#1  
Old 06-18-2026, 05:44 AM
OneJudge OneJudge is offline
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Default The Lead Car of Pontiac’s Official 1969 Judge Pilot Batch – Framingham VIN 242379G125

I wanted to share what I believe is one of the most historically significant and best-documented early 1969 GTO Judges in existence.
My car is a Framingham-built 1969 GTO Judge (VIN 242379G125205). It is the lead / pilot unit of the verified five-car DON 00017 corporate pilot batch — the official documented start of regular Judge production under Pontiac’s “pattern cars” rollout.
Key facts supported by primary documents:
• Validated by Jim Mattison / Pontiac Historical Services as the very first Judge built at the Framingham Assembly Plant for regular production.
• Part of the DON 00017 five-car corporate pilot allocation (Framingham + Atlanta ×2 + Arlington + Fremont), built in the exact mid-January 1969 window described in Pontiac’s own May 8, 1969 internal production memo (“Production of The Judge started in mid January with 1,000 pattern cars being built in Carousel Red only”).
• Matches the exact specifications authorized in the December 12, 1968 Car Distribution Bulletin — the official corporate document that created the Judge option (Sales Code 554 / WT-1).
• Complete surviving factory documentation: Full PHS report, original broadcast sheet (correctly showing DON/Order #00017), and cowl tag (01B date + trim tag FN 56607 Parchment interior).
• Built during the first realistic week of regular production after the New Year holiday shutdown. Dealers were not yet authorized to place regular customer orders — this was a corporate-directed pilot allocation.
This is not speculation. It is backed by primary Pontiac Motor Division documents from 1968–1969, combined with exceptional surviving factory records.
I’ve spent years researching and documenting this car, including the full DON 00017 pilot batch. I’m happy to share the documentation with serious researchers or historians.
Photos attached: car, broadcast sheet, and cowl tag.
Appreciate any thoughtful discussion.
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  #2  
Old 06-18-2026, 04:42 PM
Held for Ransom's Avatar
Held for Ransom Held for Ransom is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by OneJudge View Post
I wanted to share what I believe is one of the most historically significant and best-documented early 1969 GTO Judges in existence.
My car is a Framingham-built 1969 GTO Judge (VIN 242379G125205). It is the lead / pilot unit of the verified five-car DON 00017 corporate pilot batch — the official documented start of regular Judge production under Pontiac’s “pattern cars” rollout.
Key facts supported by primary documents:
• Validated by Jim Mattison / Pontiac Historical Services as the very first Judge built at the Framingham Assembly Plant for regular production.
• Part of the DON 00017 five-car corporate pilot allocation (Framingham + Atlanta ×2 + Arlington + Fremont), built in the exact mid-January 1969 window described in Pontiac’s own May 8, 1969 internal production memo (“Production of The Judge started in mid January with 1,000 pattern cars being built in Carousel Red only”).
• Matches the exact specifications authorized in the December 12, 1968 Car Distribution Bulletin — the official corporate document that created the Judge option (Sales Code 554 / WT-1).
• Complete surviving factory documentation: Full PHS report, original broadcast sheet (correctly showing DON/Order #00017), and cowl tag (01B date + trim tag FN 56607 Parchment interior).
• Built during the first realistic week of regular production after the New Year holiday shutdown. Dealers were not yet authorized to place regular customer orders — this was a corporate-directed pilot allocation.
This is not speculation. It is backed by primary Pontiac Motor Division documents from 1968–1969, combined with exceptional surviving factory records.
I’ve spent years researching and documenting this car, including the full DON 00017 pilot batch. I’m happy to share the documentation with serious researchers or historians.
Photos attached: car, broadcast sheet, and cowl tag.
Appreciate any thoughtful discussion.
I would think there would be more than 5 00017 cars. There should been an 00017 for each major Zone number.

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  #3  
Old 06-18-2026, 11:27 PM
OneJudge OneJudge is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Held for Ransom View Post
I would think there would be more than 5 00017 cars. There should been an 00017 for each major Zone number.
;
Only 5 needed 1 pilot test for each assembly plant building the A chassis there were other DON ‘ S
00018 - 00143 my possession these all went to dealerships around the country. The Plsn to get them our fast

  #4  
Old 06-19-2026, 08:42 AM
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johnta1 johnta1 is online now
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There are more than 1 'DON' per plant, with only 5 plants for the dealer zones.

Link to the Pattern Judges.

Click the heading 'Pattern' and it will list by the pattern number.
Example: A-Atlanta has 2 pattern 00017's
One in Zone 19 and one in Zone 20.
One each for the other plants.

Also this page does not have every example out there. I would like to get all the examples that were made though!

There are many others not found yet.



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