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But
sometimes the good guys win after all. Came the announcement of the 1966 Tempest
line and there was the long-suppressed overhead cam six. And we’re glad. The
six- cylinder Tempest Sprint is a very European con- cept, for an American car.
It offers a kind of ”balanced” performance that’ll make it quite unique
among it's Detroit contemporaries. The brakes and suspension are very evenly
matched with the acceleration and top speed performance provided by the 207 bhp
engine. European cars have traditionally offered this kind of performance, that
is, handling and brakes that are at least equal, and probably superior to the
engine’s potential. It has resulted in some cars – like the Mercedes, the
Citroens, the Rovers, and the Lancias – that are really outstanding
point-to-point performers, even though they don’t have the flashing
acceleration or ultimate top speed of an American sedan with an optional V-8
engine. All the forces and factors are in balance, and the resulting cars are
capable of high average speeds over long disstances, without penalizing the
driver through fatigue- producing harshness and noise, or high operating costs.
This seems to be the greatest charm of the Sprint- equipped Tempest. The Sprint
is very much like the GTO that has caused so much controversy in these pages for
the past year-and a-half. In fact, it really is kind of a six-cylinder GTO- the
only noticeable differences being exterior trim, acceleration, and exhaust note.
It has the same tightness, and the same thumping, gutsy ride that set the GTO
apart from the other cars of that type. Unlike the GTO, however, it has the
smooth response and freedom from vibration that we normally associate only with
very good English sixes. And, for the seasoned enthusiast, the exhaust has a
lovely Jaguarish drone that will instantly
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separate
the Sprint from every one of its American con- temporaries. The Sprint
concept differs from the GTO in that the package can be ordered on any
Tempest from the most austere bread and butter car to the jazziest Le
Mans, while the GTO is a separate model altogether. The basic components
of the Sprint package consist of the 207 bhp version of the ohc six,
stiffer shocks and springs, a three-speed all-synchro transmission with
Hurst link- age, a slightly faster manual steering ratio of twenty-to-
one, 7.75 x 14 tires, and special exterior trim. We had two test
cars; one which we drove for about 2500 miles, was a ’65 Le Mans hardtop
coupe with all of the ’66 underpinnings, and the second was a real ’66
model, also a Le Mans. Both cars were loaded with luxury options, in
addition to the Sprint equipment, and both had the optional four-speed,
all-synchro ”Muncie” transmission with Hurst linkage. The only
significant differ- ence between our two test cars – aside from the
obvious body changes from the ’65 to the ’66 – was that our longterm
test car had the standard 3.23 rear axle ratio, while the second one
(which we used for acceleration tests) was fitted with a 3.90. Otherwise,
they were near identical – electric windows, AM-FM radio, power brakes,
four-way power seat adjustment, tinted glass...the works. We also had –
for a while – a prototype set of radial-ply tires that’ll soon be
available as a regular option. Hooray!
For what it’s worth, we much
preferred the appearance of the ’65 model. For 1966, the stylists have attempted
to marry the crispness of last year’s Tempest lines to the extravagant
”coke-bottle” shape of the big Pontiacs, and it didn’t take. The
Tempests are beginning to look a little fat and self-conscious, and
they’re in some |
