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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  Not too bad - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By abspideygirl - May 21 - 10:16 am

  Overall this has been a good reliable vehicle, with a some exceptions. I bought the car with 64000 miles on it and Ive had to replace the alternator, battery, brakes twice, intake manifold, heater core, and replace the spark plugs, the car now has 104000. The only other problem Ive had with it is that the power window on the left side has fallen off its track. It starts right up though and does well in the city as well on the interstate, and it does during long distance travel.

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  55 mph Headache! - 1999 Pontiac Grand AM
  By pugmamma - May 20 - 11:36 am

  I traded my amazing volkswagen that ended up needing a radiator for this pontiac or pile of junk. I have had so many problems with it sparkplugs, headlights, trunk latch, windows, and now I need a flex pipe and I cannot figure out which one it needs the car is so loud because the flex pipe fell off somehow!!!

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  Buy for POWER and driveability - 2006 Pontiac GTO
  By BillyGoat - May 20 - 9:33 am

  After reading some of the other reviews, other purchasers seem to want a luxury car with high performance and 30 MPG. NOT !! The now departing 2006 GTO will be a collectors car soon enough, Id highly recommend begging, borrowing, or stealing the $$ to buy one. The dealer I bought from in Arizona had TEN GTOs for sale - I had the pick of the litter. Sold at INVOICE $$, this dealer simply wanted to unload his inventory...advantage ME. NO VEHICLE currently made will give you the wide swath of luxury and performance this car will. Just drive one. 400 HP, great driving position and non-descript exterior will keep the idiots wondering what the hell just flew past. BUY ONE.

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  Gentleman Start Your Engines - 2006 Pontiac G6
  By Deaun - May 20 - 4:06 am

  Although sometimes my auto-start feature will strain my starter out for about 3 seconds, this car is completely great. I have a family but am also a "lead foot" so this car really incorporates what i need in a vehicle along with making it possible to grocery shop or drive around everyone.

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  Falling apart - 2000 Pontiac Grand AM
  By WhyMe - May 19 - 2:00 am

  I bought the car brand new and three years later I cant wait to get rid of it. The fuel pump went out at 26000 miles. Seals around passenger windows leaked so flooded my interior at 29000. The front bearings had to be repacked at 32000. Windshield plastic moldings flew off while driving down the road. Window falls in door and costs $600 to fix!! Rearview mirror falls off repeatedly despite getting fixed everytime. The list continues, I will NEVER buy another Pontiac . . .or Domestic for that matter.

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  This Black bird is BAD - 2000 Pontiac Firebird
  By Rick - May 18 - 2:26 am

  I purchased this car with 45 miles on the odometer and have had more fun than should be allowed.Be sides a dead battery and headlight motor this car has been a gem to own. It now has 91,600 miles on the it and it still barks the tires in the first three gears.I guess I should mention that it has the 6 speed tranny with the Hurst shifter.Ive added a k&n air filter and flowmaster exhaust a month after purchase

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  Love The Speed - 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By Kevin P - May 18 - 2:06 am

  I have now owned my GTP for three + years now and I love it ... I have had to do some work to it.. Fuel pump resister, window motors, and upgraded the brakes... But all in all a fun car to own and a lot of fun to eat up all those v8 guys out there.. Have had a cooling system problem at like 190,000 but all to be expected Now working on upgrading the interior and putting in a gen 3 motor for more power...Would definitely suggest for a fun weekender that will get you to work on mon...

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  GTO- Geared Toward Oppression - 2004 Pontiac GTO
  By CliffLao - May 17 - 6:10 am

  Paying $30,300 I was really hoping that Pontiac would at least stand behind their product if something were to go wrong. With only 250 miles on the car the transmission started coming out of second and first gears and would not go into reverse without some coaxing. Along with dark gray paint spots all over the bright yellow exterior, I have already attempted on 3 different occasions to allow Pontiac to correct the problems but they will not even acknowledge them. From Showcase Pontiacs Service Mgr explaining to me that I was not driving the car hard enough to Don Mackey Pontiac telling me they do not know how to work on the car, I CANNOT be MORE DISAPOINTED! Lemon vehicle meet Lemon LAW!

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  A real lemon! - 2006 Pontiac G6
  By brandi0521 - May 17 - 4:00 am

  I just had to have this car when it came out. Ive had it now for just over 2 yrs. This car is a piece of crap. I bought a lemon. It has been in the shop 8 times for stabilitrak. The pontiac dealership never made claims against my warranty, so never fixed it. Ive since gotten it fixed. But they were scared it was going to cause my brakes to go out. So now Ive had to pay out of pocket for front and back brakes. Ive purchased Extended Warranty. I now have a hole in my muffler that isnt covered on that. Yesterday I went to open my top and the back part opened and the top went up and fell back down. Lots of squeaks and rattles that the dealer cant fix. Truly a LEMON!

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  The Family Heirloom - 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By 3ggplant - May 16 - 9:58 pm

  My grandmother purchased this vehicle new back in 97. Since then it has passed down to me. From a teens point of view, it is pretty much all you can ask for as the engine doles out plenty of torque and noise on the high end of the rev range, yet is perfectly capable of being composed highway cruiser. We have taken numerous camping trips and the cavernous trunk would swallow up any gear we threw in. However, as I grew, the back seats really became unbearable as they sit so low to the ground your knees are practically digging into your chest and you worry your bum will scrape the pavement. (a slight exaggeration) All in all our car has held up over the years and is still in full use today.