, woke up Brian and asked why he had taken the GTO out the night before.
He sat straight up in bed, (a first for coming awake suddenly) and asked how I knew. They thought they were
being very clever as they marked where the tires were and the mirror and the seat and everything they could
think of to put it back the way they found it. But, they forgot to
change the radio station. The car was driven every day for 14 years.
Other than a factory timing chain (one of the plastic ones) being replaced under the 5 year 50,000 mile warranty, and a starter, the car
had routine maintenance and that is ALL. It was a grand and glorious
workhorse.
When I purchased the car, I really did not like the Verdora Green
and decided then and there it would be Carousel Red one day. This
came to be in 1977. I took the car to Bikini Studios in Wanamaker,
IN and had some minor bodywork done, had it painted, and pin
striped. For the fun of it, I also had a custom convertible top made the
same color as the car and we nicknamed her “The Orange Crate”.
This was definitely an attention getter. I was driving the car home,
going west on Interstate 74. A state trooper was going east on Interstate 74. He made a U-turn and followed me for quite some time. I
have short hair, and with the top down and the hair blowing, it was
easy to mistake me for a guy. As the trooper passed me by (he had no
reason to pull me over) he discovered I was female and not a teenager. So he gave me a big thumbs up, laughed and went on his way. I
was never pulled over for speeding, or for anything else. I learned
where and when I could blow it out! That year, the Street Machines
Nationals were held here in Indianapolis. What a trip! We had a great
time. There were cars everywhere. The grocery stores sold out of
bleach several times and tire sales were definitely up. There were
cars from all over the United States and some from Canada. Every
size, shape, color, make, model, and all muscle cars. Of course, I had
to be a part of it, so I entered the car. Not for show, as she was still an
everyday family car, but for the sheer pleasure of seeing all those
wonderful machines in one place at one time. The boys were older
and they really got an education on classic muscle cars. They both
went on to buy a 1965 GTO convertible and a 1965 Pontiac 2+2, tripower, convertible. (But, that is their story.) During the three days of
the show I had several offers to buy the car. One gentlemen was there
three times a day every day and just did not want to take no for an answer. He just had to have a ‘69 GTO! I learned later he did find
someone willing to sell one.
To this day I am
so very grateful
I did not sell
mine.
The car was
last driven in
1983 when it
spun a bearing.
My youngest
son was driving
it at the time.
We brought the
car home and
parked it. There
were many
changes taking
place in our
lives at that
time. My oldest
Top to Bottom: 1) Sort of the fun part– taking everything apart. Usually not a clue at
this point of what one will actually get into!
2) The heart that once beat so strong comes
out. 3) An actual “crate” motor– write when
you get to California! 4) Everyone has their
own way of taking the body off of the frame–
this way worked well.
Even the dog looks a little confused (and perhaps depressed?) at this point.
From Pieces Everywhere!, to rebuilding from
the bottom up– a long road to completion.
son was off to college and my youngest son and I moved to St.
Louis. We took the car with us. As our plans did not prove out, we
moved back five years later and brought the car back. It still was
not in running condition. It has been stored several places over the
years and nine years ago moved to Patrick’s home alongside the
2+2. There it stayed.
It was now 2002; both Brian and Patrick were grown with families and responsibilities of their own. But the GTO has remained a
very valuable part of our family. In February of that year Patrick
and I were in his kitchen baking apple pies for one of my employees
going-away lunch. We were talking about many things and Patrick
mentioned he had some decisions to make. Being Mom, I asked if I
could help in any way and he said no, it would ruin the surprise. I
know him pretty well and knew he was talking about my car. We
have discussed many times over the years of getting her restored,
but the timing was never right.
Well, the year was 2002– and the timing was right! I turned 60
that year and the restoration of my beloved GTO was going to be
my birthday present. Little did we know what we were getting into.
The plan was to do what we needed to do and have it running again
by my birthday in June. But, as we really got into the car, we soon
discovered this plan was not at all feasible. She just needed too
much. So, Plan “B” was put into effect. We decided she deserved
nothing less than a complete frame off restoration. I knew this was
going to take a
long time, but
hopefully
would have her
completed at
least before I
went on Social
Security!
In April of
2002 we pulled
the engine and
sent it off to
Rock ‘N’ Roll
Engineering
Reassembly? Just reverse disassembly– if only it was that easy!
This is where manuals, photos, and good notes pay off.
Do you remember where all this stuff goes? ‘Cause
I’m just guessing!
and Bruce Fulper, the guru of Pontiac Engines. This man knows more and gets more out of a Pontiac engine
than any other human on the planet. Then we began disassembling the car. The further we got, the worse she
looked. It took most of the summer (and it was a very hot one) to fully take her apart. I was making weekly trips
to what I called “the strip joint” with parts to be stripped. We stripped some ourselves and primed and painted in
Patrick’s back yard all summer. In July we received devastating news on the engine, the block had a hairline
crack in the 3rd journal. We later learned from Bruce Fulper this is a common recurring problem with all 1960s
high compression Pontiac V-8s. (Even two barrel engines!) Our current premium octane does not meet the
engine’s original design requirements and consequently even inaudible or subtle detonation will prematurely
toast the top rings and pound out the rod bearings. Our original plan was to put the car back to completely original. Even though we could have restamped a 400 block and then told people it was a restored block to resemble
the original, it would never again be my original numbers matching block. This started about 3 months of deciding what to do. After reviewing all of the options, I scrapped my original plans and decided to just plain have
some fun and make her a hot street/strip car. (I will always believe she had this in mind all along. I don’t think
she ever wanted to be a Senior Citizen! So, we decided to go with one of Bruce’s original recipes.
During the next year we continued to clean, paint, restore, and do whatever we could when we had the time
and the funds. As anyone who has tackled this kind of project knows, the budget changes constantly. The transmission and differential were done. The chassis was completed and readied for the engine and a lot of Patrick’s
house became a storage area for GTO parts. New and old. Fortunately he has a daughter who is as excited about
the venture as the rest of the family and didn’t mind tripping over car parts. In August of 2004 we contacted Phil
Riley of Riley Customs for the bodywork and paint. He had been highly recommended, and after visiting his
shop we knew this was the place for her to be. (You could eat off his floor) He was doing a ‘69 Judge at the
time, and the craftsmanship was outstanding. We set a date for October 25, 2004 for the final stages of the restoration. She was off to the “strip joint” for
a good cleaning and then put on the
flatbed and taken to Phil’s. We had at
that time become good friends with
David, the driver of the flatbed from
Steve’s Towing, as we had used his services several times. He was very careful
with her and treated her as if she was
one of his own. This was about a 50 mile
trip and I was quite concerned, but she
made it just fine.
In this time we had a surprise call
from Bruce. We had asked him to delay
the engine completion, as we did not especially want to store it. The plan was to
have the chassis completed with engine,
transmission, and anything else needed
No arm-twisting required when asked to pose with finished GTO. Part of a
and then the body replaced. He called to hard-working crew that made the “seemingly impossible dream”– possible.
say the recipe was now finished. It was a 421
crank in a 455 block with a Demon carb. He
wanted to know if this was acceptable. The answer was absolutely!
On Christmas day of 2004, I received another surprise call from Bruce. He started the
engine on his dyno so I could hear all that
power and glory of 525 torque and 475 horsepower; and, he said that that was just a start. He
hadn’t really “max tuned” it yet. That is one
Christmas I will definitely not forget.
In the next 4 months I was allowed Wednesday visitation rights to the paint and body shop.
In that time I watched her “come alive” again.
It was such a joy to go every week and see the
wonderful progress. It will always be an amazing time for me. How a hole in the floorboard
looked as though it had never been there, and
the dent in the hood just disappeared. Phil saved as much of the original metal on the car as he could. He only
used the portion of the quarter panel skin that was needed and left the rest of it intact. He did this in every place
he could. You would never know it had ever been worked on. Then came the day I got the word she had been
painted. The day I had been waiting for.
I had already picked the color, Liberty Blue, an original ‘69 GTO color, and had asked Phil to do a little
“ghost painting” on the quarter panels for her new name. As you have probably discovered, this car is a member
of our family and so of course she had to have a new name as she had outgrown the “Orange Crate”. This took
some time, as it had to be the perfect name. Since the engine comes from Rock ‘N’ Roll Engineering, and I am a
great fan of Rock & Roll and especially Elvis Presley, I named her “Moody Blue”. I decided this was the perfect
name, as she would have many moods. She will still be a family car for Sunday drives, a show car, a racecar,
and a thing of beauty to behold.
Many wonderful events occurred after the initial painting of the body and I was able to watch her become
whole again. I was there to see the body lowered on the chassis complete with truck lid and wing. That was
quite a day and I think it finally sunk in that this dream was coming true at last. Each visit brought more surprises. The doors were hung complete with windows. At this point it was really beginning to look like a car
again. The hood was painted and the hood tack installed, the fenders were painted and the GTO emblems were
added. Before the doghouse was reattached, Patrick, Brian and I spent several weekends at Phil’s putting all the
mechanics on the firewall, under the dash, and doing whatever could be done. That was a fun time, although it
was a little challenging working in someone else’s shop and finding you left an important part at home.
Then came the day she was totally together again. March 18, 2005 she was brought home from one of the
greatest “face lifts” ever created. I will never be able to express in words the admiration I have for Phil Riley
who re-created this beautiful car. Following the flat bed I had tears of joy for most of the trip, and some heart
palpitations too. (And watched a lot of people turning their heads). She made it just fine, and was home and
ready for the finishing touches.
In the next couple of months we installed carpeting, restored the console, put in the dash, completed the wiring with a new wiring harness, (there was a little smoke, but only once), put in the seats and everything it
needed before start-up time. For that she went to the professionals, mainly Joe Swift and his crew, Jason and
Mike. Oh the wonders they worked!
At 4:20 PM on Thursday May 26, 2005 she cranked for the first time in 22 years. And about 30 seconds later
she ROARED to life. That is the most glorious sound I have heard since my two boys were born! And she continued to roar off and on for the next 40 minutes. Of course there were minor adjustments to be made, but all
considered, it was a major feat!
At 2:15 PM on Friday May 27, 2005 she was ready for her first trip on her own power (to the alignment
shop). Not especially exciting, but necessary. But after that, Oh boy.... THE FUN BEGAN AGAIN!
The restoration of this beloved car has been a labor of trial and error, frustration, sometimes disappointment,
sometimes mistakes, of joy and fulfillment; but most of all, it has been a labor of LOVE! I wouldn’t have
missed any part of it for the world! And my heartfelt thanks go to the wonderful family and friends who encouraged and cheered this wonderful car back to the street.
The TIGER is back in her tank and she ROARS again!