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:

• 

  upgrade with $2000 or buy another car. - 2004 Pontiac Grand AM
  By fabian gutierrez - May 17 - 5:06 am

  I had my car for a year and a half. 2 crashes,(one major and one minor damage) overall still look and handle like new. I have upgade it with boral Exhaust ($750 installed)cold air intake ( $200 installed) better wires, spark plugs, pulleys,ect, and tweak the engine.($700 installed) The rest was spent on non performce parts. any ways my car now rates 235 HP and 245 lb-ft trq.I never had any problem but I take care of it really well. I live in Cali, so in the hot days the temp gos over 215 F in engie. good gas and low noise. good space back and trunk. small for people ove 63. my dad cant fix. any way the point is with that extra 2000 you could buy a better car. I still beat civics, accords, cavs

• 

  Love/Hate Relationship - 2005 Pontiac G6
  By Im Indifferent - May 16 - 3:13 pm

  I bought this car used with about 48,000 and am now at 118,000. I have had no major issues with this car. There are certain things that annoy me though. Occasionally if I insert the key and start the car right away it stalls. I call the dealership and they said that was "normal." As a result of that I have adapted to turning the key to ACC and letting the car "prepare" for a few seconds and then starting the car. Also the Cd changer reads "Cd changer error" at random times. If you need new brakes get them fast. Otherwise it feels as though the car cant support its own weight! Other than that I have greatly enjoyed this car. I have taken many successful road trips and always get looks....

• 

  Lay Low - 2006 Pontiac Solstice
  By IronMike - May 15 - 9:43 pm

  Dont let anyone find out bout this car. Aint got any trunk space. People slide up to you at a red light and whip out their cell phone cameras to capture images of the svelt lines she shows. Its a real pain. People even get out of their cars when you gas up to take a tour of the machine. I mean leave me alone. I dont need this. My job already slaps too much attention and pressure on me. I dont need this when I drive down to the local 7/11. Other owners say the same thing. Help us. Bad mouth this car. Please... Please... I mean its an American car... Please help us.... Trash it... O.K.......Please....

• 

  Love it - 2004 Pontiac Vibe
  By Jason - May 15 - 2:36 pm

  I love the Vibe. I have own it for over a year. I have not had any problems with it. When we go on long trips we use the Vibe because of the fuel economy and the comfort. We have made many trips to MI and Canada. The acceleration is better than my partners subaru and has surprized many of my passengers. I have helped several people move using the Vibe. I also do my own maintenance and have not had any problems changing oil, oil filter or anything else.

• 

  Great Car - 2002 Pontiac Grand AM
  By Pj - May 15 - 10:43 am

  I bought this car in the middle of winter as a gift to myself. It had 131,000 miles on it when I purchased from a local dealer. High miles, and since it was the GT I knew it had been driven hard and put away wet, but it was so sharp I had to buy it. I had the car for two years and never had a problem other than regular maintenance and an occasional fuse blowing. I drove the car like it was a race car, the handling was incredible, and the engine ran like a dream, plus people really took notice of its awesome monsoon sound system, that thing would boom!

• 

  Lemon Alert - 1998 Pontiac Trans Sport
  By LauraESOM - May 15 - 10:00 am

  With only 68,000 miles on this loaded Pontiac. The Intake manifold gasket leaked coolant into the engine(a problem that many other people are also reporting)The special "dexcool" coolant gums up, causing damage to the gasket. Before we knew this was the problem, we noticed that our van was always needed coolant added. We took it into a shop and they said it must just have air in the system. This was wrong of coarse. On top of that, the timing chain slipped (something mechanics say, shouldnt happen on a vehicle with so low miles)and bent some of the valves. It does not run, yet, we still owe.

• 

  Ugly but good personality - 2005 Pontiac Aztek
  By Podoghouse - May 15 - 10:00 am

  We always called Azteks "the ugly truck" but once we drove one we were sold. The outside may be ugly but the inside is great!

• 

  My 2004 Montana - 2005 Pontiac Montana
  By Hartwell - May 15 - 10:00 am

  LOve it. Is the most comfortable Mini Van that I ave ever driven..

• 

  I love this car! - 2005 Pontiac Sunfire
  By Darlene - May 15 - 2:33 am

  I just got out of an Alero (Otherwise known as GM Garbage.) And the sunfire is great.! Looks good, drives fantastic, great mileage and still sporty. so far the only thing that has had to be repaired, is one of the doorpanels were not one securely and that took about 5 miutes to have reattached,.

• 

  with just 9 days and 1300 miles - 2007 Pontiac G6
  By VAGATOR - May 14 - 9:13 am

  It is a lot of fun to drive. I do worry about all the moving parts in the top operation, but no problems so far. I like the milage I get, but there can be a big difference depending on drivers. My wife is a "jack rabbit" take off person. I reset the MPG computer the other day. After two days of just her driving, she was only getting 17 MPG. I reset it and I drove it for two days and got 26 MPG. If I start making her buy her gas, maybe she will keep that lead foot under control :)