What do you guys think, Would the GTO get bashed less if it was called Pontiac Monaro?

I think so, A lot of people seem to have been expecting a full blown retro GTO and are disappointed. I like the current GTO and think it will get a lot more fans if the '05 gets a Ram Air hood and LS2 (and keeps the same price).

 

absolutely.the monaro name means nothing to americans,but bring back the GTO name or SS badge or legendary names,and you've got 30-40 years of heightened expectations.memories and stories of a car that may or may not have been as fast or great is alot to overcome.don't get me wrong,the GTO was a great car,but you've got 30 years to build that car up to some kind of mythic status.even without the import or styling knocks,i would bet any car name that was brought back after that long an absence would get flack,names like charger(not counting the FWD variants that few remember)chevelle,belair.i guarantee people still argue over the '94-96 impala and whether that was a proper impala or not.
i have to say i was WRONG about the styling of the new GTO.i saw one at the nashville auto show and i was very impressed,pics don't do it justice.there was just as many people crowding around it as the mustang concept.i still don't like way they brought the car back,but all the whining i've done about the styling was wrong.on my part at least.

 

I think so seeing as how the biggest argument is "it doesn't resemble a GTO". The biggest gripe most seem to have is the styling and it not looking aggressive enough (scoops, etc...). Another gripe some had was it coming from down under and the GTO kind of being an all-american name (arguably first muscle car) so the name carries a lot of weight. There's also the argument of it being more of a Monaro than a real GTO.

Allot of these arguments may or nor be unfounded, and many others are trivial at best, but the simple naming of "Monaro" would have eliminated most of them in my opinion.

Either way, great car.

 

I absloutely believe the GTO would be bashed far less if it was called Monaro. Last year at the NAIAS, I barely glanced at the GTO that was sitting by itself at the edge of the Pontiac area with no one even near it. I bashed it and griped about how it looks like a Grand Am and what not. This year I gave it a serious look and sat in it. Very impressive machine to say the least. I now actually like the styling as well. It doesnt look like a Grand Am, its just the generic Pontiac front grille. To me it looks like a modern GTO. I dont care about what the old GTO "means" or "represents". It was 30 years ago, with inferior technology, different rules and different standards. That was then and this is now, meaning 2004. Todays GTO is a great car and thats my opinion.

 

Maybe, but they still would have taken away our $25,000 F-bodies and replaced them with a slower, heavier, $34,000 car.

 

I think it would have taken a lot less heat..........but likely wouldn't have sold over here worth anything.......

 

I really don't see what the big deal was with the GTO. The original GTO was a family sedan that "happened" to get a good motor, which launched it into it's "muscle car" status. This new GTO is a family sedan that "happened" to get a good motor, which is launching all 18,000 of them to be sold this year.

I could understand the gripe that the "GTO" nameplate was American and that this one is from Australia, BUT what else is going to cut into Mustang sales?

Styling Issues? Jeez people why don't you go buy a 4 foot wing and some 6' inch tips and splash a few shades of green on the car? Rice anyone? It was meant to "fit in" to the background and the only reason GM is changing that is because of the whining that's going on about it's "Grand Amness". You act like there aren't any aftermarket hoods, and you act like the car will be kept stock.

I'm not a fan of 2 seaters, so any roadster isn't for me.(Vette, Viper, and the like.) I'm saving for an 07 Camaro, but if that wasn't being planned then the GTO would definitely be on my list.

 

Thing that kills me w/ the GT0 is that the engine put into it has already been in production 7 years...and you can still probably get a stock 98 Z28 to whip its but stock for stock...I find that rather then exciting for a supposed "new performance car" ...the cars a snooze hands down, I often wonder what GM was thinkin on this one

 

It's the squeaky wheel gets the grease scenario.

A few people are complaining. The majority are happy with it so they don't say a word. On the surface it looks like everyone is unhappy... however, that isn't neccessarily true.

If it were a Chevy I'd buy it!

 

The biggest argument I've seen from my group of friends is that it's DULL and BORING!

If it was a Monaro, I suppose I'd bash it a little less though.

 

Yes & No.

Yes, it would not have been bashed at all by the GTO *****, and they could still glorify their car as something it wasn't (myth is never the same as reality).

No, because there still exists an entirely different group of people still can't tell it apart from f-bodies because it happens to be driven by the rear wheels and has a V8 engine.

Then there's the group (sometimes the same people) who mindlessly & happily fork over $32,000 for a live axle, early 90s-like quality car just because it has some pretty paint when the same car can be had for $25,000 & less , who at the same time complains that a modern IRS, car that dips into BMW territory in terms of quality & refinement cost too much at that same $32,000 price.

In short, no matter what happens, somebody is going to be unhappy. So, why worry about it.

 

One thing I think is that if had they designed the thing to look more "GTOish" then the same people complaining about its tame appearance would complain that it is too retro.

You can't win everyones heart over.

 

I remember seeing posts about the Monaro and just about everyone was saying that GM would be stupid not to bring it to the States. But as soon as it's called a GTO it's suddenly slow, ugly, and overweight. I guess GM should have made a GTO out of a fwd Grand Prix, since that would actually correspond more with the idea of the original GTO.