[dennis kirban]

No correct answers to 3rd mini contest as of yet.

Another clue:

Part(s) they made was very very popular!

denniskirban@yahoo.com

[ron cozzo]

My guess is Rally I wheels. It doesn't make any sense with this: "This company makes parts for Disney World in Florida, Pep Boys, various casinos, and Sesame Street among others. Mainly huge figurines etc. Example for Disney they did some of the exterior building parts.", but, it was very, very popular.

[dennis kirban]

Originally Posted by ron cozzo

My guess is Rally I wheels. It doesn't make any sense with this: "This company makes parts for Disney World in Florida, Pep Boys, various casinos, and Sesame Street among others. Mainly huge figurines etc. Example for Disney they did some of the exterior building parts.", but, it was very, very popular.

Your rite it doesn't make sense.....will talk about the ralley one wheels etc later as that was one of our largest projects that came about through our company.

the part(s) for the correct answer came about way before the ralley Is did.

denniskirban@yahoo.com

it appears we have stumped the readers of this thread. Try and think what the material is in those items we make and then think about what it could be for the GTOs...

[dennis kirban]

Concerning the current running mini contest #3.......if no correct answer gets posted by tomorrow nite we will give the answer in order to keep things moving a long.

Also in my Hurst collection I found a large original Hurst decal depicting the very first design yo yo style shifter knob. We will have MR AMC post it tomorrow nite. Also he will post a photo of the back so you can clearly see it is an original. The address of the decal company shows a zone number between the city and state.

For you youngsters out there zones where used before zip codes. Zip codes I believe came out in the mid sixties around 1966-67?

That is what is coming next.

denniskirban@yahoo.com

still time to guess on the mini contest....

[MikeNoun]

Dennis, I'm trying to connect Disneyworld, Pep Boys, Esso, and Sesame Street together.

So the only other thing I could think of would be a "GR-RRR" license plate, or perhaps a Royal Pontiac license plate frame?

[cuz68]

Hurst rims or center caps or trim ringes for the PMD wheels.

[dennis kirban]

no correct answers as of post #66 from the brain trust on this thread.....

here is another clue for mini contest #3 currently running.

You gotta think bigger in size and price structure....this part(s) sold several thousand over the years and currently we only make one version.

what is the part(s)????


denniskirban@yahoo.com

[MikeNoun]

Dennis, I'll take another shot.....

Based on the clues, the part(s) is bigger than a license plate, the part was made by a company that also made Disneyworld parts, things for casinos, Sesame Street items, Esso, Pep Boys, and you said the part(s) were extremely popular, you sold thousands. And it's larger than a license plate...

Now I'm thinking cloth/vinyl items, but you mentioned it's not a tiger tail....

Fender covers?

If it's a fiberglass part (which would fit in with the clues above), could it be a Ram Air pan?

[dennis kirban]

Mike

great effort but still not the part(s) I have in mind however, they did make the tri power ram air pans for us. But not the part(s) I am referring to.

I will cover that later on that part as we also did the 1967 ram air base pan as well.

Trick was to keep the mold highly polished as it was the visible side we made look like metal and the rough surface was the outside.

denniskirban@yahoo.com

[theamcguy]

Again thanz to Mr AMC Guy for posting my photos.

I found this copy of the original Hurst directions for the 1964-66 KPO kit. A clever idea that Hurst came up with this specifically designed for console designed Hurst shifters.

This is what we would put with each kit back in the day.

denniskirban@yahoo.com

[dennis kirban]

I apologize that the wording is too small to read but in the bottom rite contents of kit is where the part numbers where to make sure the proper levers/rods etc where in each kit.

As you can imagine without those numbers and without the numbers being stamped on the rods/levers they all basically look the same.

denniskirban@yahoo.com

On a side note about Hurst referring to the original Hurst company is, back then everything was 100% made in the USA. George Hurst was a strong believer in the US and the US Military. You had to exert a lot of abuse etc to ever break a Hurst product such as the shifter or wheels.

[dennis kirban]

Time is almost up if no winner by 9:30 eastern time tonite we will give the answer to mini contest #3.

Watch for updates..

denniskirban@yahoo.com

[dennis kirban]

We will call this posting a commercial break.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHg3Q6d3Ngs

click on the above it is from 1990 GTO/Buick Turbo Reunion Event. This was the first event we did at the airbase that sat rite across the corner from the Hurst plant in Warminster.

Look at the access we had and the aircraft on the runways by the cars.....its amazing since in todays world you cold never hold a car show on a military base. we were even able to leave the vehicles there overnite as it was a 2 day event.

You will see a lot younger me, and glimpses of our trick 1964 GTO. also the prototype SYlcone that GMC brought to our event...first time ever GM took a vehicle to an event that was not club related.

The GNX spotlighted....is actually the last one built number 547....to this day has under 100 miles on it.

On some of our display boards you will see soem of the GTO parts we had back then.

We did two events at this base.

One year for the GTO people we had John Buc Wilkin there who headed up Ronny and the Daytonas with their big hit GTO.....

The other time we had Davy Jones of the Monkees as a guest.....

My buddy who did the filming just fund the footage and posted it a day or so ago.

Even more amazing and is not shown is either that event or the follow year at the base....we had a sit down dinner in one of the aircraft hangers and they left a helicopter in there as well.

The vendors loved the set up as they were in the huge hangers no weather issues at all.

We were able to pull all this off because at the time a good friend of ours was the chief of police in that town and we worked a deal where the Boy Scouts handled the gate and charged spectators an admission price.....so everyone was happy.

denniskirban@yahoo.com

My wife and I because of the GM connection in the summer of 1991 was able to purchase directly from GMC headquarters in Pontiac, Michigan 1 of 2 of the original Syclones they used for magazine testing and it was the actual Syclone that was on the cover of Car & Driver.

true story....

[theamcguy]

Again thanz to Mr AMC Guy for posting my photos

The lst two photos is the front and back of this large original Hurst decal featuring the very early yoyo style shifter knob. This decal measures about 5-6 inches in diameter. I show the back as proof it is original. Although it may not be readable the address of the decal
company shows a zone number between the city and state. Zones were used prior to the
postal zip code system.

This decal is probably 45-50 years old. Lastly is a more current Hurst logo decal showing the famous shifter style prevalent today.

denniskirban@yahoo.com

[GT182]

Last try for me for #3.... the 65/66/67 GTO 4bbl chrome louvered air-cleaner cover.

[richardk]

Don't know if it's fair to try and answer the third mini contest since I already won once but since its coming down to the wire I'm going to guess: fan shroud.

And yes, the backup light switch I bought from Dennis back in the 80s is still on my car and still working. Great part.

Man, I sure missed getting your newsletter when you quit sending them out.

[dennis kirban]

Bingo....Richard has won again. Radiator shroud is the correct answer(s)

Since I did not state past winners not eligible....in good concious I could not delete your guess which is correct.

Will send you another prize ups ground

send me a pm again so I have correct spelling of your name etc make it easier to find ups info for me in the computer.

[dennis kirban]

Pertaining to the last contest

here is the background on the products this company made.

The radiator shrouds was something I stumbled on early on when I would buy dead GTOs/Lemans and take apart. At first I thought it was just AC cars that got the shroud.

I learned a few things about shrouds very quickly. Some where a dealer installed option and,
even though they were an "option" in some cases the demand for shrouds was quite strong not from an option standpoint but because original radiators were old and cooling is a major concern more so after your engine was rebuilt.

I learned that a real 1964 GTO took a different core support and therefore had a taller radiator than a regular 64 Lemans. That shroud was metal and prone to rust. I learned all 1964-1967 Pontiac a body cars had the tabs along the side of the core support so all of them could be fitted with a radiator shroud.

I learned GM made a short one and also a taller style that had the cut out for the upper radiator hose on both sides left & rite. I can't member which years upper hose was on which side but that shroud worked on most applications.

I learned that cooling works best when the fan blade is half in and half out of the shroud opening. I also learned how to tell if the clutch fan was bad. We started to do these shrouds back in 1982 and 1983 and they were a huge success. Quality was not the best but then again it was a shroud not a pretty looking part.

I am fairly certain we were the only company that had them made in fiberglass. So if your shroud has a rough inside to it 99% sure it was one of ours. In recent years one of the major suppliers has stepped up spent the big bucks and made them the proper way so we have phased all the 1964-67 styles out.

However, sometime in the late 1980s we started to make the 1968 GTO shroud which was one year by itself....the 1969 and newer were huge compared to the 1968. That shroud we still get made and sell to all the suppliers. To my knowledge that shroud has not been reproduced in the plastic format and since its a single year only may or may not ever be.

Its been years since I dealt with that company but I still remain good friends with the owner and my son buys his supplies from them. Its amazing when I first approached them back in the early 1980s they never thought it would take off like it did. For some of the shrouds we had several molds made to keep up with the demand.

Since we are into many other cars we also made the 1966-67 Chevelle shroud and the ultra rare 1966-67 Nova 327 V8 shroud. What was interesting about the Nova one is the opening is off center meaning either the radiator or engine sits off center in the car!

We also make various ones for GS Buicks and one for the 1967 Olds 442 models.

Back in the 1980s this same source made the fiberglass tri-power pan. We did one version which looked like the 1966 pan except had small hole for center carb. We had an impression in the center hole so you could cut it out and it would also fit the larger 1966 tri-power.

The inside was highly polished shiny black so it appeared to look like metal.

This company made 2 other parts for us the 1969 and 1970 spoilers. I believe the 1969 the feet the left foot was different from the rite foot. We even had the pads to go on the ends
and seamed it like GM did.

The 1970 of course was quite heavy and I believe you had to maybe change your spring tension on the trunk lid. Again going by memory.

I know on the shrouds in fiberglass we were the only supplier for the GTO ones. They were a major hit for many many years.

Even today, when I see a early GTO at a show with a fiberglass shroud I immediately go and feel it and see if its one of ours. What's funny is some of the owners being new to the hobby have no idea who I am.

That concludes that history lesson.

As usual comments welcome..........

denniskirban@yahoo.com

I believe the retail price n the shrouds back in the 1980s was around $75 to $100 each.

In fiberglass we also made for awhile 1968 and 1969 valances which are now made in metal. We also did the 1970 and the large 1971-72 panel that sat between the core support and
front bumper.

We also did the 1970 GTO front air dam.

Today these above items have been made in the proper material but in the glass versions I
think we were the sole supplier.

So in fiberglass we made probably about a 10-12 parts for the GTO.

Today the popular items we get made in glass are front and rear Turbo Regal bumpers for race cars. They can be found on some of the quickest cars on the track.

end of story on the chapter on fiberglass....

denniskirban@yahoo.com

[dennis kirban]

Next slice of early GTO history

We will call this mini contest #4

Anyone can play except owners/employees of Pontiac companies.

I need to word this carefully so as not to give the answer away.

Its a part we still get made today.

I believe another company also makes it

The part is metal

Their is a left & rite so its a pair in the kit.

The version we get made fits the 1964-67 GTOs.

It was not an option per say.

The part has a benefit so its not a cosmetic part.

What is the part I am referring to?

The clock is ticking.....

Good luck players

Can Richard win 3 for 3?

[62cat]

rear control arm frame gussets