Goodguys 2024 Snap-on Muscle Car of the Year!
Congratulations to Frank Szymkowski for winning the Goodguys 2024 Snap-on Muscle Car of the Year title with your 1969 Pontiac GTO Judge! We’ll see you and your vehicle in Scottsdale, Arizona November 22-24, 2024 at the 27th Speedway Motors Southwest Nationals as part of our 2024 Top 12 display!
Muscle car marketing was really hitting its stride in the late 1960s, and American automakers were having fun with their performance models. “The Judge” option introduced in 1969 for Pontiac’s GTO is a good example. It took cues from pop culture, notably the “Here come de Judge” catchphrase used in a running comedy routine on the popular TV show Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In.
The Judge package included either the Ram Air III or Ram Air IV 400c.i. engine, a Hurst shifter, Rally II wheels, plus colorful decals and a rear spoiler. The first year produced decent sales – 6,725 hardtops like Frank Szymkowski’s left dealer showrooms. For GTO Judge fans, though, the more important number is the rarity of the Warwick Blue color choice.
For some reason in 1969 Pontiac did not appear to keep records of color use on its models. For GTO Judge collectors, even ballpark estimates are hard to find. While the ’69 Judge was initially offered in only Carousel Red, the full color palette was available later in the production year. Judge aficionados who pay attention to that sort of minutia agree that Warwick Blue Judges are very rare, perhaps with fewer than 10 still surviving.
Frank’s love affair with a ’69 Judge coincided with his love for his wife, Terry. Back in the day he owned a different Judge when they first dated. Life intervened, as it always seems to do, and that Judge was sold. Fast forward to about 10 years ago when a second ’69 Judge joined the family. Frank found the Warwick Blue car on a Pontiac forum and a second love affair began. The 56,000-miles Judge with a numbers-matching drivetrain was painstakingly restored.
All ’69 Judges were equipped with the 400c.i. Ram Air III V8, mostly paired with a four-speed manual transmission controlled by a Hurst T-handle shifter, as Frank’s example is. Pontiac rated the RAIII at 366 horsepower and 445 lb-ft of torque. Given the corporate habit of underestimating engine performance, horsepower is probably higher. The RA III option also included the functional air intake system as well as the optional Safe-T-Track rearend. Frank’s car has 3.55 gears.
The Judge was conceived as a low-option competitor to lower-priced muscle cars like the Plymouth Road Runner. Frank’s car is in that mold, with few options other than the four-speed. His car has just a push-button radio, tach and rally gauges, power steering, and retractable headlight covers. Even with bucket seats, the console was an option.
Given the relatively low number of ’69 Judges that were produced, sourcing original parts for the restoration was a challenge for Frank, but he found everything he needed to make his second Judge dream come true.
Photos by John Jackson
