Pontiac, Wide Open World of Youth 1966
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 ก.ย. 2024
- 1966 Pontiac Dealer Announcement film, full line up of Pontiacs including the GTO, LeMans, Grand Prix and Bonneville.
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Ref: S007
Worked on the line building full size Pontiacs and Grand Prixs in '68. 85 cars per hour 9 hours per day six days per week. There was so much work then in Pontiac Michigan. Now it's all gone. America is a shell of its former self. We had a high standard of living then. Now we struggle to survive.
Some time ago, before the Virus/Pandemic, for sure, our cities were starting to be crime-ridden, deteriorating, we did not know then, that things would get as bad as they are now. We had, back then, quite a bit, decades ago, started to export jobs to foreign countries. Again, decades ago, I espoused the agenda should be "protectionism", that America should strive to be growing and manufacturing all that we need, ie., we should strive to be independent here in the USA. At some point, before Trump, there was a movement to stress a rebuilding of America, a rebuild of our independence, farming, manufacturing, etc. I opined I would believe we were on our way to a successful 'rebuild' of America, when I again saw a successful Detroit. Now, decades after the decimation of Detroit, we are still waiting!
As ZOG-U.S. continues to plummet deeper into the Abyss, Washington and the media continue to flood us with propaganda showing us enjoying the good life. Straight out of George Orwell's 1984.
I owned a '66 Bonneville 4dr hdtp, from the early 70s to about '77. I regret many many times selling it. I think it was both the best and the nicest car I ever owned. A beautiful piece of machinery. These autos, I think, actually could (should?) be called works of art. Well taken care of, they will last forever, and are bullet proof. Certainly are many many times better than today's plastic, junk laden, EPA regulated s---mobiles.
They did stand out from the pack.
>> today's plastic, junk laden, EPA regulated s---mobiles.
Yep you got it brother, Heck it's even more durable than the EcoBoost junk Ford makes.
Amen to that brother
A new 1970 SS 454 Chevelle was around 3,500 bucks..and gas was around 26 to 30 cents a gallon ..a pop was a dime smokes were 50 cents. Beer was 3 bucks a case... Growing up then was pretty cool...if you had 30 bucks you were good all weekend.
I know brother and nowadays vehicles are nothing but overpriced plastic eggshells on wheels.
Also the 70 Chevelle SS 454 is definitely one of my favorite muscle cars of all time.
The 1966 Pontiac was one of the best looking Pontiac of all time.
What about the 1967 model year?
@@kevinlofur8103 The 67 is pretty glamorous but the 66 is crisper.
Kevin Lofur - The 1967 full size Pontiacs were generally not as attractive as the '66's were (with the exception of the '67 Grand Prix) .The intermediate cars were a mild facelift of the '66 models,and were just as attractive as the '66's were,if not more so...In either case,I would love to be able to buy a new one today..For 1967,I would probably pick a Grand Prix convertible,421,4 speed,buckets,dual exhaust,positraction,etc...
@@kevinlofur8103 When the first 67's arrived at the dealer I worked at, I remember one of the guys from the body shop walking past one and remarking, "they shouldn't have any trouble selling these".
@Make Me Believe Name dropper.
My friend bought a ‘66 Bonneville out of an estate in the late 80’s. I drove it a few times and it drove like a new car.
Always had a soft spot for Pontiacs. I was very lucky to have a dad who was a GM man. Every 2 years he would go to our local dealer and lease ,when leasing was a big deal, a new GM product...nothing showy..as he didn't want to be ostentatious, as he explained it to me. I can vividly remember going with him to pick our new 64 Bonneville,( Parisienne in Canada). I was in love with the stacked headlights and the cool vertical taillights..dad punched it on the way home on the QEW highway...said you gotta let er fly to break her in right..miss Dad..those were the days..
My dad bought the 1965 Grand Prix,,,all black, Those were the days and the highpoint of Pontiac, Great solid powerful car with luxurious interior, Went on prom night date in the "bat mobile". All these Pontiacs are still styllsh and 9mpressive after all these years,
You could get a 421 Tri-Power Catalina 2 + 2 as a dealer installed option. My dad had one, along with a dealer installed 45 rpm record player. It actually worked and was designed for not too bumpy roads!
IIRC, 2+2 designates 2 seats up front and 2 in the back...Jack.
@@mr.blackhawk142 Needless to say, that is how it was ordered. He he fun in that car!
Hey Blackhawk, how is the weather in Chi Town? Used to live in Park Ridge and worked off of Halsted and Division.
I remember that year very well. The cars were super cool and so were the chicks that drove them.
I drove 66 Catalina back in 77 and 78 . That was a car and a half ! Wish I had one today .
My brother and I would irritate the sales people at the Pontiac dealer back in the sixties when we were eight & nine years old. "How do you buy a car? With a wheelbarrow full of cash? Can we get a brochure for the Pontiac Grand Pricks?"
It was a badge of honor on who could identify a car the fastest when we were kids. Now all cars are plastic homogeneous spaceships..
1966, in my opinion, was a banner year for General Motors. All division’s models looked terrific, first year for the Olds Toronado, too. These were the most beautiful Pontiacs in the history of PMD.
When you hit the brights a little red chief head lights up on the dash.
First car I ever drove was my father's 66 grand prix with a 421 4 speed... I was 15 in 1995... I wish we still had it...
A seventeen foot chrome side mounding - wow! That's more chrome than my new car has in total.
I just placed an order for a 66 Bonneville 421ci 4 spd, hardtop at my neighborhood Pontiac dealer!
Let us know how that works out.
cars so hot they are still popular today
You’ll save thousands $$
Great idea,if only you could make it a reality - Make mine a Catalina 2+2 convertible,with the 421 Super Duty engine,4 speed transmission,dual exhaust,etc....
Oh man, if only. The only new car I ever bought was a 1999 Trans am, I had it for 5 year and nothing ever went wrong with it. I only replaced the battery & tires, other than that not even a light bulb went bad.
I loved the Pontiac steering wheel! The one that was a clear see through type! Grew up right next to where these cars were produced!
My grandma had a 67 Catalina. My pop tells me thing was so strong with the 428 the previous owner towed a trailer with it and went like a bat out of hell and hit 120 mph like nothing. Now that’s a grocery hauler...
Perhaps "like nothing" by 1967's standards. That same car would be rather lethargic by today's standards.
@@peteshea8010 speed is speed, power is power, you don't mess up what you call speed and power like short term memory loss. This isn't inflation rate, it's not like 120 miles per hour back in 1966 was 70 miles per hour. Our families 1955 Chrysler went 122 miles per hour, easy start up with push leap forward starters in their unfortunate dying age, popular in the 1930's, would propel the automobiles no matter if they were 6 foot and 1040 pounds, or 18 foot and 6040 pounds in a matter of seconds. Typically reaching the top highest speed would take 20 seconds. It is the top speed after all. However reaching 70 was 9 seconds. It is a performance cruising automobile and all of them should be respected. None of this pathetic entitled modern day whiners that yell at old things and only care about what is new over what they once knew.
@@peteshea8010 0-60 in 6.3 seconds may not be fast by todays standards but it’s still no slouch. The 428 put out 472 ft lb of torque, and running that in a car with 60s tech with no safety tech or power assistance, you better know what you’re doing.
who ever invented the side skirt should get an honorary oscar
Absolutely I wish mine had them
One year later, with the 1967 introductions, the world of Pontiac would change
FOREVER...
For that was the year that the Ultimate Pontiac would be introduced......
The ***FIREBIRD !!!!***
I believe that’s the GTO, as it made more contributions to the world. The firebird, while I do love it, was just a rebadged Camaro.
Just a warmed over Camaro built for the sole purpose of challenging the Mercury Cougar.
It was Semon "Bunkie" Knudsen, the Pontiac division manager who turned the make around in the 1950's, paving the way for John Delorean (and squelching talk in GM about discontinuing the line),
He said "You can sell an old man a young man's car, but you can't sell a young man an old man's car"
I'll grant you Bunkie was the spark plug who put the original team together of Knudsen, Estes and DeLorean but it was John and PR guy, Jim Wangers, who took it to the next step. None of them could have done it alone.
+stephen dwyer Si tacuisses, philosophus mansisses
Today you can sell an old man's car to a young man.
Bruce Bryant Ignore this crazy putz Stephen...
Dayum!! Look at that land yacht at 1:32! Wonderful!!!!
Back when cars were comfortable, impressive, and good looking. Not the tiny, bumpy riding, all-look-alike, POS we have today.
Their only real drawback was their 14 miles to the gallon. lol !
But back then, a gallon of gasoline cost $0.32, not $3.00 !
32 cents in 1966 is equal to $2.47 today.
Yep!☺
Those cars were too large and ugly.
My 1966 Pontiac Catalina (a.k.a. "The Party Car") got 20 MPG on regular grade fuel! Even my 1962 Cadillac Coupe de Ville would get 16/17 MPG.
@@jackmabel6067 Perhaps 20 MPG highway at a steady state 60 MPH, assuming your car were equipped with a "tall" (numerically low) axle ratio.. Average (including "city" driving would have been in the 12 MPG range.
My neighbour had a 66 Parisienne.
Basically a Bonneville with a Chevy engine.
Beautiful car. Smooth quiet very roomy with plush unbelievably comfortable seats.
And very good acceleration from the small block.
The 283 195 horse was standard.
I MOST DEFINITELY AGREE 👍THEY WERE JUST SIMPLY TRUTHFULLY BEAUTIFULLY DESIGNED PERFECT STYLISH 🥰I GROWING UP MY PARENTS HAD A 66 PONTIAC PARISIENNE COUPE 327 275HP
Pontiac's are one of the best I own a 1978 trans am with 400 6.6 I still own it for 28 years
Your Trans Am's performance is mediocre at best by today's standards.
Someone high up in GM today needs to watch this video...
Love that microphone wire... did he say they were smooth and quiet!? LOL Who will complain about having a coat hook? I love these old promos, life sure was simpler and slower paced then.
I wonder if these cars were built with the youth in mind?
1966..pontiacs best year.
They dont build em like this anymore! A guy i used to work with had a convertible GP. It was beautiful!
I knew a couple guys that had all of these automobiles, but that was in 1966. Just go to the parking lots and you'd see what I mean.
1966 was Pontiac’s best year, bar none. Every model was beautiful.
I was 4 years old in 1966, and now I'm the old guy
My dad bought me a 66 Pontiac Tempest convertible my 16th birthday and I drove it for 12 years!
Always had a soft spot for the '66 Laurentian. My Father owned one.
The good ole days. Reminds me of when my dad had a '64 Bonne Vert that he bought new.
Great looking ladies in '66 !!
Indeed...
2:00, 13:35, 16:58, 20:35
This was probably about the apex of automotive design, especially for GM. At this point every division produced cars with their own personality.
Around the next body style change the cars started to be less distinctive and only had styling cues that would separate them, for example the Camaro and Firebird, the Nova, Ventura, Apollo, Omega and Seville, the Vega and Astre. By the mid 70s the specific division engines were gone and we all know what happened with the GM look alike cars of the 80s that were only differentiated on price, but were otherwise the same. I'm not picking on GM here as Ford and Chrysler did the same thing.
I was born in 63, but could remember all the cars of this day onward from when I was about 3 and really thought they were cool. This was a time like no other and will never be again. Putting in this perspective I can see how people born in later eras lost interest in cars as the styling became more homogeneous over time.
You correct. I am from the UK and American cars of the 60s were what everyone admired because they were beautiful to look at. Stylish, cool and sleek. All that went in the 70s. I think it was the legislation. All headlights had to be a certain dimension, fender a certain size and height to allow a pedestrian to be tipped on to the bonnet, shit like that.
Plus people stopped talking about cars and more about how badly they were made and the smog they were causing. And the attitude that banned Concord. Add Jimmy Carter and you got the picture.
@@taketimeout2share The other problem was that when the malaise era started in 73 where emissions and insurance regulations killed the powerful cars along with bumper regulations that made them look stupid. American cars actually got larger with a focus on luxury, while the Europeans had much better suspensions that while the car would not go like a bat out of hell actually handled well. The Japanese even copied those traits.
While these luxo barges sold well to the WWII generation, the baby boomers wanted none of these when they started coming of age and opted for the European and Japanese cars in droves.
yea back when young people could consider buying new cars. most young people today end up working for minimum wage and making student loan payments. their lucky if they can afford a used bicycle let alone a new car.
Back than minimum wage you could afford to have your wife be a stay at home mom, now you and your wife and kids all have to work just to get by.
Yea that's because school systems tell the kids from day one you have to go to college to be anybody. The government is as responsible as anyone buy giving out these student loans and acting like it's no problem paying them off. Ever wonder why you can file bankruptcy on ever kind of debt except student loans?
NAFTA killed all the high paying factory jobs, they were easy to get up until that
@@michaelstratton6701
Nafta, open borders, mass immigration.
@@gregorymalchuk272 Exactly. This is what the new indoctrinated collegiate left doesn't understand.
My best friend had a 66 Catalina 389 2-barrel..... Was a big old comfortable car and we went everywhere in it...
Nice Pontiacs. I‘ll buy one of this next year from the new Pontiac.
I didn't realize that the headrest had come out as early as 66. I didn't think that was until like 68. It looks like they were only offered on the Catalina series with bench front seats and not the all models. Interesting. Pontiac always did have the best styling in my opinion.
tiger7199 Headrests were available across the full GM line for including Corvair. reclining seat with a joke, the pivot was a few inches too high to be of any use, and it's discontinued after 2 years
American Motors offered them as early as 1959, and some Chrysler and Ford products had them a few years later (mainly for the passenger seat, when it reclined)
Paul Duca I was talking more specifically about GM cars but interesting about the other brands having them as well. I had no idea they were offered as early as 59.
CORVAIRWILD Yea I didn't know that. I always thought the main reason they started putting them on cars was to prevent whiplash from rear end accidents.
1960's was definitely Pontiac at its zenith, you couldn't go wrong with Pontiac during the 1960's.
Those Star Chiefs were really something. I think I would have preferred one over a cadillac though Cadillac for 66' was a piece of art as well!
Love the 17' side molding. Classic !
In most all of these old car videos I enjoy how they refer to the car buyer as a "Prospect".
That's because these videos were only intended for the SALES PEOPLE! Not the general public. In sales of any kind, potential customers are called prospects.
Mom had '65 Pontiac Parisienne Sport coupe. 283 2bbl. Chevy power, Canadian Pontiac. Beautiful, buckets console floor shift. Powerglide, and it was hers from 71-78. She piled it up.
Ahh the days when every fall would bring new car ads and fever!
I liked his creativity with the Microphone cord! Ha!Ha! He did well at making it all look natural.
My brother had a 2+2 that thing was so cool
The emphasis on "youth" becomes irritating after about the 50th mention.
Well unlike now...Youth was really cool back then.
I worked for a pontiac dealer in Cleveland Heights during those years, and I can say for sure that most of the people driving those full-sized Pontiacs were NOT youths. But the Tempests were a different story.
One lucky young man's family bought his immature a*s a new '67 4-speed tri-power GTO convertible for H/S graduation. Before it was six months old, he had launched it into the air at high speed one night on a RR crossing approach. When it came down, the front suspension bottomed out and caught the front cross-member momentarily on one of the tracks, causing the frame to buckle in the middle. He wanted it fixed under the 5-50 warranty so he wouldn't have to tell his dad.
You must remember this is a sales training film for dealerships.
@@granddad-mv5ef not sales training, audience films in the show room.
@@WitchKing-Of-Angmar you are probably correct, either way it was a video I never expected to see.
We couldn't stay with cars like that for obvious reason but were fun while they lasted!
My late Father did the car catilog s . I remember in 65 /66 G.P. we're supposed to be the new GTO. But they needed something for the the "Old man ".
When cars could screech tires so easily.
eldo59 the cheapest pos car build today could smoke those bias tires. Most modern 4 cylinder cars have more HP than most cars out of Detroit in 66
@@aricsnyder5882 But you have to remember awd, limited slip, traction control and the overall heavier weight of modern vehicles would stop you from breaking traction.
@@Aman-fv5if Limited slip differentials were widely available by the mid 1950s.
@@peteshea8010 Yeah and?
You do realize getting a 300 hp 375 pounds of torque was pretty common back in the 60s right? Your average modern four cylinder gets 90-150 hp. Dumb ass lmao
If those girls are still around they are in their 70's now and the announcer is long gone. I wonder who they were.
Love the dual opposed articulated wipers! Too bad they only use them today on Lexus LS 460 or Toyota Yaris. Such a good idea. I had a '73 Lemans that had them and they work so well...
Golden era
Golden people Diamond cars ❤
The young people are going to love these youthful cars designed with young people in mind--with youth built in from the youthful shifter to the youthful exterior lines. Man, oh man, that's youthful!
Instead of a $10.00 timing chain that may break at 75,000 to 100,000 miles, the new $1.75 neoprene belt may last for 35,000 miles. It will still cost you $125.00 to fix and take a week, the part is not available.
the parts were available .and it didn't cost no $125.00 to change.lol.yes 50 years later they are hard to find but that's what a lot of gearheads enjoy..we have 2 firebirds and a couple other big pontiacs with the ohc 6 ,everyone looks at them in awe,ask questions and take pictures.very sought after option.
haha, yes, I did a few timing chains on GM cars, I'm not a mechanic, and the job was relatively easy, chain and new gears too. Really pepped up my 66 Bonneville 389, and my 74 Monte Carlo 350 small block. A timing belt, betcha it's now loads more than $125, and no longer a job easy for backyard mechanic types.
I have a Few OHC motors. Had one in a wagon.Sprint 6 rare. Had the 4 cyl in 62 fact 4 speed and 4 brl
I was fortunate to purchase a '66 2+2 as a trade-in, if I had only been able to see the future, it would still be mine.
back when gm made real, beautiful cars...
Love the 8 lug mags on the G.T.O.!! How many were built with THAT option?
None... the 8 lug option was cancelled shortly before production.
Magnifiques voitures, réellement la classe !
Me gusta ese carro el Pontiac Bonneville 1966
Yes, those beautiful "Land barges".
This film was photographed (to the best of my knowledge) at the GM Proving Grounds near Milford, Michigan.
Very beautiful Pontiacs and its cool that the sales man here is a real car enthusiast. It's a shame that Pontiac isn't around anymore cause not only Pontiac was GM's Mopar but it was also America's BMW as well.
My parents had 66cat when I was a kid.
My very first car I owned was a 1966 Pontiac "Le Mans" with a 326 c.i.d. V8. Bought it in September of 1070 for $650! It had a two speed automatic: fast and faster, they were. I liked that car. Bought it used with, I don't remember, how many miles it had. The color was the turquoise, two door. A best buddy of mine talked me into getting a Thrush Muffler on it...like his '63 Pontiac Tempest-Le Mans had. I hated the sound. Changed back to a new regular muffler in a few months. Also, got heavy-duty shocks on it.
Oh! Those were good days!
The music was used on beavis and butthead when they were watching driver ed safety films.
That Tempest looks like the Chevrolet Malibu for '66, I guess because it was on the same chassis. And that engine, I saw a few of those in my day.
Certainly diggin' them jazztunes cat!!
good engine the belt was fun to change ,, they did wear out
Yep, the 8 lug wheels were the unobtainiun option. Due to conflicts with Kelsey-Hayes and John Delorean they were dropped for the LeMans, Sprint, and GTO for 66.
Thanks for sharing your insight on this.
GT182/66GTO while the GTO never got the 8 luggers, one or two or three sets were made for Corvairs, and one set exists to this day in the Corvair-Hudson Museum in Depot Town, Ypsilanti Michigan. The GTO wheels had a different fin pattern than the full size models' wheels, and the Corvair wheels used 13 inch tires and 5 lugs, and a different fin pattern as well
Good luck getting replacement parts..
Love that GROOOOVY MUSIC BROTHER! 😂
Who is the announcer or narrator? He does a fantastic job :)
Way back when we had the money and manufacturing muscle to change designs year to year....must have cost a fortune to retool like that.
Well, I lived in those days, we thought cars were costly, I bought a new 69 GTO Judge in 69, $3000, after I got $1000 for my trade-in, a pretty 64 Ford 500XL. Costly, but maybe not, as lotsa people were buying new cars quite easily, lots on just my block, my neighbors. Like everything, retooling, musta been not too costly, as the minimum wage was soooo low, my 64 ford, was a one year design, only made looking that way in 64. Those years were absolutely iconic for so many reasons.
Nice cars back then funny these cars are the size of a small motor home these days. 🤔
Seventeen foot stainless steel side molding; 17 feet?!!! And that's a two door Coupe! Steel molding?!!! These automobiles were tanks!
Love it. I have a '66 Grand Prix
Love this. I have a 66 Parisienne 2dr hard Top
My dad had a 66 Bonneville. I learned to drive on that "barge". The old man loved a big car. It was pretty stylin' in it's day!
Shocking they ever sold a GTO with these sales videos. They hyped the 4 cyl. more then they did 389 tri-power.
GTOs didn't need to be hyped. The car mags took care of that for free.
Bonneville Brougham 4door hardtop has a Mafia trunk looks like you can toss 3 dead bodies in it
In 69 i got my license in a 66 2+2 421 catilina @15yrs old!
large station wagon tires
I'd get the tempest for a grocery getter and the GTO for weekend cruising (with the 4 speed automatic)
They only came with 3 speed turbo 400 automatic transmission or 4 speed m 21 manual transmission
I'm going to need some 1966 era counterfeit money and a time machine.......
Can you tell us who the ad agency was that did this ? The "youth" theme gets a little old after about a minute.
Back during aMericos great days.
the 4 door tempest is the rare car as no one saved or restored them like the opt headrest in the Catalina and gto il take the 2 + 2 and the g.t.o both 4 speeds
think one could order a 4 sp on any model 4dr hardtop wagon
6:24 .............. A Cigar lighter! I'm sold! Where's the nearest dealer where I can buy one of these?
Plus an ash tray in all the doors 😃
@@paulht3251
Actually, I'm a Ford guy who owns two '65 Ford Galaxie 500's. One is a convertible and the other a 2 door hardtop. I also own a '60 T-Bird hardtop with a floor shift 3 speed manual transmission with overdrive.
Add a '99 Ford Ranger XLT 4x4x4 pickup and a 2000 Excursion V-10.
And they all have lots of ashtrays.
Bonneville, grand prix, Catalina, tempest, trans am, GTO
people on TV seem so innocent those days eventhough they weren’t really in real life.
What does that even mean?
@@WitchKing-Of-Angmar tbh I don't remember what it means either
And remember, too, along with the cordova top, they'll need air conditioning, automatic transmission, power steering and brakes, with disc up front, power windows and locks, custom wheels, white sidewall tires, AM-FM stereo radio with 8 track tape player, and, of course, the interior upgrade package and Comfortilt steering wheel. That top begs for all the goodies.
senorkaboom disc brakes are not available until 1967, except on Corvettes in 65, and they were a poor design 4 piston caliper. And re-designed single piston floating for 69, and then made standard 70 + 71, and drums pretty much gone by the early seventies. that floating piston caliper design from '69 was used for many many many years
Lucky old Bob. Goes to show you that even with a cheap suit and a receding hairline you can still attract the ladies with a 66 model Pontiac, and that lower tone horn seals the deal.
5:35 Wow, rear seat belts in 66! 😮
Groovy
Le MAAAAns
66 pontiacs high point..