1970 Pontiac GTO Judge
Introduced for the 1964 model year, the Pontiac GTO remained in production (as a midsize car) until 1973.
This styling remained in production through 1972, but Pontiac added small bumpers on each side of the grille in 1971. The 1970 GTO is pretty much a one-year design. The redesign wasn't exactly popular at the time. GTO sales dropped from 72,287 examples in 1969 to only 40,149 units in 1970. Of course, the high insurance rates for muscle cars also had something to do with it.
Still, the 1970 GTO is far from rare. However, two certain versions are harder to find and command higher prices. One is the convertible, of which only 3,783 were produced. The other one is the Judge, built in 3,797 examples. The convertible Judge is arguably the scarcest, with only 168 sold.
This Judge is finished in Orbit Orange with red/blue fender stripes and looks like it just rolled off the assembly line thanks to a nut-and-bolt restoration.
One of 3,629 hardtop Judges produced in 1970, this GTO was ordered with the 400-cubic-inch (6.6-liter) Ram Air III V8 engine and an automatic transmission. The 366-horsepower combo narrows its production number quite dramatically.
Specific figures for Judge models are unavailable, but we know that only 3.9% of all hardtop GTOs were ordered with this combo. Based on this statistic, this Judge could be one of fewer than 150 examples equipped with this drivetrain. Moreover, it's one of even fewer that were sold in Canada. The vehicle was purchased new in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and comes with GM of Canada paperwork to prove it.
Essentially flawless inside and out, the Poncho still relies on its numbers-matching YZ-code engine, a rare feat among classics from the era. The TH400 automatic gearbox feeds the rear wheels through a 3.55 Safe-T-Track limited-slip differential. The options list includes power steering and power brakes.
The Judge is part of the Top Flight Muscle Car Collection and is scheduled to go under the hammer at Mecum's Indy 2025 auction in May. The website estimates it will sell for $150,000 to $200,000. If it sells for at least $160,000, it will become the most expensive 1970 Judge Ram Air III hardtop ever sold at auction.
As of this writing, the world's most expensive 1970 Judge is a Ram Air IV convertible. The ultra-rare drop-top changed owners for a whopping $1.1 million.
I'm pretty much a sucker for any musclecar from that era, but if I was gonna drop 6 figures on an antique toy, I'd probably go for the 65-67 model years. I remember working a corner grocery store back in 1982 and an older gentlemen would come in every Saturday morning, buy a few items, get a 6-pack of beer, and then tip 50 cents to one of us lucky kids to carry it out. He had a pristine 65 model GTO, 389, trip-deuces, white, beautiful inside and out. Of course there's no way with my current status to drop that much on a car, so there's that. I keep thinking at some point people will die off and their kids will sell the antique cars off for pennies on the dollar, but that never seems to happen. Oh well, another 7 or 8 years and my current daily driver will qualify for antique status, assuming it lasts that long.
ReplyDeleteI'm fond of most of the muscle cars from the '60's/70's too. The GOATS were impressive rides. I love 'em but at that time I had my head all full of Chevy Chevelle dreams and I didn't allow myself to admire 'em as much as I did once I grew up.
DeleteI really liked these years of the Old Goats, sporty, but had a classic air about them...
ReplyDeleteI didn't see it when I first started really paying attention to cars and my preferences, back in the late '60's, early 70's, and then I was a Chevy buff. Later I realized you just can't beat the Goats as far as Pontiac goes at the time and I drool over them now.
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