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For $25,995, this GTO is all kinds of nuts
For $25,995, this GTO is all kinds of nuts-May 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:10:14

The ‘O' in GTO is for Omologato, Italian for homologated, which itself is derived from the Greek homologeo, or to agree. Today's ‘06 Pontiac GTO is derived from the Aussie Holden, but is its price something upon which we all can agree?

Something of which we all can pretty much agree is that Saab has always marched to the beat of a different drummer. Likewise, yesterday's proved a little too beat up to beat back the Crack Pipe as its nearly nine grand asking price was considered a deal too easy to beat by an overwhelming 63% of you. Bang the drum slowly for that over-priced Saab.

In Get Smart, secret agent Maxwell Smart fought KAOS and had the hots for his fellow agent, the…

That Swede rocked a turbo so laggy that hammer down to launch you could probably get out and change a tire. Today's is also pressurized, but instead of exhaust driving the pump, it sports the immediacy of a belt off the crank. The stock ‘06 GTO had some pretty aggressive specs - 400-bhp 6.0 LS2, Tremec T56 6-speed, IRS, ABS, and all able to get its nearly two tons from zero to sixty in about four and a half seconds.

The seller of this super-dee-duper charged one lays claim to 523-hp at the wheels and says that the engine has been upgraded to make the most of the centrifugal pump. Those mods include a hi-pro cam, rockers, headers, and big-ass 57 pound injectors. Adding just a dash of crazy to the mix - as well as a trunk monopolizing storage tank - is a methanol injection system. A Mcleod clutch and flywheel plus a driveshaft made out of old beercans helps get that crazy to the wheels, where ceramic brakes do their best Dr Phil to rein it all in.

Normally all that whackadoodle horsepower would be easily masked under the GTO's Aussie-based plain jane (simple sheila?) exterior, making for a somewhat subtle sleeper, especially in nondescript black that is this car's predominant shade of outside. But someone thought, if you're gonna' go nuts, you might as well advertise, and so this GTO sports not just enough red on its butt for a troop of baboons, but also proudly proclaims its GTO-ness not once, twice, but three times a lady per side. Up on the hood, possibly for Tawney Kitaen's benefit, is more red defining the twin scoops.

Underneath, the seller says the lowered body sits on suspension rife with poly bushings bolted to which are a set of take ‘em or leave ‘em black and chrome rims. The factory alloys - also chrome for those overwhelmed by too much choice - come with the car too. Inside it's all GTO, all the time, although the 6-speed is topped with a Hurst-like T-handle. The seller admits to a single flaw on the car, that being the top stitching on the rear seat coming undone like Jack Nicholson in the Shining.

It might be crazy to think that a car with so few years and miles - 24,195 - would already be coming apart at the seams, but that minor imperfection is easily dismissed as not being germane to the car's performance credentials. And that's what any GTO, and this one especially, is all about, right? Tire-melting performance. These Australian emigres certainly weren't about sales performance, seeing only 13,948 cars crossed the dealer aprons in its last year on the market. The final iteration of the GTO failed to kindle the passions of the Pontiac faithful, although they did engender a small niche of supporters who covet the cars like Howard Hughes liked bottles of his own pee.

But what of their resale value, especially ones that have been so heavily modified such as this one? Well, as a point of reference, this exact car has an asking price of $25,995, and that's with all the crazy performance upgrades, although also with an ominous AS-IS sale requirement. What's you're take on that, is it a price that wouldn't make you question anyone's sanity for paying? Or, does that price mean this GTO's crazy train isn't leaving the station?

You decide!

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