Man Refuses To Sell 1969 Pontiac GTO Judge for $38,000, Replacement V8 Raises Questions?

While these never sold as well as rivals such as the Chevelle SS396 or the Plymouth Road Runner, the GTO still moved over 72,000 units for the 1969 model year, with 6,833 reportedly featuring the Judge package. Believe it or not, the name came from a comedy routine dubbed “Here Come de Judge”, as seen on the ‘Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In' TV show.

Initially, this was supposed to be a low-cost specification for the GTO, but it eventually became much more than that, thanks to its standard Ram Air 400 ci V8 engine, Rally II wheels, Hurst shifter, wider tires, cool decals, rear spoiler and so on. Pontiac even claimed that the rear spoiler had a small functional effect at high speeds (producing downforce), but that was mostly “marketing talk”.

What we have here is a 1969 GTO Judge that’s been refurbished and had its original engine swapped for a replacement V8. The car was up for grabs at auction up until just yesterday, when it failed to sell. The owner refused to part with it for just $38,000, which begs the question just how high was the reserve?

Anyway, this left the factory wearing Carousel Red and was repainted this way during refurbishment back in 2008. It also features a color-keyed Endura front bumper, a Ram Air hood with a hood-mounted tachometer, concealed headlights, a painted rear bumper, a rear spoiler, ‘Judge’ decals, plus a set of polished 15” Weld wheels with 325/50 Mickey Thompson ET Street tires at the back, and smaller Champiro radials at the front. It’s also got power-assisted front discs and rear drums.

Meanwhile, interior highlights include the black vinyl Procar front bucket seats, color-coordinated door panels, woodgrain trim, a B&M ratchet shifter, custom Grant GT steering wheel, a pair of auxiliary gauges (below the dashboard), and an aftermarket digital stereo. According to the ad, this car originally had a Parchment interior, meaning it looked completely different than it does today – for better or worse.

In terms of performance, the magic happens courtesy of a replacement 455 ci V8, featuring a four-barrel carburetor and coated exhaust headers. Power is then routed to the rear wheels via a TH400 three-speed automatic gearbox. I don’t think the replacement V8 was necessarily an issue with regards to the sale, but had this been a numbers-matching car, it would have certainly had better luck at auction.

As far as Judges go, this one is nice but not pristine. Not only do the speedometer and odometer not work, but the carpeting is faded and there are several paint chips and blemishes visible. If you’d like to feast your eyes on a truly magnificent GTO Judge, how’s this for a suggestion?