What happened to Jimmy Hoffa's car?
His body might never be found - but what about his Pontiac?
Most people born after 1975 might have little to no idea who Jimmy Hoffa truly was, other than that he was a prominent historical figure who disappeared and was likely murdered by the mob. After watching Martin Scorsese's "The Irishman" about five times (I'm not ashamed), I've dived deep into the Hoffa lure, and let me tell you that it is compelling.
He might have been guilty of some criminal activity and spent less than five years in federal prison, "but let's not get bogged down by that". Hoffa was more of a hero than a villain to millions of American families. Throughout his life and during his 1957-1971 tenure as President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, one of the biggest labor unions in the world, he fought for increased wages, benefits, and better working conditions for blue collar workers.
At an early age, Hoffa saw how companies treated their employees unfairly and he dedicated his life to protecting them. He was quite fearless, and was never a man to shy away from putting up his fists, but perhaps his cockiness got the better of him in his dance with mobsters. Decades of theories and investigations have gone by, yet we still don't know the truth of what happened to him. We may never.
Anyway, about the car.
I've discovered another mystery surrounding Jimmy Hoffa --- his car. I feel that any historical figure's car is significant and intriguing, this one being precisely that. The only one I could find of his is this green 1974 Pontiac Grand Ville that he owned at the time of his disappearance on July 30, 1975.
The car after Hoffa's disappearance
Building his roots and success in Michigan, this luxurious Pontiac was perfectly suited for the boss. The Grand Ville knocked down the Bonneville model in 1971 to take the place as the highest trim level Pontiac offered. This was much more prestigious. It stretched out just over 226 inches in length, only a few shy of the equally posh Lincoln Continental and Cadillac DeVille of the same era.
a grand ville for a grand boss.
The Grand Ville was manufactured from 1971 though 1975, and came standard equipped with a 7.5 L V8 engine, with the exception of the '75 model, whose standard engine was a 6.6 L. As you can see in the above photo, this car had exceptional chrome accents around the front and rear bumpers. I couldn't find an original price for it, but if you were looking to purchase one these days, it will cost anywhere between $6,000 and $40,000 (yeah...that doesn't help).
The oil crisis in the early 1970's factored in to the end of these American land yachts. But when you're a man worth about $13 million (of today's dollar) and were commuted from the can a few years prior, of course you're still going to buy one. It's disappointing he only got to drive it for about a year before he poofed into thin air.
What happened to it?
The day after Jimmy Hoffa disappeared, police found his Pontiac in the parking lot of the Machus Red Fox restaurant, located in Bloomfield Twp., north of Detroit, Michigan. This was the last confirmed place he was seen alive. The car was left unlocked and no signs of foul play were to be found.
His last ride alive might have been in a red 1975 Mercury Marquis Brougham, one that investigators found his DNA in back in 2001. It is believed he entered the Mercury at the restaurant with other men already in it, and then driven to his fate.
A policeman at the trunk of the Pontiac.
It can be assumed that Hoffa's car was returned to his wife or children, in hopes that the man himself would also return. His wife, Josephine, died only five years after the disappearance. Did she have the car? If so, what happened to it after she passed? Do one of his children have it today?
Was it sold? Was it destroyed? Is it rotting away in someone's barn in the middle of nowhere in Nebraska? Is it sitting in some police garage in Michigan, still being held as evidence?
If it exists in tact, would it be appropriate to display in a museum, granted his family allows it? I believe it would be appreciated by patrons at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. However, would it be awkward to display Hoffa's personal whip under the same roof as the 1961 Lincoln Continental SS-X-100 limousine that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in? Maybe there's another place...
This is all my own curiosity. I'd love to know what became of his car. Vehicles owned by historical figures are fascinating to me, because just like any of us as car owners, our ride says something about our life. Jimmy Hoffa's Pontiac Grand Ville screamed power and prestige, but also pride in where he came from and built his everlasting impact on America. It just so happened to be right in the heart of our country's automotive manufacturing capital.
Bonus points to you if you can identify the car he's seen with here, back in the 1950's.
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Comments (34)
Hoffa is alive and well running a kebab shop in Wigan serving his famous shergar doner and Lucan burger along with his mouth watering elvis shakes
Impressive for a 107 year old😂
Still going strong to
I somehow always think of Ray Stevens “I saw Elvis in a UFO” when I hear Hoffa mentioned. Probably because “Jimmy Hoffa was in there too”.
The aliens are now unionized 😄
Haha
Great article, for the 1950's photo I'm going to guess a 1958 Oldsmobile 98. He seemed to be a GM man. For fun, here's my 1970 Catalina. Pontiac made some amazingly fun cars back in the day.
You might be exactly right on the Oldsmobile! From pics I found, it looks like the beautiful detailing on the sides match right up. Thanks for the info! And yes Pontiac did have some stunners back then. Do you still have this one?
I do not, but I wish I did, was a fun car, drove like a boat and just sailed (floated) along the roads...
I totally get the curiosity of what happened with famous people's cars. Many cars have had a major role in the historical events, for instance the Citroen DS that let Charles de Gaulle escape from the famous assassination he survived, thanks to it's extraordinary suspension system.
Nowadays people seem to forget how much we owe to the automotive industry.
Yes that is precisely what I was hoping to show in this article 😊 Cars can sometimes be overlooked in history, but they really are extremely important and have been involved in even changing history
I had a 1972 Pontiac Catalina 4 door hardtop. These were immense cars. Not only were they long, but also wide. I washed and waxed the car with a floor mop. In fact, I used floor wax to wax the car. It was just too big to wash and wax by hand.
The thing is these old land yacht are so big you could hide a body in the car body somewhere.
What a car that must have been to own! Did you enjoy driving it? Sounds like it was an adventure to clean it lol Hoffa stood only around 5'5", so he could have easily been put up underneath one of these fenders..... oh 😫
Once I adapted to the size, it was quite comfortable and stable. You had to have excellent spatial awareness trying a maneuver a car that big and a feel for that much mass.
These "land yachts" were the SUV's of their day, especially the...
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