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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  WIDE TRACKER - 2002 Pontiac Bonneville
  By shade21 - November 21 - 10:00 am

  NO PROBLEMS EXCEPT FOR A LIGHT BINDING IN STEERING COULMN WHEN TURNING LEFT OR RIGHT STILL IN WARRENTY AND HAVE EXTENED COVERAGE OTHERWISE PROBLEN FREE SINCE BOUGHT

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  GTO IS BACK - 2004 Pontiac GTO
  By simon - November 21 - 10:00 am

  JUST A FUN FAST AND FURIOUS VEHICLE. ACCELERATION TO 60 WITHIN SECONDS , PASSING SOMEONE BLINDFOLDED BEFORE YOU KNOW IT YOUR IN THE CLEAR. STEERING VERY RESPONSIVE AND TRACTION CONTROL IS INCREDIBLE . I FEEL VERY CONFIDESNT BEHIND THE WHEEL

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  Great car - 2000 Pontiac Grand AM
  By sj - November 21 - 10:00 am

  I purchased this vehicle used with appx 39k. It now has 54K and seems to be going strong. I did purchase new tires because the others were terrible. Its a fun to drive vehicle, handles well, has an excellent radio, gets good gas mileage and looks great on the road. Ive been very pleased with the purchase. Sounds like some others havent had such luck.

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  Eye Like It HOWEVER... - 2005 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By SadButTrue - November 21 - 10:00 am

  It accelerates and corners great! Good gas mileage and stereo sound. SE has all the Opts. ITS A GREAT CAR FOR 40,000 MILES THEN >>> HOWEVER, It has some very poor workmanship or design problems. 3 windows and some of the blower speeds for AC/heat quit working! Only have 2 speeds left. GM WILL NOT REPLACE THE PARTS!!!! EVEN THOUGH THEY KNEW THESE THINGS are breaking down on the products. There have been a lot of complaints in these 2 areas. The seats are like sitting on a 2 by 4..lol HENCE hard on the butt for long distances ..lol.

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  My Gto - 2005 Pontiac GTO
  By kc - November 20 - 6:53 pm

  I absolutely love this car. The exterior design grows on you, and the interior is beautiful. Drive this car after you drive any mustang, and you will beg for the extra 5 grand you need to buy it. What a value, a 400 hp crovette engine, in a sleeper 4 person coupe for just over 30 grand... or just under if you play your cards right!

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  GXP - 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By Roy - November 20 - 1:40 am

  I love the GXP its nice to look at and handles well. Its tight suspension sometimes is tuff on the ride. The sound system is the most dissapointing as it lacks mid range and the bass is way too much as I have turned it down to minimum. The nav system works pretty good. Acceleration is good but off the line the tires turn into smoke and ya lose a lot of traction. Torque steer is less than my Eldorado so IM pleased with that.

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  Nice car! - 2005 Pontiac Grand AM
  By Don - November 18 - 1:10 pm

  I bought this car used for my wife. She had an 85 2-door sedan SE with a V- 6 and we both loved that one. This one a 2005 4 door sedan with a V-8 was in great shape. Paid $8500 from a private individual (through E-bay), but still got stung with sales tax in Michigan. Care had 20,000 miles. The V-6 is nice, but seems to not be as peppy as the 85 was. This one has the spoiler, but no sunroof. Had to replace a power window switch first thing. Warranty work. One other issue is the starter sticks ocassionally. Well have to take that in before the warranty expires. Cant complain, Good car, great price and nice gas mileage.

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  Pontiac last hurrah! - 2009 Pontiac G8
  By Nando82 - November 18 - 9:06 am

  I found my car @ Carmax. Let me start off by saying that it is a great car, good engine, nice sound system and roomy as hell. I got the G8 GT with the premium leather pkg and also the sport pkg, this car does turn heads in the street though!

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  Good Value Family Car - 2003 Pontiac Vibe
  By currycook - November 17 - 11:00 am

  We bought the Vibe because we were on a budget and wanted a family car that we could afford but also would be reliable. The Vibe has not dissappointed us. It has been very reliable and even fun to drive. I was attracted to it because of the Toyota engine and it has been excellent. Our experience so far has been very positive.

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  Head Turner - 2007 Pontiac Solstice
  By paintman1966 - November 17 - 3:21 am

  Bought last year at 45k miles, have 56k now and its been great. Exactly like all the previous good reviews. Went on 340 mile trip from Maine to Vermont and back and avgd 38.4 MPG!! 95 mile roundtrip to Portland, Me and avgd 37.5 MPG!! of course I had my GF in the car and foot off the turbo. She loves the car and we are planning on buying a second one someday so we wont have to share. Location of PWR window switches is the most aggravating thing about this car. I put top up or down in @30 secs at stop lights. Co-worker has base Sol and test drove my GXP and says definite difference :) Been getting great comments on its looks from the beginning: