R.I.P. PONTIAC 1925-2010
- Thread starter DuceTheTruth
- Start date
The Ten Greatest Pontiacs
By Ben Wojdyla, 11:59 AM on Mon Apr 27 2009, 90,900 views
We told you months ago Pontiac was dead, but today GM CEO Fritz Henderson made it official. Now that the pointy-arrow brand is gone, we'll mourn by celebrating our ten favorite examples of driving excitement.
10) 1988 Pontiac Fiero GT
A Pontiac which never got much love till the end of its life was the Fiero. Burdened by the sluggish 2.5-liter "Iron Duke" four-cylinder and suspension bits from the lowly Citation, the Fiero started off with lead weights around its neck. By 1988 though, GM had seen the light and given it a proper suspension, eye-catching styling and improvements to both the four-cylinder and V6. It also gave the car the axe once it reached desirability. Seems there are parallels between the Fiero and the Pontiac brand.
9) 1956 Pontiac Star Chief
Pontiacs of old could be reliably counted on as the stylish, more sporting brother to their more staid Chevrolet counterparts. The '56 Pontiac Star Chief lineup can be considered the pinnacle of the Chieftain line, with a selection of sedans, convertibles and wagons all bringing the heat with beautiful body work and powerful V8 engines.
8) 2002 Pontiac Trans Am WS6
The 2002 Pontiac Trans Am WS6 was the final F-Body muscle car to come out of Pontiac, with a 325 HP LS1 V8, six speed manual and the last iteration of that famous "Ram Air" hood, it was a performance bargain at $28,000. The final year got the special yellow and black livery and if you've got one, it just went up in value.
7) 1978 Pontiac Trans Am
If you were a boy growing up in the 70s or early 80s, the '78 Pontiac Trans Am in the black and gold "Bandit" livery, complete with the flaming chicken vinyl on the hood, sat right next to the Lamborghini Countach in your fantasy garage. For '78, the compression was bumped in the top-line V8 and this end-of-malaise era automobile made a stout (for the time) 220 HP. Burt Reynolds, along with that repressed little redneck inside all of us, will miss the '78 Trans Am.
6) 1969 Pontiac GTO "Judge"
The second generation GTO picked up right were the first generation left off, adopting a more modern fastback styling language and hugely powerful 400 cubic inch V8's rated all the way up to 370 HP. The Judge package was kinda hokey but also pretty cool, with wild color options, matching decals, spoilers, a Ram Air hood and a T-handle Hurst shifter. Bring on the Judge.
5) Pontiac Bonneville
The Bonneville was Pontiac's longest surviving nameplate, running from 1957 to 2005 when it mercifully got the axe. As lackadaisical as the car had been for the last 20 or so years, there were some gems throughout its history. The 1999 SSEi had woeful build quality, but when it held together the FWD 240 HP supercharged V6 was a hoot (as was battling torque steer). The monstrous '71 Bonnie wore a 455 cubic inch V8 and four barrel carb good for 325 HP and the '59 model wore outrageous quadruple fins.
4) 2009 Pontiac Solstice GXP Coupe
The 2009 Pontiac Solstice GXP Coupe solves the main problems we have with the Solstice/Saturn Sky twins with actual cargo space and no more pain-in-the-butt convertible top to operate, while keeping the 260 HP Ecotec inline-four and a six speed manual driving the rear wheels. It's a targa-topped Miata competitor and faithfully re-interprets the awkward little British coupes we love and loathe. Buy one now as the take rate is so slow you could park it in the garage and sell it for a profit.
3) 2010 Pontiac G8 ST
They say to have loved and lost is better than to have never loved at all. We call baloney on whoever says that. GM tantalized us with the 2010 Pontiac G8 ST ahead of the 2008 New York Auto Show and our dreams of a modern, tire-smoking, truck-car, mullet-machine were so close to reality. A year later GM squashed the G8 ST under the force of the Carpocalypse, and now Pontiac follows it to the grave.
2) 1964 Pontiac GTO
The 1964 Pontiac GTO was little more than a hot-rodded LeMans, but the 325 HP, 389 cubic inch V8 with a Carter four-barrel carb, dual exhaust and a three-speed Hurst manual transmission ignited the original muscle car wars. It lit a fire in Pontiac showrooms, selling three times the projected annual sales and it will always have a special place in every car guy's heart.
1) 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP
Finally America had gotten it right — by importing a car from Australia. The 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP had everything — raucous styling, a 415 HP 6.3-liter V8, six speed transmission and rear wheel drive. Our own Wes Siler posited GM should be saved for no other reason than to put the G8 GXP on the road. If you've managed to get your hot little hands on one, hold onto it, like an artists painting, it'll be worth much more once Pontiac is dead.
By Ben Wojdyla, 11:59 AM on Mon Apr 27 2009, 90,900 views
10) 1988 Pontiac Fiero GT
9) 1956 Pontiac Star Chief
8) 2002 Pontiac Trans Am WS6
7) 1978 Pontiac Trans Am
6) 1969 Pontiac GTO "Judge"
5) Pontiac Bonneville
4) 2009 Pontiac Solstice GXP Coupe
3) 2010 Pontiac G8 ST
2) 1964 Pontiac GTO
1) 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP
yeah them Ls1's are beasts. i put the SS hood on mine and painted the scoop black and threw dubs on it, my shit was hella sick back then. now fools put 22s and shit and 24s on maros, im like wTF? its a sports car asshole, your taking all the sport out of it, how are u gonna dodge the cops when ur wheel is bigger than ur car.
