Byprodrive

iTrader: (1)

Ended my 2 month boycott on buying magazines yesterday bought July issue of Automobile to read about new GT3
"When did Pontiac start to go downhill? The day the door hit John Delorean in the a$$." by Jim Wangers former Pontiac ad executive

Automobile mispelled Delorean's name ( see thread in Car Chat about decline of quality in car mags)

IS-SV

Chief - That's why I rented a Vibe in Washington, it's better than the usual GM crap.

IS-SV

Let's see what they can carve out of the Pontiac lineup that's worth saving.

mmarshall

I have to disagree here some. Pontiac was still a viable company, and still made a number of popular vehicles long after DeLorean left. Examples were the Firebird Trans-Am, Grand Am, 6000STE, and Grand Prix. But, the awful Pontiac interiors of the 1990's, the dropping of the Firebird, and, of course, the Aztek itself, I admit, were serious mistakes.

GS69

GM's Pontiac Brand Officially Dies 2day

After 84 years, General Motors officially says goodbye forever today to Pontiac. No more Bonnevilles. No more Firebird Trans Ams. No more GTOs.

The New York Times just wrote an obituary for the brand:

It was 84 years old. The cause of death was in dispute. Fans said Pontiac's wounds were self-inflicted, while General Motors blamed a terminal illness contracted during last year's bankruptcy. Pontiac built its last car nearly a year ago, but the official end was set for Oct. 31, when G.M.'s agreements with Pontiac dealers expire.

The Times pays special attention to the GTO, brainchild of engineering bon vivant John DeLorean, who went on to create the car in his own name and to get caught, and later acquitted, in a FBI cocaine sting.

Even now, long after Pontiac disappeared from the headlines and sales lots but before today's official end, it seems strange for it to be gone.

Remember Pontiac excitement?:

The numerous attempts to revive the brand, and Oldsmobile before it? We thought some of those efforts, resulting in cars like the fun Solstice, above, were wholly worthwhile.

But without Pontiac, it's interesting to see what GM is making of the four brands that it has left. Buick fills the niche now left by Pontiac, and while it's not a performance brand, it's clear that GM is putting a lot more resources behind Buick than it ever did when it was another name in the underfunded pack.

So goodbye Pontiac. We will still be driving the GTOs and Trans Ams that you leave behind for decades.

IS-SV

Pontiac was a walking dead/bankrupt/money-losing sinkhole of division long before they finally pulled the plug.

I'm old enough to remember the glory days decades ago, rest in peace. Luved the GTO.

mmarshall

A lot of people don't (and didn't) know this, but John DeLorean quietly and clandestinely pushed the original GTO project through over the initial objections of his superiors at GM. DeLorean's concept, in 1963/64, called for a family-grade mid-size Tempest to use the high-performance 348 Tri-Power and 389 V8s, with a four-on-the-floor or 3-speed Turbo-Hydra-Matic option. It was not called the GTO as such, but simply a GTO trim level-option for the 2-door Tempest coupe (Ferrari had also previously used the GTO moniker). GM management, for a number of reasons (I won't go into them here), was against the project, and turned it down. DeLorean was so sure it was a good idea that he secretly ordered it into first-year production anyway, over the objections of his boss. When upper-level GM management saw the car's wild initial success, they ate some crow, admitted they were wrong, and gave the go-ahead for more production (and, of course, kept DeLorean on). As the original Mustang, that year, was destined to spawn the whole pony-car market, the GTO, of course, went on to spawn the whole market of mid-size coupes with big engines...the ubiquitous and classic American "Muscle-Car".