Proposal plays up RWD performance cars in attempt to revive ailing brand


The future of the Grand Prix sedan, one of several front-drive Pontiac vehicles, is reportedly being debated.

By JAMIE LAREAU | AUTOMOTIVE NEWS
05/29/06, 2:30 am et

DETROIT -- After debating Pontiac's viability this year, General Motors' leadership plans to revive the brand's heritage of performance with a product lineup of exclusively rear-wheel-drive cars.

There would be no trucks and - after the next generation of vehicles - no front-wheel-drive cars either.

GM will unveil a rwd sedan concept at January's Detroit auto show, company sources say. This echoes the strategy that GM adopted with the 1999 Evoq concept, which revealed Cadillac's new brand "look."

The Pontiac plan is not final. GM executives continue to build a business case for it. This ambitious proposal is a plan to save the brand, which has suffered declining sales.GM sold 437,806 Pontiacs in the United States last year, compared with 599,123 in 1995.

One insider says it would take five years to convert the brand to all rwd. That's why Pontiac will get one more generation of fwd and all-wheel-drive small cars.

A Pontiac spokesman declined to comment on the brand's plans. Fwd cars will not go away soon, but rwd vehicles will become more prominent "in the near term," the spokesman said.

Sources inside GM and close to Pontiac say GM leaders are debating:

>> The future of the Grand Prix sedan.

>> A possible GTO replacement based on the Chevrolet Camaro.

>> A Firebird muscle car.

In recent years, Pontiac has been wracked by debate over its future. During a controversial speech at the New York auto show last year, GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz called Pontiac "a damaged brand."

In a recent interview with Automotive News, Lutz said he had never asserted that the brand was "irreparably" damaged. While Pontiac is still struggling, GM is repairing the damage, and the bleeding has stopped, Lutz says.

Nevertheless, sources say top-level GM executives did debate a phaseout of the brand. In January, senior executives met to discuss Pontiac's future. GM decided to revive Pontiac as a pure performance brand.

GM will trim product lineups as it consolidates Buick, Pontiac and GMC into three-brand dealerships under its retail channel strategy. In a recent interview, Lutz told Automotive News that Pontiac and Buick will not carry trucks.

Lutz declined to speculate whether the Pontiac Torrent crossover, a rebadged Chevrolet Equinox, would one day go to GMC, but industry sources say it's likely.

The strategy will force Pontiac to sort out its product plans for the Grand Prix. While GM hasn't set a time frame, it's likely the automaker will discontinue the current incarnation of the fwd Grand Prix after the 2008 model year, industry sources say.

GM is considering a new mid-sized rwd sedan to replace it, says an industry insider. The source says the vehicle will be "one notch up" from the present Grand Prix, which has a base price of $21,990, including shipping. Whether that vehicle keeps the Grand Prix name is uncertain.

A rwd lineup could give Pontiac performance credibility, says John Pitre, general manager of Motor City Auto Center in Bakersfield, Calif. "They're right on track with the performance division of GM," he says. "BMW has been born and raised on rear-wheel drive. For us on the West Coast, rear-wheel drive feels better to drive and seems to last longer."

But Pontiac's drive to become a pure performance division would sacrifice sales volume, predicts Doug Scott, industry analyst at GfK Automotive in Southfield, Mich. For example, many G6 buyers in northern climates want a front-wheel-drive car for winter conditions.

Scott also said GM is pressuring dealers to combine Buick, Pontiac and GMC franchises into single stores by cutting the brands' product lineups.

"They really want to narrow the range of products and narrow the sales objective," Scott says. It means sacrificing sales volume at dealerships for profit at corporate level. "It's forcing the channeling strategy," he says.

Pontiac brand executives hope that if GM builds the Camaro for Chevrolet, the architecture could provide a similar product for Pontiac. The previous generation of GM muscle cars included the rwd Pontiac Firebird, a sibling of the Camaro.

But Pontiac spokesman Jim Hopson is quick to add, "We want a truly differentiated product. We don't want a rebadged vehicle."

Company insiders say that if GM decides to build the Camaro, GM will not revive a Firebird version. "There will be no Firebird," says one source. "Rear-wheel drive? Yes. Pony car? No."

Dealers also want a replacement for the GTO, one of only two current rwd Pontiac cars, the other being the Solstice two-seater. Pontiac will kill the Australia-produced coupe this fall after just three model years.

Insiders say there will be a replacement for the GTO, but the product gap will remain for a couple of years.

Says Pontiac's Hopson: "We haven't made any bones about the fact that Pontiac needs a rear-wheel-drive performance vehicle."

 

I think it's sticking a fork in Pontiac (and Buick and GMC) is a much better idea for GM's future overall, though this doesn't sound bad. I don't think Pontiac really has five years left though. It will be in Lincoln's shape by then.

 

werd.

 

Interesting. Shame the Solstice is being cut, but the rest of the news is sounding fairly good so far.

Edit: I misread things... the Solstice is staying, the GTO is leaving.

 

I don't see where it says the Solstice is being cut. I think they're referring to the GTO in that sentence and you're misreading it.

 

i work for a pontiac dealership and they arent going to make the solstice for long, and there is only like 14K made a year.

 

Why the hell would they cut the Solstice? The damn things are selling like hotcakes (which can't be said for many GM vehicles, let alone Pontiacs).

 

I hope pontiac can survive. I like the solstice, if I was done with college, I would have totally bought one for my wife/us to cruise in. It is a nice car. The GTO was great and I really liked the new one but it was more sedan than 2+2 coupe going by looks. There is still a lot of potential with a new GTO i think but the design has to be right. I think the 04-06 gto's have kept true to the handling/performance characteristics of the old gto but the body needed a bit more agressiveness rather than elegance. I can see how tough it is for GM and as much as I respect the firebird and it's history, I couldn't imagine a possible return being a smart decision.

 

Why have three car makers or two? Have Chevy as your only car maker, period. Why do you need to waste all the budget, R&D, advertising, and car making by tripplicating or duplicating it.

There is no reason for Pontiac (or Buick)! Chevy can make a camaro, a larger Goatish type vehicle (Chevelle), and a Solistice type car (I see these things absolutely everywhere so there is no reason to axe the thing entirely, give it some old Vette cues and call it a Stingray...made by Chevy) while making a collection of FWD and RWD cars for families. Then you only need to advertise one company and pay one staff...and get the Feds to approve one car line (very costly). GM is foolish to produce all of the brands it produces. When a sacred cow or elephant is eating all your food and taking all your money...its time to kill it, eat it, and go on (buy a damn dog or something).

W

 

Solstice sales are very good at this point , it's not being cut , GTO is. Word has that the GTO *might* be back with the Camaro in '09 .Reviving Pontiac as a performance oriented brand is an excellent idea and it should help the brand.

 

Right on. That's what I've heard also.

Giving Pontiac the performance edge should definitely help its image. I really hope things come around soon.

 

Ohh, doh.

I'm glad to hear the Solstice is doing well (and I just can't read )

Yeah, I agree... the GTO would have been better with styling to match the name, or else another name without those connotations.

 

I'm lovin it.

 

The bringing back the performance brand is an excellent idea. There is a need and hunger for American muscel cars again, and I don't think that you can do that with just Chevy. While it'd be nice to have a Chevelle, a Camaro, and a Vette, and whatever you want to rebadge the solstice as, it just won't work, it won't fit in with the product mix. I question the use of ONLY RWD cars. There is a market for the front drives, but let chevy pick that up. I would think that GM could do some type of AWD Evo, WRX, or a Ford rally inspired car. Actually, for GM to get involved Rallying might not be a bad thing as the market for that kind of car is HUGE! (At least that's what I'm learning from being a subby owner) The fans of that sport are true to the root word, fanatic. Race on Sunday, Sell on Monday, or Sell on Monday, Race on Sunday.

Honestly, what that article talks about, is something that I've been saying for a while. I've said that GM needs to spin Pontiac and give them more autonomy. This sounds like the first move in the right direction. Buick is probably done. GMC has solid fleet market, so yank them from show rooms.

Edit: One other point. American muscle doesn't have to be JUST in your face power, loud, nasty, uncontrolled, but it can be sophisticated and refined, with the proper undertones of the characteristics that define American cars.

 

Muscle cars aren't known for being "refined with proper undertones". Yeah it sucks WS6 has cheap interior and makes alot of noises. But it runs like a ******* beast, lights up the tires with a flick of the throttle, and is loud enough to scare the **** out of people.
-Joel

 

They should do this with chevy, bring back the RWD impala, drop the mali. RWD cobalt SS,

 

Joel, you must remember, marketing for the masses. I agree, I don't need much more than a decent radio w/ CD (could give two hoots about bluetooth, mp3, nav, handsfree cell, since I think you should be able to drive with a phone, big mack, coffee/soad, chick in your lap ). and heat and air and a full set of gauges. Unfortunately, most of the people that buy a vehicle are gonna want some kind of ammenities (because we're all stary eyed when it comes to gismos and keep up with the neighbors). Personally, I'd take a stripped down car with power windows, locks, and a single cd radio with cloth buckets and no power seat adjust, but I do believe the days of unrefined interiors in high end american performance cars, are coming to an end and the styles / features you and I would buy will continue to become a niche market.

 

Something has to give at GM. GMC should be only trucks, Buick has not had any real styling since the T-type and GN days, Pontiac should be in your face performance oriented. The Vette will always be the flagship of refined and powerful. American automakers need to align themselves with some aftermaket vendors to allow for cost effective upgrades. Why just be a chimp when you can be an Ape. GM please be the 600lbs gorilla that you need to be.

 

I think GM should definately go rally!!! That would be a very smart move.

Likewise I agree that Buick should be axed. GMC for trucks, Chevy for normal cars of RWD and FWD variety, Pontiac does not need to be around--but if you want a mid grade car this would be the best brand for it--, and Caddy for premo.

W

 

Not everyone wants to drive a Camaro or a Mustang. The more options when it comes to the performance cars the better IMO! Sounds like a good plan for Pontiac to me.