Pontiac Archives

Pontiac is dead, but one of its last models, the G8 may return to the US badged as a Chevy.

Austalia's Holden Commodore was the basis for the Pontiac G8 and when GM decided to kill off Pontiac, the G8 was also buried. According to Drive, senior engineer for General Motors, Al Oppenheiser, confirmed that talks are under way to sell the Commodore inthe US as a Chevy sports sedan.

"We are definitely looking at that, although we have made no official announcement as yet," Oppenheiser said. "We are definitely looking at doing something with Holden for the retail market."

Another unnamed source confirmed that the deal has been approved.

Heide Performance Products has released teaser photos of its attempt at turning a Chevy Camaro into a Pontiac Trans-Am. What do you think? The Trans-Am knock off is going to be officially unveiled at SEMA next week.

Toyota has announced a voluntary recall of 1.13 million 2005-2008 Corolla and Matrix vehicles to address and issue with the 1.8L four-cylinder engine. According to Toyota some of the engine control modules have been improperly manufactured.

The engine could stall in effected vehicles due to cracks that could develop on the ECM's circuit board. There have been at least three accidents related to this issue.

Beginning next month, Toyota will replace the ECM on the recalled vehicles.

Don't forget that the Pontiac Vibe was built on the same platform as the Corolla/ Matrix. GM has also issued a recall of the 2005-2008 model year Vibes.

GM has announced a recall of 1.3 million Chevy Cobalts and Pontiac G5 models to replace a motor in the power steering system. The affected models were built from 2005-2010. The motors need to be replaced due to the fact that over time they can fail.

"After our in-depth investigation, we found that this is a condition that takes time to develop. It tends to occur in older models out of warranty," said Jamie Hresko, GM Vice President of Quality. "Recalling these vehicles is the right thing to do for our customers' peace of mind.

"While greater steering effort under 15 mph may be required, if the customer experiences loss of power steering assist, it is important to note that the vehicle can still be safely controlled because the customer can still steer the vehicle," Hresko said. "When the condition occurs, both a chime will sound and a 'Power Steering' message will be displayed."

Now that GM has officially killed Saturn and Pontiac there is a good chance that you can get a good deal on the few remaining models at your local dealer. According to The Wall Street Journal GM is offering dealers incentives to speed up the sale of the remaining vehicles.

The latest reports claim that GM sent a letter to Saturn and Pontiac dealers offering them up to $7,000 per vehicle that is moved to rental-vehicle or service-vehicle fleets. This means that the remaining vehicles would first be owned by the dealer making them "used", but then the dealer could then sell them at a deeper discount.

The deal has an expiration date of January 4th, the last last day of the December car sales month.

There are some strange rumors brewing between DeLorean Motor Company and Pontiac. You will recall that DeLorean was responsible for the production of the "Back to the Future" car in the 80's. Well since then the company has basically been just servicing the old DMC's. Now there are rumors that DeLorean may be considering buying the recently killed Pontiac Solstice platform and the Wilmington Assembly Plant that produced it from GM.

Apparenly DeLorean's founder had a long history with Pontiac, so it's current management is speculating if their founder would have tried to save it.

"JZD always said that the best memories of his automotive career were at Pontiac, and that connection between JZD and Pontiac is probably one of the better known associations among car enthusiasts," said James Espey, Vice President of the DeLorean Motor Company.

Currently the company has a Pontiac Solstice GXP Coupe in its possession for evaluation. DeLorean has also released the drawings you see here.

The last Pontiac Solstice has rolled off the line at GM's Boxwood Road assembly plant. When GM entered bankruptcy on June 1st, the automaker announced that it would be closing the plant by the end of July that builds the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky roadsters. The announcement at the time wasn't a total surprise since GM had been looking for a buyer for Saturn and since Pontiac had been given a death sentence.

The last roadster produced was a silver Solstice.

Earlier this week, the newly unretired Bob Lutz stated that the soon to be dead Pontiac G8 was going to live on under the Chevy brand as the Caprice in the US. This statement contradicted statements from GM CEO Fritz Henderson who stated that the G8 would not be rebranded for one of GM's remaining brands.

Well now it looks like Lutz is retracting his earlier statements:

"The G8 will not be a Caprice after all. I'd mentioned it, and said we were studying it, giving it a serious look, because a car like the G8 was just too good to waste."

"That's all still true. But I have to say that, with my new "marketing" hat on, upon further review and careful study, we simply cannot make a business case for such a program. Not in today's market, in this economy, and with fuel regulations what they are and will be."

Although GM CEO Fritz Henderson has repeatedly stated that the Pontiac G8 would not be sold under another GM brand after Pontiac's demise, Bob Lutz has reportedly stated it will. Bob Lutz recently stated that the Pontiac G8 will live on under the Chevy brand as the Chevy Caprice.

"The last time we looked at [the G8], we decided that we would continue to import it as a Chevrolet," Lutz said. "It is kind of too good to waste."

GM has announced the start of a 72-hour sale that includes zero percent financing for up to 72 months on all Pontiacs and large Chevy and GMC trucks and SUVs.

The soon to be dead Pontiac Vibe, G3, G5, G6 and G8 are all included in the sale, which starts today and funny enough runs through July 6th. Too bad that is a little longer than 72 hours... In addition to all the Pontiac models, GM is also including the Chevy Impala, Silverado and Tahoe in addition to the GMC Yukon and Sierra models in the sale.

Other GM models will also have zero percent financing, but for only 60 months.

GM has announced plans to end its 25 year New United Motor Manufacturing Incorporated (NUMMI) joint venture with Toyota.

The plant currently produces the Pontiac Vibe and has produced other GM vehicles such as the Geo/Chevrolet Prizm in the past. Production of the Vibe will end at the plant in August. GM and Toyota could not come to an agreement on a product plan that made sense for both parties.

It's not known what this announcement will mean for the Fremont, CA plant that also produces the Toyota Corolla and Tacoma.

Well it was Chrysler last month and now as many people expected, GM has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

GM has officially filed for bankruptcy in a New York court citing $82 billion in assets, but an astounding $172 billion in debts. Although GM for most of its 100-year history has managed to hold the title as the world's largest automaker, the automaker has seen its sales drop almost 50 percent this year.

“Today marks a new beginning for General Motors,” GM Chairman Kent Kresa said in a statement this morning. “A court-supervised process and transfer of assets will enable a New GM to emerge as a stronger, healthier, more focused and nimbler company with a determination not to just survive but to excel.”

The process will see GM divided into two groups, good assets and bad assets. The good assets will become part of the new "leaner" GM and the bad assets will be liquidated. To aid in the process the U.S. treasury is going to provide an additional $30 billion to finance GM during the bankruptcy, which brings the total to almost $50 billion.

Just like Chrysler did yesterday, GM has announced plans to close 1,100 of its "underperforming" dealers.

Although GM has identified the 1,100 dealers that will be closed, the automaker is not closing any dealerships today. GM will be working with the dealerships over the next few weeks to come up with a long term plan. It is expected that their will be a wind-down of the affected dealers over the next year. This is in contrast to Chrysler's plans to close its affected dealers by June 9th.

GM likely to announce more dealer cuts in the future since the automaker wants to pare down its network from 5,969 stores to approximately 3,600 by the end of 2010.

Following the announcement of Chrysler's bankruptcy yesterday, attention is now focusing on what will happen to GM at the end of this month.

GM has a deadline of June 1st to convince 90 percent of its bondholders to swap $27 billion in debt for a 10 percent stake in the company. If the United Auto Workers and bondholders cannot agree to money-saving concessions by the end of the month, GM could also be forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

"When there is a lot of bluffing going on in any negotiation, this shows the government is serious," said Jeremy Anwyl, chief executive officer of Edmunds.com

Earlier this week GM announced an updated Viability Plan that announced the death of Pontiac, more plant and dealer closures and more job cuts in an effort to qualify for more government aid.

Currently GM and its bond holders remain far apart on an agreement to swap debt for stake in the company. GM originally offered a 10 percent stake in exchange for $27 billion in debt, but the bond holders quickly counter offered with a deal that would give them a 58 percent stake in the company.

GM's current exchange offer expires on May 26.

The news that GM has killed Pontiac may make some of you want to rush out and buy a G8 or Solstice in the hope that it may one day become a collectors item, but you may want to rethink that.

According to General Manager Rob Huting of AutoTrader Classic, the current Pontiacs are unlikely to become significant to collectors. GM has already produced 12,000 units of the G8, which has only been on the market for a short time. Although it represents a good performance value, it is unlikely to become as collectible as say a Corvette. The same will likely go for the Solstice or any other car currently in the Pontiac lineup.

As was rumored last week, GM has officially announced the death of the Pontiac brand this morning.

General Motors released an updated Viability Plan this morning that focuses on speeding up the reinvention of GM's U.S. operations. GM hopes to become more leaner, more customer focused and a more cost-competitive automaker.

GM is going to continue to focus on its four core brands, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC, which unfortunately for G8 fans means the death of Pontiac. Pontiac is going to be phased out by the end of 2010. In 2010 GM plans on offering a total of 34 nameplates, which is a reduction of 29 percent from 48 nameplates in 2008.

The updated plan also moves up the resolution of Saab, Saturn and Hummer to the end of 2009, at the latest, which is two years earlier than expected for Saturn.

Last week it was rumored that GM could eventually kill Pontiac and GMC to cut costs. Now according to Inside Line, GM could kill Pontiac as early as this coming Monday.

Inside Line called Tom Wilkinson, news relations PR man for General Motors, who said: "There's nothing I can share with you at this time. Keep your eyes on our media site. Officially, nothing has changed with Pontiac's niche-brand status, until you hear differently."

Pontiac was officially labeled as a "niche" brand in GM's first viability plan that was released last December. According to a source GM is going to announce a "faster, deeper" reorganization plan that will likely include a death sentence for the brand that brought us the GTO, Firebird and most recently the G8.

GM may be close to a June 1st bankruptcy filing if the automaker can't restructure. In an effort to show that the automaker is serious GM may kill Pontiac and GMC in an effort to further cut costs.

Killing Pontiac and GMC would eventually mean that GM would only have three brands: Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac. The Saturn, Saab and HUMMER brands are either going to be sold off or closed.

According to some sources GMC has a better chance of surviving than Pontiac.

Currently the two brands are being studied as GM tries to find a way to avoid bankruptcy.

Late last year when GM announced plans to sell a Pontiac-badged version (G3) of the Korean made Chevy Aveo, many of us asked why. Well apparently car buyers have asked the same question or have at least ignored the thinky revised Chevy Aveo that is now also sitting in Pontiac showrooms as the Pontiac G3.

Last month Pontiac only sold 141 units, which means that roughly only 1 in every 19 of GM's approximately 2,700 Pontiac dealers sold a G3. To make matters worse at the end of March Pontiac dealers had 3,479 G3's in stock, which based on the current selling rate would mean that it would take 617 days to move them...almost two years!

Of course the G3 was just launched in February and sometimes it takes new models a few months to ramp up, but the news doesn't look good.

General Motors has launched a new customer protection package called GM Total Confidence to encourage people to start buying cars again.

The new package is similar to what Hyundai launched a few months ago, although GM's version goes a bit further to help potential buyers. The payment protection plan will pay your car payment up to nine months if you lose your job within the first two years of vehicle ownership ($500 max per month). The residual value of the buyer's vehicle is also protected and one year of OnStar is also included.

The GM Total Confidence plan is available for vehicles purchased between April 1 - April 30, 2009.

GM released its Viability Plan yesterday in which the automaker revealed its plans to return the company to profitability. Today GM has announced that it is disbanding its high-performance unit.

This team was responsible for the development of the V-series Cadillacs and the Chevrolet Cobalt SS, HHR SS and a V-8 version of the Colorado.

"All high-performance projects are on indefinite hold," spokesman Vince Muniga said. "The engineers are moving into different areas of the organization, and they will work on Cadillacs, Buicks, Chevrolets and Pontiacs."

There are currently no plans for high-performance versions of future vehicles.

The team could be reinstated once GM is back in the black.

Just as Chrysler submitted its Viability Plan to the U.S. Treasury Department, GM also submitted its own plan which detailed the automaker's plans to turn the company around. In Chrysler's plan the new Chrysler 300 and Jeep Grand Cherokee were revealed. GM also revealed a new model in its plan as well, the production version of the Cadillac CTS Coupe.

In addition to the CTS Coupe, GM also detailed plans for a new dual-clutch transmission, a new range of four-cylinder engines, a production version of the Cadillac Converj and a third generation hybrid system that will be released by 2015.

GM has already received $13.4 billion in loans from the U.S. goverment, but in its viability plan, the automaker asked for an additional $16.6 billion.

Part of GM's restructuring plan is to focus on its core brands; Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC. GM is going to make a decision by the end of March if it will sell or phase out the HUMMER brand. Saab is currently on the market and Saturn is going to be phased out at the end of the current product cycle.

Pickuptruck.com is reporting that GM has quietly decided to kill plans for the 2010 Pontiac G8 ST.

GM unveiled the Pontiac G8 ST last year at the New York Auto show. The unibody pickup version of the G8 sedan was expected to be V8 powered, feature a 74-inch cargo bed and be able to tow up to 3,500 pounds. The vehicle immediately recalled previous vehicles like the Chevrolet El Camino and Ford Ranchero.

Last month, Susan Docherty, vice president of Buick-Pontiac-GMC stated that GM was going to pare down the number of Pontiac vehicles and that the G8 ST was under review to see if it made sense.

The G8 ST was expected to be launched as a 2010 model with prices starting in the low $30,000's. It was also rumored that GM was going to introduce a V6 version of the vehicle with the same direct-injection V6 as the upcoming Camaro.

Should we be sad?

Pontiac has announced the pricing for the 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP. Pricing starts at $39,995.

The G8 GXP is powered by a 6.2L V8 that puts out 415 horsepower and 415 lb-ft. of torque. It reaches 0-60 mph in under 5 seconds and comes standard with a six-speed automatic transmission. A six-speed manual is available.

Today Congress is meeting to discuss the details of the $25 billion bailout plan for U.S. automakers. Debates are going back and forth from both sides on how to solve this problem. Some senators are now even saying that the CEO's of the Big 3 should consider stepping down from their positions if that is what it will take for Congress to approve the plan.

During an interview yesterday on NBC’S “Meet the Press”, Michigan Sen. Carl Levin stated I’d be happy to tell (GM CEO) Rick Wagoner that he ought to consider resigning if that is the difference between getting this kind of support and not. If it was the difference between getting this kind of support or not, obviously the management should consider resigning."

GM has put together an informational video of what it predicts will happen if the Big Three automakers all fail next year.

Some highlights:
-If all three fail next year it will result in 3 million U.S. jobs lost in the first year
-Total governement tax loss over three years = $156.4 billion
-The U.S. GDP would drop 4 percent, compare that to the fact that the current economic downturn was caused by a .3 percent drop
-One out of every ten jobs in the U.S. relies on the U.S. auto industry

These past few weeks have been really bad for GM and now comes news that the automaker has canceled all of its press events at the LA Auto Show next week.

It's already been reported that GM canceled plans to unveil the new Buick LaCrosse and the production version of the CTS Coupe at the show. GM spokesman Scott Fosgard told the Detroit News that all of GM's bad financial news and the pending government bailout would have overshadowed the show.

Instead of showing anything new GM is going to bring the Chevy Volt and the Saab 9-4X Air Concept that was unveiled in Paris.

Very sad...

Last week GM reported that it lost $2.5 billion in the third quarter of 2008, while spending $6.9 billion. Today General Motors stock has plunged more than 31 percent to their lowest level in more than 55 years after two analysts downgraded GM's stock claiming that it will be worth very little of nothing if GM does receive a government bailout.

Deutsche Bank analyst Rod Lache reduced GM to sell and put a price target of $0 a share.

"Without government assistance, we believe that GM's collapse would be inevitable, and that it would precipitate systemic risk that would be difficult to overcome for automakers, suppliers, retailers, and sectors of the U.S. economy," Lache wrote. "As part of GM's restructuring, we are also convinced that a large number of stakeholders who are senior to GM's equity will have to settle for pennies on the dollar."

GM officially unveiled the Pontiac Solstice Coupe at the New York Auto Show earlier this year and now the automaker is going to show off a GXP version of the coupe at this year's SEMA show.

Although rumors are circulating that the Pontiac G8 may be dead in five years (Pontiac has denied these rumors), Pontiac still has two new versions of the G8 to introduce. The G8 GXP will be in dealerships by the end of the year and the "truck" of the G8, the G8 ST will be released mid-2009.

According to Pontiac spokesman Jim Hopson, the 6.0L V8 equipped G8 ST will be priced in the low $30,000 range when it hits dealerships next year. Hopson also hinted that there is a good chance that the G8 ST will also be available with a V6.

Last week it was reported that GM was going to cancel the next-generation Pontiac G8 and Solstice models.

Well now Pontiac has responded to those rumors by saying that those rumors are not true. It's true that the G8 just launched earlier this year and is one of GM's best products sold in the US, so it does seem a little crazy to speculate that the GM is going to kill the model in a short five years. Especially considering that the G8 GXP will be in showrooms by the end of the year and the G8 ST is going to be released next summer, but who knows. Crazier things have happened considering the state of the current market. A stronger case could be made about the fate of the Solstice considering its much lower sales. It would make more sense for GM to cut the Solstice than the G8 if the automaker is trying to cut costs/ models.

But who knows. Everything is speculation. Either way enjoy the next five years...

Pontiac launched the G8 earlier this year and received positive reviews from the automotive media, but it looks like Pontiac's most exciting model in a long time is going to be short lived.

According to sources the rear-wheel-drive Pontiac G8 will be dead in five years. InsideLine is reporting that Pontiac will not receive the next-generation platform that underpins the Australian Holden Commodore. GM is going to reposition the Pontiac brand due to the rise in fuel economy standards and consumers' increasing demand for fuel efficient vehicles.

There will also not be a new Pontiac Solstice/ Saturn Sky. This means that Pontiac will no longer have any rear wheel drive vehicles in its lineup. What's left is the boring G6, G5 (rebadged Cobalt) and G3 (rebadged Aveo), none of which are particularly sporty. The G6 is also not going to receive a full redo for about another five years.

Just when we thought GM was done with the sort of badge engineering they did in the 80's they go and unveil the Pontiac G3, which is basically a Chevy Aveo with a new grille.

GM officially unveiled the 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP earlier this year and now according to the SAE the final output from the 6.2L V8 is 415 horsepower and 415 lb-ft. of torque.

GM launched the "Employee Pricing for Everyone" campaign last month to move the remaining 08' models and a few 09' models off dealer lots...well GM has extended the program until the end of September.

GM officially unveiled the 2010 Pontiac G8 Sport Truck earlier this year with the same 361-horsepower 6.0L V8 as the sedan, well now it looks like the G8 ST might get a V6 as well.

GM has announced the return of employee pricing for its 2008 models and the 2009 Pontiac Vibe.

Pontiac officially unveiled the G8 Sports Truck earlier this year, but at the same time announced that no official name had been picked. Well its been confirmed and I'm sorry to all you El Camino fans out there...but the G8 Sports Truck has been officially named the Pontiac G8 ST.

GM’s CEO Rick Wagoner announced today the many new steps that GM is going to take to cut costs by $15 billion by the end of 2009.

It's widely known that GM is currently conducting a review of the HUMMER brand which will most likely result in the brand being sold or eventually killed. GM is claiming that no other brands are currently under review.