Below what could be considered to be its relatively conservative skin, the 2006 Pontiac GTO was a car that provided its owners with very respectable levels of performance, comfort, and equipment. Developed and built in Australia for the domestic market as the Monaro, it eventually found markets in both the UK and the USA. It also has the distinction of being built by a section of the General Motors empire that will cease to exist by the end of this calendar year. The GTO is located in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and has been listed for sale here on eBay. The owner has set a BIN of $30,500 for the Pontiac, although there is the option available to make an offer.
The history of the 5th Generation of the GTO is an interesting one, and the heart of its development actually lay in the world of motoring one-upmanship. The 1998 Australian International Motor Show was mere months away, and General Motors was aware that Ford Australia was set to lift the covers on its newly-developed Falcon range. They were desperate for something to steal Ford’s thunder, and that is when management became aware of a private styling exercise that some of its engineers had been working on, based on the company’s flagship 4-door Commodore range. This 2-door version of the Commodore was never intended for production. In fact, the engineers had no intention of it ever being seen by senior management! However, when management laid eyes on the car they knew that it was just what the company was looking for. It made the company’s stand at that year’s show and succeeded perfectly in Holden’s aim of taking the gloss off the new Falcon. Public demand saw the car enter production in 2001 as the Monaro, and General Motors then made the decision to export the car to the US and to badge it as the Pontiac GTO. It also sits in one of those slightly unusual spots in automotive history. It has worn the badges of four different brands within the GM world empire, and that’s a story in itself. It was sold in the US as the GTO, but Pontiac ceased sales in 2010. It was also sold in the UK as the Vauxhall Monaro, but Vauxhall was sold by GM in 2017. It was built in Australia by Holden, but that brand will cease to exist by the end of this year. It was also sold in sections of the Middle East as the Chevrolet Lumina Coupe. Therefore, four different marque badges and only one of these will remain in existence as part of the GM brand by the end of this year. This particular GTO appears to be in extremely nice condition. It wears Brazen Orange paint, and that is a striking color. The owner identifies two small paint chips on the rear bumper and one on the front as the only defects. It is kept in climate-controlled storage when not in use, which undoubtedly helps its cause. The standard wheels for the 2006 GTO were 17″ alloys, but this car is fitted with the optional 18″ wheels. All up, there really isn’t anything to be critical of with the car’s exterior presentation and condition.
Powering the Pontiac is the LS2 version of GM’s 6.0-liter V8. This produces around 400hp, which finds its way to the rear wheels via a 6-speed manual transmission. Power steering and 4-wheel ventilated power disc brakes with ABS were also part of the standard package for the 2006 GTO. When compared to cars from the muscle car era, this sort of power output was considered to be pretty reasonable, and the GTO manages to use its power quite effectively. It makes it capable of blitzing the ¼ mile in 13.3 seconds and can wind its way on to a genuine 170mph. This car remains mechanically completely original and unmolested. With only 5,400 genuine miles showing on its odometer, it could be considered to be barely broken in. It has recently received a full service, and the owner says that everything works as it should. I take that to mean that the vehicle runs and drives nicely. While the GTO does provide impressive levels of performance, perhaps its greatest strength lies in its long-distance cruising abilities. Once the transmission has been dropped into 6th gear, the LS2 is running at barely more than tick-over at 70mph, and with bags of torque on offer, it is rarely necessary to drop down a cog to overtake other vehicles quickly and effortlessly.
Even though it was based on a 5-seat family sedan, the GTO is most definitely a 4-seater. Those four people live in the lap of luxury, with the seats upholstered in supple leather. Once again, the interior reflects this car’s low mileage, with the trim and upholstery in virtually flawless condition. The leather on the seats does show some wrinkling, but there is nothing severe. The outer edges of the bolsters on the front seats show no signs of wear, while the only deviation from original is the fitment of an MGW-P shifter for the 6-speed transmission. This has only recently been installed, but the standard shifter is also included for those who would prefer that. Also included is all of the Pontiac’s original documentation, including the Dealer Invoice, Owner’s Manual, Window Sticker, etc. As far as interior appointments are concerned, the GTO comes equipped with air conditioning, dual front airbags, keyless entry, power windows, power front seats, cruise control, a tilt and reach wheel, a trip computer, and a 6-disc CD stereo with 10 speakers and 200-watts of output. All of that should make life on the road very comfortable.
There have been plenty of people who have felt that this Australian-built Pontiac should never have worn the coveted GTO badge. They say this not because the car was lacking in performance, but because the styling was simply too conservative. To a certain point, I can understand this, but I would also say that it does possess the sort of performance to justify wearing the badge. There were still 13,948 people in 2006 who saw the GTO as a good thing and chose to give one a new home. Interestingly, even though the car was originally developed for the Australian domestic market, and was sold in Australia as the Monaro, the very last example to roll off the production line was actually a Pontiac GTO. Values on the GTO have remained pretty static over the past few years, and it is possible to buy one with average mileage and in average condition for under $20,000. This car is priced close to the top of potential values, but its overall condition and low mileage would probably justify this. Still, it does represent a slightly unusual ownership opportunity. I mean, how often do you get the chance to buy a classic car from one extinct manufacturer that was actually built by a second manufacturer who has suffered the same fate?
Sweet! I had an 06, manual. It was a fast, comfortable and had excellent handling. I believe 18″ wheels was about the only option, everything was standard equipment. Spice Red Metallic, pretty wild color!
Makes no sense at all that this was not called & designed as a Chevelle, since it has Chevy power. & that there WAS no Chevy Chevelle even offered!
How could Chevy have allowed this?!
Inexcusable there’s no oil pressure or voltmeter/ammeter gauges – or are they digital?
Quite an impressive presentation of documentation.
A like new “modern camaro” you can see out of – for less money!
In 06, this car would have given the Corvette too much HP competition. The Chevy team was very protective of the Vette’s place in their sports car portfolio, as evidenced by the later SS (four-door only). If fit better in the Pontiac lineup anyway…since the TranAm was by then a bloated platform that even the enthusiasts couldn’t support.
As far as the engine is concerned, by then they would have been all corporate engines with the possible exception of the Buick 3.8 V6.
I think the haters believe that the GTO nameplate deserved better than to be slapped on an Australian-built version of an Opel platform that dated back to the mid-1990s. The haters may have a valid point.
I’ve had 7 64-70 GTO’s and a 2006. I still own a 65 4 speed convert with an added Tri-Power. I was skeptical about the 06, but it quickly won me over. The downside is the lack of parts availability. They are a bit quirky, there is a small segment, repeat “small” aftermarket for these cars, but many parts have to come from Australia. But if you drive one, you will love it, even bone stock it is a pretty capable all around performance car. I wouldn’t mind another!
The concern over parts availability was my first thought. It’s certainly not going to get any easier in the coming years, with Holden shutting down.
Waddaya want for your ’65? I bought a new ’65 GTO, in Sept.’64, when they first came out. Pantera red with a 4 spd.
I’m still kicking myself, for selling it, in ’69.
If you could only keep one, which would it be, the ’65 or the ’06?
The ’04-;06 GTO is a fine car, but it has always struck me as a car created by executives eager to make money from the GTO’s heritage, not engineers and designers eager to make a great car. It probably would have done much better without the GTO name.
The “haters” are too busy hating to realize this would probably outperform any GTO ever built prior to this iteration.
It i snot an Opal platform at all, it was a Holden platform rear wheel drive mate.
It was not an Opal but a different platform this one is a rear wheel drive but they were also available very limited quantities in a 4 wheel drive version which are worth a fortune now days and were expensive back then and went like the wind and were mainly build as a performance car. There were even some that came out with a 427 small block.
Some people say the 2004-2006 Pontiac GTO was developed from VT/VX Holden Commodore. The Commodore had, in turn, was developed by enlarging the European designed 1994 Opel Omega B, which was marketed in its original form in the U.S. from 1997 to 2001 as the Cadillac Catera. So one might conclude that the “New” GTO was essentially an upgrade of a 10-plus year old Opel Omega design. And, as far as the “GTO” name goes, Pontiac “borrowed” that from the Ferrari 250 GTO, an actual GT racing car.
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The salesman who sold me my 2006 Acura RSX Type S brand new drove one of these. Right then I knew I was dealing with a car guy. He gave me a great deal as a fellow car guy too. If he’s still selling Acuras I feel bad for him though.
Nice write up! This modern GTO is another reason Pontiac folded up. Despite the car’s powertrain, wrapping it in what essentially is just a tired, out-dated Chevy Cavalier body style doomed this car–and its brand–to history’s dustbin. Add it to the pile of Pontiac failures, along with the Aztec.
As the original owner of the exact same spec ’06 GTO (Brazen Orange, 6 Speed manual, 18″), I can say it’s a phenomenal car. GM had a test day at Qualcomm Stadium back in the day and one test drive had me sold. Truly a Grand Turismo – great car for long drives on fun roads and quick with zero to 60 in 4.7 secs.
This particular combination is pretty rare. Of the 13,948 built in ’06, only 484 were built to this spec. They stopped depreciating 5-6 yrs ago and are slowly going up.
The reason Bob Lutz brought these to the US was to fill the gap when the ’02 Camaro stopped production. GM wanted/needed a rear-drive car in the market to stay relevant and compete against the Mustang. Volume was low since it was only available with the big LS2 V8. No V6 or 4 bangers, limiting potential. Glad the brought them over!
My brother has one of these rocket sleds on rails. Not sure which one scared me more riding in it, his 67 or the newer version shown above. Truly a whiplash enduring ride off the green light.
Could not get these babies in canada
I test drove one in detroit and just loved it
Now , they occasionally show up for sale but it is not the time for me anymore …
🦠😷
I had a 14 Chevy SS and my dealers parts dept manager told me that parts where gonna be a problem. The cars themselves took a 9 wk cruise to get to the states
I always question very low mileage cars, unless fully documented. I was looking for a 200X series GTO, but most were trashed, clapped out junk. The ones that were low mileage were garage queens or 1/4 mile cars that had the living crap beat out of them, either way I walked or ran as far away as I could. People do not realize how easy it is to reset the mileage on these cars. I learned from a friend who is a professional dealer mechanic and he says it’s routinely done in the used car world.
It may be a fast car somewhat nice looking ,but a insult of a name to the GTO brand that classic car people love .Why couldn’t they call it something different , nothing @ all in common with the real GTO
I owned the same car, new in 2006. Performance was great, but It was very disappointing and I sold it after about 30k miles. Build quality was lacking, had the characteristic rear end whine. The dealer said we’ll fix it under warranty, but it will come back. I wish it had been better.
Isn’t that the same rear as in modern camaros & RWD impalas?
Don’t those have the same problem?
I am not a fan of IRS in any make rwd car.
Maybe the aussie solid rear axle of the prior gen camaro was a lot more durable?
Build quality had to be a lot better than 2nd gen f-bodies lol.
Not to mention rust resistance & lot less squeaks & rattles.
I bought new a ’04 black 6 spd GTO. Own it for 5 yrs and put on 52K miles. Bought thinking it would be weekend cruiser but ended up driving almost daily and put about 200 1/4 mile passes on it! IMO the ’04 sounds better with the twin pipes next to each other. Put on a SLP exhaust and sounded awesome! Many people never believed I ran high 12’s with no mods except Toyo T1R tires. Of course it was in cold weather.
I’d rather have a car that looks fast (i.e. Delorean) then a car that is fast and looks pedestrian. What’s the point? Get an ’06 ‘Vette with almost the same powertrain and have fun with it if you have to drive a GM. With the way cops are now a blazing fast grocery getter sleeper is pointless. At leas you can look good when your getting your ticket, IMHO.
Those who are offended that the GTO name was used are the same ones who think a Corvette isn’t a Corvette unless the tail lights are round 😒
If I had the choice between the ’65 or ’06, hands down, I would chose my old ’65.
I don’t care how fast these are.
They will never be considered real GTO !
I’m sure there are tuners out there that would also beat the Goats of the 60’s, Which one would you want?
I loved my 06, and I also love my 65 4 speed tri-power convert. Same name, different era’s, different cars. I still have the 65, it isn’t going anywhere. I just don’t get the hate on these though.
The auction ended, apparently without any action at the entry price of $30,500.
Reality Bites.
It is priced too high. 20-22 would be a nice place to get in.
If you like to carve corners with a car it needs an independant rear and this car has it …
I bought one last year in Vancouver and drove it to Calgary through the Rockies. The most comfortable and powerful ride I have ever had. In 6th gear I got great millage and could still pass with ease…I am having a lot of fun with people who haven’t seen one before….
This brazen orange car is a scam I tried to set up a inspection and they said they don’t do that. Who sales a car but won’t let you come look at it. I also found it on 3 different websites one in WI. Another in MD and another in Indiana all the same pictures. The guy said he was working on a oil rig for Conaco Phillips said he would be back in November but wouldn’t wait so I could come look at it. He tried to say a auto broker had it so I called them and they said pay for it we will pay to ship it and if you don’t like it I would have 30 days to send it back on there dime. Kinda hard to believe a car with this low of miles and the price plus not being able to fly out and look at it first wasn’t a scam. I emailed the web sites to have them pull it down and they didn’t. So just buyer beware