[Keith Seymore]

The following is taken from Colin Comer's OPGI newsletter (Volume 1, Issue 11), regarding the restoration of Kenny Colacino's '63 Super Duty Catalina.

It's a great car, cool documentation and a great article, so I wanted to capture it here so it wouldn't get lost and for easy future reference.

K

Aluma Chief Rides Again



An aging warrior is restored to glory.

by Charlie Morris

By turning a blind eye to the infamous 1957 Automobile Manufacturers Association ban on factory participation in racing, the folks at Pontiac had gained a leg up on the competition when the factories jumped back into the fray in 1960. Hired to save the faltering company in 1955, Pontiac General Manager “Bunkie” Knudsen had turned a team of engineers, known as the Super Duty Group, loose to develop Pontiac engines into world beaters. Combining their own talents with those of established manufacturers such as Mickey Thompson, the Super Duty Group transformed Pontiac into a force to be reckoned with on the dragstrip. And by the early 1960s, Pontiac became practically unbeatable in NASCAR competition.

Pontiac had also pioneered the use of lightweight components on their drag cars such as aluminum bumpers, fenders, and hoods in 1961. But by 1963, the competition had also developed lightweight cars and unitized vehicle construction. The big Pontiacs were saddled with a nearly insurmountable 300+ pound weight disadvantage. On top of that, Chrysler’s 426 Max Wedge engine made its debut...but back to that weight thing: While our feature car with all creature comforts deleted and a prodigious use of lightweight parts still comes in at 3636 pounds, the Plymouths and Dodges of the time barely tickled the scales at around 3300 pounds.

So as the sun began to set on full-sized factory drag cars, it was obvious that Pontiac’s days at the top were numbered. But even more ominous were rumblings within the division of another racing ban. That rumor came true in January, 1963, when General Motors officially ended corporate support of racing.



Prior to the racing ban, Pontiac had rolled out some very hot offerings for 1963. This included the famous Swiss cheese Catalinas powered by the top-of-the-line 421 cube, 405 horsepower Super Duty engine and 14 similarly equipped Catalina two-door sedans...of which our feature car is one.

It’s pretty obvious that our feature car was built to race by virtue of the optional 421 Super Duty engine, electronic ignition, aluminum case Borg-Warner close ratio 4-speed transmission, Saf T Track aluminum differential (carrying 4.67 gears), aluminum front and rear bumpers, front fenders and inner shields, radiator support, and hood. The car is also absent the radio, heater, and seam sealer... but, the build date is March 1963 -three months after the corporate ban! Somehow this hot cat escaped scrutiny from the suits responsible for the racing ban, and was delivered to Cal Wible Pontiac in Medina, Ohio wearing a MSRP sticker of $4275.84.

After plunking down his hard earned cash, the potent Pontiac’s first owner took her to the very place she was designed and built to dominate, the dragstrip. Although the historical trail of this rare racer is somewhat vague, it’s known that it called Dragway 42 in Ohio home, and picked up the very appropriate moniker “Aluma Chief” along the way.



The 421 Super Duty package included a four bolt main cylinder block, Mickey Thompson forged pistons, heavy duty connecting rods, a McKellar #10 camshaft, heavy duty valve springs, deep sump oil pan, special oil and fuel pumps, special harmonic balancer, air cleaner, flywheel, clutch, exhaust manifolds and a dual point distributor. Machine work on the Catalina’s current engine was performed by Nunzi’s Automotive and camshaft is a custom reproduction grind of a McKellar #11. Engine assembly was done by the owner.

Another interesting fact is that the dealer sponsor of record was not Cal Wible Pontiac, but Jack Shaw’s East Side Pontiac. Upon closer examination, this makes perfectly good sense since the Jack Shaw logo appeared on many winning drag cars of the time, including both Pontiacs and the Chevrolet of “Fast Eddie” Schartman. It appears that the Aluma Chief enjoyed a two year career as a drag car exclusively before being converted to street use and the anonymity it brings. The good news is that this rare and unique example of factory involvement in organized competition was not destroyed in a racing or towing accident, as were so many of its contemporaries. Having a relatively short racing career meant it was not extensively modified or cut up, and best of all, survived life in the Ohio rust belt throughout the decades.

The Aluma Chief was purchased by current owner Kenny Colacino in 1992. Being a long time Pontiac man and drag racer himself, Kenny kept the old warrior safe and dry until 2003 - all the while accumulating the parts necessary for a first class restoration. And one look at the results of Kenny’s labors reveals that he has turned the former drag car into a Best of Show winner, while showcasing the car’s racing roots by outfitting it with some of the rarest factory performance options ever to roll out of Detroit.

On a recent bright spring day I marveled at the Catalina’s flawless black paint gleaming in the sun, and watched this now seemingly huge car roll along with a period correct nose high attitude and seven inch wide “Cheater” slicks. I was transported back to 1963, and in my mind’s eye the Aluma Chief was on the starting line at Dragway 42 - preparing to dispatch yet another in a long line of lesser factory hot rods brought out to face her.



The basic Catalina Sport sedan has a Spartan yet tasteful interior. Simple two spoke steering wheel, vinyl bench seat and lack of radio and heater helped shave off pounds




The Aluma Chief’s build sheet contains notations for assembly line workers to delete dum-dum insulation and install aluminum front sheet metal. Body in aisle informed workers where this special body was located when the chassis assigned to it came down the line.

It has been said that necessity is the mother of invention, and never was that statement more accurate than during the horsepower wars being waged between the auto manufacturers during the 1960s. It seemed like every week Ford, GM, or Chrysler was introducing another performance option to either lighten their cars or increase the horsepower output - and Pontiac was no exception. In spite of realizing great success with their 1962 aluminum-nosed Super Duty cars, Pontiac’s counsel in charge of performance recognized the need to step up the program even more if they hoped to stay on top in 1963. One area addressed was overall vehicle weight. Of course, in the case of drag racing, getting weight off the front end was most advantageous. So, in an effort to maintain parity with the cars being fielded by the Chrysler Corporation, Pontiac shed additional pounds from the ’63 Cats by stamping even thinner aluminum panels for the fenders and hoods (than they had for the ’62 models). Pontiac also built 14 all-out racing versions of the Catalina with radically lightened frames in 1963. Due to the factory having drilled large holes throughout the chassis, these cars came to be known as “Swiss cheese Catalinas”.

Another area that received improvement (not that it appeared any was needed) was in the 421 Super Duty engine for 1963. It received cylinder heads with larger ports, lighter valves, and improved valve springs. These were topped off by an improved intake manifold - while the beauty of it all was the fact that the advertised horsepower rating remained the same. All part of the game being played out on the street, dragstrip, and circle tracks by the Big 3 during those wonderful times when horsepower was king.