The Bonneville, named after the salt flats in Utah, was part of the Pontiac line-up from 1957-2005. For most of that time they were full-size cars and some the biggest automobiles built by General Motors. This 1966 convertible is said to have been documented by Pontiac Historic Services and wears an older restoration. Located in sunny Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the Bonneville is available here on eBay where the starting bid of $12,000 hasn’t yet been made. Thanks for this sweet tip, Larry D!
Pontiac’s Bonneville used the GM B-body platform, which received a substantial rework for 1965-70. The cars received fastback rooflines on coupes, rakish fender lines, and more pronounced “Coke body” styling. The cars rode on a 124-inch wheelbase making them eight inches longer than the Catalina and other full-size Pontiac offerings. Bonneville’s like the seller’s drop-top used a 389 cubic inch V8 engine that produced 333 hp via a 4-barrel carburetor (a 421 V8 was optional). The Bonneville employed the new TH-400 automatic transmission that used a torque converter instead of a fluid-coupling set-up as in years past. The shift pattern changed from “P-N-D-S-L-R” to “P-R-N-D-S-L.”
More than 16,000 of the Bonneville’s assembled in 1966 were convertibles. That’s out of some 866,000 cars the division built across all product lines. This Pontiac was restored to factory specifications in 2003 and has held up nicely except for a couple of rust bubbles that have started cropping up. The Reef Turquoise paint is the car’s original color with a tidy black top and contrasting interior. It has spent much of the past 20 years in a garage and out of the elements.
More recently, the big-block engine has been rebuilt and other new parts include its oil pump, water pump, and suspension components. The factory air conditioning, somewhat rare on a convertible in those days, has been tuned up. Everything works as it should except for the windshield washers and the power front seat. The dash is going to need some attention as well. The only thing that may deviate from stock is the raised white-letter tires and an assortment of spare parts will come with the deal. There is a video on YouTube of the Pontiac doing its thing, but a link to that is not provided.
love it:-)
Nice car, great colors. I’m in awe of the length of those quarter panels. I think there are entire cars that aren’t that long.
But those tires… no. Just no. This is a white stripe car, not a white letter car.
I have to disagree CC,, in fact, its a Bonneville and more a white letter tire. White walls are not performance, in fact, typically inadequate if not for the looks.
This car, is not some Sunday looky loo, it is one of the greatest muscle cars to ever romp the interstate.
Just sayin
0-60 in 7.3 seconds, 1/4 mile in 15.6 seconds. Not even the greatest muscle car Pontiac built in 1966, never mind what all the competition put out. Your definition of muscle car is suspect, to say the least.
You indicate a “big block”. In the Pontiac realm, there is no such thing. All V8s were built on the same architecture, whether it be a 350, 389, 421, or 455. Unique in the General motors line up. Beautiful car.
Big can be beautiful and this big baby sure is. Such a shame it’s all going to have to go back to square one to treat and get the rust out.
These are so beautiful. I am worried about the rust popping through. But for the right price, I could afford the restoration and tires.
My Montreal grandparents drove a ‘67 Parisienne, navy blue on white with white top. Grandpa Bill loved trips in this car with Diddee, my grandmother. He drove full sized Chevy and Pontiac convertibles from ‘54 on. My Mom talked him out of sedans when she was 24. Probably my car genes come from them. The car would’ve had a base engine and an automatic, I just don’t remember well enough. It was a vastly different experience than driving (riding) around in my Mom’s Mustang convertible was. Good memories, thank you for featuring this great car.
I had a 69 Bonneville station wagon and think it was a Safari series. It was a fantastic driver and would pass everything except a gas station.
Ha!
I wonder if you would have to measure the paint job in gallons. At least being a drop top you could save a few quarts there.
Big Bonne’s are always great 👍
I like this very much even though I’m a dyed-in- the-wool MoPar guy. This is exactly what my mind sees when I hear;
I left Oklahoma
Driving in a Pontiac
Just about to lose my mind…
Had a 65 with a 421. Big and heavy but fast. That car could hit 120 and still keep going faster. You could fit 10 people in it if you included the trunk!
Fort Lauderdale, restoration, rust is not an interesting equation. It’s better to examine.
1st, I’ve GOT to say, I don’t know how you non-members put up with trying to get a comment in edgewise. When I get “kicked out”, which happens mid-comment sometimes, what a PITA, but I did want to get in on this car, since I went ga-ga over the last ’66 Poncho. I never was a fan of ragtops and the 8 lugs make it look like a much fancier car. These wheel covers ( and cheesy white letters) make this car look cheap. Still a nice car, but nowhere near the zing of that Ventura hardtop with the 8 lugs.
Car owner here (before it sold). RWL tires are because the factory-correct WW were a 6-week back order. I drove this car 2-3x/week and did not want to wait. There are a couple dozen things more important to me on this car than whether the tires had RWL. I do regret never upgrading to 8-lugs. Had I kept it, it would have those and the factory tires. I moved to the beach and can’t protect it here. ALL the visible rust manifested in just 9 months after 17 years inland with no issues. Time for the next loving owner.