WE HAVE COLOR!

"A Tribute to Jim Wangers' 1964 GTO 'Test Car' built for Car and Driver March 1964"

CHAPTER 13 Greg Raymond

Nocturne Blue is a color that demands respect, and a tremendous amount of preparation. I’ve learned that firsthand.

Building this tribute to Jim Wangers’ Nocturne Blue pilot car, the very one he “hand‑crafted” in late 1963 for Car and Driver, has presented its share of challenges. Wangers famously sold editor David E. Davis, Jr. on the idea of a GTO vs. GTO comparison test, scheduled at Daytona International Speedway between Christmas and New Year’s of 1963. As history shows, Wangers supplied two specially prepared Royal Bobcat GTOs for the feature.

The first was the Nocturne Blue pilot car, equipped with the optional 348‑hp Tri‑Power engine, a wide‑ratio four‑speed, and a 3.55 Safe‑T‑Track rear end. Known simply as “the blue car,” it handled street driving, road‑course duty, and skid‑pad testing. Back in 1963, perfection in bodywork wasn’t the priority, raw performance was. The article captured that spirit.

But when you’re working with perfectionists, things change.

The crew at Patterson’s Kustoms made several time‑consuming decisions to ensure the color was exact. Using the original 1964 Pontiac LeMans/GTO Nocturne Blue Poly Code W acrylic lacquer as their benchmark, they committed to a level of sanding, blocking, and panel preparation that transformed this car into one of the straightest builds I’ve ever been part of.

With the engine ready for installation, the interior complete, and every component polished and staged for reassembly, we finally reached the moment we’d been waiting for: final paint.

And what a color it is.

The photos don’t come close to capturing it. The depth, the smoothness, the subtle metallic that catches light from every angle, Nocturne Blue is simply breathtaking in person. This is the moment the Blue Car truly comes to life.