GM Will Discontinue Pontiac
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GM Will Discontinue Pontiac
Pontiac Is Dead
Date posted: 04-23-2009
DETROIT — According to a source at General Motors, the company will announce next Monday its new "faster, deeper" reorganization plan, which will likely include a death sentence for the Pontiac brand.
Inside Line called Tom Wilkinson, news relations PR man for General Motors, who said: "There's nothing I can share with you at this time. Keep your eyes on our media site. Officially, nothing has changed with Pontiac's niche-brand status, until you hear differently."
The one-time "Excitement" division and creator of legends such as the GTO and Firebird was relegated to "niche" or "specialty" brand status by General Motors in its first viability plan in December of last year.
The company toyed with competing proposals to either turn the brand into GM's version of Scion or to make Pontiac a very focused purveyor of performance cars based around the critically well-received G8. But ultimately, Pontiac was chosen as the easiest to kill since it was cut from GM's self-defined herd of four "core brands," Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC and Buick. Most Pontiac franchises have already been combined with Buick and GMC.
If true, Pontiac will join Saab, Saturn and Hummer as brands that will not survive GM's current troubles — at least not as a component of General Motors.
Inside Line says: Just as the G8 reawakened our interest in 83-year-old Pontiac, the brand falls victim to bad times and old mistakes. — Daniel Pund, Senior Editor, Detroit
Date posted: 04-23-2009
DETROIT — According to a source at General Motors, the company will announce next Monday its new "faster, deeper" reorganization plan, which will likely include a death sentence for the Pontiac brand.
Inside Line called Tom Wilkinson, news relations PR man for General Motors, who said: "There's nothing I can share with you at this time. Keep your eyes on our media site. Officially, nothing has changed with Pontiac's niche-brand status, until you hear differently."
The one-time "Excitement" division and creator of legends such as the GTO and Firebird was relegated to "niche" or "specialty" brand status by General Motors in its first viability plan in December of last year.
The company toyed with competing proposals to either turn the brand into GM's version of Scion or to make Pontiac a very focused purveyor of performance cars based around the critically well-received G8. But ultimately, Pontiac was chosen as the easiest to kill since it was cut from GM's self-defined herd of four "core brands," Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC and Buick. Most Pontiac franchises have already been combined with Buick and GMC.
If true, Pontiac will join Saab, Saturn and Hummer as brands that will not survive GM's current troubles — at least not as a component of General Motors.
Inside Line says: Just as the G8 reawakened our interest in 83-year-old Pontiac, the brand falls victim to bad times and old mistakes. — Daniel Pund, Senior Editor, Detroit
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Last edited by wabmorgan; 04-23-2009 at 10:54 PM. Reason: Link fixed
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So the G8 and Soltice and G6 etc are ALL gone? None will be kept as niche or re-badged? I wanted to replace my daily driver '07 G6 GTP with a G8 GT next year.....damn! I guess I'll have to get a pre-owned one.
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GMC and buick are also on the chopping block, but buick is a big seller in china and GMC has allot of fleet sales...both sell WAY better then pontiac...its a smart move really.
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Wow, this sucks, i've replied to one of their GM blogs.....letting them know what crap this really is. Go bankrupt already and tell the gov't to f-off. I was in full support of their loan, this is crap though.
#15
If there is a business case for it, they will sell the G8 as a chevy. However, I don't think they have been moving enough to justify it, unless there is that much extra capacity in the Camaro line.
#17
I'd be really pissed if they kept the G8 and renamed it a Chevelle. I bought the G8 as an alternative to buying an old Chevelle, because they didn't offer a new one and I wanted to drive it every day. And they can't even use the Malibu name because they bastardized it when they brought it back in the 90's.
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I'd be really pissed if they kept the G8 and renamed it a Chevelle. I bought the G8 as an alternative to buying an old Chevelle, because they didn't offer a new one and I wanted to drive it every day. And they can't even use the Malibu name because they bastardized it when they brought it back in the 90's.
I used to have an old Malibu 307 and it wasn't a performance car by any means but it was super reliable and comfortable car. Just don't expect it to do anything for you above 70 MPH. I think that last time I drove it ... about 22 MPG.
#19
Anyway, I hope this is all a rumor and on Monday they announce they are keeping Pontiac.