Barbara Kranz was only 20 years old when she walked into her local GM dealership in 1965 and attempted to order a brand-new Corvette.
Barbara’s youth and gender worked against her, so she was not taken seriously at the time.
Jim Sutherland
However, she was able to buy a 1965 Pontiac GTO and traded in her 1962 Corvair to seal the deal. That GTO would remain with Barbara for the rest of her life and was her signature car during her younger years.
Barbara was a dyed-in-the wool car girl who felt the need for speed whenever she got behind the wheel of her ‘65 Goat, sometimes racing local drivers on a road named Bootlegger Trail near her hometown, and other times as a licensed NHRA driver on Montana’s ¼-mile tracks.
Barbara was a talented young female racer and shocked her male competitors when she beat them in races and they found out Barbara was a girl who knew how to drive. Bear in mind the 1960s and 1970s were not a time when women competed in any form of racing-–street or track.
A 1965 Pontiac GTO was the correct rig to clobber the competition because Barbara’s mid-sized road rocket was a perfect blend of power and weight, given it had a 389 Tri-power (3 two-barrel carbs) and a 4-speed manual transmission conveniently mounted on the floor.
The net result? Barbara was a highly competitive racer who just happened to be young, female, and owner of one of the most famous muscle car brands from the 1960s. The bonus was Barbara could handle all those ponies corralled under her beloved GTO’s hood.
Life is a series of changes, and Barbara was no exception to this rule. She eventually got married and had a daughter named Wendy who grew up with the GTO as a big part of her life. Wendy quipped “I thought I was an only child until I finally realized this car is my older sister”.
Barbara painted the car in 1981, but did not have to touch the interior because she pampered the GTO over the years, even while it also served as her daily driver during the early years.
In fact, Barbara even created a car cover for her ‘65 GTO to protect it from harm as she eased the Goat into a less hectic lifestyle. The GTO was given a power brake/power steering upgrade, including a disc brake addition to help rein in its factory 389 Tri-power upon request.
As mentioned earlier, the GTO has been a part of Wendy’s life since Day One and became very important to her over the years. She recognized its importance by creating a stained-glass tribute to the car’s role in her mother Barbara’s life as a Mother’s Day gift.
Unfortunately, Barbara Kranz passed away six years ago, but the GTO remained in her family because Barbara’s daughter Wendy is now the proud owner of her mother’s legacy car.
We at MyStarCollectorCar believe Wendy is the perfect choice for a cherished car with a long history in her family.
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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