8 Classic Pontiacs Skyrocketing in Value
There are Pontiacs worth the investment before they start to skyrocket.
These are just goldmine waiting to happen classic Pontiacs. They’ve timeless looks and growing demand, so the values are only going up from here, so best to get in while the getting's good!
Pontiac’s Legacy
Man, they were one of the greats, Pontiac was. That, in part, is the good old American muscle story: If you liked to go fast or really liked the way things looked, Pontiac is where it’s at without having to empty your wallet. Even for the cheapest eight cylinder you could get in the early 30's, they were like GM's sporty, affordable kid brother.
Sure, back in the day these rides were budget friendly, but collectors started to realize just how awesome they actually are. Then, of course, some of these babies are going for big bucks now while others are creeping up like that wild 1969 GTO Judge Convertible. Plus, there’s still time to get one before they shift to unicorn status.
8) 1963 Pontiac Bonneville
The Bonneville? Behind it there’s a serious history. He (the Ford F250 Supercab) rolled off the line from '57 to '05 so that will be the bad boy. Through '63 you could get it as a convertible or sport coupe, and that proper 1960s look — clean, tough, and ready to roll
While it rolls under the hood, you’ve got options, a big ol’ 6.9 litre V8 delivering 410 horses, or if you’re feeling lucid, a 390 hp offering—which, for some reason, employs a 4 barreled carb. And guess what? Yet you can pick up a ’63 Bonneville coupe for around $19,700. It’s not bad, you better believe that price is climbing though.
7) 1959 Pontiac Catalina
In the ’50s, Catalina was but another trim name; by ’59, it was a full model and the least expensive fullsize Pontiac. It was not expensive, but it was nonetheless better equipped than a more expensive (and expensive) Chevy Impala—there, Chevy!
More and more people are catching on to what a deal the Catalina really is. The average is about $8,700, and prices have shot up 14.5%. One of these remember beauties, a ’59 convertible, sold recently for $58,300. That’s no small change!
6) 1950 Pontiac Chieftain Deluxe
The Chieftain came in where the old Torpedo had been, and let me tell you — this is the first from the ground up by Pontiac since WWII. The Streamliner has the same propulsion system as it’s still on GM’s A body, it’s just a lot bigger.
The first-gen Chieftain was chock full of the cool things of the day: an under seat heater, its radio had seven vacuum tubes! They could give you a 6 cylinder under the hood, or an 8 cylinder under the hood. Today, you could snag a 1950 Chieftain for something like around $28,700. But perhaps the most expensive one? It sold for a whopping $3.02 million. You read that right, million.
5) 1966 Pontiac GTO
The ’66 GTO? That’s the year it broke out on its own and Tempest’s one of the options. For any GTO year, they made nearly 97,000 of these suckers. That was the car that launched the muscle cars genre onto the charts.
All the young bucks wanted the “Goat.” But it did have a 389-cubic inch V8 that pushed out 335 hp and 424 lb-ft of torque. For $32,200 today, you can get a good one, but who knows, they may be bringing $64,400 at auction. They’re that good.
4) 1969 Pontiac Firebird 400
A 1969 400 (the “Big Daddy” of Firebirds). Pontiac offered some of those rear facing fender ducts, those meaty body lines, and the split grille this was the year. Low profile hood scoops, redline tires, the whole nine yards.
What you’ve got underneath is a 400 cubic inch V8 producing 330 hp and a whole lotta torque—430 lb ft, in fact. It's all the more fun because it comes with a standard heavy duty three speed manual. Today you can grab a clean one for about $32,500, but you shouldn’t wait too long, because this one’s a rising star.
3) 1971 Pontiac GT-37
The GTO’s little brother is the GT37. It’s cheaper, but just as mean as heck. It was nicknamed the ‘poor man’s GTO’ but there is a reason for that. In 1970 it was a Tempest T-37 option and they only built it one more year afterward, so it’s not surprising if it didn’t make its way onto your radar.
Today, one goes for $24,100 according to Hagerty. And it had a couple powertrains, its most beastly being a 455 cubic inch V8 with 335 horsepower. What’s more, it sports the GTO’s exhaust, and the Muncie 3 speed on the floor. Not bad for the price, right?
2) 1962 Pontiac Grand Prix
But if you’re searching for a sleeper, you want the 1962 Grand Prix. Pontiac used it as the full size answer to the performance coupe. It had that “I mean business” look, with bucket seats, center console, and the rest. It was a beast, and they managed to shift around 30k of them in the first year, so it wasn’t exactly off the shelves but it was moving.
This thing could really move: a 303 hp 389 cubic inch V8. If you wanted your 389 with a bit more flair, however, there were two other versions which all made 348 hp. It's hitting new heights: up 22% in the past month, it's going for $31,100.
1) Pontiac Grand Ville Brougham 1975
That's what the ’75 Grand Ville Brougham is, a rare bird. Sleekly it came as a hardtop, convertible or wagon, and only 4,544 convertibles were made that year, making them increasingly tough to find. Since then prices have increased 50.5%, and a good one would cost you around $14,900 today.
This beast is powered by 185 hp 400cubic inch V8 and Turbo Hydroautomatic transmission. There was also a 455 cubic inch V8 at 200 hp if you needed more grunt. They are big, they are comfy, and cruising down the road feels like your on a cloud.
