Pontiac Bonneville Special

The Pontiac Bonneville Special is a concept car unveiled at the General Motors Motorama in 1954, the first two-seat sports car prototype the division had ever produced. Conceived by designer Harley J. Earl and hand-built by Homer C. LaGassey Jr. and Paul Gilland, the Special is a grand touring sport coupé that incorporated innovative styling like a Plexiglas canopy with gull-wing windows on a sleek fiberglass body.

The name "Bonneville" was meant to convey high performance, inspired by a trip Earl had taken to Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah to observe speed trials there. It was the first GM vehicle to carry the name, subsequently given to the Division's full-size performance car, the Bonneville, which carried it for 47 years.

Two "Special" prototypes, one painted metallic bronze and one emerald green, were built in order to unveil them simultaneously at the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf in New York and the Pan Pacific Auditorium in Los Angeles in 1954.

Exterior
The exterior design of the "Special" was an amalgamation of advanced European sports car styling in front and a rear betraying America's 1950s fascination with the Space Age, complete with a recessed circular spare tire enclosure flanked by protruding top-to-bottom tailfins that gave the car a rocket-powered appearance. A wind tunnel helped sculpt the lines, and high-tech brightwork garnished the body, hood and grill. Glass covered recessed headlights, two banks of rectangular louvers on the fenders, and twin Pontiac "Silver-Streaks". The "Silver-Streak", a body detail peculiar to Pontiacs manufactured from 1935 to 1954, were 5-band, chromed metal bands that ran down the middle of the hood and decklid. Born in the Art Deco style of the mid thirties, it was meant as a visual cue to help distinguish Pontiacs from their competitors, and create the illusion of speed. On the "Special", a pair were used, which was the second time that two Silver-Streaks running parallel appeared on a Pontiac; the first time was on the 1953 Parisienne, another Motorama concept car. In 1957 they were discontinued.

Interior
Interior styling was visually arresting, yet thoughtfully executed. The dashboard was highlighted by a large central speedometer pod, flanked to its right by a horizontal row of five analogue gauges nested in contoured brushed stainless. This flowing motif was carried to an elegant center console with a diminutive automatic transmission gearshift handle, twin vent-control levers, and ignition key slot. Wide twin leather buckets provided luxurious seating, and a racing-style three-spoke steering wheel suggested spirited performance. Entry was through conventionally hinged frameless doors and gull-winged Plexiglas panels integrated into a see-through canopy. A dramatically curved rear window completed the "bubble top" in back, providing excellent rearward visibility.

Design legacy
Design carry-overs from the Bonneville Special quickly made it into the next year's production models, and in those to follow. Most conspicuous were the silver-streaks, which appeared both front and rear on the 1955 and '56 Chieftains and Star Chiefs, as well as Pontiac's concept car for 1956, the Club de Mer. Twin scoops designed to channel cool air into the driver's compartment also appeared on the Club de Mer, and resurfaced over a decade later on the 1967 Firebird and 1968 GTO. The horizontal fender louvers appeared as vertical slits on the 1957 Star Chief Bonneville and 1965 2+2. The bold tail fins were softened and adapted on 1955 and '56 Pontiac models. The 1958 Bonneville's instrument panel borrowed the Special's sleek stainless steel style, and the finned wheel covers became a design cue for Pontiac's famous 8-lug, aluminum rims introduced in 1960.

Engine
The Bonneville Special was powered by the "Special"-8, a bored out, high compression 268 in³ Pontiac Straight-8 unique to the pair of show cars. Modifications included a long-duration cam and four Carter YH side-draft single barrel carburetors breathing through open-mesh race-style screens. Total output was the highest ever for the "eight", rated at 230 bhp, though some estimated it at nearly 300 bhp.

Sharing the Silver Streak name used for the flathead straight-8 that powered production cars, it was Pontiac's most powerful engine to date. Painted bright red and detailed in chrome in the show cars, it was coupled to a 4-speed Hydramatic automatic transmission.

Throughout the American auto world straight-8s were giving way to V8s. Pontiac's was far enough in its development to be considered for the "Special", but was held back by GM marketing, which wished to keep it a secret until its consumer debut the following model year.

Today
As of 2008, both cars still exist. The all-original bronze "Special" belongs to a Highland Park, Illinois, collector, who claims it is so authentic that 90% of the air in the tires, with the exception of a few top-ups, is from 1954.

The green "Special" was completely restored and sold for $2,800,000 to an anonymous buyer at the 2006 Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction.