Can someone tell me what "GTO" really stands for? Please and THANK YOU!

-- Frank (laprocina8640@rogers.com), November 25, 2001

Answers

Homologation

This has noting at all to do with the Pontiac GTO, but rather with the origin of the name GTO as applied to the Ferrarri GTO (after which the Pontiac was named).

Apparently, in order for a vehicle to be homologated (for european racing such as Le Mans), at least FIVE of them have to be offered for sale to the public.

The number 500 mentioned earlier had to do with NASCAR in the late '60's and early 70's when cars like the Superbird and Talledega ruled.

-- B. D. Howard (nomad@onebox.com), June 13, 2002.

Gee, I always thought it meant Get Tools Out!

Actually, D. Bosko is almost exactly right. The Ferrarri GTO was a serious race car (I believe it dates from around '62). In the Ferrarri GTO stood for Grand Touring Ommologato (And it's Italian). The last word is homologated in English.

Y'know how when a company builds a specialty race car that it wants to race in production classes (Plymouth Superbirds, for instance)? They are required to build at least a certain number of them and offer them for sale in order for it to be considered a stock production car. Often the number of units required to be built is 500.

When they have certified that that many have been built, it is considered a production car which can be raced in production classes against other production cars (as opposed to specials which were never offered for sale to the public) it has been homologated.

None of this appies to the Pontiac. They just stole the name from the Prancing Horse Guy - the late, great Enzo.

-- B. D. Howard (nomad@onebox.com), June 12, 2002.

Amalgamated

Theyt got it from ferrari. Grand Touring Amalgimated in english...basicly meaqns it comes straight from the factory with everything needed to race.

-- D. BOSKO (davbvosko@netscape.net), May 26, 2002.

gto

There has been many things associated with GTO, over the years. Among the more popular has been: Gas Tire & Oil, Get Turned On, and also The Great One. (But wouldn't that be TGO?????) Anyway,from the way I understand it, (though I may be wrong) when Jim Wangers of Pontiac created the first muscle car, and the GTO was the first muscle car, GTO was an abbrevation for the first letter of every word in Grande Torosimo Omologoto (I think that is the spelling) Basically it is Spanish (or Italian) for Grand Touring Machine or simply a great driving vehicle. Hope this helps, Brian L.

-- bRIAN l. (WVUMTNMAN@AOL.com), November 28, 2001.