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:

• 

  Pontiac Montana 2000 - 2000 Pontiac Montana
  By gvbradt - January 10 - 8:53 am

  After 6 six years, I really still love this van. I have 6 buckets seats so everyone has their own space and the seats are so comfortable. It still looks "new", not an outdated design. Great for piling in the kids and going somewhere and not having to worry about getting anything.

• 

  Glad I bought it! - 2004 Pontiac GTO
  By Love it. - January 9 - 10:00 am

  I got the manual 6-speed. Good Choice. Fun to drive. At any time I can push in the clutch and give it a rev and the sound of the downshift is incredible. I was anticipating that it would not get any looks because of its non-vintage look, but the opposite is true; people stare at the GTO/5.7 Litre logo as I pull beside them. You cant beat the power, speed and performance $33K.

• 

  grand prix - 2003 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By lab04 - January 7 - 2:00 am

  fun to drive fast great hanling good comfort all the things a great car needs

• 

  Great Choice - 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By Happy Couple - January 7 - 2:00 am

  We bought this car in Amarillo, TX and from there we drove it to Dallas, Red River NM, and then to Seattle, WA. It never missed a beat. One of the most dependable cars weve ever had. The V6 runs great and is a lot of fun to drive. This car handles well for its size. It also has an enormous trunk which was a great benefit when moving from Texas. The doors are way too long, however, and can be impractical in small parking spots.

• 

  best - 1999 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By 2222 - January 7 - 2:00 am

  this is probably the very best cruising vehicle because of its good looks and is a very comfortable ride

• 

  Great little car - 2007 Pontiac Vibe
  By Great all around car - January 6 - 7:23 pm

  This is an all around great car, plenty of room inside, 29.5 mpg overall, 33 on the highway.

• 

  My Cherry GXP - 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By Cherry GXP - January 5 - 3:00 am

  My GXP has been perfect, no problems at all. Really is fun to drive and I love the purr of the V-8 motor. I trade cars every 2 to 3 years, but this is a keeper. I even bought an extended warranty for 7years and 84,000 miles. Told my wife to bury me in it. Mileage is not great, but a 400+ mile trip last year netted about 24MPG and not at 55MPH either.

• 

  Love the Car - 2009 Pontiac Solstice
  By Victor Gonzalez - January 5 - 12:26 am

  I love this car a lot. Everyday I drive it, I love it even more. Really fun to drive, and is a pretty fast car. The car looks great. I am constantly turning heads when I drive. The interior is really comfortable, I have driven for hours and have felt great right after. It is actually very roomy for a two seater. Interior does have some hard plastics, but it looks pretty good. Storage is a bit of a lack in this car. Overall this car feels good on the road, is quick, and looks spectacular. Manual top is really easy to handle, but would enjoy an automatic one. Many people complain about the five speed, but i have no complaints about it.

• 

  7000 mile and still loving it - 2008 Pontiac G8
  By Rod - January 4 - 11:30 am

  It has been about 7 months and 7000 miles since I got my G8 GT. I learned one thing this weekend, the G8 is not all about going fast. Going home from work yesterday on freeway was doing 50 came around a blind corner and traffic was stopped. With the braking performance of my 96 Monte Carlo (I traded in on the G8) in my mind I was hoping that would be just a light crash. Three things happened. I hit the brakes, I saw someting fly on the pasengers side and I was stopped 5 car lengths behind the car ahead of me. The flying things were cargo straps that were on the floor in the back seat area. They bounced off front and ended up in middle of front passenger floor

• 

  Aztek? - 2005 Pontiac Aztek
  By Craig - January 3 - 7:43 pm

  Yes we bought an Aztek. We went with the rally package. It makes a big difference in appearance. It still has a huge back end but overall I think its a really great vehicle. They even thought of a shoulder belt that can drop down for someone riding in the middle of the back seat. It turns really well for a SUV. The only draw back I have seen so far is that there is not a lot of places to mount extras. Even though it is a SUV it has a great step in height for children.