Carl Jung, the famous psychologist, conceived the idea of the collective unconscious, and in doing so, he explained that there were archetypes and images that humans innately understood from birth. The automobile was probably outside of Jung’s scope when formulating such a complex theory, but I can’t help but wonder if some things in the motoring world are Jung-adjacent. For instance, there has to be a shape that springs to mind when one thinks of a “muscle car,” and I wouldn’t be surprised if a 1968 or 1969 Pontiac GTO resembles that shape. If one, however, thinks of an “inexpensive commuter car,” would the same shape manifest itself? That’s the irony of the 1968 and 1969 Pontiac Tempest and LeMans; they have the same curvaceous lines as their muscle car brother, but without all of its muscle. No wonder so many psychologists seem to disagree.
This is a purely hypothetical speculation, but if someone were to offer me my choice of a 1968 or a 1969 Pontiac A-Body, I would have chosen the 1968 every time (until a few years ago, but we’ll get to that in a minute). The “beak” isn’t quite as heavy as the ’69 model’s, and I’ve always preferred its taillights that were mounted low in the bumper. Let’s face it, the original conception is usually the best, and the ’68 simply looks cleaner to me, as similar as the two are. If that weren’t enough, this specific 1968 Tempest is painted Verdoro Green, a famous and beautiful Pontiac color in its own right.
It’s rare enough to capture a basic Tempest Sports Coupe, but one with a 350 (most likely the 265-horsepower two barrel) and Rally II wheels in Verdoro Green? Pontiac proved that you could have a handsome commuter car that kind-of looked like a GTO but cost hundreds of dollars less ($2,461 base price). Still, almost nobody (comparatively) bought Sports Coupes in general or base Tempests Sports Coupes specifically; only 19,991 were sold compared to 110,036 LeMans Hardtop Coupes (and 77,704 GTO Hardtop Coupes). The cheap price really wasn’t luring buyers.
Maybe it was the typically effective Pontiac marketing, which couldn’t muster much enthusiasm for the base model, saying that it had “a price tag that’ll fit a miser’s budget.” Calling prospective buyers misers while picturing them as pilots was sending mixed messages. (Speaking of which, do any of us think that that Pan Am pilot pictured above would actually be driving a Tempest Custom 4-Door Hardtop?)
I mentioned that I preferred the 1968 models until recently, and as it often is, it was the result of a suggestive “for sale” ad. A few years ago, I found a Limelight Green ’69 LeMans Hardtop Coupe for sale locally on Marketplace for $4,000. There has never been a ’69 Pontiac that I seriously considered owning, but this specific LeMans had the dangerous combination of neglect and potential to which I so often succumb; plus, I love those late-’60s light and medium greens. I vacillated until it sold, which is probably a good thing, but I am now a permanent member of the 1969 LeMans fan club, which makes this example so alluring. Like the Verdoro Green Tempest, it has Rally IIs and a story to tell.
Like it was in 1968, the LeMans Hardtop Coupe was popular. Priced at $2,835 compared to the Tempest Custom S Hardtop Coupe’s $2,663, the LeMans was attainable to many, and it had the fancy name and some slightly fancier equipment (such as the deluxe steering wheel seen below) to tempt buyers who might be stuck between the two. Almost 83,000 examples of the LeMans Hardtop Coupe were sold in 1969.
Our example has a blue interior to complement its Liberty Blue (or, less likely, Windward Blue) exterior. Notice the bucket seats, console, and Hurst floor shifter. Yes, it has a manual backing up its Pontiac 350 (once again, most likely the 265-horsepower two barrel).
A closer look shows that it has the familiar three-speed H-Pattern on the shifter. If that is accurate and the original transmission is beneath the tunnel, we have waded into some interesting waters. From what I can find, the 1969 Pontiac A-Bodies with V8 engines and floor shifters came standard with the “Dearborn” three-speed manual, which was sourced from those rapscallions over town, Ford Motor Company. The Ford three speed was extremely tough, and it would be unsurprising to find that a three-speed LeMans was as fast or faster to the finish line as its four-speed counterpart. The standard rear axle ratio with such a combination was 3.23:1, a great street gear.
Muncie finally built its own three speed beginning some time in 1970, as if to say that General Motors couldn’t stand the stench of the blue oval beneath their transmission tunnels.
Being a Michigan car, this ’69 does have a few spots of rust here and there, but it is otherwise a perfect driver with its arrowhead side marker lights and Rally IIs, and with a 350 and a three-speed, it’s even more perfect, if that were such a thing. Yes, given the choice between the two, I will have to take the ’69 LeMans these days, but I have to admit, that ’68 looks great in green. Neither of them are muscle cars, but 56 years later, how many people know that? They’ll just see a curvaceous Pontiac that looks like it could hit a hundred in ten seconds: In reality it can’t, but that’s psychology for you.
Related CC reading:
Curbside Classic: 1968 Pontiac GTO – Redpop!
Curbside Classic: Is This 1968 GTO A Royal Bobcat? You Be The Judge
Curbside Classic: 1969 Pontiac Tempest Custom S – The Ex-Secretary’s Wanna-be GTO
Haha, I love a quick lesson in the history of psychology with my morning coffee! 🙂
These Tempests and LeMans’ (LeManses?) were always invisible to me. From 1968-1971 the Pontiac A body that lived next door at a friend’s house was a Verdoro Green 68 GTO with the good wheels and a black vinyl roof. The cheaper versions that were undoubtedly fairly common just melted into the background.
Between the two I will stick with the 68, almost purely because of the better dash and interior. The interior on the green 68 you picture gives me flashbacks – my stepmom got a new 68 Cutlass with an interior exactly this light goldish-green color.
When I come across a basic model from a more upscale brand (Pontiac being above Chevy in this case) I’m left wondering how the sale came about. Maybe the original buyer really loved the looks of a LeMans over a Chevelle, or maybe…
What I’ve seen several times over the course of my life, watching friends and family shop for inexpensive cars, especially at the end of a model year, all of a sudden dealers have a basic model that none of their regular customers want (maybe something ordered as a loss leader or bait-and-switch model) is languishing on the lot in June or July and some savvy shopper haggled it down to below the price of a similar car from a lesser brand.
Around 1984, my then employer, who had always purchased base Impala wagons for his delivery vehicles, showed up with the most stripped-out Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser you could buy. No fake wood sides, manual windows and locks, etc. He boasted proudly about how he got it for “less than a Chevy!”
I owned a 68 Tempest back in the mid-90s. I was working as a salesman at a Pontiac dealership at the time (remember those?) and the original owner, who had purchased it from our store, brought it in on trade. It was mine for the paltry sum of $150.
The interior was mint, with the seat belts still tucked in the headliner as was when new. I can’t say the same for the exterior. I think the original color was some shade of burgundy-purple, but being a NJ car, it was subjected to the elements and bad infrastructure. Where these things had their way (both quarter panels) sheet metal was pop-riveted in place and painted to match-with a brush.
Despite this, it was a coupe, had the original PMD wheel covers, and sported a 350 2bbl/Powerglide. A quick tune up had it running butter smooth. The only rub was a non-operable gas gauge that when combined with my empty wallet, had me oft seen pushing the car into gas stations.
I had plans for a set of Rally IIs and some rear air shocks, but those never materialized. I ended up junking it a year later when an 85 5.0 Mustang came in on trade. At the time I was a new, cheap car-a- year guy. It was fun while it lasted though.
I swear, 90% of 1968 / 69 GTOs and LeMans’ were Verdoro Green.
When I was in Napa, the matriarch of the family mortuary that I worked with was Mary Wigger. She would bake a ham for every family that had a service (or a vegetable lasagna for Jewish and Seventh-day Adventists families). And she would deliver the food to the family’s home in her 1971 Pontiac T37, black-wall tired “Limelight Green”. I doubt she ever realized what she had in that car!