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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  A drivers car! - 1999 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By GRTFUN - October 23 - 12:43 am

  I really enjoy the great handling, heads up display, the way it hugs the curves, and the heated leather seats. My car was fully loaded and well taken care of. No complaints.

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  worth the price - 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix
  By harpe00 - October 20 - 11:30 pm

  I was looking for an affordable transitional car and found this to be the perfect match. As an upcoming college graduate and moving into the workforce this summer I needed something reliable, dependable and affordable to make the transition.

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  My G6 Experience, so far - 2008 Pontiac G6
  By Norman Potter - October 20 - 9:43 pm

  I have owned my G6 for under a year and am already having problems. At about 7500 miles I started noticing that the brakes were becoming comparable to those of my previous vehicle, which was 13 years old. About a month ago I noticed that it starts to shake and squeak when accelerating from a dead stop. I noticed earlier this week that when driving at around 30 mph there is a squeaking noise that sounds like it is coming from the engine compartment, or possibly the wheel bearings. I currently have about 12,000 miles on it and about 90 percent of those miles are highway driving miles. The car has ran well for me so far as the only problems have been noise and shaking. As well as brake wear.

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  Overall Great Vehicle - 2005 Pontiac Montana
  By ridgeman4 - October 19 - 8:56 pm

  We purchased this van the day before we left on an 1100 mile vacation. That is always the making of a disaster. However, against our judgments we did it anyway and were not disappointed. It performed well during our trip and every since. The DVD player was nice for the kids and the sanity of my wife and I. The restyling of the front end has greatly improved the looks of the Montanas.

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  Great Car - 1999 Pontiac Bonneville
  By Bill Paterson - October 19 - 12:33 pm

  Bought in 2002 with about 30,000 miles. It is a beautiful car. It is very comfortable, handles great, gets very good mileage, and has been very reliable. I have only had to tune it at about 90,000 mi. and nothing else mechanical. I have a friend with an older model with over 200,000 mi. and he has had only had to replace the alternator on his at about 150,000 mi. The only bad thing is that they do not hold their value well. My car is valued at about $3000 but I wont let it go for less than $8000. Looks like I may have to keep it forever!

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  PoorFuel Economy - 2006 Pontiac Torrent
  By Jeremy - October 17 - 11:26 pm

  Father of 2 and happily married, We love out Torrent. But It seems to suck down the gas and we travel on the highway often because we live in a small town so to go shopping or to get to work we are taking frequent 15-20 minute trips. We have only been getting around 240-260 miles per tank? We are wondering if anyone else is noticing this? The specs say we should get over 300? Besides the punch in the face at the gas station we love it and it fits our sporty lifestyle.

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  Im not alone - 1998 Pontiac Bonneville
  By Charlie B - October 16 - 10:00 am

  I bought this vehicle because it looked good, had great acceleration, a smooth ride, and comfortable seats. I liked the layout of the interior and the the sound quality of the stereo. Since owning it, I have also had to replace the intake manifold. It caused about $800 worth of damage. And I have a main seal oil leak, too. Aside from this, I still like the car a lot and will consider a newer Bonneville when the time comes to replace this one.

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  Its been good to me so far - 2006 Pontiac Torrent
  By Margaret - October 16 - 5:56 am

  Before buying my Torrent, I also test drove its Chevy sister, the Equinox. The decision maker was the Equinox had scratchy upholstery while the Torrents was soft and comfortable. The Torrent has proven to be a comfortable vehicle, even for tall passengers riding in the back seat. Sharp exterior but the interior could use a touch of class. Three design flaws: (1) I dont smoke, but a removable ashtray should be standard for things like gum wrappers; (2) The CD storage area is not easily accessible; and (3) A wider cargo compartment would have been more beneficial than having the small side storage wells. No mechanical problems (knock on wood). Nice vehicle and GM offered 0% financing

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  Keeps on Ticking... - 1995 Pontiac Firebird
  By TreyT - October 15 - 12:10 pm

  Well this is an update to a prior review of mine. Ive owned this car for almost 3 years now. So far my list of repairs that are not routine are: Headlight Motor, Wheel Speed Sensor, Pinion Seal and a water pump. All in all not bad at all for having owned it for 3 years and put 35,000 miles on the car. It has been far more reliable than my mazda 626. Nearing 100,000 miles now and there is more windnoise and rattles than there used to be. Im not looking forward to having to sell it in spring of 07. If youre looking for an F body buy one that has been well maintained. If taken care of theyre very reliable, but if you get a bad one your life will be a livin hell as many can attest to.

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  Great value for a good vehicle - 2005 Pontiac Montana
  By Chris Luery - October 15 - 10:00 am

  We enjoy the Montana SV6. We put on a lot of miles (now 117,000 miles) each year and live in a rural area of Quebec where the winters are harsh and the snow is deep. I have the extended version and have found that it has good control on the road year round. A few problems, which were limited in scope and not serious. Consisted of the following: slight rattle in dash - easily fixed, rear windshield wiper motor has given up - will need to be replaced, paint delamination next to rear center taillight - dealer will fix. I have worked inside an Asian Automotive manufacturing plant and find the quality here relatively close but the value is in the price - probably a third cheap