Both Pontiac and Buick have built the history of the American automotive industry, and between the '60s and the '80s, they manufactured iconic and dazzling vehicles that'll be forever celebrated. Unfortunately, these two brands are now gone, and what remains are badass muscle cars with massive V8s. Sure, Buick still produces cars, but they are far from the muscle cars the brand used to build in the past. Pontiac, on the other hand, has made multiple wrong turns that resulted in the manufacturer closing its doors in 2010.
Nevertheless, there was a time where these two companies rivaled each other to make the biggest and most powerful engines ever seen on the road, not afraid to show their muscle and let their engines roar.
10 Buick Skylark
The Skylark was not born as a muscle car, but it became an absolutely stunning one in 1960 when it was redesigned by Buick. This is one of the most underrated beasts ever made as the Buick shared the same fantastic engine used by the Chevrolet Chevelle. In fact, it was powered by a 6.6-liter V8 that produced 325 horsepower.
The Skylark had one of the largest engines ever put in a muscle car. This was one of the coolest cars of the early '60s as it was powerful, affordable, and absolutely amazing to look at.
9 Buick Grand National GNX
This is probably the most famous Buick ever made. The base Grand National was already a beast as it was powered by a V6 that generated 245 horsepower. However, someone at Buick must have thought that it was not enough power.
So, the company decided to take 547 Grand National and make them GNX. The engineers worked on the new engine and added a ceramic turbo that ended up generating 276 horsepower and 360 lb-ft of torque. This car was so quick that it could reach 60 mph in just 5.5 seconds.
8 Buick GSX
A lot of people might forget that in the '70s the GSX was one of the best muscle cars on the market. In fact, it was a bonafide beast as it was powered by an 8.0-liter V10 that produced 360 horsepower which made the GSX the most powerful Muscle Car ever made by Buick.
The GSX was created to rival the more popular Pontiac GTO Judge and Plymouth Hemi Cuda. This is one of the coolest cars ever made by the American automotive industry and today it is also considered one of the rarest ones.
7 Buick Riviera GS
The second generation which was in production from 1963 until 1965 is one of the most unique muscle cars ever made by Buick. The design of this car is simply stunning. The Riviera GS was powered by a beefy All-American 7.0-liter V8 that generated 340 horsepower.
One of the peculiar aspects of this car is the fact that the Riviera had hidden headlights in the fender grill which gave a unique and rather beautiful look to the front of the car. This memorable Muscle Car was created by Buick to compete with two icons of that era, the Ford Thunderbird and the Cadillac Eldorado.
6 Buick Gran Sport 455
The Buick Grand Sport was one of the fastest cars manufactured in the early 1970s as it was powered by an impressive 7.5-liter V8 that generated 350 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque.
This engine was so impressive that it was able to launch this big and heavy muscle car from 0 to 62 mph in less than 6 seconds. The Gran Sport is considered one of the best Muscle Cars of all time. This Buick not only was incredibly fast but at the time it offered an incredible list of options that made it a super luxurious muscle car.
5 Pontiac GTO Judge
This is one of those muscle cars that does not need any introduction as it has been an iconic component of the American automotive industry. The Pontiac GTO Judge was a true beast as it was powered by a 6.6-liter V8 that produced an unbelievable 370 horsepower.
The Judge was created as a special version of the GTO to resurrect Pontiac sales as at the time the market was saturated with an insane amount of muscle cars. The GTO Judge received one of the coolest and most badass facelifts ever made.
4 Pontiac Firebird 400
This Pontiac was launched in 1968 and right away people had some questions why the same engine used on the GTO, the fantastic 6.6-liter V8, generated only 320 horsepower. The reason is that the Firebird weighed only 3,300 pounds and at the time GM had the rule of one horsepower per ten pounds.
However, despite having this issue the Firebird was incredibly fast and also absolutely stunning to look at. The Firebird, at first, however it was not created as a muscle car but as a Pony Car that could compete against the Mustang.
3 Pontiac Catalina 421
The Catalina 421 is a true monster as it was powered by a 6.9-liter V8 that produced an incredible 410 horsepower. This Pontiac was able to go from 0 to 120 mph in just 13 seconds, which in 1962 was lightning quick.
The car earned the name of 'Swiss Cheese' because engineers, to make it lighter and shave some pounds, drilled some holes in the car's frame. The Catalina was one of the most popular and sought-after muscle cars of its days thanks to its immense power.
2 Pontiac Trans Am 455
This version of the Trans Am is absolutely iconic as it was equipped with the most powerful engine ever used on this model. The 455 was powered by a beefy 7.5-liter V8 that generated 335 horsepower.
However, it is believed that figure is conservative and it is estimated that the car had actually around 400 horsepower. This can certainly be considered one of the last true muscle cars as it was introduced in 1971, just a couple of years before the oil crisis forced manufacturers to reduce engine outputs.
1 Pontiac GTO
In the early 60s, the American public was hungry for quick and powerful engines. Pontiac listened to what the market wanted and delivered one of the fastest cars of that time. In 1965, the GTO was powered by a 6.6-liter V8 that generated 360 horsepower.
This engine became known as the 'tri-power' form as it had three carburetors. The car was quite heavy, however, the monstrous engine made it extremely quick as it was able to go from 0 to 62 mph in 5.8 seconds. The GTO is an absolute icon.