1962 Pontiac Tempest LeMans Convertible

What's that you say?  You've never seen one of these before?  Well, join the club.  Loosely based on the Chevrolet Corvair, this style of Tempest was produced from 1961 to 1963, at which time they were changed to the A-body (Chevelle, Skylark, Cutlass) platform.  An example of the '64-on Pontiac midsize can be found here.

The 1961 and 1962 cars are pretty much the same, while the '63 model looks much more like the '64 car.  The '63's were part of a factory racing effort in the sixties, specially equipped with high powered V8's (I want to say 421's) and 4-speeds, still located in the rear.  They were awesome, since the weight of the transmission was on the rear wheels.

NEWS FLASH! This car is sold - it's gone to beautiful San Francisco.... Read on, and see what the new owner got for his money:)
 
Equipment:

• 195 cubic inch slant four cylinder in the front. It's been rebuilt at some point....
• One-barrel carburetor. It's not as gutless as you think!
• 2-speed transaxle located in the back.
• Four-wheel independent suspension
• Power top (currently disconnected due to a leaky ram).
• Lots of new parts:
• Top
• Tires (195/60R15 Yokohamas)
• Radiator (Three core)
• Water pump
• Battery
• Generator

History:

I got this car mid-1996, from an elderly gentleman in town. He bought it from his son, fifteen years earlier, when he got tired of the project.  His son repainted it (over the rust, what a dork!), but the paint isn't the greatest. The car then sat, without moving, for fifteen years!  After limping it home, I set about the task of readying it for daily use.  That's where it is now, and it works great.

It could probably use some effort, particularly in the interior, but it's fine the way it is.  Besides, I'm too busy fooling with my Z to mess with this....

Here's some pictures.  Click on each for a larger view.