THERE’S CONSIDERABLE CONSENSUS THAT the muscle car era reached its peak in 1970. After that, it seemed the government and insurance companies actively conspired to bring the fun to a halt. Tamed engines outfitted with additional smog equipment were deemed necessary to save the planet, while rising insurance premiums on performance machines sought to save corporate profits… and maybe to save us speed demons from ourselves.
With few exceptions, compression cuts, more conservative camshaft profiles and ignition curves, and other rudimentary emission stopgaps were put into effect across the board by auto manufacturers as they yielded to government mandates. And as any gearhead worth his or her chrome valve covers already knew, these changes resulted in lower performance and higher fuel consumption as the compromised engines struggled to maintain combustion efficiency.
Pontiac had long been touted as GM’s performance division, and its plan to retain that revered
