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Car Of The Day: January 26, 2010; Pit Row '92 Pontiac Grand Prix (Mike Wallace)
Topic Started: Jan 26 2010, 03:17 AM (461 Views)
Swifty
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The Mustang II is a Mustang too!
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Today's car of the day is Pit Row (Pole Position?)'s 1992 Pontiac Grand Prix (Mike Wallace).

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Wikipedia
 
The Pontiac Grand Prix is an automobile that was produced by the Pontiac division of General Motors. First introduced as part of Pontiac's full-size model offering for the 1962 model year, the Grand Prix name was also applied to cars in the personal luxury car market segment and the mid-size offering, slotting below the large Bonneville in the company's lineup.


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For more information and pictures of the real car please visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac_Grand_Prix

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This one is a bit of a mystery. The brand states that it is Pit Row, but the "Encyclopedia Of Small Scale Diecast Motor Vehicle Manufacturers" indicates this to be a Pole Position product. I vaguely remember both brands being available in K-Mart in the early 1990s and it seems to me as if they are the same.

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Wikipedia
 
The first front-wheel drive W-body Grand Prix coupe was built on January 12, 1988. This generation Grand Prix was built in Kansas City, Kansas. The Grand Prix was introduced as base, LE and SE coupes. All featured GM's MPFI 2.8L V6 that made 130 horsepower (97 kW) and 170 lbs-ft of torque. A five-speed manual or four-speed automatic were the transmissions offered. The LE was well equipped with power windows and door locks and optional digital dashboard. SE models upgraded with power front seats with multiple lumbar, side bolster, side wing adjustments, an AM/FM Cassette stereo, and a neat trip computer and compass located in the center of the dash. Some models of this generation have the rare feature of a split front bench seat with a column shifter. Another unique feature only found on the Grand Prix is the combination lock for the glove box, rather than a key. Grand Prix was Motor Trend's Car of the Year for 1988.

A host of changes upgraded the Grand Prix for 1989. Air conditioning was standard, and the 2.8L was replaced by GM's new 3.1L MPFI V6 that produced 140 horsepower (100 kW) mid-way through the model year. For 1989, the 3.1L was only mated to a four-speed automatic transmission, while the remaining 2.8 was mated to either manual or automatic transmissions. A new trim level was offered for 1989, a limited-edition turbo coupe that featured an ASC/McLaren turbocharged version of GM's 3.1L V6. Output was 205 horsepower (153 kW), 65 more than last year. A four-speed automatic was the only transmission offered. The coupe was an SE model with body work such as hood louvers and extra body cladding(which will be the most controversial design element in the years to come). The interior featured more equipment, and only seated 4, in contrast to the SE's 5 seats. The full analog gauges would become the 1990-93 sport cluster, and the basis for the new instrument cluster to replace the digital cluster for 1990.

In 1990, the base model was dropped in favor of a sedan version (replacing the 6000 which ended production the next year and the Canada-only Tempest), entering production on September 12, 1989. A notable introduction for the Grand Prix in 1990 is the new STE (Special Touring Edition) which replaced the STE model of the Pontiac 6000. In contrast to that model, it trades in all-wheel-drive for the available Turbo 3.1L V6. Standard features include a cassette stereo with equilizer and eight speakers (a compact disc player was optional), remote keyless entry, eight-way power driver's seat with multiple lumbar and sidewing adjustments for both front seat occupants, and a compass/trip computer that was more informative than the units in the SE and turbo coupes. An LE sedan was also available for 1990, standard with a 2.3L Quad 4 engine and a 3-speed automatic, the first use of an inline 4 cylinder engine in a Grand Prix.

For 1991, the Grand Prix Turbo coupe was replaced by a new GTP version. This model sported a 3.4 L DOHC V6 that produced 210 horsepower (160 kW) with a five-speed manual transmission or 200 with the optional four-speed automatic. Inside, the GTP was essentially the same as the Turbo, but the exterior used mini-quad headlamps (along with all other Grand Prix coupes), "GTP Grand Prix" and "24 Valve V6" badges. The STE Turbo was replaced by a 3.4 STE and could be ordered with the automatic transmission or manual transmission. For the SE coupe, the B4U package featured GTP bodywork and aluminum wheels. An SE sedan also became available, and featured STE-like styling at a lower price. The LE coupe was discontinued for 1991.

ABS is optional on all models for '92, the 2.3L Quad 4 engine was dropped, and the LE sedan gained the SE/STE front lightbar.


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Base shot showing this branded as Pit Row:

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jedimario
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RAWR
Somehow I just don't see the Orkin man rolling up to my house in that :lol:
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Swifty
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The Mustang II is a Mustang too!
jedimario
Jan 26 2010, 08:15 AM
Somehow I just don't see the Orkin man rolling up to my house in that :lol:
Would make the visit much faster though! ;) And the noise from the engine would probably scare off all the other pests in the neighborhood- stray dogs and cats, birds, neighbors...
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Sak
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Ezekiel 25:17
They've come a long way, baby...
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ivantt
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New casting? Quick! Take it apart!
I think Swifty and I once talked about the sharp rise in quality of NASCAR diecasts, all scales and then how it plateaued in the early 2000's, and now has declined in sales. The 1/64ths were a really big change. I have some early cars that I found in $1 bins at the track sales and trailers, and the crudity and simplified productions back then are almost laughable, now. No attempt to make the markings accurate or to scale with the car--(or the car accurate, for that matter) -just the overall general image, and I guess that's what people were happy to get. Most of the early releases had "stickers" on them, then later water slide decals, and then finally printing and tampos. They got better and better, and now some better brand 1/64ths are just as nicely done as any 1/24 diecasts. They even look quite accurate, nowdays. Quite a ride.

This diecast is a good represenation of diecast NASCAR racers back in the early 1990's. It also shows how long Mike Wallace has been active in driving.
Edited by ivantt, Jan 26 2010, 09:35 PM.
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Swifty
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The Mustang II is a Mustang too!
I have quite a few of those early NASCAR diecasts- most with some light playwear as I was still a kid at the time and I enjoyed playing with them! The original Racing Champions pieces were so horribly crude by today's standards- I had a Thunderbird with the windshield in backwards! Not to mention most of the various cars they made could come on any casting they offered (I have Harry Gant in a Pontiac instead of an Oldsmobile).

Pit Row was a step up. Racing Champions got better. I liked the Hot Wheels racing line that came out around 1997-98. What irritated me was that Action started getting some of the drivers in exclusive agreements so I couldn't complete my field of cars with all the drivers in similar looking cars. I hated mixing in the Racing Champions and Hot Wheels with the ugly Action castings. I stopped collecting NASCAR diecast for the most part in 1999, and I'm glad I did. The combination of not all drivers being available combined with the drastic price increase at that time combined to kill that part of the hobby for me.
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minicup
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Midsize
All I can say is yes the quality that has happened with them is quite a rise from 20 years ago lol... Nowadays you can make a custom NASCAR and you probably won't be able to tell unless you are into it and no what ones have and havn't been produced... All I can say comparing to what I have now... WOW... I like mine glad we arn't to that level back then.. To touch on the side in 1/64 it's disappointing as that's the scale I collect mainly and you would think if anything would go up in sales it would be 1/64 as there cheaper but most have been getting canceled cause of MOQ issues. What can ya do...
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