Do I own a GTO?

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I have just recently purchased what I thought was a 1972 GTO clone in Tennessee. The seller said he bought it as a GTO but was not entirely sure that it was. (buyer beware). The VIN shows that the car started life as a LeMans in Pontiac Mich. I thought this was all I needed to prove it was a clone. Then I met some Goat nuts at a car meet and they started telling me about the many LeMans autos that were fitted in the factory with GTO options during the 72 model year. Now I am curious. I have no other info attached to the car. Are there any websites/books that offer help in this area?

-- Mike Crnkovic (crunk@TNAccess.com), September 24, 2000

Answers

Do I Own a GTO

Contact the Pontiac Historical Society (http://www.phs-online.com/and give them your VIN. They should be able to get you information on when and where the car was built and all the options it had when it left the factory. There is a small fee for this service but it is definately worth it.

-- Paul Jones (jonespa@ptbo.igs.net), September 13, 2002.

'72 GTO

Mike,

Looking at my book 'GTO Recognition Guide' by Paul Zazarine (Dobbs Publications Inc. ISBN # 0-941596-20-2), the '72 model (of which I also own one, so congrats BTW!) should have a VIN that starts with either a '2D27' (for a Coupe) or '2D37' (for a Hardtop Coupe). The difference is that the coupe has the exposed windshield wipers and a post at the leading edge of the rear 1/4 glass (hence the name 'post-car' given by many GTO/A-body aficiniados). For '72, the post-cars are quite rare with apparently only 134 cars built in total. The hardtop coupe (or non-post) with the hidden wipers and the chrome edged rear 1/4 glass has a total production run of 5,673 (for a grand total of 5,807 cars for '72).

And yes, the other post was correct. For 1972, the GTO was an option on the Lemans (1971 was the last year for the GTO to be a distinct model). Another interesting tidbit from the aforementioned book was that apparently in 1972, GM was to change body styles (presumably to a body similar to what ended up being the 1973 GTO). However a strike at GM late in 1972 meant they did not have enough time to retool for the 1972 model year, so the body style was carried forward (albeit a few cosmetic changes) from 1971.

Grab the book, it has some great info.

Cheers, Brian '72 GTO.

-- Brian McColgan (bmccolgan@home.com), May 26, 2001.


72 GTO

I believe that in 1972 the GTO was once again an option on the Lemans model.The best way to determine weather it is a clone or not is to send your vin# to 'Pontiac Historic Services', for a fee ($35U.S.) they will tell you exactly what options your car has.

Pontiac Historic Services P.O. Box 884 Sterling Heights,Michigan 48311-0884

-- Eric Kowal (ekowal@sympatico.ca), September 25, 2000.


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