Muscle cars come to Gilmore Museum

The Gilmore Car Museum has assembled a special exhibit of some of today’s most sought-after muscle cars, including a 1967 Ford Shelby GT500, 1969 Pontiac Trans Am and the Hemi-powered 1965 Plymouth Belvedere.

HICKORY CORNERS, Mich. _ During the mid-1960s a “Plain Jane” Pontiac may have looked more like something your parents would drive or perhaps you assumed a low-optioned Dodge was nothing more than someone’s daily driver.

“That was until they left you in their dust at the stoplight,” explained Gilmore Car Museum spokesman Jay Follis, “or until you got a glimpse under the hood!”

It’s also the response the Gilmore Car Museum’s special yearlong exhibit, “Born to Perform – The Era of the Muscle Car” hopes to invoke.

If you saw this 1962 Chevrolet Bel Air parked along the street or next to at a stoplight you may just assume it was a typical “Ma & PA” car… that is until it takes off or you see the 409 hp engine under the hood.

The Museum has assembled 16 of the rarest and most sought-after muscle cars for this exhibit as well as many iconic artifacts from the era, such as GI Joe action figures, 8-track tapes and leisure suits.

Many consider John Delorean, the maverick General Motors engineer, as the “father” of the muscle car era when he created the high-performance 1964 Pontiac GTO.

Fuel shortages, stricter federal emission controls and high insurance premiums marked the end of the muscle car era. The 1974 Plymouth and the 1977 AMC Pacer Wagon displayed at the Gilmore Car Museum’s muscle car exhibit highlights the last of the high-performance “gas guzzlers” and growing demand for smaller, fuel efficient cars.

Cars featured in the special exhibit include:

1962 Chevrolet Bel Air 409
1964 Pontiac GTO
1965 Plymouth Belvedere
1966 Oldsmobile 442
1967 Shelby GT500
1969 AMC AMX
1969 Pontiac Trans Am
1970 Chevrolet Chevelle LS6
1970 Dodge Super Bee
1970 Ford Torino 429 Cobra Jet
1971 AMC Hornet S/C 360
1971 Oldsmobile 442 W30
1971 Pontiac T37 Racer
1972 Buick Gran Sport
1974 Plymouth Road Runner

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