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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  Bwood19s Vibe report - 2003 Pontiac Vibe
  By bwood19 - November 21 - 10:00 am

  I have had mine for 4 months and I only have found one thing that I do not like about it; the visors are too short to do much good on the side windows. I am 54 and maybe a taller person would have better coverage. But I LOVE the car and I am totally happy with it. Especially the 29-30mpg that I get with a combo of e-way and back road driving. I drive about 25,000 miles a year.

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  GET 1 - 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By TonyGXP - November 20 - 2:16 am

  I found this vehicle to please me more than any other performance car Ive ever owned & I can put 2x4s in it!! Ride is a little stiff but that is expected for the handling you get in return. Avg fuel economy is 18.0 MPG thats mostly city driving, short trips & occasional beating (hard not to, its so fun)

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  A Seville by any other name - 2004 Pontiac Bonneville
  By JPM101 - November 19 - 10:36 am

  A Seville by any other name... still rides as sweet - after removing the stock Firestone tires and replacing with Goodyear Assurance ComfortTreads. After driving 2005 Impalas, Park Avenues, and Honda Accord EX, I chose the 04 Bonneville for its comfort, gadgets, moonroof, XM stereo, wide stance stability and heavy car feel. I drive a very curvy road at freeway speeds to and from work. The car sticks like glue now that I installed the new tires. The Firestones only had 12,000 miles on them and were down to 7/32 all the way around (they were noisey and slippery) the difference is like night and day. I drove this car on a 2,000 mile trip to Oregon and back with absolute comfort.

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  pontisol - 2006 Pontiac Solstice
  By solstice - November 19 - 12:13 am

  transmission makes "clunking" sound when shifting to 2nd and third. Sounds like housing may be loose????

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  My Montana - 2005 Pontiac Montana
  By montanauser - November 17 - 8:40 pm

  Other than the fact that was a fleet vehicle or so we were told by the maintenance department (not the sales) It seems overall to be an ok vehicle. We are having some electrical issues. brake lights etc;. also one problem with the windsheild whistling and service blew smoke at us till warranty wont assist. also the drivers seat has always had a slight lean that makes it uncomfortable on longer trips

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  The POS that refuses to die - 1999 Pontiac Grand AM
  By matthew32 - November 17 - 2:18 am

  Have has my Grand AM since 2007. Was given to me by my parents who bought the car in 1999 with 12,000 mi. The car has always had regularly scheduled maintenance and now has almost 130k mi. I overhauled the engine at around 120k due to a spun #2 rod bearing. The 2.4l has marginal oil supply and this is fairly common. As far as doing major repairs, the car is relatively easy to work on. The interior in this car was the absolute worst of any I have ever owned - it started to fall apart when the car was only a few years old. Power windows all broke. Central locking and climate control switches broke. Vinyl peeling off the door panels. Dash warped. Seat padding breaking down.

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  Pontiac G8 GT 6.0 - 2009 Pontiac G8
  By Dave - November 16 - 9:40 am

  This is my first Pontiac. What a performer this car is. Eats everything on the road, cant keep my foot out of it. I bet it does get great gas mileage but I wouldnt know that yet cause I cant keep my foot out of it. Beautiful to look at in the Stryker blue I bought it in. This car is a rush to drive, feels so tight but yet refine ride. Massive power on tap all the time, with the TC off and a light power brake easily smokes those sticky summer performance tires. I wish I was rich so I could buy another one to stash away for a collector. I know these cars will be worth 10 times there sales price someday, so if you have one take good care it. If you dont you had better hurry up and get one.

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  My love with the G6 - 2008 Pontiac G6
  By Unknown Jackass - November 16 - 6:43 am

  I was recently in a car accident that wrecked my car but i got it fixed for my son as a first car i had a Ford (fix or repair daily) Taurus (that was garbage) so I went on a look for a new car and i bought a one year old at the time 2003 Pontiac Grand Prix GT and fell in love with GM so when i other car was being fixed I got a rental that was never driven before and it was a 2008 Pontiac G6 almost loaded and i bought one 2 months ago because it was the greatest car i have driven (and my son need his car)

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  problems with storage compartment - 2004 Pontiac Vibe
  By slammer10 - November 15 - 7:06 pm

  I traded a 2003 camry for the 2004 Vibe we love the car had no problems except for the storage compartment under the shifter. My wife does most of the driving - she 5 foot and I am over six foot. We drove to Las Vegas this fall and the trip was great. We can pack this car with all sorts of stuff and everything fits.

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  Great Car - 1999 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By jetpilot500 - November 15 - 3:30 pm

  Great Car! The 3.8L V6 has a lot of power. Looks great, even as a 4-door. Interior components sometimes rattle, especially when its cold. But other than that, its very comfortable and enjoyable to drive.