First off, how about one of the coolest commercials I can remember from the '80s-early'90s?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sT0IIoYkJaM


Here's my vote for the last DECENT Pontiac commercial ever made:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJM1Z...eature=related


And now, on a personal level...

Any regular on here knows that while I haven't posted on here nearly as much as I used to (running a car dealership is harder than underwriting at a bank...what can I say?), I'm still here every day, and consider this my home on the web. Most regulars also know I've been crying over the castration of Pontiac for a long, long time...much longer than MANY of the posters who later claimed GM should put a fork in the division because it was too far gone to save.

But this is not a thread to bring up, yet again, the stupidity of Pontiac's marketing, lack of product, or direction during the first decade of the 21st century. No...rather, I think it'd be great for some of us Pontiac loyalists to share some thoughts about what made this division our favorite. Maybe JasonD could sticky this...or at the very least, not delete it??? I think some of us need some fond memories right now...I know I do.

For me, Pontiac was always cool. I just turned 29...and my formative years when it came to my car interests were without question the 1980s. While I currently own 2 Camaros, I've yearned for a GTA since I was a kid. In many ways, the older I get, the more I realize it really is a better, more attractive car than the IROC I preferred back then

But it was the Pontiacs of the '90s...those body-cladded wonders...that I really loved. I learned to drive on my dad's '91 Grand Am SE...back when the SE was the hot one, with a 160hp Quad 4 in 2,600 lbs. With 16" wheels (bigger than my mom's '89 Camaro!), Motor Trend got one to spin .86g on a skidpad and called it one of America's best handling FWD cars. After I got my license in '96, I tested that theory on a regular basis. The little Quad 4, as noisy as it was, moved well, and I loved carving up the corners in my hometown with it....

I'll never forget the day my mother completed her first-ever order of a new car...a black '98 Grand Prix GT 4 door. That car was sweet...and was everything Pontiac was supposed to be. A menacing exterior...decent-for-the-time interior...solid handling...and a price the average person could afford. She traded it 3 years later for the same car as a green '01...and that car led me into my current career. The dealer she always dealt with took a liking to me, and hired me to sell part-time...I was still a college sophomore.

From then on, for the most part, things were fun. We sold Olds' too...so I've been through watching a division die But the Pontiacs were great. Grand Prixs led the way...we sold 34 Firebirds in 2002, at a dealer that had sold ONE in 2 years. I proved the theory of "if you stock them, they will come." I had the honor of selling my father an '02 SOM Formula M6 I'd ordered for myself...then chickened out on purchasing. I'd had my 30th for less than a year at that point, and didn't want to sell it...so he bought it. 6,456 miles later, its currently sitting under a cover in the garage at my new home...still in his ownership, but never to leave mine...especially now with all that's happened.

The fun didn't end there. My first and only new car was an '02 Grand Am GT Coupe. Great styling, great handling, with an interior and build quality that made me puke. I traded it in a year and a half later for an '01 Grand Prix GT Coupe that I owned until I received a demo at my current job. I loved that car...I miss that car.

And now, my wife has her Comp G that I enjoy driving the hell out of whenever I get the keys. Did you know an s/c 3800 will burn rubber all the way through first without power braking?? Do you know how much fun that car, or its later GXP derivative, are to run through an auto-x or down a back road? They're better than any FWD family sedan I've ever had the privelege to drive.

My immediate family has owned 11 Pontiacs since 1995...most purchased new. 3 of us still have our Pontiacs. And I can assure you, more will come. GM simply will not have the privelege of receiving any money for the purchase. The dealership we bought ALL of these cars from...that has been family owned since 1948...that employed me for 6 years, and got me the start in this living hell of a career...is one of, if not the, last stand-alone Pontiac store in MA. Its been hanging on in desperation for a good 5 years now...and they're probably about to throw in the towel as well...

I've decided I'm on a personal quest to get the "best of the last," IMO...an '08 Grand Prix GXP, to replace the beloved Comp G. I've always loved the look and the performance, and wifey will want the FWD. Plus, that "Grand Prix" name still tugs at my sentimental heart strings.

So there's my story. Sorry to bore those who didn't care. But I think the Pontiac community on here could share a little love at this point. No more bashing...just some fond memories from those of us that care.

Would it be pathetic to admit that I'm so mad right now, I could almost shed a tear?

 

My favorite Pontiac of all time is the 1998-2002 Trans Am WS6 in black.

 

Thanks for starting the thread Jason. I think it's a good idea - and would like to do one 'tweak' if you find it ok (might also make it more likely to still be around here tomorrow). Maybe people can highlight what they value most in Pontiacs from their vantage point, in the event the brand is someday rejuvinated - which I believe it will be.

Why? Has anyone noticed... there's been all manner of talk of the sale of the other brands going out - Saab, Hummer, Saturn - a lot of chatter and communications of the possible sale of those brands. Yet the sale of the Pontiac brand is not even on the table for discussion. While it's granted, maybe the brand isn't as hot a 'property' right now... still... I think that speaks volumes about GM's ultimate intent for Pontiac. If GM really wanted to wash their hands forever of Pontiac, the surest way to do that would be to sell it and let some other entity take it in whatever direction they chose. That's not happening though... and quietly, GM has said nothing about whether it will retain the copyrights to the name. Clearly they will. I believe it's just a matter of time until GM is healthy again, this time with a large majority of its nagging chronic cost problems contained and also with its debt to Uncle Sam gone along with the yoke of federal influence as it stands today. And like the Camaro, the Pontiac name will grace distinctive affordable performance cars once again.

I've bought several new Pontiacs. A 1994 Grand Am GT sedan was my first new Pontiac. There's been a lot of chatter about GM's quality foibles... but really, other than needing one windshield wiper motor under warranty, that car was trouble-free for me for three years until I traded it in for my first Grand Prix - a purple 1997 GTP sedan. That Grand Prix was the car that really got me hooked on Pontiacs!

gtp1.jpg?t=1240877788

I've had several other Pontiacs since then (99 Formula, 02 Trans Am, 05 GTO, my current stable of Ponchos in sigblock) and have thoroughly enjoyed every one of them. I prefer not to look back with wistfulness... but with gratitude... for all the fun I've had with these cars! It's been a great ride Pontiac, and thank you GM!



(from http://www.gmhightechperformance.com...ws6/index.html )

 

I won't get all sappy, but I've had 2 Pontiacs. The first was my first car, a 1978 Formula w/ a 4 speed Hurst.
Yes, I know this is a T/A, but it's the best pic of the color I could find. Any 16 year old guys first car that looked like this (20 years ago anyway) will always be special. It was a great car, but regrettably it met an untimely end as a result of a hydroplaning accident (on the way to get new tires ironically enough). I still have the Firebird script from the fender as a memento.

The second one came 15 years later, a 2001 Formula 6 speed that some of you may remember me getting right after I joined up here. That car is probably my all time favorite, looks, performance, price, name it..).

I had fully intended to nab a Pacific Slate G8GT for a family car once the Impala was used up, not sure about that plan now.

A sad day for me, as it is for alot of people. Long live Pontiac!

 

I've been a Pontiac fan for most of my life. At first, somewhat to the chagrin of my father who was a Buick salesman from before i was born.

My first car was a 1971 Pontiac LeMans. My dream car was a 1960-70 GTO but parents, insurance, and the finances of a 16 year old made it the LeMans or nothing. (Well, the LeMans or the 1985 Olds Firenza hatchback the dealership my dad sold at had on their used lot at the time.)

It was a beautiful car. Two door hardtop, red with a white painted (not vinyl) top and a black interior. An extremely sporty bench seat with a column shift. I bought it from a mom and pop used car lot for $2500 in January of 1987. It was (according to them) a one owner little old lady car. It had around 70,000 miles on it when I bought it. The fiberglass nose piece had a crack running through it, and there was an inch long tear in the driver's door armrest, but other than that, the car was pretty much cherry.

The performance wasn't anything too exciting, 350 2 bbl with a 2 speed auto, but it was a sharp looking car and I really enjoyed it. And it had that 1970s air conditioning that could freeze you like you were in a Frigidaire refrigerator, not just a car with a Frigidaire AC unit.

I got a 1989 Plymouth Sundance for high school graduation (another dead brand car) and the LeMans was relegated to weekend duty. The LeMans gas mileage wasn't horrible, but gas prices were on the rise in '89-'90 and driving back and forth to college on the weekends really wasn't that practical.

My dad left the car business for a few years and used the LeMans as a commuter car for a couple of years. He couldn't stay away from the car business for too long and when his former dealership (Charlie Fisher Buick) added Chevrolet and asked him to come back, he did.

So, I drove Chevrolets through most of the 90s. Still a Pontiac man at heart, it's hard to beat a deal from dad. Dad retired for good in 2005 and with my first child on the way, I traded my 2002 Monte Carlo SS (I know Darth Xed had one around the same time) for a 2005 Pontiac Vibe for my wife. I know some would say that the Vibe wasn't true to the Pontiac heritage, but it was a very nice car that served us well. When our second child was on the way, we traded it for our current Saturn Vue Green Line (gas prices were high at the time and I couldn't talk the wife into a Torrent, though I really tried).

But, if you rewind a few years, back to 1997, I was still in college and as I drove by the Piggly Wiggly a familiar shape caught my eye. Sitting in the front of the parking lot was a 1977 Trans Am with a For Sale sign in the window. I stopped and looked at it. It had tears in the drivers seat, a crack in the dash (as most of you know, "standard equipment" in 70s TAs) which was also hacked for a Sony pull out CD unit the size of a briefcase. It was missing the front center spoiler and the left front wheel flare. The decals were all missing and it had a horrible paint job.

It was love at first sight. I called the number, test drove the car, talked the owner down to $2500 from their $3000 asking price and I bought my second vintage Pontiac 10 years after the first.

Now, 13 years later, the interior still needs more work and the engine compartment needs a thorough detailing, but I bet the guy I bought it from wouldn't recognize this particular Trans Am.



This is the keeper. The one that I hope that my son will drive to Prom someday and own for the rest of his life, too. I'd still like to add another Pontiac or two to the stable. My father-in-law still owns an '87 GTA he bought new. Someday I hope we can make arrangements. And I'd still like to own a fourth gen. and a 68-79 or 2004-2006 GTO. I need a Pontiac to leave to my daughter, after all.

So while I lament the loss of Pontiac, I console myself in knowing that there are hundreds of thousands of interesting Pontiacs out there waiting to be discovered and looking for a home. And when the time is right, one will choose me.

 

I never owned a Pontiac. I always like the later 4th gen Firebirds, especially the T/A WS6. I'd still kill to have one, a black-on-black 6-speed manual.

Pontiacs always provided sporty styling and decent or above-average performance, at a price that was within reach of the average person. They had a different vibe than other cars, even their corporate GM siblings.

It's a damn shame that Pontiac won't be around anymore. It's unfortunate that it has to be sacrificed to keep GM afloat, especially in the minds of us enthusiasts, who think there are other brands that deserve to get the axe.

R.I.P. Pontiac.

Some of their better advertisements:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEyR8...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9Ho-uyPock&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDmGJ...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pt0oj6hXWkM

 

That 80's commercial is great! Just in case you missed it one of the people is getting a ticket from the police IN THE COMMERCIAL! If that doesn't tell you how badass Pontiac is, then I don't know what will.

They lost their way when Pontiac did not stand for excitement, style, and maybe even rebellion and attitude. The GTO commercial did have a glimmer of it, even if the cars didn't look visually exciting anymore.

I guess this is my Pontiac story...
Back in 2000 when I was looking for a new Firebird I basically knew exactly what options I wanted. Essentially I was looking for a 3.8L with a hardtop, LSD, Monsoon, and power locks, etc. The problem was that practically any of them with a hardtop had absolutely no options, and there were very few V6s to be found with the limited slip differential. I went to basically every dealership in the Houston area. I was down in Alvin where there is a dealer that sold pretty much every brand and they had an Arctic White Camaro that was exactly what I wanted except that it was a Camaro. I almost got it. But I just had to have a Firebird. The styling was just so much better... and the red instruments are awesome. I almost don't want to drive any car that doesn't have red instruments after owning the two different Firebirds.

So after that both of my younger sisters have bought Pontiacs. An Aztek and a G6. For all the crap the Aztek gets, it is actually a pretty useful vehicle.

It will be sad to see Pontiac go. It is even sadder how it was completely run into the ground. With some common sense and a few dollars wisely invested Pontiac would have been profitable. It could have taken on and beaten the likes of Mazda and Nissan. It had more heritage. These were the companies that Pontiac really competed with, not BMW. All it needed was some vision and the correct product. And perhaps not turning Saturn into Pontiac II.

Here is my 2000 Arctic White Firebird which was my first brand new car. Sometimes I wish I hadn't sold it...


And my 2001 Sunset Orange Metallic Formula.

 

Love the SOM Formula...as I said in my post, there's a bone stock 6k mile one 1 year newer in my garage

Keep the love coming...no hating in this thread, please

 

Cool Story. That part about the Prom - reminded me of what I drove to mine



My Dad loaned me his 1974 Grandville (pretty much like the picture above, but round headlights). I still remember cruising in to the parking lot there with my date! The windows were neat, a b-pillar-free design that looked very sleek when they were all down. My Dad's Grandville was loaded, maroon with a white vinyl roof, with maroon cloth seats and some kind of honkin' V8. It had a front bench seat so my gal could cuddle up near me. I put my arm around her on the way home... unfortunately I was new at the practice and my arm fell asleep there

...It's a wonder I made it home alive

This was my first Firebird, a 99 Formula I ordered special with Navy Blue Metallic paint and taupe leather interior. I still recall the first time I pulled it into my garage. It seemed like what it might resemble to be at the controls of an F16 or some kind of guided missile

 

Hey! I was supposed to have dibs on that!!

Oh well, there's always Darth's vette...

 

I love seeing some of these old commericals!

I was 13 when I first saw this one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThEp700mc1s

I officially had a dream car.


My mom comes from a Pontiac family. My grandfather was the original owner of a beautiful mint condition blue 1967 GTO until he sold it in 2002. It was heartbreaking to see that car leave the family. I still remember being picked up from kindergarten by my grandmother in her lime green 1970 Grand Prix. It was an old car back then, but I'll never forget riding in the back seat of that thing. My aunt and my mom shared a 1964 Catalina Ventura, and my aunt always had Grand Prix's throughout the 90's until she got her current Impala LTZ. My dad has owned 68, 69, and 74 Firebirds. My very first car was a 1995 Firebird hardtop, 5spd, dark green with tan cloth. I had some 98 Trans Am take-off wheels on it, and it looked mean for a V6. Towards the end of my senior year of high school I got my 1997 Trans Am WS6. It was an incredible act of self control to have never gotten a speeding ticket during the three years of owning that car. Rowing through the gears, t-tops off, listening to the sounds the LT1 made was the most fun I've ever had with a car. My next car was a red 1999 Grand Am GT coupe, which I drove during college. Granted it wasn't near as fun as the T/A to drive, but I did have a great overall expierence with the Grand Am.



That's my T/A with my grandfather's GTO weeks before he sold it.



I'd always held out hope that maybe some how, some way, Pontiac would get another Firebird, and I'd be able to own one new some day.

I'm about to be 26. I'm married and have a 2 year old daughter. I'm on the fast track to having an early mid life crisis, so maybe I can talk the wife into getting something fun to drive on the weekends.

Maybe another one of these
http://photos-b.ll.facebook.com/phot...29817_7848.jpg

 

i have only had 1 pontiac and it was beat. it was 1987 pontiac 6000. i will say that it was a badly rusted car, but it always started and ran great. it was incredible in the snow almost like a small truck. it had a 2.5L iron duke. it threw out incredible heat. for a $200 car it was great. unfortunately that has been the extent of my experience with the brand. i have always respected Pontiac but have always had a chevy, and i also had one GMC s15 jimmy. by the way, the 2.5L iron duke which was produced by the pontiac division was probably one of the best 4 cylinders ever built as far a durability goes. those things would run forever.

 

My dad LOVES Pontiacs. My dad is the reason I love cars. He's still a young guy (turned 47 yesterday) and he's pretty upset Pontiac is going away.

When I was growing up my dad had a beautiful red 68 Firebird with a 400 hood. Cool looking car. There's a pic of him holding me when I was 2 or 3 in front of the car. He sold that car for a down payment on the house they still live in today.

The next Poncho I remember is when I was about 9 he did a home restoration on a white with blue stripes 67 Firebird. We went for a lot of "rides" in that car. My dad even got in some trouble with it He still has the car, but it's in disrepair. He also has a 68 Firebird ragtop shell and a 68 ragtop Sprint car that is completely rotted, but has all the top parts needed for the other ragtop. He just finished building a nice garage and hopes to get the white 67 back on the road in the next couple years.

The final car I have memories with my dad is a metallic green 69 Pontiac Bonneville Convertable. 400 with an auto. Very fun car. We used to cruise to dairy queen in it for Ice Cream. My dad sold that car too back around 99 or so. I miss that car.

My dad also has several 3rd gen birds. He shoved a 428 in one, got it going, but never did anything with it NY inspections had a little something to do with that...

 

The "Rope-Drive" Tempest was cool back in the day. That Tempest was before my time, but I was a kid when the SD455 Trans Am came out. The last of the original muscle cars.

 

My first ever car was a 1978 Grand Prix with the 'mighty' 301 V8..... but I loved it. It was painted 1986 IROC blue, and I put slot mags and air shocks on it, dual exhaust, and put a shift kit in the tranny. Ah... the high school days.

Since then, we've had a few more Pontiacs, and it was my favorite brand for a very long time.

Here's my personal Pontiac history:

1978 Grand Prix 301




2004 Grand Prix GTP




2004 GTO




2006 Grand Prix GXP




RIP, Pontiac, you will be sadly missed by many.