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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  Great First Car! - 2005 Pontiac G6
  By tco_1994 - December 25 - 5:00 pm

  Bought mine in June 2010 for my first car, it had 81,600 miles on it, Ive had it two months and its been great! and I dont drive it easy, its ramped a ditch and hit a field and nothing broke at all! my only complaint is the sunroof randomly opens as it pleases, and sometimes when it start it keep turning over instead of catching, but no big deal! Im 62" and i have the seat only 1/2 way back and it adjust so that my head doesnt hit the ceiling. I always get compliments on the exterior of it, and thats always nice too:)

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  Fun on a part time basis only - 2000 Pontiac Firebird
  By Omer - December 23 - 10:00 am

  Hey, 18 months with my Trans am and I love alot of things with it. The ls1 has tons of torque all 6 gears, Its a fast car, turns heads, and attract attenion, but the reliablity brings this car down. The problems with the car are numberus, first of all engine reliability, the push rods bend so easily, other than that-- no engine problems. The rear axel is very sentitive. Lost my rear end at 60mph twice @ 46,000 and 47,000 miles. They upgraded the clutch in 2001 for a reason (2001s have vette z06 spec clutch). Fast? Yes. Fun? Yes. Satisifed? Yes. Holds Value? (relative to market) Yes. Reliablity? No!

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  love my prix <3 - 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By elizabeth - December 21 - 10:00 am

  the one & only problem ive ever had with my car is that it needed a new battery cause the alarm was draining it (alarm went off all the time) otherwise i LOVE it. its sporty but not too little either (not too much into the little cars) runs like new & i always get compliments on it ;)

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  The G6 is an under-rated GEM. - 2005 Pontiac G6
  By RBDELI - December 21 - 1:43 am

  I went to the car dealership with every intention of leasing a new honda accord. I test drove a fully equipped 2005 EX-4-Cyl Accord. THe car was flawless as I expected, but nothing special and certainly not alot of fun to drive. The high payments blew me away and I told the dealer that just for kicks I wanted to look at a G6. Same dealership sold Pontiac. The moment I drove off in the G6 I wanted it. Its V6 engine blew the doors off the 4-Cyl accord and for $3K less!. It was more fun to drive in every way and infinitely better looking. I test drove the GT model, but opted for the base model which runs circles around the similarly priced Accord. I saved $100 a month and got a better car!

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  LOVED this car!! - 1997 Pontiac Grand AM
  By t_zayas51 - December 19 - 10:05 pm

  I bought my 1997 Grand Am SE v6 used in 2008 with 136,000 Miles on it. I loved this car, I spent two winters in wisconsin with -10 degree weather and it started right up every single time. Got pretty good mileage, 26+ as long as I drove properly. Sadly, I rolled it at 85 MPH with 172,000 miles on it, but walked away from that, so I guess it has pretty good safety as well! Only minor upkeep- oil changes, changed brakes and tires one time. Great pick-up for a v6 and never had an issue with it! I miss my Grand Am.

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  Concern about the Plastic - 2001 Pontiac Montana
  By Pissed - December 18 - 5:20 pm

  My experience is more with the incredibly poor service I recieved from GM Canada. Basically I was accused of trying to claim on my extended warrenty for the cracking in the plastic between the useless storage container and the rear seat!

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  still love it - 1999 Pontiac Montana
  By Michigan consumer - December 16 - 10:00 am

  I test drove many vans, but wanted one with the entertainment TV package & was thrilled when I found this Montana. It looks great & compared to the other vans out there this was the nicest, most luxurious, best features. I have had it in the shop several times, rear speakers that crackled, some engine leaks, power window motor, catalytic converter and a power door recall. Pontiac was great about fixing these things for free, even after manufactures warrenty was expired. I purchased this van with 35000 miles already on it, and now am nearly to 50000, and am very happy with it for the price. Nothing else in the price range compared with the Montana for style.

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  My 2006 Vibe - 2006 Pontiac Vibe
  By dgranros - December 16 - 5:53 am

  Bought my Vibe with 24,000 well maintained miles on it. I traded in a PT Cruiser which I dearly loved but constant electrical /quality issues finally forced me to move on. My Vibe has been a joy, absolutely bulletproof and delivers a steady 30 -31 mpg in combined city/ highway driving. The Vibe does have considerable road and wind noise (at least compared to the PT). The cars handling is quite good and acceleration is decent with the automatic. Not especially fast but ok for my needs. I like the older (pre 09) Vibes for the side molding and fairings. Should offer some protection in the parking lot wars. Certainly better than the 09s which havent any side protection at all.

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  Grand X-iting Prix - 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By Kichigai - December 16 - 5:26 am

  Driving this car is a lot of fun, I dont recommend test driving it if you arent interested in purchasing it, because you will after. The guys at the dealership love when someone test drives it. I was looking for a vehicle in the $20,000s and drove a few, but after seeing the GXP and the test drive the next day, yeah I went back, I forgot all about the civic si, mazda rx-8 and saturn redline. It handles great and all components are easily reached by the driver, which is bad for passenger because they will have to lean to use any of them. My gas consumption has averaged about 19-20 mpg so far, even all highway. I hope this changes as the engine breaks in.

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  Nothing but troubles - 2006 Pontiac G6
  By dre256 - December 16 - 1:43 am

  Very nice car, but had nothing but issues on it from day one. Biggest issue is the 3900, the head gasket just leaks and leaks. Dealership made it worse, GM told me to sue dealership. Had my mechanic repair head, stop leaking for 6 months and still leaks. Wasnt for the engine issue I would love this car for years. One big complaint, I feel the seats are too stiff for long rides and need several seat adjustments. But body is very nice and slick, and this car performs well 0-60 in a tad over 6 seconds. Fuel economy average is 18 city and 23 hwy. Dont know how got a 26 MPG hwy ratting, I never have hit that even with car never going over 2500 RPM from a stop.