First-ever Pontiac Firebird coupe and convertible models are headed for Las Vegas.
Automotive enthusiasts should cast their eyes on Las Vegas next month when a pair of 1967 Pontiac Firebirds is auctioned by Barrett-Jackson. The first two production models, a coupe and a convertible, will be auctioned together at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on October 13th or 14th.
Muscle Car Docket
Originally serving as show and advertising vehicles, the 1967 Firebird pair was later sold, then discovered years later in poor condition. Since then, they have been restored to their original luster and will be auctioned as a pair. Together, the two Firebirds represent a significant piece of GM, Pontiac, and automotive history, as they were among a handful
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Both models are powered by a 326-cubic-inch (5.3-liter) V8 engine. The silver coupe has a black interior and a four-speed manual transmission. The red convertible has a matching red interior and is outfitted with a three-speed automatic transmission.
From F-Body to Firebird
Both models rolled off the Pontiac Lordstown (Ohio) assembly line in early 1967 and immediately were placed on the auto show and advertising circuit. That original Firebird shares its platform with the Chevrolet Camaro, but also offers numerous distinguishing features, including a lower stance, a split-nose grille and chrome bumper, horizontal headlights and tail lights, wide oval tires, and Rally-style side vents.
Pontiac’s entry into the hot pony car segment followed the Chevrolet Camaro by four months and the Ford Mustang by nearly three years. Chrysler already had its Plymouth Barracuda and American Motors was preparing its Javelin. Clearly, a winning model was needed if Pontiac was to gain a stake in the emerging
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The task was especially urgent as GM learned that the Mercury brand would get its own version of the wildly popular Ford Mustang that fall. Just as Chevrolet battled Ford, Pontiac had Mercury in its crosshairs.
The Magnificent Five
The all-new Pontiac Firebird was introduced on February 23, 1967, as a mid-year model. The 1967 Firebird had its own engines and was marketed as the “magnificent five,” denoting the fist full of trims available — Firebird, Firebird Sprint, Firebird 326, Firebird HO, and Firebird 400.
Engine choices ranged from a 165-horsepower overhead cam inline six to a 325-horsepower V8. Upgrades brought in a four-barrel carburetor, dual exhaust, suspension enhancements, and a dashboard-mounted gauge cluster.
Despite its late arrival, Pontiac managed to sell more than 82,000 units in 1967. Pontiac went on to build the Firebird for the next 35 years, covering four generations. The model was canceled in 2002 and the brand dissolved eight years later about the same time Ford canceled
The 1956 model year brought out a new car, The Rambler. This was not a new name, but the car came out with no mention of Nash or Hudson. The press raved the new Rambler with its improved power, larger interior, and smoother steering. The rest of the American Motors line however, still carried the dated styles of 1952.
Another major change was in 1990 when the ZR-1 was made with 375 horsepower and a LTS5 engine under its hood. To help the appearance of the ZR-1 stand out from the standard corvette coupes, it was given all new convex rear fascia and quad rectangular taillights. All of the new corvettes were made with a new cockpit design that included digital readouts and analog gauges plus a driver’s personal air bag. Due to the redesigning of the corvette, the horsepower of the standard L98 engine was increased to 250. Shortly after this change, it under went a styling refinement that included a wrap-around ...
The automaker Chevrolet has experienced much technological change in the past 104 years. Although it, Chevrolet, is a French name, it is an American car company. It was primarily founded by William C, Durant, along with Louis Chevrolet, on November 3, 1911. It wasn’t until six years of existence that it became part of the Automotive Division at General Motors, otherwise known as GM. Durant had previously tried to buy out Ford and failed. This caused him to resort to co-founding Chevrolet. The first car sold by the company commonly called Chevy was the Classic Six, at the price of 2,500 dollars. Chevy started producing these vehicles in 1912-1913. The car’s value may seem like pocket change but that is the common day equivalent of roughly 57,000
Entering the 1950s, no corporation even came close to General Motors in its size, or it's profits. GM was twice as big as the second biggest company in the world, Standard Oil of New Jersey (father of today's Exxon Mobil), and had a vast diversity of businesses ranging from home appliances to providing insurance and building Buicks, Cadillacs, Chevys, GMCs, Oldsmobiles, Pontiacs and trains. It was so big that it made more than half the cars sold in the United States and the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust division was threatening to break it up(to prevent Monopolies, Like how Standard oil was broken up). In the 21st century, it's almost hard to imagine how powerful GM was in the 50s and 60s. Sports cars from Europe were getting popular, because of servicemen coming back from WWII, and wanted sports cars, but American Automakers didn't make sports cars, so they would either buy foreign, or go without. A man named McLean would still try to make a low priced sports car. But it didn't work. The idea of a car coming from GM that could compete with Jaguar, MG or Triumph was pretty much considered stupid and insane. C1:Generation: Bad but valuable. Just 300 Corvettes were made in 1953. Each of these first-year Corvettes was a white roadster with red interior. The Corvette was made of fiberglass for light weight, but the first cars were made with a really weak, (and kind of pathetic for a “sports car”) 150 horsepower 6-cylinder engine and an automatic transmission. The result was more of a look at me, I’m rich car than a race car. The first generation of the Corvette was introduced late in 1953. It was originally designed as a show car for GM's traveling car show, Motorama, the Corvette was a Show Car for the 1953 Motorama display...
Ask any ten enthusiasts what two cars epitomize the concept of an automotive rivalry and at least nine of them will instantly conclude the Chevrolet or Chevy Camaro and the Ford Mustang, two cars that make up part of a small automotive segment known as Pony Cars. These fire-breathing leviathans of the street snarl with guttural reverberations boastfully announcing their presence with the mere turn of key. For nearly five decades, these mechanical beasts have captured the imagination of the American driver and ignited the most contentious debate in automotive history: Which car reigns supreme? Muscle car buffs waste no time quoting sales figures, vehicle performance, track times, or even mundane statistics like vehicle dimensions or available colors to simply justify their support for one model over the other. As this debate rages on, the makers of these brutes fan the flames through targeted marketing strategies, consumer promotions, pricing strategies, and creative advertising all in effort to win an automotive war the likes of which have never been seen or fought before (Davenport, 2013).
The designers did mock-ups of many different models, including a two-seat roadster, a fastback, and a station wagon. GM was trying to keep the cost as low as possible, however, to compete with the Mustang, and decided tostick with just two models, a coupe and a convertible.
Some say that automotive racing began when the second car was built. For over a hundred years, competition has driven innovation in the car industry, thus the industry maxim “Win on Sunday, sell on Monday.” NASCAR and drag racing contributed greatly to muscle cars’ success. Muscle cars were born from these competitions as factory made race cars. Because of this, the muscle car quickly moved from a low quantity specialty item to the image of the American automotive scene. Each brand had to have one and each one needed better performance and personality than the next. The Golden Age began in the 1960s with the introduction of more performance models such as the Chevy SS Impala and the Ford Galaxy Starliner (Auto Editors).
There are many different kinds of vehicles on the road, but the ones that stand out the most are muscle cars and sports cars. Their unique design and body styles will catch people’s attention wherever they go. The Ford Mustang, a high performing muscle car introduced in 1964, is the most notable muscle car on the streets. It is most known for its unique body design with a long hood and short, rear decks. Their high performing V8 engines make their exhausts have a really deep, loud growl. When you think of sports cars, the first that comes to mind is the Chevrolet Corvette. Its sleek body style paired with its ability to stick to the ground around corners, makes it a very notable sports car in America. The two most iconic versions of these
"A car should be like a fine watch," Ford said. "It should be built to last. Make one model and make it good. That's what I say." After establishing other numerous models without satisfaction his ...
the famed Model T in 1908. When Ford began putting the mass-produced cars on the market, they could offer their. cars for so much less than their competition that the co etition had to upgrade the features of their cars drastically. just to compete with them. Eventually, other car companies also. began to use assembly lines.
The Ford Thunderbird, an American classic, is a car manufactured in the United States by Ford Motor Company. It was created only twenty months after Chevrolets Corvette as a comeback car and entered design for the 1955 model year as a two-seater resembling a sports car, which went on sale on October 22, 1954 (Wilson 116). As the Thunderbird was a better performer and cost four hundred and ninety six dollars less, no wonder it sold better. In fact, the sales figure for the first model was nearly four times that of the Corvette (Georgano 122). Through the development of the Ford Thunderbird it has evolved drastically in style and performance over its long history. Although none of this would have happened without the formation of the idea to create what is known as the Ford Thunderbird.
GM should continue to use its technological advantages to create innovative automobiles, but do so cautiously. GM should follow the direction of today’s environmentally conscious consumers who want less expensive, economical automobiles. GM should primarily utilize a cooperative game-theory approach in its sales and marketing strategies in order to stay in sync with the current automotive industry needs.
When you look at the history of General Motors, you will find a long, rich heritage. General Motors came into existence in 1908 when it was founded by William "Billy" Durant. At that time Buick Motor Company was a member of GM. over the years GM would acquire more than 20 companies, to include Opel, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Pontiac, and Oldsmobile. By the 1960's through 1979 was known as a revolution period for General Motors. Everyone was focusing on environmental concerns, increased prices of gasoline lead to the unprecedented downsizing of vehicles. The smaller cars lead to one the largest re-engineering program ever taken in the industry. By 1973, General Motors was the first to offer an air bag in a production car.
Ford’s production plants rely on very high-tech computers and automated assembly. It takes a significant financial investment and time to reconfigure a production plant after a vehicle model is setup for assembly. Ford has made this mistake in the past and surprisingly hasn’t learned the valuable lesson as evidence from the hybrid revolution their missing out on today. Between 1927 and 1928, Ford set in motion their “1928 Plan” of establishing worldwide operations. Unfortunately, the strategic plan didn’t account for economic factors in Europe driving the demand for smaller vehicles. Henry Ford established plants in Europe for the larger North American model A. Their market share in 1929 was 5.7% in England and 7.2% in France (Dassbach, 1988). Economic changes can wreak havoc on a corporation’s bottom line and profitability as well as their brand.