Stories

A Kid's 65 GTO Convertible

John - vivitron1@aol.com

My name is John. Im 15, and I own a 65 GTO convertible. Stop. Re-read those
few lines. Yes, I am 15, thats not a typo. My dad has been a pontiac fan
since he was 15, this was back in 1965. At that time, the 65 GTO was comming
out, and with the success of the 64, every kid wanted one. My dad tried to
convince his father to by a GTO, but he did not want a 4-door, therefore, My
father was stuck with a 65 326 4-door Tempest. Now, dont get me wrong. There
are worse fates than driving around a 326 big block with a 3.23 posi and
rally gauges, but this was no GTO that my father had so badly wanted.
Fast forward to 1988, 3 years after I was born. I remember asking my father
for a ride in this "big blue car" that we had. "Dad, take me for a ride in
the Blue car!" The car was, and still is painted Fontane Blue, a light blue
color for 65. Well, as the story goes, the car didnt start and we had to push
it up the hill that was our driveway. After we got it fixed, my dad finally
took me for a ride, although I could barely see over the dashboard.
Fast forward to yet again to 1998. We still have the hardtop, but my dad has
sparked my passion for old cars. Over the course of the next year, I chased
down leads all across the country, but to no avail. Toward the middle of 1999
(august, to be exact) My dad was driving home, and what does he spot? A 1965
Tempest Custom 6-cylinder Convertible. This car was 2 blocks away from my
house. Here we are, the hard-core pontiac fans who find one of a fairly rare
6,000 some odd cars. The reason I say this car is rare, is since alot of
tempests get cut up for GTO parts, like the quater pannels, fenders,
tranmission tunnels, etc. Over the next year, I continued my search for the
GTO.
Now, on September 30, the lase day of the month, I finally have my GTO. This
is the first day I have it, after having my father and the former owner sign
the bill of sale last Saturday. The story leading up to my owning this GTO
branches from 1998-2000. This includes HUNDREDS of dollars spent on PHS
doccumentation (More 65 GTO convertibles are registered today than were ever
built, thanks to cloning), many dissapointments, and many rust-buckets or
mutilated cars.
What I ended up with, is a 65 GTO with a 455 built up with the stock crank,
Eagle Rods, Ross Racing pistons, Edelbrock Heads & Intake, and a brand new
850 cfm Demon "Drag King" carb. This car was built to haul ass. The best part
about this, is the former owner is only 20 minutes away from my house, and is
giving me ALL of the original drivetrain from the radiator back. All this car
needs is paint, carpeting, a convertile top window, and a little TLC. I
forgot to mention, but even though this car has been in Massachusetts all of
its life (from the original dealer to me), It is rust free. Just a bit of
surface rust in the trunk.
Id like to give some advice to people who become depressed about not finding
the "right" car for themselves, I want to offer you hope. After 2 years,
hundreds of dollars, hours of phone conversations, countless ammounts of
times looking for cars on the internet, and being let down about 10 times, I
finally got the car I wanted. Just dont give up, and you'll get the car you
want.
The only thing is, My car is not the right car for you! Believe me, the
morticians will have to pry my cold, dead hands from the steering wheel.
Although I have 7 months untill I even get my permit (thats right, I cant
drive legally yet), I still love this car more than anyone could. I plan to
have all the work dont to this car (this includes a paint job, 3.55 posi,
disk breaks, and a turbo 400 tranny swap, dont worry, Im keeping the original
turbo 300) but the time im 18. 2 and a half years. Not bad for a 15 year old
kid, huh? A 65 GTO Convertible.
Thanks for taking time to read my story,
John