Picking Up the Gauntlet to Transform This Family-Owned-From-the-Factory '66 LeMans Into a Pro Tourer
By Thomas A. DeMauro
photographer: Thomas A. DeMauro
"I'll have my LeMans finished for next year's show," Kurt Kenobbie informed me at Pontiac Heaven Drags & More in 2004. "I'm building it into a Pro Touring Pontiac because I'm tired of seeing only '69 Camaros. I want to run it on the track and go to Pro Touring events like Hot Rod's Power Tour."
Though I told Kurt I looked forward to seeing it once done, in the back of my mind I knew there were no guarantees because I'm advised of similar plans regarding Pontiac projects many times during each show season, but few actually come to fruition.
In Kurt's case I was pleasantly surprised, however, as his Phoenix-based Supersonic Blue Metallic '66 LeMans was glistening in the show area at Pontiac Heaven Drags & More the next year. By perusing the pictures and the following story, you will soon realize what an undertaking it was to complete the project and why the '66 is so special to him.
A '73 two-bolt block is the basis for motorvation. Bored to 462 cubes, the bottom end features factory rods and crank and TRW forged pistons. The compression ratio is 9.5:1 with 5C heads.
In 1966, Kurt's dad, Dan, purchased the LeMans new with a Nightwatch Blue exterior and medium blue interior. Its 326 two-barrel engine was augmented by a Super Turbine 300 two-speed column-shifted automatic, and an open rear with highway gears was out back. Kurt was brought home from the hospital as a newborn in the LeMans just a few months after the car's purchase. Following years of faithful service, the LeMans made its way through a few family members before Kurt took possession of it in 1986, and he has been obsessed with it ever since.
By 1987, decades of use had taken its toll, so Kurt refurbished the Pontiac for street use with fresh paint and by installing a 350 and Turbo 350 trans. He then drove his LeMans from 1990 until about two years ago. The Pro Touring project actually began in 2000, but the engine, suspension, brakes, and interior were all done within the last few years.
Craig's Upholstery in Phoenix restored the medium-blue bucket seat interior to stock with a headliner, carpet, and upholstery kit from Year One. Mods are limited to the steering wheel, the Rockford Fosgate stereo with visor-mounted controls, the kick panel and the floor-mounted speakers, Auto Meter gauges under the dash and a Sun tach in it. Even the column shift remains.
Body
Kurt's friend Mike Bohannan, a body man for Arizona Public Service, addressed the body issues and paint in 2001. He repaired rusted areas in the rear quarters, rockers and trunk, smoothed the flanks, and applied the '00 Acura Supersonic Blue Metallic basecoat/clearcoat DuPont finish. The front and rear bumpers were rechromed for extra sparkle, but the bright trim is original.
Suspension And Brakes
Beneath the rockers is where the major mods can be found. Up front is a set of Global West tubular upper and lower control arms with Del-A-Lum bushings that cut weight and revise the suspension geometry when used with taller B-body spindles to improve handling. Afco dual adjustable coilovers featuring 800-pound springs, and a 11/8-inch stabilizer bar sourced from Performance Suspension Components (PSC) do their part to reduce body roll in the turns. A 12.7:1 steering box improves feel and quickens response with each turn of the wheel.
Global West tubular upper and lower control arms locate the '66 rearend housing, and a 1.00-inch stabilizer bar from PSC flattens the cornering attitude with aid of '68 LeMans wagon rear springs. KYB gas shocks dampen the system at the rear.
A Baer Pro Plus brake package featuring two-piece, zinc-washed, slotted, and cross-drilled 14-inch rotors with blue anodized hats and four-piston Alcon calipers can probably yank the loose change out of your pocket upon deceleration. They are complemented by Baer's Pro Touring package out back with matching-featured two-piece, 13-inch rotors and single-piston PBR calipers with an integrated emergency brake. A Stainless Steel Brakes Corp. proportioning valve with pressure gauge keeps the balance between the front and rear braking forces.
Giant 18-inch Billet Specialties Rasp wheels with Toyo Proxes T1-S steamrollers put down a large contact patch, provide a menacing look, and allow the suspension and brake perform-ances to shine. The available stick will surely be enough to require a future seat upgrade, or we may find Kurt in the passenger seat following a hard left turn.