Photo: angelguerradesign / Instagram
If you're a casual automotive fan, you probably have heard about the Pontiac GTO but maybe don't know its overarching importance for the American muscle car movement.
Believe us, then, when we say that it was crucial. The Pontiac GTO was a front-engine RWD, two-door, and four-passenger automobile produced across just five generations (with a hiatus between 1975 and 2003) from 1963 to 2006. More precisely, the first generation is not only credited with establishing the nameplate's quirky 'nose' but also for popularizing the incipient muscle car market segment during the 1960s.
No, it is a bit different from what Ford's Mustang did – the smaller and more compact, cheaper Blue Oval model established the pony car niche, which always slotted below the muscle cars even though in recent times the boundaries have blurred when you can have a 315-hp EcoBoost inline-four 2024 Mustang but also a 500-hp Coyote V8-equipped Dark Horse, the 800-hp Mustang GTD, as well as 830-hp and 850-hp aftermarket supercharged derivatives from Shelby American and Hennessey like the latest Super Snake and H850 models.
Back to the Pontiac GTO, the definitive generation to remember is the second one, which ran from 1968 to 1972 and had semi-fastback two-door hardtop, coupe, and convertible body styles. This generation came with cool features like the hidden front lights, the body-color Endura front bumper, and the new Ram Air package, and had big engine options – 400 and 455 cubic inch V8s (6.6- and 7.5-liter). It was rivaled by the likes of Plymouth's Road Runner, a lower-cost muscle car, but still achieved great sales – especially when the company introduced a new model called 'The Judge.'
Famously dressed in 'Carousel Red' initially, which is actually a very obvious shade of orange, this package has become one of the universally famous muscle cars of the ear. As such, it is no wonder that people haven't forgotten about it, right? That includes the imaginative realm of digital car content creators, as the parallel universes of vehicular CGI are not free from nostalgia, as it turns out. More precisely, the good folks over at Car Design World (aka cardesignworld on social media) tipped us off to this ensemble independent design project tasked to revive the beloved GTO.
According to them, the main protagonist is Angel Guerra, a virtual artist better known as angelguerradesign on social media, but as it turns out, he had ample help from Allan Portilho, aka allanportilho on social media, now a senior CG artist at Amazon but previously from Apple and, above all, Lucid Motors. By the way, they have both gotten entangled with the other DeLoren installment - DeLorean Next Gen Motors (or DNG), which had plans to rebuild the C8 Corvette into a DeLorean supercar. Well, they haven't materialized yet, so it's clear why the CGI guys moved on, right?
Now, they have turned their unofficial and hypothetical attention to another defunct brand – Pontiac. They also took the bull head-on and have come up with CGIs and animation (with a little help from Mateusz Kozbielak) for a revival of the Pontiac GTO. Naturally, they didn't take inspiration from just any other GTO and instead reinvented this modern take as a nod to both the second generation and 'The Judge' model. As such, don't be surprised by the silver model's switch to orange or the famous nose.
This modern iteration, which is not associated with GM, is also more like a supercar than a muscle car, so gone is the fastback body style favoring a classic long-hooded two-door and two-seat coupe appearance. But wait, as that is not all. On top of the silver Pontiac GTO with dual hood intakes and the orange 'The Judge' tribute, there is also a fresh and completely wishful thinking GTO-R version with black stripes, added aerodynamic elements, gills on the hood, larger black wheels, and probably more V8 oomph under the hood! So, what do you think?
No, it is a bit different from what Ford's Mustang did – the smaller and more compact, cheaper Blue Oval model established the pony car niche, which always slotted below the muscle cars even though in recent times the boundaries have blurred when you can have a 315-hp EcoBoost inline-four 2024 Mustang but also a 500-hp Coyote V8-equipped Dark Horse, the 800-hp Mustang GTD, as well as 830-hp and 850-hp aftermarket supercharged derivatives from Shelby American and Hennessey like the latest Super Snake and H850 models.
Back to the Pontiac GTO, the definitive generation to remember is the second one, which ran from 1968 to 1972 and had semi-fastback two-door hardtop, coupe, and convertible body styles. This generation came with cool features like the hidden front lights, the body-color Endura front bumper, and the new Ram Air package, and had big engine options – 400 and 455 cubic inch V8s (6.6- and 7.5-liter). It was rivaled by the likes of Plymouth's Road Runner, a lower-cost muscle car, but still achieved great sales – especially when the company introduced a new model called 'The Judge.'
Famously dressed in 'Carousel Red' initially, which is actually a very obvious shade of orange, this package has become one of the universally famous muscle cars of the ear. As such, it is no wonder that people haven't forgotten about it, right? That includes the imaginative realm of digital car content creators, as the parallel universes of vehicular CGI are not free from nostalgia, as it turns out. More precisely, the good folks over at Car Design World (aka cardesignworld on social media) tipped us off to this ensemble independent design project tasked to revive the beloved GTO.
According to them, the main protagonist is Angel Guerra, a virtual artist better known as angelguerradesign on social media, but as it turns out, he had ample help from Allan Portilho, aka allanportilho on social media, now a senior CG artist at Amazon but previously from Apple and, above all, Lucid Motors. By the way, they have both gotten entangled with the other DeLoren installment - DeLorean Next Gen Motors (or DNG), which had plans to rebuild the C8 Corvette into a DeLorean supercar. Well, they haven't materialized yet, so it's clear why the CGI guys moved on, right?
Now, they have turned their unofficial and hypothetical attention to another defunct brand – Pontiac. They also took the bull head-on and have come up with CGIs and animation (with a little help from Mateusz Kozbielak) for a revival of the Pontiac GTO. Naturally, they didn't take inspiration from just any other GTO and instead reinvented this modern take as a nod to both the second generation and 'The Judge' model. As such, don't be surprised by the silver model's switch to orange or the famous nose.
This modern iteration, which is not associated with GM, is also more like a supercar than a muscle car, so gone is the fastback body style favoring a classic long-hooded two-door and two-seat coupe appearance. But wait, as that is not all. On top of the silver Pontiac GTO with dual hood intakes and the orange 'The Judge' tribute, there is also a fresh and completely wishful thinking GTO-R version with black stripes, added aerodynamic elements, gills on the hood, larger black wheels, and probably more V8 oomph under the hood! So, what do you think?
Google News