Individuality is the key to any good customization package. Such was the idea behind finding a car that had none of the appeal of more popular models, like the Mustang or Civic. So when Bryan Wettengel went looking for a project vehicle, he skipped over the easy sports car setups and stumbled into the more obscure class of compact executive cars.

But the Pontiac Grand Am ended up being no slouch, even if it does have a reputation for being a little less than arousing. The peppy 3.4-liter V-6 puts out 185 horsepower, and that was enough for Wettengel, who at the time was more interested in what he could accomplish on the body curves than the performance curve.