2006 Pontiac GTO

Growing up famous is just no fun. The problem with being the child of a celebrity is the lack of slack. Every step (and misstep) is magnified and measured in the bright light of high expectations.

Styling

True in Tinseltown; true in Motown. Pontiac's GTO has the unfortunate good fortune of being named after an icon of the musclecar era. When it first arrived in 1964, GTO was a performance package option on the Pontiac Tempest LeMans. So popular were these early "goats," they were promoted to full model status one year later. GTO (Gran Turismo Omologato) was the prototypical musclecar: a midsize body packing an oversized V-8 engine. It was a hit, a cult car and a trendsetter, all in one. By the time Pontiac had retired the nameplate in 1974, the Beach Boys had already written a song about it.


Now, some 30 years later, GTO is back. And this time, the famed name is riding on the fenders of a big coupe with an Aussie accent. Based on the Australian-built Holden Monaro, the 2004 GTOs arrived in showrooms to a rather tepid reception from buyers. GM responded in 2005 by upping the ante on horsepower and adding some musclecar staples inexplicably left off of the '04s (hood scoops, dual exhaust). Sales were better, if not brisk.

Power

For 2006, GTO is looking to build on 2005's forward motion. It does so with an eye on a cross-town rival that also has retro roots—the Ford Mustang. Since its rollout in 2005, Ford's flashback pony car has been selling at a very fast clip, and the V-8 powered GT models are class competitive with GTO.


Changes to the '06 GTO are few and largely cosmetic. The tail lamp design has been reworked, with a gloss black background; 18-inch bright aluminum rims are newly available. Two new hues were added to the color charts: Spice Red Metallic and Fusion Orange. An equally orange instrument cluster background matches the bright, citrus shade, and orange stitching on seats, shift knob, steering wheel cover and arm rests.