The Humbler: Pontiac’s GTO Super Bowl Ad That Was Silenced
Pontiac aired a 1970 Super Bowl IV ad for the GTO that spotlighted a rarely used option called Vacuum Operated Exhaust (VOE), nicknamed 'The Humbler.' The loud, bold exhaust feature led GM to pull the commercial within a month and discontinue the VOE after only about 233 GTOs were built, with executives reportedly fearing legal trouble and negative scrutiny over promoting illegal street racing. The clip shows a brash GTO cruising a drive-in and flipping a dash knob to unleash a louder roar, a moment that's since become a curious footnote in muscle-car advertising history.