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Australia's muscle car scene paralleled America’s but managed to last longer than the U.S. version. While American cars were choked with air pumps and catalytic converters and suffered the ignominy of the 5-mph bumper, the Aussies had Ford Falcon GTHOs, Chrysler Valiant Chargers, and Holden Monaro GTSes (and even smaller Holden Toranas when properly equipped) well into the 1970s.
The original Monaro was the coupe variant of Holden’s new-for-1968 HK series of family saloons. (Think of it as Australia’s Camaro, in relation to the Nova.) Roughly 200,000 HK-chassis Holdens were built through 1969, with the coupe variant living through 1971. The coupes, particularly in GTS327 and GTS350 form, borrowing American engines, were some of the hottest performance cars of the era. Norm Beechey drove a Monaro to third place in the five-race Australian Touring Car Championship, after winning the last two races outright. And Wheels magazine, Australia’s version of Motor Trend, named it Car of the Year for 1968.
All of this is context for the car you see on these pages: the 2004-’06 Pontiac GTO. In 1998, Holden developed a coupe version of the recently launched Holden Commodore VT, a car that started off as an Opel Omega (sold Stateside as the Cadillac Catera) but was then significantly reengineered for Australian conditions. It was dubbed Monaro, a name that had since slipped into Australian automotive legend. Buoyed by the positive response at home, the new Monaro went into production in 2001 for the Australian market. By spring 2002, Bob Lutz was running GM and announced that he was bringing the Monaro (powered by GM’s LS-architecture V-8) to the States, making it a Pontiac exclusive and calling it GTO. With the Australian dollar exchanging at around 46 cents to the US dollar in late 2001, when plans were drawn up, the GTO could be sold for reasonable money, plus it would put some excitement back in the "We Build Excitement!" division after the demise of the Firebird. It looked like both dealers and GM could make a couple of bucks out of the arrangement. It was no flimsy pony car: It was a bona fide grand touring machine, with power, luxury, and style in equal measure, at home on the open road or on a closed course. It could even help drive Pontiac upmarket.
2004 GTO models only had exhaust exit on the driver side; this was rectified in 2005, given the new GTO buyer true duals.
Yes, some choices had to be made for federalization. The fuel tank, for example, was moved to the trunk in order to pass NHTSA crash regs, thereby eating up most of what was already not that much cargo space. Even so, it was a far nicer-to-drive car than the Mustang was at that time, and with a projected $25,000 starting price (not far from that of a Mustang GT) the GTO would have the clear value advantage, with an extra hundred or so horses, a more comfortable all-independently-suspended ride, an extra gear in the transmission, and a far richer-feeling interior when placed against the comparison.
But then September 11 happened. Shortly thereafter, the Australian and American dollars were trading within ten cents of each other, eliminating GM’s cost advantage. This pushed the GTO’s base price to $33,900 in 2004, so marketing pitched it against a 3-series BMW coupe rather than sticking to its muscle car roots. The resulting ads felt like the ’70s, when Ford’s Granada pitch tried to make us believe that its warmed-over Falcon was just like a new Mercedes. Who cross-shopped BMW and Pontiac?
You could also argue that the GTO was priced too high for the adrenaline-junkie speed freaks who needed 350 (and later 400) horses at their disposal. There were also those who felt the new car didn’t match their vision of what a GTO should look like, and many slammed the new model without ever driving it.
It’s easy to point fingers at why GTO didn’t live up to sales projections but, in truth, production was announced to be limited to 18,000 units per year, dictated by the excess capacity of the factory in Elizabeth, South Australia. Yet the end of production wasn’t triggered by slow sales: The GTO was halted to make way for the new-generation Holden Commodore, which came to the States as both the Pontiac G8 sports sedan and (from 2012) Chevrolet Caprice police fleet vehicles. The GTO was only ever scheduled to live until the end of 2006. "How good is the new GTO?" we
asked in the pages of HMM in 2004. "It’s so good, that if it were called something else, Boomers would flock to their message boards and admonish Pontiac for not calling it a GTO." Alas, the last GTO has now been gone for more than 15 years, which means it should be near the bottom of its value curve. Time to talk about what to look for if you’re on the prowl for a copy of the most underrated performance car of the first decade of the new millennium. One tip we heard repeatedly: Don’t just check the CARFAX report—also check out the GMVIS, which will give a complete service history, whether any warranty work was performed (or not), and lots more information.
The 2004 models received the 350-hp LS1, as seen here; for 2005, displacement grew from 5.7L to 6.0L, and the LS6 made a nice round 400 hp.
DRIVETRAIN
For 2004, the GTO used the 350-horsepower 5.7-liter LS1, as previously seen in the Corvette and F-body twins; by 2005, GM installed the 400-horsepower 6.0-liter LS2. The ’04 models have the exhausts exiting on one side, while the 2005-’06 cars have twin exhaust outlets through a slightly modified rear fascia. Both engines respond well to modifications, and this might be an issue if you’re seeking out a collector-grade example of the breed rather than simply a driver or a ten-second track missile. Anything you could do to an F-body or Corvette (heads, headers, injection mods, exhaust, supercharger, you name it) could also be done to a Pontiac GTO—and probably has been.
Once the GTO became just a used car and its price dropped into the realm of affordability for bucks-down enthusiast second-owners, plenty of these cars got modified. Alterations were made by professional mechanics and backyard tinkerers alike, and the quality of the work and the modifications can vary widely. The GTO’s chassis configuration demanded a front-sump oil
pan, which can starve the pump under hard acceleration, so listen carefully for engine noise.
Floor-shifted four-speed 4L60E four-speed automatic is naturally robust and quicker than the stick.
As far as transmissions go, the Tremec T56 six-speed was optional when new, but still the more common choice for the run of 2004-’06 GTOs. All GTOs run a 3.42:1 final drive in the differential and use a two-piece driveshaft with a center carrier that is prone to breakage under enthusiastic use. More hardcore fans will warn you about the GTO’s "13 points of driveline slop" but for well-maintained, adult-owned, street-driven cars that haven’t been abused, this shouldn’t be an issue.
Some owners have reported that their T56 transmissions make more noise than they think prudent, but some degree of gear noise is said to be normal for this gearbox. Differential whine happens occasionally, so cruise at highway speed and listen closely. Automatic-equipped cars are said to be quicker through the speed traps at your local drag strip. Both options are robustly engineered for long life and are readily serviced should the need arise. A six-speed GTO should see its hydraulic clutch fluid changed regularly, on a similar service interval as the brake fluid.
CHASSIS
A common issue with the GTO is its rear springs, which have been known to sag quickly. Switching to aftermarket coils —Pedders is a popular name within the GTO community—will help keep the tail up where it needs to be. Ignore it, and the sag will force excess camber across the rear, and the inner edge of the rear tires will wear down to the cords before the mold-release nubbies wear off the rest of the tire. Axle hop can be prevalent, as you might imagine on a rear-drive performance car that invites hard launches; hot shoes in the know will quash this with airbags in the rear springs. It may help drivability if they’re there, but they do nothing for collectability—or for faith that the car you’re looking at hasn’t been abused.
In front, the strut bushings have been known to wear and get squashed, which causes tire rub. Also check the outer tie rod ends, a known weak point that may need addressing. Rubbing issues with the 17-inch wheels and tires have been reported, though less widely so with the optional 18-inch rubber. Speaking of rubber, you’d be wise to check the rear wheelwells to see if any atomized tread ended up in there—evidence of big stinky burnouts that could lead to further driveline issues in the future.
Courtesy of GM Media
The GTO’s standard four-wheel-disc brakes are excellent (11.7 inch rotors up front in ’04, growing to 12.3 inches in ’05), so don’t be afraid to stomp on the whoa pedal to get a sense of how much life is left in the binders. That said, the front brake calipers have been known to spread at the top; it will be most evident when installing new brake pads.
Standard wheels and tires are 225/50R17s, with 18-inch wheels and tires an available option beginning in 2005. If you want to sneak a little more rubber onto the back of your GTO, be careful--limited space between the smallish wheel arch and the suspension and brake components means that you won’t get anything wider than 265 mm in there.
Optional color-coordinated leather jazzes up the look and feel of a GTO interior, although the hides might be difficult to replace.
INTERIOR
When new, the GTO’s interior was light-years ahead of anything else that GM offered in the States—including Cadillac and Corvette—boasting soft leather, comfortable seating, and other details that hit occupants in all the right places. It had a quality feel that many cars in its price range simply lacked.
Fifteen years on, interior issues have made themselves known. While the leather seating and headrests remain suitably supple, the seams are prone to splitting, particularly on the rear headrests, which get more sun exposure than any other part of the interior. The headliner tends to sag with time, whether you’re a smoker or not. Similarly, the glue backing the suede and leather interior inserts has been known to dry up, causing the material to lift—more likely an issue if your car came from a warmer part of the country. Bulky keychains can tweak the ignition’s guts slightly, making it complicated to get the cartoonishly large key in and out of the ignition. Power door locks can occasionally stick or fail; a new system was installed on ’06 models only.
Interiors aren’t prone to leakage, although there are a couple of ways for moisture to get in. Damaged grommets ahead of the rear wheelwells can allow water to seep into the rear floorpan, and water can sit atop the rubber seal adjacent to the door sill, which can allow a slight drip into the cabin.
Occasionally, a gauge may fail. This can obviously happen to any car, but with the GTO, you’re not able to fix just a single gauge since the whole cluster needs to be removed and replaced. As the GTO had optional gauges that were color-keyed, tracking down a replacement could be an issue. Also, each model year has its own specific font for gauges, and the ’04 has as a tach with a lower redline to reflect the LS1’s capabilities.
A tidy interior is often a good indicator of how the car was treated over its lifetime—it suggests care and babying rather than lead-footed hell-raising. Let your gut be your guide, but don’t let it overrule your eyes and brain.
Courtesy of GM Media
BODY
Can we talk about the GTO’s body for a minute? Among the screaming minority who refused to give the GTO a chance when it was new, one of the big issues was that the GTO looked boring, like a 9/8 scale Chevy Cavalier. What isn’t widely understood, and certainly not cared about, is that if the GTO didn’t look like this, then we wouldn’t have had a GTO at all.
When it arrived in 2004, the style was nearly a decade old, produced since 2001 for the home market from a concept that arrived in 1998, on a chassis that launched at the end of 1996, which had to be styled and locked in years before. It also had an end date from the moment it launched: Remember, the GTO was never going to live past 2006. GM was never going to tool up and crash-test special body panels for a car whose end was already in sight. If customers/fans/internet message-board whiners in 2004 complained that the new GTO looked like it came out of 1995, that’s because it kind of did. The Pontiac-specific front fascia and trunk wing were all Pontiac could do if the division were to get it on sale for the 2004 model year.
All GTOs share most basic body panels; however, after the grumble and uproar that the ’04 GTO didn’t have a hood scoop or dual exhaust, Pontiac (Holden) took steps to add both a new hood and a modified rear fascia that had cutouts for twin exhaust pipes. Fun fact: Pontiac sold two dozen ’05 GTOs with ’04 hoods. Pontiac also offered an optional 360-degree dealer-installed body kit in 2005, called GTO Sport Appearance package, the best part of which consisted of new front fascia nostrils that were slightly inset, rather than flush as other models were.
Rare colors include Barbados Blue Metallic (one-year-only, 573 built), Cosmos Purple Metallic (one-year-only, 700 built) and Pulse Red (one-year-only, 794 built) for 2004. For 2005, new Yellow Jacket (one-year-only; 792 built) and new Impulse Blue Metallic (999 made) are the rarest colors in the GTO palette. In 2006, the lowest-production color was new Brazen Orange Metallic, with just 1,175 built.
All colors and years have paint-adhesion issues on the door handles and fuel filler door, plastic areas that are frequently touched by human hands. Check the trunk spoiler for loose or cracked mounts and the front fascia for damage or missing fasteners.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Abuse, primarily. Is the engine bay a mess of aftermarket components and wiring? Is the interior worn beyond its years and mileage? Are the rear wheel openings caked with melted rubber? Can you feel the drivetrain slop as you row through the gears? Does the suspension do what it’s supposed to when you drive it, or does it bind and wallow and rub? If the answer to any of these is yes, then you’re either looking at a project or a former strip rocket. If you’re looking for something investment-grade that has a chance to increase in value, then maybe keep looking. We’ve seen low-mileage (under 10,000 miles) examples that have not yet climbed back up to the original asking price; these are the examples that give the best sense of what these cars were about, and the ones that can’t help but appreciate in value as the years roll on.
MORE DETAILS
ENGINE
The GTO quickly got a reputation for cheap speed in the used car market, so gearheads sought them out—and frequently beat on them. Whether it’s the 350-hp 5.7-liter LS1 from 2004 or the 400-hp 6.0-liter LS2 from 2005-’06, watch for aftermarket parts, or signs that engine hardware has recently been removed and/or replaced. The GTO’s front-sump oil pan can starve the engine of oil in extreme circumstances, and that can result in damaged bearings and audible knocking. The 2004 (and some early ’05) models have a plastic engine cover that often rubs against the fuel line on the driver’s side, potentially causing a leak.
TRANSMISSION
More than 60 percent of all 2004-’06 GTOs were equipped with the Tremec T56 six-speed, a $695 option when new, making the standard 4L60E automatic the rarer choice. (Automatic-equipped cars are said to be marginally quicker at full acceleration down the quarter-mile.) Both options are robustly engineered and are easily enough repaired but watch for signs of abuse. Stick cars should have the clutch fluid changed regularly; black fluid in the reservoir is a sign of skipped maintenance.
INTERIOR
The GTO’s raved-about-when-new quality interior didn’t always hold up. Headliners tend to sag. Seams in the leather seats are prone to splitting, but none more than the rear-seat headrests, which can bake in the sun if the rear window isn’t tinted. Heavy keychains can weigh on the ignition over time, making it hard to insert and remove the key. If a gauge isn’t working in the cluster, then the whole cluster needs to be removed; this may be problematic with gauges that are color-keyed to the interior.
CHASSIS
Springs in the independent rear suspension tend to sag quickly, and this in turn causes excess camber and wears out the inner edge of the rear tires prematurely. Aftermarket coils are recommended. Some of the 17-inch wheel-and-tire combinations may have rubbing issues. Strut bushings have known to get squashed, which can also cause tire rub. Tie-rod ends are also a known weak point. In any event, check the tires and see how they’re wearing— and also check the rear wheelwells for any accumulated rubber, a potential sign of frequent burn outs.
BODY
All colors and years have issues with paint adhesion on the door handles and gas cap. Original glass will be marked Pilkington in the bottom right corner. Many owners used the trunk spoiler as a handle; check for loose or cracked mounts. Front bumpers were often low enough that they scraped against curbs. Clips that attach the fascia to the front fenders can break or go missing, so the fascia doesn’t fi t flush with the bumper. The flush ’04 hood will fit on ’05s and vice-versa; only a handful of ’05s were factory-equipped with leftover ’04 flat hoods.
PRODUCTION
Per markquitterracing.com, total 2004 Pontiac GTO production was 15,740 units for the car’s debut season. For 2005, 11,069 cars were built, while news of the GTO’s impending re-demise may have helped spur sales back up to 13,948 in 2006. Such low numbers are confusing—and disappointing, against Pontiac’s 18,000-per-annum sales goals— but building GTOs for America kept the Holden factory running full-time. In total, that’s 40,757 examples of this generation GTO across all three model years.
Recent
Stellantis
Tim Kuniskis, longtime Stellantis executive and a prominent voice in the modern-day American muscle car era, is retiring after 32 years with the company. Kuniskis, also known as the godfather of the Hellcat V8, was appointed Brand Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dodge and a member of Stellantis' Top Executive Team in January 2021. He took charge of Ram in July of 2023. His retirement begins on June 1st of this year.
With Kuniskis leading the way, the Dodge brand embraced its American muscle car image, further building a passionate fan base for its high-performance vehicles, including the Charger, Challenger, and the Viper, by introducing the “Brotherhood of Muscle.” We saw the return of Dodge’s Direct Connection subbrand, which makes tuning products more accessible to its enthusiasts.
Kuniskis was there through Dodge’s Last Call campaign, the brand’s final send off for two of its iconic V8-powered muscle cars, the Dodge Challenger and Charger models, before turning the page to the next generation. Dodge’s Last Call models included the 2023 Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack Shakedown, 2023 Dodge Charger Super Bee, 2023 Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack Swinger, 2023 Dodge Charger R/T Scat Pack Swinger, 2023 Dodge Charger King Daytona, 2023 Dodge Challenger Black Ghost, and the 2023 Dodge Challenger Demon 170. He also oversaw the next generation muscle car’s reveal, which confirmed the offering of an all-electric powertrain, plus he played a key role in the reveal of the all-electric 2025 Ram.
“I want to take the opportunity to warmly thank Tim for his passion, commitment and contributions to Stellantis and in defining the vision of the future electrified Ram and Dodge brands,” said Stellantis CEO, Carlos Tavares. “I wish him well in his retirement.”
Tim Kuniskis’s retirement comes at a challenging time for the company. Dodge has seen a drop in sales since the phase out of the previous Challenger and Charger models. Sales were down by 16-percent for the Charger coupe and sedan in Q1, while at the same time, Ram sales reportedly dropped by 26-percent. Vehicle shipments worldwide were down 10-percent (to 1.3 million) compared to the same three-month period a year ago. Stellantis revenue declined by a total of 15% to $20.7 billion.
Stepping up to the company’s future challenges in Kuniskis’s place is Matt McAlear, the new CEO of Dodge, who led Dodge's sales operations in the recent past. Christine Feuell, prior Chrysler CEO who had a hand in the reveal of the Halcyon Concept earlier this year, will now be in charge of the Ram brand.
Christine Feuell
Stellantis
Matt McAlear
Stellantis
“I am confident that Chris will continue the work of Tim in leading the iconic Ram brand,” said Tavares. “Matt will bring a fresh perspective, while continuing to draw on the heritage of our iconic Dodge brand and leading the transition of the brand toward a sustainable future.”
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Photo: Scott Lachenauer
Who doesn’t remember their first car? The joy it brought, the pride of ownership and the lasting memories it created along the way. These are remembrances that you shared for a lifetime. Most of us will only be able to reminisce about these classic rides of our youth, helped along with possibly some pictures, movies and maybe a trinket or two kept from that first car that was saved before it was cast off to a new owner, or sadly, sent to that big scrap heap in the sky.
Luckily, Nick Pezzolla of East Greenbush, New York was one of those guys who was ahead of the curve and held on to that first ride. Nick scored this tasty GTO when he was just fifteen and had the wherewithal to keep a torqued-up grip on its title, holding on to his prized Pontiac since that fateful day he brought it home. After thirty plus years of ownership, Nick still gets a thrill getting behind the wheel of his Goat, the one car that has been there through thick and thin since his high school days.
Photo: Scott Lachenauer
Nick grew up like many of us, infatuated with muscle cars at an early age. “When I was six or seven, I received my first model kit. My dad pretty much built it, but soon after I was totally obsessed with building muscle car models. At ten years old I received a kit of a ’65 GTO. I was in love. At that moment I vowed to get a GTO as my first car. It was a necessity as far as I was concerned," he explained.
By the time Nick turned thirteen, he was on the hunt for his first car. “If we saw a GTO in a parking lot, we left a note on it. If it was in a driveway, we knocked on the door and asked if they were interested in selling. We soon found out that the people that really wanted to sell their rides, owned cars that were typically cobbled together from parts, or full of Bondo. Dad was adamant that I buy something in good condition, and hopefully get one with the original drivetrain so it would appreciate in value for years to come.”
Fast forward to the spring of 1993. “I was turning sixteen at the end of July and I still didn’t have a car.” That's when it happened: Nick’s best friend at the time was eighteen months older and already had his license, which helped in scouting the local area. One day he received a tip from his buddy that he had spotted a gold GTO on someone’s lawn for sale. The kicker was that it was right in his town. “That was weird to us because it’s a pretty small town and we had never seen that car before.”
Photo: Scott Lachenauer
Regardless, Nick and his friend went and checked it out. What the car turned out to be was a 1970 GTO in Granada Gold with its original 400-cu.in. engine, backed by an automatic transmission. Somehow this golden treasure made its way all the way from Tacoma, Washington to the east coast, and had lived out its last few years right there in town. “It still had a 1988 car show plaque from Tacoma affixed to the dash,” according to Nick.
Amazingly, this twenty-three-year-old Goat was in good shape, so Nick decided to have his dad have a look at it to get his opinion. Once there, dad took the GTO out for a spin, with non-licensed Nick riding shotgun. “I remember having perma-grin while riding shotgun during the test drive. I couldn't contain myself.”
Dad agreed that this Poncho was the perfect starter car for his son. The only thing left was financing, and that was done through the family. “I borrowed half the money from Grandma, who was on a fixed income, and over the next couple months made three payments to the seller to meet the $5000 agreed on purchase price.”
Photo: Scott Lachenauer
After it was paid up, the owner brought Nick’s new ride to his house and delivered it to the young gun, which turned out not to be the best idea. “My older brother and I were home alone that day while my parents were out at work. Since it was summertime, my brother would have his friends visit and go swimming in our pool. If they were gonna be there for a while, they would let me take their license plates of their respective cars and I would put them on the Goat so I could take it out for mischief around town. I guess no harm, no foul, right?"
Nick got his own insurance policy and had the GTO road-ready prior to his birthday. Two weeks later he received his New York State license and drove it to the first day of school that September. “I felt like I was king when I was behind the wheel in that GTO.” From that point on, Nick always had a bad-weather beater and stored his Goat through the snowy, salty winters of the Northeast. “There were times where I had the opportunity to sell it, but never did, because I didn’t want to have the same regrets my dad had after selling his original Challenger.”
Since then, Nick has kept the GTO’s looks up, and has plans for the car’s future. “I had it repainted in 2012 and we did the interior. I plan to pull the engine, since I've never had it out, and give the mill a full rebuild. I wanted to do it last summer for our 30th anniversary together, but after the passing of my dad in the spring, it just wasn't in the cards. Hopefully this is the year I get it done. Time will tell.”.
Photo: Scott Lachenauer
Since then, Nick has kept the GTO’s looks up, and has plans for the car’s future. “I had it repainted in 2012 and we did the interior. I plan to pull the engine, since I've never had it out, and give the mill a full rebuild. I wanted to do it last summer for our 30th anniversary together, but after the passing of my dad in the spring, it just wasn't in the cards. Hopefully this is the year I get it done. Time will tell.”
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