1966 GTO Monkeemobile

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While attending a classic car show at Belmont Race track in April 2013 where the third leg of... more

by John Telfer

Title

1966 GTO Monkeemobile

Artist

John Telfer

Medium

Photograph

Description

FAA WATERCOLOR MARK DOES NOT APPEAR ON FINAL SALES
While attending a classic car show at Belmont Race track in April 2013 where the third leg of the triple crown of horse racing is held on Long Island, New York, I came across the famous 1966 GTO Monkeemobile which was in mint condition, the car had the Monkees emblem on the side of the car and the famous engine sticking out of the hood. With the remarkable shaped body that dipped down from the back to the front. Inside this great car that took me back to my youth as I used to see it everytime I watched the Monkees TV show, I noticed on the sun visors and the dashboard the autograph signatures of all four Monkees, Davy Jones, Mickey Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork. I have only seen this car once before and that was at a concert that the Monkees reunited for with the exception of Micheal Nesmith and drove up onto the stage in it. It was a great way to start a concert. he Monkeemobile's origins began in 1966 when Dean Jeffries was asked to design and build a car for a new TV show called "The Monkees". Jeffries, under contract with Model Products Corporation (MPC) at the time, told CEO George Toteff about the project. A make of vehicle had not yet been chosen for the project. Mr. Toteff then told his friend Jim Wangers of these developments. Mr. Wangers was working with Pontiac promotion and advertising at the time and saw the show as a huge promotional opportunity for Pontiac. After making the deal, Jim Wangers supplied two base 389 4-barrel 1966 GTO convertibles with automatic-transmissions to be converted into Monkeemobiles. MPC was in turn given exclusive rights to market a model kit of the Monkeemobile. They would end up selling over 7 million copies of these kits. Two cars were contracted to be built: One as a main TV car, to be used on the television program, and one as a promotional show car, to tour hot rod and car shows around the United States. Both cars would be built in the span of four weeks. The first version originally sported a 6-71 supercharged engine, a solid mounted rear axle (no springs) and extra rear end weight. This was to enable the car to "pop wheelies." Because the car had too much power and was difficult to drive, the original blower set up was removed and a dummy blower was fitted. The second car was used as a touring car for auto shows and promotional events. Both would be used on The Monkees TV series, one during the first season and both throughout the second season.[2]
Several notable differences between the two cars exist, such as the size of the door logo and the styling of the fan belt cover and blower lines, which can be used to tell the difference between the two cars. It should also be noted that there are numerous replicas created over the years, none of which were made by the original cars' creator, Dean Jeffries. Such replicas also have a number of distinctive visual differences unique to each car.
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April 21st, 2013