My experience with the Endura option LeMans.

First I'd like to say that I am an avid Pontiac dude from Texas.  I have a special place in my heart for the LeMans especially, because of course, just like many people that pick out certain brands of vehicles, my first car was a 1970 LeMans.  I had my first LeMans throughout high school, using it to get to school, work, and date my first love.  I had many happy memories with that car, and eventually gave it up after I owned it for about 5 years.  I never forgot that car, and I began to search for another "A" body of that era.  I found that car in 1998 in a small West Texas town east of El Paso.  It was sitting in an open lot with it's rear window knocked out on four flats, hugged up next to a shanty I assume was a chicken coupe at one time.  I couldn't see much of the car, only the rear end, and I could see a little of the rear quarter as well.  It looked to me to be a GTO based on the fact that it had the optional side body stripe.  I became really curious and arranged to buy the car.  Upon further inspection the sheet metal on the car appeared to be excellent, but the interior was a mess.  The scooped hood was bent at the drivers hinge due to forced closure of the hood.  The endura material on the front bumper did not fair well in the Texas heat and had come off in chunks from the metal core.  It still wore it's original Sundance Orange color, and had a white vinyl top, and interior, with white side stripes.  I thought up until this point that the car was a GTO, but I noticed that the door panels had "LeMans" emblems on them.  I thought maybe someone had changed them out, or maybe someone had hung a GTO nose and fenders on a regular LeMans.  I began to research at my local library, and found out that in 1972, GM had in fact planned to redesign the "A" body platform that had basically been the same since 1970.  There was a factory worker strike, and as a result the old '71 fenders were slightly reworked with vents just behind the front wheel openings, and the grille inserts were sunk back into the bumper.  The front turn signals also recieved a little embellishment, and the old platform was carried through and sold as the 1972 model.  In that year the GTO had become an option on the LeMans again, having been a seperate line in all previous years, except 1964.  You could order a LeMans in 1972 with every option that a previous year GTO had, and still retain the LeMans moniker, that includes drivetrain, interior, etc.  The endura option on the LeMans was available for under 50 bucks.  This insured that you would have the GTO look if you so desired.  My curiosity was overpowering at this point, so I sent in for the Pontiac Historical Services documentation, and the info that came back verified what I had been thinking.  I had actually purchased a 1972 LeMans with the Endura front end, optional side stripes, rally II wheels, which came with whitewall tires originally, a 350 two barrel, turbo 350 trans., and a one legged highway geared rear with single exhaust.  This appealed to me because it was different, and probably fairly rare.  I was not dissappointed at all.  I really couldn't complain, due to the fact that I had only paid $150.00 dollars for a car that ran with a little persuasion.  It is currently undergoing a frame off resto, and I am slowly gathering everything I need to hopefully make it a very nice, road-worthy car again.  Just remember to check your vin numbers and get PHS docs.  so you can be sure you are buying what you really want.  I personally don't see what difference it makes though, as long as the looks are the same.