Vacuum Operated Exhaust (VOE) '70 GTO

[mockingbird812]

I check out Sean Mattingly's Website Ultimate GTO regularly and a fella over there is looking for info on the VOE. Looks like they may reproduce this. They provide a commercial from the day which in no uncertain terms "explains" what it is all about.

'70 GTO VOE Commercial

Unfortunately, the VOE went the way of the chambered exhaust. But, you have to give credit to the folks at GM for pushing the envelope on their exhaust systems. Crank your sound and look closely in the background for some impressive GM iron at the local drive in hamburger stand.

Remember:

<font color="purple"> "The Humbler is here. This is the way it's going to be Baby!" </font>

[70CitrusZ]

I don't know unfortunate it was to lose chambered exhaust...unless it was a big hp gain...any I have heard sound pretty crappy (imho) actually, but the VOE is a cool option.

[mockingbird812]

Chambered Exh. are music to my ears. With solid lifter motors you can hear every tinkle of the lifters. Now, as for performance I have heard that they actually are not the best for performance enhancemet. You win some you lose some.

[DaJudge]

The VOE exhuast was an option but only on non- ram air cars. A big time misnomer was that the VOE enxhaust gave you open exhaust, in reality the mufflers had mooveable baffles and when activated the exhaust went from a standard sounding exhaust to a hipo or ram air exhaust sounding GTO

[Turbo Regal]

I don't know if this is true but I heard this commercial ran during the Super Bowl early in 1970 and the GM brass went ape because the govt. was cracking down on noise levels and they pulled the option after about 200 GTO left the factory with it.

[mockingbird812]

Not many made it out the door as I recall. Hadn't heard the super bowl story tho. There was an article a couple years back on VOE. It featured a car with it and described the system. I think it was in one of the Pontiac rags if I recall.

I'm sure Pontiac was responding to the youth when they released VOE (just as Chrysler listened with the release of the budget RR and Superbee 440-6 lift off hoods and no hubcaps). The message: the sound of your car was an important element in your car's reputation. Kids were going to the after market shops big-time to lay down cash for cherry bombs, thrush,. Kudos to Pontiac for taking a shot at their piece of the pie.

[ANDY M]

Muscle Car Review July '99 "Top 10 Rare Options".
The VOE was #1 at 233 ordered.

[mockingbird812]

Andy,

Was hoping someone wld do a little digging. Wasn't the article I was thinking of but dead on anyway. Thanks! From this article it sounds like the system actually by-passed the mufflers.

[Belair62]

If I'm not mistaken the muffler had an internal damper and it did not bypass. Pretty sure I saw that in the assembly manual;

[DaJudge]

That's correct Bob, I had the opportunity to look at an NOS set up years ago , cool option.