When a lot of people think of a classic GTO that they would love to own, usually a '69 Judge in Carousel Red or a 1970 Judge in Orbit Orange comes to mind. The combination of styling, performance and that loud (but in a good way) shade of orange puts a smile on faces and it makes hearts skip a beat. As we all know, Pontiac has been sent to that big automotive resting place in the sky, but it seems that before they had their plug pulled, they wanted to offer their outgoing performance cars in a shade of orange. The ’01-’02 Trans Am got Sunset Orange, the ’09 G8 GXP Ignition Orange and the ’06 GTO in all of its Brazen Orange glory.
The ironic thing about this particular car's owner, Matt Hudak of Pittsburgh, PA., is that his GTO’s striking color was not his first choice. When he first walked into Jenning’s Pontiac in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania in September of 2006, he originally had his heart set on an Impulse Blue GTO. Needless to say, it was love at first sight, as he drove out of the showroom with this “Brazen Beauty” nearly three hours later.
While being content with the citrus-colored goat’s factory-supplied 400hp for the first five months, it didn’t take too long for the “mod bug” to bite, and when it did, it bit hard. Starting out with all of the usual bolt-ons, Matt tackled the exhaust first, by bolting on a set of Kooks long-tubes, followed by a Spintech cat-back. Helping the engine to breathe easier, on went a cold air intake, a ported LS2 intake manifold and ported throttle body. After installing an under-drive pulley and having the car dyno-tuned by Jeremy Formato of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Matt was rewarded with 442hp and 391lb. ft. at the real wheels.
Soon after which, Matt installed a Pedders Track 2 suspension set-up and 19-inch CCW SP505 wheels wrapped in a set of Toyo Tires. This bought Matt another 6 months of contentment, but that was until he got the itch yet again. Scratching that itch with a FAST 92mm intake, a Meziere electric water pump and a set of Trick Flow heads, Matt had Jeremy tune it again and this time the GTO responded with 494hp and 429lb.ft. to the rollers. This set-up kept Matt happy until the fall of 2009.
Over the winter, he decided to yank out the factory LS2 and start from scratch. The low-mileage LS2 was sold, along with all of the acquired engine parts, and in went a newly built 416 LS3 stroker. Assembled by friend Greg Corsello, a Callies Compstar crank and connecting rods laid the foundation for the 416, as a set of Diamond pistons, TSP CNC’d L92 heads, Yella Terra roller rockers, ported and coated LS6 oil pump, a double roller timing set, a Comp bumpstick (with a 235/243 duration and .624 lift) and a 113 LSA completed the long block assembly.
Complimenting the aforementioned CNC’d L92 heads are ARP studs, Trend pushrods and a set of Comp lifters. Helping those high flow heads inhale oxygen efficiently is an OTR cold air intake, a ported FAST 102mm intake and a Nick Williams 102mm TB. Exhaling all of this increased airflow are a set of Kooks 1 7/8-inch long tube headers and 3-inch cat-back exhaust. This 1 of 484 6-speed GTO drinks 93 octane through a high-flow fuel pump and FAST 57lb. injectors, while a Hendrix custom radiator helps the Meziere electric water pump keep things cool. Once the new engine was bolted into the engine bay, Matt had the Goat speed density dyno-tuned by Ed over at Virginia Speed, where he was rewarded with 537rwph and 501rwtq on the dyno sheet.
Delivering this amount of power through the rear wheels safely came in the form of a Monster Stage 3.5 clutch, a lightweight flywheel, a TICK clutch master cylinder, a GF1320 carbon fiber driveshaft, 1-piece stubs, and Level 2 axles, along with a Harrop rear diff cover, and Rocksand Racing rear toe links helps Matt feel more confident in his drivetrain.
Adding more power and reinforcing the drivetrain are only two of the ingredients in making the ultimate modern muscle car; one must be able to stop in a hurry as well, and Matt’s GTO is no exception. So after all of the goodies were installed, Matt made sure he had the stopping power to slow down the increased horsepower of his ride. He quickly added a Wilwood 14-inch Superlite 6-piston Brake Kit and since the old set of CCW wheels no longer cleared his new brakes, he ordered custom offset CCW SP551 high-polished wheels as a replacement, also wrapped in a set of Toyo rubber on all four corners.
Like most hot rodders, Matt wanted his GTO to look as good as it ran, so the engine bay was dressed in billet pieces supplied by Nasty Performance, JamesBiz and Southern Performance. A low-profile JHP V2 rear wing sits atop of the trunk lid for added outside visual appeal, aiding in making the CCW wheels stand out in the crowd. By the time this article is in front of you for your viewing pleasure, a set of Pedders Supercar coil-overs will be installed as well.
Matt is proud to say that all of the work, save for the engine machining, was completed by himself in his own garage. As you can see by his pictures, he takes great pride in his work and goes to extreme measures in keeping his baby fully detailed at all times. Who wouldn’t be proud to own a rare piece of Pontiac history that looked and ran as good as this one?
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