Overview & Reviews

The Pontiac brand is part of the General Motors family, and is home to many of the automaker's more performance-oriented vehicles. Currently, the marque offers a broad range of sporty cars and SUVs. However, as part of GM's restructuring plan, the brand is slated to be discontinued by the end of the 2010 model year.

Pontiac originated as the Oakland Car Company of Pontiac, Michigan, in 1907; it was founded by Edward Murphy. Acquired by General Motors in 1909, Oakland introduced the first Pontiac vehicle in 1926. Dubbed the "Chief of the Sixes," the car was powered by a six-cylinder engine and made its debut at that year's New York auto show. It was so successful that the Oakland name was phased out in favor of Pontiac, the name of an 18th-century chief of the Ottawa Indians. Throughout the 1930s and '40s Pontiac made coupes, sedans and wagons in the low-to-mid price ranges. A unique styling cue of Pontiac cars from the mid-'30s to the mid-'50s was known as "Silver Streak," a set of art-deco-inspired chrome "speed lines" that ran up over the length of the hood to the base of the windshield.

The 1950s saw the introduction of the Pontiac Bonneville. The sprawling, stylish cruiser offered equal measures of performance and luxury, and was a breakout hit. But it wasn't until the 1960s that the Pontiac brand truly came into its own. American manufacturers had begun to offer downsized alternatives to the gigantic cruisers that had ruled the highways in previous decades. Pontiac came to market with the compact Tempest. In 1964, Pontiac made its biggest impact yet with the creation of the GTO option for the Tempest. By equipping the car with the powerful 389 cubic-inch V8 from the full-size car line, Pontiac created the first "muscle car." Phenomenally successful, the GTO helped define the burgeoning muscle car category. Pontiac also saw tremendous success during the latter part of this decade with its Firebird and Firebird Trans Am.

The oil crisis of the '70s made fuel efficiency a priority for many car buyers. Following the lead of its GM siblings, Pontiac made compact vehicles like the Ventura and Phoenix a major part of its lineup. The '80s saw the launch of the two-seat Pontiac Fiero. Despite its modest beginnings (it was initially marketed as a "commuter car"), the Fiero eventually blossomed into a credible sports car.

The '90s saw the launch of Pontiacs like the Sunfire and Montana minivan. Pontiac has slowly lost sales due to changing tastes and a lack of differentiation between its models and those of other GM divisions. In hopes of recapturing past glory, the division embarked on a plan to retire aged models and introduce all-new ones with distinctive styling and personality. For a while, the effort seemed to be bearing fruit. New models like the Vibe, Solstice and G8 made Pontiac a brand to consider in many segments. However, GM's financial troubles in 2008 and 2009 have resulted in the company's decision to phase out Pontiac as a brand. It's expected 2010 will be Pontiac's last year for new models.

User Reviews:

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  Tired of American Auto Manufacturers - 1999 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By SickOfAmericanAutos - May 7 - 10:00 am

  This vehicle was purchased by me about three years ago. I have consistenly gotten 27 MPG. I drive my Grand Prix hard and it still runs like new. However, the whole Wide-Track gimmick is just plain lies. I have driven alot of cars that can out handle this car that arent even GTs. .78 G on the skid pad is a joke. As far as braking goes, these cars are terrible. Noisy and innefective is what I call them. The engine is torquey and strong. It would be well suited for a 5 speed though. This has been a very reliable car, but I would not reccomend it to anyone. There are any number of import cars that are far superior to this car.

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  Major Gremlins - 2001 Pontiac Montana
  By Demers Family - May 5 - 11:26 am

  We loved the gas mileage this van got, and the space and comfort was superb, as was the interior configuration. However since we bought it used it had no manufacture warranty, nor dealer warranty. The summer of 2004 the a/c went out, we spent $700 on trying to get it fixed, they thought they fixed it, it died again the next day. Then the bearings went out, and both sets of brakes as well as all the shocks and struts. We only put 25,000 miles on it when we owned it. We put $1000 into it, not counting the a/c and it still needed $1800 worth of work, and two car shops later the a/c problem still could NOT be solved! We traded it for an SUV, it is a sad loss we loved our van greatly.

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  Thees es no toaster humper! - 2001 Pontiac Aztek
  By Steevie Weevie - May 2 - 10:00 am

  Let others rave about the super comfortable leather seats, heads-up display, well-laid-out instruments and switches, and ro-o-o-om. Living in Tucson, I appreciate the dark factory window tinting and ample air conditioner. I keep a scrapbook full of Aztek-bashing articles for passengers’ amusement. It’s really hilarious for four big adults to be cruising smoothly and comfortably along listening to great sounds spilling out of the 10 speakers while reading some writer’s garbage prose about a CRX on steroids and the unholy spawn resulting when an SUV humped a toaster.

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  good value for your money - 2002 Pontiac Sunfire
  By cartman - May 2 - 10:00 am

  i recently purchased a 2002 sunfire coupe (yellow!!). i really like the look, very sporty. admittely the hondas and nissans are better than american cars but american is a lot better than they used to be. gm is still a lot better than kia, hyundai and chrysler. but for the value, nobody beats gm - 0% financing / cash back if you pay for it in full is unbeatable.

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  good value for your money - 2002 Pontiac Sunfire
  By Cartman - May 2 - 10:00 am

  i recently purchased a 2002 sunfire coupe (yellow!!). i really like the look, very sporty. admittely the hondas and nissans are better than american cars but american is a lot better than they used to be. gm is still a lot better than kia, hyundai and chrysler. but for the value, nobody beats gm - 0% financing / cash back if you pay for it in full is unbeatable.

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  I love my car - 1999 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By bdm4150 - May 1 - 7:46 am

  This car is amazing so far. I have only had it for a few weeks now but I love it. Its reliable, even at 112,000 miles it still has great pick up. My next car I buy is def. going to be a Grand Prix.

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  Overall, it has been a great car - 1997 Pontiac Grand AM
  By rlt - April 28 - 10:00 am

  I purchased my Grand Am GT in early 98 with 7500 miles. I now have 128000 on it and it has been very good to me. Ive maintained it well. I have had few problems. I replaced the water pump at around 65,000 miles. Both window regulators have went bad. I also just replaced the alternator. Overall I think it has been pretty good. It still runs, drives, and looks like new although now there are some rattles in the interior. The door panels are made cheep. The factory stereo/wCD sounds great although the display quit working. I have the 2.4/auto combination. It performs well. Power is good. It also delivers outstanding fuel economy. I recently drove half way

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  pretty good car - 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By cpakron - April 27 - 6:43 am

  I bought this car in Feb. of 2006 and havent had any major problems to date. Although, within the first week of ownership, I had to replace all 4 speakers (front-driver side=blown and rear-driver side=dead) and my front-passenger side window motor went out (which I am still yet to fix). The rear struts also will make a crunching sound sometimes. Otherwise, I really love driving the car, it is very sporty and I do get occasional looks.

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  2004 Grand Am 2.2 4cyl 4A - 2004 Pontiac Grand AM
  By bpeters1 - April 25 - 11:36 pm

  Ive had the car for about 3 months now and have put a little over 3,000 miles on it. I bought it used with 98,000 miles on it. So far Ive had no problems with it. The 4cyl engine suits this car well, but sometimes seems reluctant to downshift. It has absolutely zero power at low RPM. The gas mileage I get is exactly as listed at 27 MPG. Love the way the car handles. The interior (especially light switches) are obviously cheaply made, and often pop in and out of their slots.

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  Still room to improve - 2000 Pontiac Montana
  By mopar1 - April 19 - 2:00 am

  This van has been great mechanically, but both the heated seats had to be replaced within the first year. The drivers seat quit working again at 45,000 miles. Will cost to much to fix. The General XP2000 self sealing tires rode a little rough and didnt wear very well. My Caprice with a 305 V-8 got the same mpg as the van. Cheap pull handle on rear hatch broke at 40,000.