Tuner triples the power of a 50-year-old Pontiac GTO

For all its fame and glory, the Pontiac GTO didn’t exactly have a spotless history. After a fantastic debut with a powerful V8 under the hood in 1964, it proceeded to devolve into a much smaller, much weaker car by 1974. Extracting 203 PS (200 hp / 149 kW) from 5.7 liters of displacement was pitiful by the standards of the time. Fast-forward to the present day, and someone has finally addressed that issue in a restomod project.

The tuner behind this build removed the now-obsolete V8 and put a much larger 8.0-liter mill in its place. He further upgraded it with aluminum cylinder heads, a hydraulic roller camshaft, heavy-duty pistons and rods and a modern injection system. The listing doesn’t mention how much the new engine makes, but it has to be at least 610 PS (600 hp / 450 kW) or close.

The revitalized Pontiac still relies on a four-speed automatic transmission to drive its rear axle. It does benefit from modern goods like a Wilwood brake system, a Detroit Speed front subframe and a height-adjustable four-link rear suspension.

The interior looks dated after more than 50 years of virtual non-use, but those Corbeau bucket seats, Pro Comp instruments and Momo steering wheel spruce things up a bit. A roll cage where the back row had been rounds off the list of modifications.

According to the listing, the car has less than 20,000 km (12,000 miles) of total mileage on it. It’s up for grabs on Bring-a-Trailer right now with the bidding at $15,000 and a day left.