Judge GTO

Now that Pontiac will have a GTO in its lineup, will it have a top of the line Judge as well?

Judge was the name given to the highest-performance, Ram-Air-induction option package on 1969-1971 Pontiac GTO muscle cars by John Z. DeLorean, Pontiac chief engineer at the time.

The name lasted only part way into the '71 model year before it was dropped after 374 were built with 455-cu.-ins. (roughly 7.5L) V-8 engines, making it one of the rarest, most desirable GTOs.

Thirty years after it disappeared, the GTO has returned for the '04 model year as a rear-wheel-drive, V-8 powered coupe (see story, p.58).

But Bob Lutz, vice chairman-product development for General Motors Corp., says while an even higher-performance version of the new GTO may be added, it is unlikely to carry the Judge moniker.

“There's some positives and some negatives with that name,” he says. “The Judge name also might raise collector expectations,” Lutz says of enthusiasts critical that the '04 isn't a retro rendition of the original GTO.

The GTO, in part, is a car that GM hopes will make folks forget the Pontiac Firebird and Chevrolet Camaro rear-drive sports coupes, which went out of production following the '02 model year.

Does GTO mean there will be no return of the Firebird? “Firebird's day is gone,” Lutz says.

But that doesn't rule out Solstice, the coupe and roadster lingering in concept form.

The GTO is leading a lineup renaissance at Pontiac.

Within the next year, Pontiac also will roll out the Montana SV6 minivan, the Bonneville GXP performance sedan, an overhauled Grand Prix and the all-new G6 sedan, which replaces the Grand Am.

“The Pontiac brand has been in decline because it hasn't been properly nourished over the years with exciting products,” admits Lutz, noting that the Pontiac Aztek cross/utility vehicle and Montana minivan hardly create excitement.

“But we're out to fix that. We've committed our resources to get things right. At GM we now have our trucks done, Cadillac done and we're working on Pontiac and Chevy simultaneously. Buick will take a bit longer for the rebirth of a great American brand.”

Pontiac will produce only about 2,500 Bonneville GXPs in 2004 and 5,000 annually in following years. Equipped with GM's 4.6L DOHC Northstar V-8 engine that kicks out 275 hp, “the GXP is a refined performance car,” says Mark Reuss, head of GM's Performance Group.
— with Brian Corbett in Detroit