Ultra-Rare 1964 Pontiac Banshee Concept Headed to Auction

[kscarbel2]

Car & Driver / May 6, 2015

For all Pontiac’s performance-driven success in the 1960s, the division never built a true sports car—at least not until the Fiero in the 1980s or, if you don’t count that, then the Solstice 20 years later.

John Z. DeLorean, however, definitely had the inkling. Under his watch, Pontiac commissioned the Banshee, a lithe, fiberglass-bodied two-seater. And now that piece of Pontiac history is coming up for sale.

The Banshee XP-833 concept arose out of Pontiac’s desire for a two-seat sports car, a notion that many automakers toyed with in the 1960s. (The original Ford Mustang I concept from 1962, for example, was a two-seater.) This silver coupe was built using modified chassis bits from the ’64 Tempest and fitted with Pontiac’s then-new 230-cubic-inch OHC straight-six hooked to a four-speed manual transmission.

Unfortunately, the Banshee never made it past the concept stage, as it was shot down by GM brass, perhaps fearing in-house competition for the Corvette. Some of the design elements lived on however, in the Opel GT, the C3 Corvette, and the ’67 Firebird.

Two Banshees survived: this silver coupe and a white convertible. They were stashed away by Pontiac employees who later bought the cars in 1973.

Now this coupe is heading to the Dragone Auction taking place near the Greenwich Concours on May 30.

Previously a no-sale at $325,000 (RM, Amelia Island 2010) and $400,000 (Mecum, Monterey 2010), the Banshee has a pre-sale estimate of $600,000–$650,000. It last sold for $214,500 at Barrett-Jackson, Scottsdale, in 2006.

Photo Gallery - http://www.caranddriver.com/photo-gallery/ultra-rare-1964-pontiac-banshee-concept-headed-to-auction