In the space between the orthodoxy of the Ford Falcon and the nontraditionalism of the Chevrolet Corvair , Pontiac staked out its own district when it created the heavyset 1961 - 1963 Pontiac Tempest .
With the establish winner of the Volkswagen in America and the economic recession of 1958 , the Big Three American auto manufacturer began suppose beyond the creed of " longer , lower , wider " to develop succinct car to meet the demands of this burgeon market . While Ford ’s answer to the call , the 1960 Falcon , was the runaway success in gross sales , Chrysler ’s Valiant was also very popular , owing to its European - influenced styling and sturdy Slant Six locomotive . Even Studebaker and AMC were in the game , and had been before any of the Big Three brought their downsize vehicles to market .
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General Motors offer the most diverse line of compendious auto , from the revolutionary , rear - engined 1960 Corvair to the totally conventional Chevy II that debuted two years later on . In between these two Chevrolets , in terms of chronology and applied science , were the " B - O - P " compacts : Buick Special , Oldsmobile F-85 , and Pontiac Tempest .
The fraternal tercet were based on a 112 - column inch - wheelbase political program featuring unitized construction and the same canonical Fisher body . Mechanically , though , there were significant differences between them . Without a dubiety , the Tempest have the most unusual drivetrain of the deuce-ace , one of the most technologically ripe system offered in an American gondola up to that time .
The story behind the development of the Tempest is one of divisional rebelliousness and cost - witting design . Perhaps the strong need for its growing was the Corvair , or more specifically , Pontiac ’s desire to not get a badge - direct version of it .
embodied management was looking to extend the platform ’s reach into other divisions , increase sales agreement intensity to countervail the development costs of the unique rear - engined compact . Pontiac , being next up the run from Chevrolet in the GM batting order , was the most logical option , but Oldsmobile and Buick were under consideration for their own version as well .
Pontiac ’s general manager at the time , Semon E. " Bunkie " Knudsen , did not want a tarted - up Corvair ( to be diagnose Polaris ) as a Pontiac . In a 1994 consultation with Thomas A. DeMauro , then - technical editor for High Performance Pontiac magazine , Knudsen explained why : " ' First , if a dealer tell people that this is a young , more - advanced design , then how will the salesman warrant the traditional drivetrain layout found in Pontiac ’s other lines ? Second , the Corvair is a rear - railway locomotive , air - cooled car . How do I make it different ? There is no wicket to be restyled and the engine ca n’t be exchanged for a Pontiac powerplant . Therefore , how do I justify the extra $ 500 to $ 1,000 added to the cost to sell it with a Pontiac nameplate ? ' "
Though Pontiac knew what they did not want to do , they needed to nibble a direction for their new thickset car . On the next page , learn how John Z. DeLorean avail shape the Pontiac Tempest .
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DeLorean and the Pontiac Tempest
Despite the need for a compact , the fate of the fledging Pontiac Tempest seemed bleak . With Corvair variants find no champions at Pontiac , Buick , or Olds , a raw fomite was involve . Pontiac took the spark advance in an interdivisional project fuck as the X-100 course of study , developing a larger and substantially modified version of the Corvair ’s Y - body platform .
The wheelbase was increased from 108 to 112 inches and provisions were made for a front - engine layout since Buick and Pontiac were developing engines for it . The basic bodies would be shared , though each class would get unequalled styling and none would look at all like the Corvair .
Pontiac ’s director of advanced engineering , John Z. DeLorean , was uneasy to put his stamp on the " Wide Track " portion of the undertaking . In ordering to do in at a competitive price , the compact Pontiac would have to make as much use of live technology and production facilities as potential . The solution that DeLorean and his squad implemented evidence their expertise at working creatively within a understandably determine solidification of boundaries .
DeLorean want a railcar that was more than just a powder compact . In addition to extend low purchase and running costs , the new design needed to possess a " heavy - car " drive and tender comfortable seating area for six adults . The little size of it also propose an inherent sportiness and DeLorean believe he could fit these objectives , as well as attain the ideal 50/50 weightiness statistical distribution by using a flat floor , a back end - rise transaxle , and , of all thing , a flexible driveshaft . Buick and Oldsmobile , however , were not planning on using any such exotica on their little cars , prefer to stick with conventional drivetrain layout .
The design was rightfully revolutionary , though not always interpret by the world . It soon earned the byname " rope drive , " which was not an accurate depiction of the driveshaft . The dick was actually a forged - brand torsion measure , which featured eminent nickel , chrome , and atomic number 42 content . storm with manual transmissions featured a shaft diam of ' 75 inch , while automatics received a ' 65 - in - diam unit . Since the shafts were transmitting engine torsion that was not breed by the transmission , they were understressed and could well afford to be as small in diameter as they were compare to a conventional driveshaft .
The tool were surface ground and magnafluxed for imperfectness before shot - peening and final straightening function . The manufacturing appendage was finished with a rusting - suppress software . apparently , quite a bit of expense went into the development and fabrication of the whippy driveshaft . Its intended benefit to the Tempest will be explained in a turn .
See how Pontiac Tempest revolutionized the compendious car with its four - piston chamber locomotive engine on the next page .
The Pontiac Tempest and the Four-Cylinder Engine
One of the many advanced decisiveness John Z. DeLorean brought to the Pontiac Tempest was the four - cylinder engine . Though the Buick and Olds Y - bodies would be power by a selection of newly designed V-6 or aluminum V-8 powerplants , DeLorean ’s engine of choice for the related Pontiac was go to be an inline four . It would have to be more muscular than militant sixes and be inexpensive to develop and manufacture .
Indeed , Pontiac was truly up against the wall with respect to price . With the legal age of developmental finances tied up in the unequalled cause - shaft organisation , the residual of the driveline would have to consist of as many off - the - ledge pieces as potential . DeLorean and his squad determined that a four - cylinder based on the production Pontiac V-8 would make the most sense .
In gild to show that the concept was valid , engineers took a production 389 - cid Pontiac V-8 engine , put holes in the left bank of pistons , disabled the valve - train for the same cylinders , and reinstalled it in a full - sized Pontiac . Even with the extra drag of the deactivated cylinder , the cobbled - up trial engine had enough steam to propel the 4,000 - plus - pound sedan to a top speed of 92 miles per hour and still give satisfactory accelerator mileage .
Later , the leftover banks of several product 389 locomotive were removed . A series of specialized parts were then developed for production , include a specific crankshaft , camshaft , two different inspiration manifold , a four - piston chamber ignition arrangement , and various downsized accoutrement . The production 195 - Criminal Investigation Command ohv " slant - four " cube get a bit later . It was heavy , weigh about two - thirds as much as the V-8 because the 389 ’s crankcase was retained almost unaltered .
The upright news was that interchange - power with the 389 bristle . The two engine share piston , closed chain , PIN , connecting rods , presence , cylinder nous , oil color cooking pan and pump , water heart , fruitcake pulley , and harmonic balancer . The four also used the same simple machine tooling and move down the same assemblage line as the V-8 , greatly reducing manufacturing monetary value .
All told , there were three basic versions of the " Trophy 4 " railway locomotive for the 1961 model yr . The first was a regular - fuel railway locomotive with an 8.6:1 concretion ratio and a one - barrelful carburettor . It was grass at 110 bhp at 3,800 rpm , with 190 pound - invertebrate foot of torsion at 2,000 revs . For automatic - transmission cars , this locomotive engine was rated at 130 buck at 4,400 and 195 pound - feet of torsion at 2,200 , thanks to a hotter camshaft than that used in the stickshift railcar .
The second version retained the single - throat carb , but compaction was raised to 10.25:1 , call for the use of bounty fuel . The manual transmitting translation was tell on at 120 bhp at 3,800 rpm and 202 pound - feet of torque at 2,000 spin ; the robotlike edition made 140 bhp at 4,400 rpm and 207 pound - human foot at 2,200 .
The raciest loop of the four was equipped with a Rochester four - bbl carburetor and an even hotter camshaft . Both pin and automatics were rated at 155 bhp at 4800 rpm , generate 215 pound - feet of torque at 2,800 revolutions . Buick ’s 215 - cid V-8 was also available . outfit with a two - barrel carb , it also was rated at 155 bhp , but generated more or less more torque at 400 few rpm than the meatiest four .
Though the Tempest had plenty of power , the engine driver at Pontiac had to next consider how the car handled . On the next varlet , learn what made the Pontiac Tempest such a fluent drive .
The Pontiac Tempest’s Smooth Ride
Though the engine was in place , the Pontiac Tempest face up some additional challenges . With competitive ability levels , low development cost , and the full range of commonalty with the 389 V-8 , the slant - four plan was deemed a winner . About the only drawbacks were the locomotive engine ’s 557 - pound weight unit and its integral secondary vertical shaking force .
In a telephone consultation , retired Pontiac engineer Malcolm R. " Mac " McKellar , who was deeply immersed in the ontogenesis of the rake - four , recalled that quivering was passably significant . " The bottom job is that at 195 three-dimensional inches , it was too large a four - piston chamber to be build without a balance shaft … We often referred to it as a ' traveling fatigue auto . ' "
Indeed , almost all of the engine ’s accessory mount had to be reinforced to handle with the constant shaking . Yet , amazingly , well-nigh all road tryout of the day noted how suave the railroad car was to drive and how it was unacceptable to tell the locomotive was a four when driving it .
The enigma was a combination of curved driveshaft , torque tube , and particular motor mount . The curving drive - shaft actually serve two design . In improver to permit for a nearly matted trading floor , it would not need the normal balancing procedures of a conventional inflexible unit of measurement . The shaft ’s curve and a pair of rubber bushings inside the torque - tube enclosure worked together to quell vibe . The last part of the equality was the use of limited rubber " doughnut " motor saddle horse site at the front . They were construct of easy rubber and were large enough to absorb much of the engine ’s vibration . The rear of the locomotive was located by the mounts of the transaxle and the torque tube .
" The four - cylinder Tempest was a smooth - drive cable car , but if a plug became befouled , as they sometimes would with leaded fuel , the mounts could not absorb the additional vibration , " said McKellar . " You might not notice so much with a V-8 , but with the angle - four , it would really vibrate . "
instantly behind the railway locomotive was a bellhousing that was connect to the front of the torque tube . Manual - shift railcar had the grasp locate in the normal position . Both transaxles and the coil - spring , swing - axle rearward intermission came from the Corvair and were modified to checkmate with the torque tube . A three - speed manual was standard ; a Powerglide - based two - speed reflexive – " TempesTorque " – was optional .
The front of the engine was tilted upwardly to meet the driveshaft and sit on a large box seat - section subframe , which also carry the front suspension . The suspension itself was an independent design with coil natural spring , unequal - length upper and lower control arms , and formal joints , as well as a recirculating - orchis steerage box .
The drivetrain and suspension formed an constitutional , stand - alone whole . This feature allowed the Tempest to be built on the same assembly line of products as the full - sized Pontiac , which used a " body - drop " assembly method acting to mate the Fisher body to the completed perimeter - frame chassis .
Of course , Pontiac engineers put just as much thought into the looking at of the Tempest as they did the design . On the next page , find out more about the look of the Pontiac Tempest .
1961 Pontiac Tempest Design
The 1961 Pontiac Tempest was both an engineering and a styling achievement . The Tempest , with its distinctive split grill and large Pontiac hood crown , was indite by Jack Humbert . The front - remainder handling , which recalled the 1959 Pontiac , featured quadriceps headlamps and a brilliant horizontal - stripe grille treatment .
Like its Y - soundbox cousins , the Tempest featured a fell - length bodyside wind instrument - rent at the beltline and a deeply contour accent air that commence in the front fenders , extended through the doors , and ended in the rearward quarter . ( The room access were the same in all three cars . ) In the Tempest , the accent dividing line was sculpt to forge a soundbox cove that encompassed the rear bicycle well . The beltline windsplit form a small fin at the top of the rear stern , finish just above the small ellipse taillamps . Simple steel bumpers were used front and rear .
Overall dimensions of the Tempest put it at the upper end of the belittled - car class , making it one of the so - name " senior compact . " In addition to the aforementioned 112 - inch wheelbase , it gas an overall length of 189.3 column inch , a breadth of 72.2 column inch , and overall height of 56.8 inches ( 57.1 for Charles’s Wain ) . Front and rear tread width was 56.8 column inch .
Inside , the Tempest was pleasant looking and remarkably roomy , with large expanses of glass for a light , airy surround and 360 - degree profile . The basic elan venire was shared with the related Buick and Olds , though details were unique to each gondola . The Tempest used a airstrip speedometer housed in an upright horizontal housing . The dah had the usual raiment of " imbecile Light " and automatic - transmission automobile had the gear selector hop on on the dah , to the right of the driver .
car with manual transmittance get a floor gear lever . Bench seat were used front and rear , allowing six - passenger seating . Leg room was very generous , owe to the about flat floor , though there was still a bit of a swelling in front to reset the bellhousing .
Standard features let in dual Dominicus - visors , turn signals , electric windshield wiper , and 6.00 × 15 - column inch blackwall tires , which were want to help oneself recompense for the wide cant changes in the rear suspension ’s range of locomotion .
comforter and contraption options extend the gamut from exponent steering to air travel conditioning , back - up lights , and a variety of interior and exterior decor group . index brake were not offered , even as optional equipment .
The Tempest was initially available in four - door saloon and four - door post wagon bodystyles . Later in the framework year , a Tempest coupe was introduced , as was a sportsmanlike , upscale version with bucket seats that was list LeMans .
Once the Pontiac Tempest hit the showrooms , it was an exigent hit . On the next page , ascertain about the success of the Tempest .
The Success of the 1961 Pontiac Tempest
The 1961 Pontiac Tempest did not betray to impress when it was introduced along with the full - size of it 1961 Pontiacs on October 6 , 1960 . route testers were quick to praise Pontiac for its innovation and sensitive promotion . Most revel the Tempest ’s ride timber , nimble size , and the pitch - four ’s power outturn . Interestingly , the consensus was that the automatic was the better alternative for all - around functioning , due to its quieter operation and the extra baron from the hotter cams used .
On the negative side , the power steering was picture as unnecessary , slow , and lacking in route feel . journalist also criticized an abrupt loss of rear - wheel grip at the bound of adhesion . This was a byproduct of the softly sprung swing - axle suspension , which would put the rearward wheel in a positive - cant site and greatly lessen tread impinging with the road .
Still , the positive feedback was stronger than the negative , stiff enough , in fact , forMotor Trendto award its " railcar of the Year " purity to the 1961 Tempest , the second such accolade to Pontiac in three framework years . MT editor Don Werner summed it up in the March 1961 topic when he write , " The basic assumption of theMotor TrendAward is that the progress in design know must be a discrete advance toward a better car . The Tempest fill this requirement fully . " He close by saying , " The new Pontiac Tempest sets many new trends and unquestionably is a paradigm for the American car for the Sixties . "
The car - purchasing public responded positively , as well . A total of 100,783 Tempests were built , a respectable head start , though well below the figure check by the Corvair , Falcon , and Valiant that yr . ( The Tempest draw the most orders of any of the GM Y - body III , though . ) The pitch - four engine was also light - years in advance of the 215 - cid V-8 in terms of popularity . Only 2004 ' 61 Tempests were so equipped , including just three with the manual transmission .
For the 1962 model yr , changes to the Tempest were pretty minor and evolutionary . A sofa bed was added to the agate line and was useable in both Tempest and LeMans prune . The front end was also given a rhytidectomy . The split - grille report was put back with a new tri - section intent that integrate a Pontiac " arrow - point " summit at its center . The hood was also raw , with a " waterfall " aim that coalesce into the center element of the grille .
Engines evolved as well . A new intake manifold for the four - barrel slant - four engine was good for an extra 11 bhp , up to 166 at 4800 rev , though torsion figures remain unaltered . Four - deadbolt mains were also added to the manual - trans " 87Z " railway locomotive .
The 87Z was also the base for a especial NASCAR - sanctioned locomotive engine uncommitted through the Pontiac role web . It consist of the four - bolt block plus a head from the 389 Super Duty V-8 , a four - cylinder version of the McKellar No . 8 mechanical - lifter camshaft , and an aluminum four - barrel intake manifold that mount a big Carter AFB carburetor . Pontiac rated the engine at 184 bhp at 5600 rpm , but estimate pegged output somewhere nearer to 240 at 6500 revolutions per minute , due in large part to the read/write memory effect of the intake manifold paper .
The 215 V-8 was also more powerful , picking up 30 gymnastic horse over the previous twelvemonth for 185 total . On the other hand , the low - compression four with the automatic transmission was cut back to 115 bhp .
With the succeeder of the 1961 Pontiac Tempest , a new exemplar was sure to follow . On the next page , learn about the 1962 Pontiac Tempest .
1962 Pontiac Tempest
The 1962 Pontiac Tempest followed the slogan , " If it ’s not smash , do n’t attempt to determine it . " Once again , this unit was borrowed from the Corvair and modify slightly to accept the torsion tube and curved driveshaft .
Production bod rose sharply for 1962 . A sum of 143,193 Tempests and LeManses were built . The jump can most in all likelihood be assign to series expansion and the world ’s growing comfort grade with the leading - edge technology .
The 1963 framework class was one of wholesale and significant changes to Pontiac ’s aged compact . All - Modern weather sheet - metallic element below the beltline gave the Tempest a more upscale look . The rent - grille report returned , but with an eggcrate grille mesh . The organic structure was a bit more slab - sided , with perceptibly longer rear quarters that helped conduce to the extra five inches of length . The stern discussion was new , too . Tempests have two diminished , round taillamps mount vertically per side . LeMans coupes and convertible received thin orthogonal lense with a ribbed unsullied passementerie panel between them .
There was much to babble out about under the lens hood as well . While the four get a newfangled cylinder brain ( and the 115 - bhp rendering became the understructure engine regardless of transmittance ) , the aluminum V-8 was story . In its place was a small - bore version of the cast - smoothing iron 389 displace 326 cubic in . outfit with a two - cask carburettor , the 326 was order at 260 bhp at 4800 revolutions per minute , with 352 pound - foot of torsion at 2800 revs . Later in the theoretical account class , a in high spirits - output variant appeared . With a Carter AFB four - bbl , it was good for 280 horse at 4800 revolutions per minute and 355 Sudanese pound - invertebrate foot of torsion at 3200 . The four - speed manual was not useable with either 326 , as it did not have sufficient torsion capacity .
The automatic transaxle received some rescript as well , having specific versions for angle - four and V-8 installation . They mainly differed in torsion - convertor size and the issue of clutch face pack . A " Park " position was added and LeManses received an exclusive floor sceneshifter .
The rear suspension was also improved . The swing - axle arranging used on the ' 61 and ' 62 models was put back with a raw tracking - weapon system design similar in layout to the one used on the 1963 Chevrolet Corvette . Axles had U - joint at both ends to allow the bicycle to keep a more constant bank put throughout its range of travel . This novel pattern allowed the rearward wheel to operate more severally of one another and reduce the Tempest ’s natural tendency to over - lead .
Like all serious things , the run of the Pontiac Tempest eventually had to do to an end . Learn how on the next page .
The End of the Line for the Pontiac Tempest
The Pontiac Tempest eventually pass to the imperativeness of its rivalry with LeMans . Though the LeMans shared much with its entrance - level brethren , its image was becoming more upscale , position it as a kind of junior Grand Prix .
route tester make the ' 63s high marks for fit and finish , interior appointments , instrumentation , and the young V-8 ’s major power . criticism work the range from transaxle noise , to slow steering , to less - than - adequate brakes , especially with the V-8 .
Though the Tempest family was becoming undecomposed in almost every esteem and the competition was not advance any earth technologically , buyers were not flocking to it like they did even a yr before . yield was down , with 69,832 Tempests and 61,658 LeManses built , for a sum of 131,490 units . Moreover , product planners believed this course would preserve , as the compact market segment was becoming quite crowded .
That world , coupled with the relatively expensive production price , meant the end of the line was soon coming for the transaxle Tempests . Though they were saddle with transaxle enduringness problems and timing chain woes on the slant - four , the most radical piece of engineering on the cars , the curved drive - shaft , hardly ever caused trouble . Still , many critics believe the transaxle Tempests were far too observational and unproven to be released as they were .
In the end , the 1961 - 63 Pontiac Tempests would not be the outset of a newfangled trend in American cars . They did , however , become an interesting footer , cars that did their honorable to bring leading - sharpness applied science to the compact field . They were without a doubtfulness some of the most innovative vehicles of the Sixties in terms of engineering and the utilization of be technology and fabrication resource . Ironically , their exhaustively schematic successor would become the trendsetter , breed the muscle - automobile phenomenon with an choice package known as the GTO . The rest period , as the cliché goes , is history .
However , the Tempest tale does n’t quite end there . On the next page , you will learn about the Tempest convertible that almost was .
The Pontiac Tempest Convertible
In 1961 Pontiac attempted to ferment the Tempest into an optic - catching show railway car . Ever since the 1954 Bonneville Special fascinated showgoers at the General Motors Motorama , Pontiac longed for a production two - hind end sport machine to call its own . However , force per unit area by Chevrolet to protect its Corvette from interdivisional competition prevented that from becoming a realism .
Until the Fiero was introduce in 1984 , Pontiac would be force to satisfy its sports - machine cravings by building one - off show cars . The 1961 - 62 Tempest Monte Carlo was an particularly intriguing image because it was a output - based car , which , by its very nature , implied that it was indeed producible .
Starting with a prototype for the 1962 Tempest convertible ( there were no ' 61 ragtops ) , engineers sliced a 15 - in section out of the social unit body between the door and the rear rack , then welded the remaining halves together . The result was a 97 - column inch wheelbase two - seater with an overall distance of 175 inches . Custom eggcrate grilles were recessed in the ancestry scuttle and the stock windshield was move out and replace by a Plexiglass windshield that wrapped around to the doors . A fibreglass tonneau with twin headrest fairings replaced the line of descent rear deck .
The interior was operational and attractive . counterpart production - style bucket seat with custom side bolster and forswear seatbelt were terminate in blue leather . A custom console house the shifter and a multiplex vacuum gauge , while a band of competitor gauges were set in the stock dash porta .
The Monte Carlo ’s railway locomotive was a highly modified version of the 195 - cid Pontiac four . It featured a Mickey Thompson supercharger system , which used a GMC 3 - 71 blower and was fed by a Carter AFB four - gun barrel carburetor conform to the blower with a limited 90 - level articulatio cubiti . In the definitive show - car tradition , the engine was dress up with chrome and polished aluminium constituent . It was hooked to a rear - rise four - hurrying trans - axle by way of the Tempest ’s unique curving driveshaft .
The Tempest Monte Carlo was terminate in opalescent white-hot with twin blue racing grade insignia running over the hood and deck . For the 1961 show time of year , the roadster twit on a Seth of Halibrand knock - off racing rack shoed with Firestone Super Sport tire . When Pontiac indicate the two - seater again in 1962 , the wheels were supervene upon by a band of knock - off wires bearing Goodyear Blue Streak tires .
As part of its show duties , the Tempest Monte Carlo was displayed at select racetracks with Chevy ’s Corvair Sebring Spyder show car . After the Monte Carlo ’s tour docket was completed , Pontiac had no further use for it . Rather than crushing it , as was the normal fate for most non - production cars , it was presented to former GM vice president Ed Cole . Before he took delivery however , it was broadcast back to Pontiac Engineering , where at his asking the supercharged four - piston chamber was replaced with a much tamed 215 - cid aluminum V-8 .
The windscreen was also replaced with a production windscreen and a small convertible top was also add . The Monte Carlo was used in this shape by the Cole family until Ed Cole ’s tragic death in a 1977 airplane crash . His widow donated the runabout to the San Antonio ( Texas ) Museum of Transportation , where it spent several twelvemonth in storage .
When the Texas Science Center Automotive Collection was closed in 1994 , its inventory was liquidated by auctioneer Christie ’s . At its prestigious Pebble Beach sale , the Monte Carlo fetched nearly $ 60,000 . accord to Christie ’s , the current owner wishes to remain anonymous .
We have one more permutation of the Pontiac Tempest to show you . On the next Sir Frederick Handley Page , you will learn about the Lightweight Super Duties .
The 1963 Pontiac Tempest Lightweight Super Duties
Pontiac seemed determined to adapt their Tempest to fulfill just about any self-propelling motive . Next up was the Pontiac Tempest Lightweight Super Duties , designed to compete on the drag strips of America .
By 1963 , Super Stock drag racing was a self-colored motorsports phenomenon , capturing the attention of rival , spectators , and producer alike who wanted to be able to say definitively who made the dissolute car around . Though Pontiac had started the Sixties strongly with its Super Duty part program and manufactory - built SD Catalina and Grand Prix race railroad car , the competition was posing a major threat , particularly Dodge and Plymouth . Their potent 426 - cid wedge - head race locomotive engine and lightweight bodies were get down to slip Pontiac ’s nose drops .
Pontiac ab initio responded to the 200- to 300 - pound system of weights punishment the Super Dutys suffered by offer Al body panel . The weight - loss program culminated in the building of Catalinas that feature large holes drilled in the frame . ( self-propelling journalist Roger Huntington dubbed them " Swiss Cheese " frames - for obvious reasons - and the sobriquet stick to . )
Unfortuately for Pontiac , these efforts were n’t as successful as hoped . In add-on to having frames develop due to the removal of too much alloy , the cars were still too heavy once the Chrysler make react with aluminium body parts of their own . Something drastic had to be done to keep the " Max Wedge " Mopars out of the winner ’s circle , so the Tempest was call upon to defend Pontiac ’s honor on the drag strip .
in reality , the thought of dropping Pontiac ’s brutal 421 - cid Super Duty airstream engine in the succinct Tempest organic structure had been in the works since 1962 , when race driver Mickey Thompson , Detroit - area franchise Royal Pontiac , and even Pontiac Engineering cook up their own versions of the swop . Though the independents relied on conventional transmission and rear goal glean from the full - size of it personal credit line , Pontiac wanted to explore the mind of retaining a rear - go up transaxle to put extra weight over the driving wheels . This would assist compensate for the limited tyre technology of the day .
The only problem was that stock certificate transaxles were hardly strong enough to palm the 421 ’s yield . locomotive engineer came up with a young four - speed transaxle known as the " Powershift . " At the risk of exposure of simplism , the Powershift was essentially two Corvair Powerglide two - speed automatic transaxles mounted inline to offer four forward f number . The literal nuts and deadbolt of the project was handled by combining off - the - shelf region with more than 200 new components unique to this figure and then mould a novel font to prevail it trouble together .
Though the Powershift was by no means " bulletproof , " it was quite a mo more durable than a ancestry output building block . The rear - mounted four - amphetamine could use either a clutch or a torque converter , giving racing car the opportunity to take the best arrangement for their intended type of competition . The only available final - cause ratio was 3.90:1 and only 14 were built , one for each automobile create . No spare casing were build .
With the transaxle post under controller , care was turn to the engine . A lower - visibility dual - quad intake manifold was retch to shed light on the Tempest hood . Also , the crankshaft had six supererogatory hole drill in the ending rim to mate it to the curve driving force - shaft . This reading of the 421 Super Duty brag a 12:1 compression proportion and was rated at 405 bhp , though the actual index soma was somewhere airless to 500 .
To save weightiness , the thickset Pontiacs were fitted with full aluminum nose and the door had much of their inner bracing removed . Production of these racing specials hail to two prototype Tempest coupes , six LeMans coupes , and - amazingly - six Tempest post wagons . The theme was that the wagon would put even more weight over the rear wheel than the coupe . Considering that even the big Catalinas had grip problems , these overactive compacts needed all the help they could get to put the power to the ground .
Unfortunately , all the feat came to nothing . On January 24 , 1963 , General Motors , fear an antitrust suit from the U.S. Department of Justice , declare that it was pulling out of all factory - support racing activities . manifestly , the " Win on Sunday , Sell on Monday " merchandising ism was working too well , pushing GM ’s market portion perilously close to the 60 - pct figure that would trigger a Union probe .
Pontiac ’s Super Duty program was halted and most team speedily jumped ship to try factory deals with Chrysler and Ford . Those few 1963 Super Duty cars that made it out of GM before the threshold slam dance shut ended up in the handwriting of privateer racers and collectors . They ’re unbelievably rare and highly treasure image of the factory racing years . Currently , only four coupe and one wagon are fuck to survive , and of those , just one coupe and the wagon seen here have been restored to original precondition .
The Union Park wagon made its post - restoration show entry at the 1999 Ames Performance Pontiac Nationals in Norwalk , Ohio , where legendary Pontiac racer Arnie " The Farmer " Beswick made a soft 12.4 - second pass at more than 112 mph - on the original tires - with Randy in the rider rump . ( Beswick estimated the auto was up to of 11.5s . ) The Union Park wagon now reside in the Williams ' Pontiac museum in Columbia City , along with several other original Super Duty race cars .
