Jake Marshall comes from a family of proud Pontiac people. After years of watching his father and uncle have their fun on the track, Marshall picked up a project of his own, an A-body 1966 Pontiac GTO that came with not just plenty of parts (and headaches) but also an impressive racing history of its own.
A founding platform of the prestigious muscle car era, the Pontiac GTO holds special meaning for Marshall. “My favorite has always been my dad’s candy apple red 1967 GTO that he had since 1980,” said the 29-year-old diesel technician.
In 2000, Marshall’s father saved a 1964 Pontiac Tempest from a local junkyard and kept it until the young boy was old enough that they could work on it together. They got it running in 2014, with a 400 cubic inch engine and automatic transmission, and Marshall made many upgrades to the ’64 in the following years as it ultimately became his “cruiser” car.
“I got the itch for racing after watching my uncle Larry run his 1964 GTO almost every year at the Pontiac Nationals,” he explained. It wasn’t until 2025, though, that Marshall was able to make his first pass on track… and he did it with his own 1966 GTO at the same event as his uncle.
Running a 13.2-second quarter-mile was a thrill for Marshall, whose car had been in rough condition when he first got his hands on it; that one pass was validation of years of hard work and dedication to a dream.
In 2020, while at home in Warren, Pennsylvania, Marshall was perusing Facebook Marketplace where he found his soon-to-be Goat listed for sale for $2,700. It was located in Buffalo, New York, and had been sitting in a crumbling garage since 1972.
“I saw its potential, and, since the 1966 was my favorite year, I decided to save it and turn it into a drag car,” said Marshall. A little post-purchase research revealed that his new project had been used as a street racing car back in the ‘60s. “That made me want to build it with more of a gasser-style look. It was known as the ‘Day Tripper,’ after the Beatles’ song. So, I kept the name and added my own sentimental elements.”
Marshall’s raggedy ride arrived filled to the roof with parts and literal garbage. To his surprise, he found several sets of Pontiac 1968 Ram Air I cylinder heads, two 4-speed transmissions, the Protect-O-Plate metal warranty card issued to the original owner, and much more.
“Once the car was emptied, I saw that the floor pans were completely rotted out from the toe boards all the way to the trunk,” Marshall recalled. Wanting to make sure the car was structurally sound before starting on the mechanical aspects, he replaced everything during the winter of 2020.
The GTO had also come with two engines, a 455 cubic inch mill and a 428 cubic inch bullet, but the latter was seized, so he started work on the other. Marshall replaced all the 455’s gaskets, added a 650 cfm Holley carburetor, bolted on one of the transmissions that had come with the car, and installed the drivetrain. He replaced the brakes and complete fuel system, too.
By the summer of 2021, Marshall had his Pontiac running and driving, and even attended a local Father’s Day cruise with his dad behind him in his ’67 GTO; Marshall spent the rest of the year driving around and working on the interior, then changed the 1966 Chevy 12-bolt rearend over the winter from 5.50:1 gears to a 3.73:1 set to improve driveability. That rear end also includes a factory locker, and receives power via a 3-inch aluminum Denny’s driveshaft.
Soon, Marshall was ready for more and added a big boost of power with a GM 6-71 roots supercharger, Weiand drive and bearing caps, and Timken high-speed bearings. “I ran it at one-to-one with 34-tooth pulleys and a BDS intake, and twin boost-referenced 600 CFM Holley carbs,” he shared. “I drove it like that for a while until I broke the transmission by launching it in first gear, it split down both sides.” Temporarily sidelined once again, the Pontiac awaited a ‘60s-era, Fairbanks-built Clutch Turbo TH400 transmission with a Mopar manual clutch disc instead of a torque converter.
After discovering his GTO’s previous gasser history, he wanted to honor its heritage by staying with the same style. First, he added a Speedway Motors straight-axle front conversion kit while retaining the stock rear suspension. Next, he applied the graphics package’s period-correct stickers and lettering to the factory paint.
“Don Davis Pontiac is the name of the dealership it was purchased from in 1966, and all of the stickers pay tribute to parts on the car,” he noted, adding that Anderson Transmission was a shop his wife Keyah’s grandfather owned in the ‘60s. “The Clutchman license plate was from my wife’s great-uncle’s car club back in the late ‘50s.” All of the little details (including the Warren, PA, and Buffalo, NY, lettering over the front and back wheels, respectively) showcase the GTO’s history.
In 2024, Marshall proudly piloted his Pontiac through the last three days of the Hot Rod Power Tour, following it up in 2025 as long-haulers for the entire trip. “I noticed an issue with the blower one morning, so I took the belt off and ran the rest of the week with a naturally aspirated setup,” he said of the adventure, which wrapped up on his birthday and included Keyah and their dog, Dixie, along for the ride.
Keeping the couple comfortable during the 1,600+ mile journey were 1968 Chevrolet Impala front seats and a 1963 Pontiac Tempest rear bench. The rest of the GTO’s interior remained mostly unchanged from the day it rolled off the factory floor, with its original door panels and dash pad still in place, although the center console had been sourced from a 1964 Pontiac LeMans and retrofitted to accept the modern B&M QuickSilver ratchet shifter.
When he returned home after the Power Tour, Marshall fixed the blower and headed to the 2025 Tri Power Pontiac Nationals at Summit Motorsports Park. “That 13.2 was my very first time down the strip, and the car was a big hit, it caught people’s attention with the Pontiac 8-lug wheels on it,” he shared. Those wheels are a big source of pride for Marshall, as the front 14”x7” rollers were never offered on an A-body car and were strictly an option only for full-size 1960-1968 models. “I had to have the drum portion of the hub milled, converted the front and rear to disc brakes, and added 1.25-inch spacers to accommodate the different backspacing.”
During the 2025-2026 winter, Marshall had the 68cc Ram Air I heads rebuilt by Craiger Racing Engines to accommodate a higher overall compression ratio, and fitted them with Ram Air V springs and Ferrea valves. Assembling the 455 ci engine himself, Marshall also installed a COMP Cams Xtreme Energy hydraulic camshaft, new timing set, and ARP head studs.
“Now, it runs twin Carter 600 CFM carbs with the factory, cam-driven fuel pump and an MSD Performance Boost Timing Master ignition system, which I tune myself,” he stated. The combusted air and fuel mixture exits the engine through a set of late-‘60s/early-‘70s Hedman headers with 3-inch collectors and a Trans Am-style MagnaFlow exhaust with vintage Megs tips.
Marshall had discovered an issue with his TH400 automatic transmission where the fluid was getting onto the clutch disc and causing it to slip while accelerating; he tore the unit apart himself and converted it back to use a standard-style, non-lockup TCI converter with a 3,000 RPM stall speed.
“I got it put back together the weekend before the 2026 Mickey Thompson Midwest Turn & Burn event in early May at Summit Motorsports Park,” he continued, adding that the race was only his second time ever on track with the 500-horsepower A/Gas package. “It ran well, but I was trying to get in the 11s and accidentally gave it too much timing on the last day, it cracked six pistons and blew a head gasket. I guess 50-year-old cast pistons don’t like 6,500 RPM, 7 pounds of boost, and 37 degrees of timing!”
Instead of being angry, Marshall viewed the setback as an opportunity to rebuild his GTO’s powerplant into a true racing engine. With quarter-mile personal bests of 12.40 seconds and 107 MPH, he knows there’s plenty of room to pick up the Pontiac’s performance.
While he readies the new race engine, Marshall is already planning his next season as he and Keyah expect to welcome a baby girl, Mira, into the world in September. “We will have another motorhead in the making,” he joked. “My family and friends are great at drinking beer and watching me work on my car!”
Despite a few blown motors over the years, Marshall believes rescuing the rotting Pontiac was the best decision he ever made. After plucking it from its parking place of nearly half a century, Marshall completely rebuilt and restored his classic A/Gas “Day Tripper” gasser 1966 Pontiac GTO with his very own hands, then rightfully returned it to the racetrack that the now-beautiful A-body first came from sixty years ago.
CAR: 1966 Pontiac GTO
ENGINE: Pontiac 455 ci, built by Jake Marshall
BLOCK: OEM
HEADS: 68cc Pontiac 1968 Ram Air I, rebuilt by Craiger Racing Engines
CRANK: OEM forged
RODS: Eagle I-beam
PISTONS: OEM
VALVETRAIN: Pontiac Ram Air V springs, Ferrea valves
POWER ADDER: GM 6-71 roots supercharger
CARBURETORS: Dual Carter 600 CFM
TRANSMISSION: TH400
CONVERTER: TCI
DRIVESHAFT: Denny’s 3-inch aluminum
REAR END: 1966 Chevy 12-bolt, 3.73 gears, factory locker
SUSPENSION: Speedway Motors gasser straight axle conversion (front), factory springs/shocks/4-link (rear)
BRAKES: Disc brake conversion (front and rear)
WHEELS: Pontiac 8-lug 14”x7” (front), aftermarket 15”x8” (rear)
TIRES: BF Goodrich Silvertown (front), Towel City Pie Crust Cheater Slicks (rear)
HORSEPOWER: 500
TORQUE: ~600 (est.)
BEST 60’: 1.655 seconds
QUICKEST ET: 12.40 seconds (1/4 mile)
FASTEST MPH: 107 mph (1/4 mile)
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