1956 Pontiac Star Chief Convertible

• Pink and gray paint scheme marketed to women

• First year of the new Strato Streak V-8 power

• Fun, sporty 2nd car for the suburban family

The Pontiac division of General Motors was designed to be a mid-level series, one step above the cheapest models offered in the Chevrolet division. The Chieftain was produced from 1949 to 1958 in three generations.

The second-generation Star Chief got an all-new body and the new Strato Streak V-8 power in 1955. The list price for the Star Chief averaged at US $2,594 ($31,000 in 2024 dollars) and 203,404 were recorded to have been manufactured in 1955.

A new era started for Pontiac when Semon E. “Bunkie” Knudson took over the reins as general manager. He got to work to make over the Pontiac image, and the 1956 Pontiac lineup began fulfilling some of Knudson's lofty visions.

With a new engineering group headed by E.M. “Pete” Estes and John Z. Delorian, a new line of cars with true performance potential was developed for Pontiac in 1956. To highlight a move into a competition and factory acing program, an “extra horsepower” engine option with dual four-barrel carburetors, dual exhausts and a full-race camshaft rated at 285 hp was crafted by staff motor engineer Malcom R. “Mac” McKellar. It was released in mid-1956 and became the first in a series of so-called NASCAR and Super-Duty Pontiac V-8s.

New Pontiac styling for 1956 featured combination bumper grilles with enclosed circular parking lights and round, bomb-type bumper guards. All models had reversed, vertically radiused slash accent moldings and “sweepspear” body rub trim. On Chieftains, the slash accents had a constant width. There were reflectorized oval embossments on the rear fenders with gull-wing and circle medallions on the deck lid.

Work on a V-8 engine for Pontiac had begun as early as 1949 when sister marques Oldsmobile and Cadillac dropped their high-compression overhead valve V-8 blockbusters on the automotive world. But it was 1955, in the thick of the V-8 wars, before the new Pontiac engine hit the market. When it did, sales took an immediate jump to 554,000 vehicles in the model year.

Specifications

Engine: V8

Displacement: 316.6 cu. in./5.2 L

Horsepower: 227 hp

Transmission: 3-speed automatic