Whatever Happened to Pontiac Excitement?
Who could ever believe this could happen? Soon Pontiac will be no more.
The name Pontiac used to reek of coolness! From developing the “wide-track” concept at the dawn of the 1960’s, by the mid-60’s Pontiac was on the cutting edge of highly attractive automobiles whose high performance models were the rage.
Consider the modest Pontiac Tempest introduced as a plain-Jane small to midsized car in 1961. It offered a Lemans model that was more decked out, but it was still a relatively modest car. In 1964, the Pontiac mid-sized car had new skin and a new attitude offering almost all the goodies available on the full-sized Pontiacs. However, there was a high performance option that would start a new rage in Detroit, the GTO performance package. For $296, the customer got a powerful 389 V-8 engine with all kinds of performance goodies and extra styling add-ons that said “fast.” This was the dawn of the muscle car boom in Detroit as Chevrolet would add the Malibu SS (then SS-396) and Oldsmobile would add a 442 to its Cutlass line. Even Buick featured a GS model. Soon Ford introduced the Fairlane then Torino GT models with similar Cyclone models with Mercury. Chrysler introduced a Satellite GTX for Plymouth, attempted to upstage the whole muscle car stable with their fastback Dodge Charger, then they even introduced a stripped down to just the muscle, Road Runner.
Meanwhile, the full-sized Pontiacs were beauties with some of GM’s boldest styling and characteristic split grill design, the Bonneville was the biggest and the baddest while the Catalina and Executive were for more pragmatic needs. Also, on the shortest full sized wheelbase was the sporty big boy, the Grand Prix.
While Chevrolet introduced the Camaro in 1967, later that model year, Pontiac was not to be denied. The Pontiac Firebird raced on the scene as Pontiac’s entry into the Pony Car market. From the side, it looked almost identical to the Camaro whose platform it shared, but the taillights and rear styling came directly from the GTO and the front end view was classic Pontiac with a more aerodynamic twist.
Forty years ago, things couldn’t have been better for Pontiac, the nation’s third best selling brand only behind Chevrolet and Ford. As high performance gave way to fuel economy and safety in the 1970’s, the Pontiac’s image became harder to maintain, but the Firebird and its high performance, TransAm, were still widely popular cars especially when Ford converted its once proud Mustang to little more than a jazzed up Pinto. The 1980’s saw Pontiac’s full-sized Bonneville regaining some of the most attractive styling of all full sized cars but quality control issues started to plague the brand. Their midsized cars had no sizzle and no unique features to draw customers. In the 1990’s, the Grand Am would be a relatively popular compact model while the Grand Prix became the nameplate for their midsized fleet. Pontiac was no longer the big player it once was but still had a steady following.
The new millennium would be cruel to Pontiac. The Firebird and TransAm were discontinued after the 2002 model year, then as if not learning the lessons which lead to the end of Oldsmobile in 2005, Pontiac discarded its familiar marquee names to a series of cars all starting with the letter, “G.” The “G” cars had no “gee whiz” appeal, but instead spelled “get lost.” Efforts to introduce a high-powered sports sedan reviving the GTO nameplate proved a miserable failure as a stable of G-3’s, 5’s, 6’s, and 8’s do little to capture the car buyer’s imagination.
As Pontiac’s demise is announced, some will consider it a death brought on by fierce competition particularly from Honda and Toyota, but in reality, it should probably be noted as suicide. Pontiac was a brand name that had everything going for it a generation ago, now it hobbles into nonexistence a faceless brand with nothing unique, no “it” factor to stay on the road.
Who could ever see what Pontiac accomplished in the 60’s and Oldsmobile gained in the 70’s would have ever seen both brands dying out so miserably soon after the dawn of the new millennium. They used to know their customers and built cars that wowed them. A once great corporation like a mighty freight train speeding off its track killed these great American brands. Lovers of Michigan metal must be saddened by these losses.
Pontiacs were hot. Pontiac excitement meant high performance and sexy styling. They were a notch above the everyman Fords and Chevy’s but were priced within the reach of those standard brands.
Pontiac lost its identity up to now where the “G” cars are hardly worth a car lover’s “gee whiz” so now it’s good bye to a once wildly popular brand. And then there were four: Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac, and GMC. Oldsmobile is gone. Saturn, Hummer, and Saab have been left by the wayside, now Pontiac. Only the new Mustangs, Camaros, and Challengers give today’s generation a glimpse of the kind of excitement Detroit brought forth every September with Pontiac often leading the way in the “excitement” department. In a world of today’s Fords, Toyotas, Nissans, and Hondas – boring is the word.
Who could ever believe this could happen? Soon Pontiac will be no more.
The name Pontiac used to reek of coolness! From developing the “wide-track” concept at the dawn of the 1960’s, by the mid-60’s Pontiac was on the cutting edge of highly attractive automobiles whose high performance models were the rage.
Consider the modest Pontiac Tempest introduced as a plain-Jane small to midsized car in 1961. It offered a Lemans model that was more decked out, but it was still a relatively modest car. In 1964, the Pontiac mid-sized car had new skin and a new attitude offering almost all the goodies available on the full-sized Pontiacs. However, there was a high performance option that would start a new rage in Detroit, the GTO performance package. For $296, the customer got a powerful 389 V-8 engine with all kinds of performance goodies and extra styling add-ons that said “fast.” This was the dawn of the muscle car boom in Detroit as Chevrolet would add the Malibu SS (then SS-396) and Oldsmobile would add a 442 to its Cutlass line. Even Buick featured a GS model. Soon Ford introduced the Fairlane then Torino GT models with similar Cyclone models with Mercury. Chrysler introduced a Satellite GTX for Plymouth, attempted to upstage the whole muscle car stable with their fastback Dodge Charger, then they even introduced a stripped down to just the muscle, Road Runner.
Meanwhile, the full-sized Pontiacs were beauties with some of GM’s boldest styling and characteristic split grill design, the Bonneville was the biggest and the baddest while the Catalina and Executive were for more pragmatic needs. Also, on the shortest full sized wheelbase was the sporty big boy, the Grand Prix.
While Chevrolet introduced the Camaro in 1967, later that model year, Pontiac was not to be denied. The Pontiac Firebird raced on the scene as Pontiac’s entry into the Pony Car market. From the side, it looked almost identical to the Camaro whose platform it shared, but the taillights and rear styling came directly from the GTO and the front end view was classic Pontiac with a more aerodynamic twist.
Forty years ago, things couldn’t have been better for Pontiac, the nation’s third best selling brand only behind Chevrolet and Ford. As high performance gave way to fuel economy and safety in the 1970’s, the Pontiac’s image became harder to maintain, but the Firebird and its high performance, TransAm, were still widely popular cars especially when Ford converted its once proud Mustang to little more than a jazzed up Pinto. The 1980’s saw Pontiac’s full-sized Bonneville regaining some of the most attractive styling of all full sized cars but quality control issues started to plague the brand. Their midsized cars had no sizzle and no unique features to draw customers. In the 1990’s, the Grand Am would be a relatively popular compact model while the Grand Prix became the nameplate for their midsized fleet. Pontiac was no longer the big player it once was but still had a steady following.
The new millennium would be cruel to Pontiac. The Firebird and TransAm were discontinued after the 2002 model year, then as if not learning the lessons which lead to the end of Oldsmobile in 2005, Pontiac discarded its familiar marquee names to a series of cars all starting with the letter, “G.” The “G” cars had no “gee whiz” appeal, but instead spelled “get lost.” Efforts to introduce a high-powered sports sedan reviving the GTO nameplate proved a miserable failure as a stable of G-3’s, 5’s, 6’s, and 8’s do little to capture the car buyer’s imagination.
As Pontiac’s demise is announced, some will consider it a death brought on by fierce competition particularly from Honda and Toyota, but in reality, it should probably be noted as suicide. Pontiac was a brand name that had everything going for it a generation ago, now it hobbles into nonexistence a faceless brand with nothing unique, no “it” factor to stay on the road.
Who could ever see what Pontiac accomplished in the 60’s and Oldsmobile gained in the 70’s would have ever seen both brands dying out so miserably soon after the dawn of the new millennium. They used to know their customers and built cars that wowed them. A once great corporation like a mighty freight train speeding off its track killed these great American brands. Lovers of Michigan metal must be saddened by these losses.
Pontiacs were hot. Pontiac excitement meant high performance and sexy styling. They were a notch above the everyman Fords and Chevy’s but were priced within the reach of those standard brands.
Pontiac lost its identity up to now where the “G” cars are hardly worth a car lover’s “gee whiz” so now it’s good bye to a once wildly popular brand. And then there were four: Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac, and GMC. Oldsmobile is gone. Saturn, Hummer, and Saab have been left by the wayside, now Pontiac. Only the new Mustangs, Camaros, and Challengers give today’s generation a glimpse of the kind of excitement Detroit brought forth every September with Pontiac often leading the way in the “excitement” department. In a world of today’s Fords, Toyotas, Nissans, and Hondas – boring is the word.
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