The end of the road (last pun I promise) is finally here for Pontiac. The last G6 sedan has rolled off the assembly line, the final Vibe has been shipped, the G8 sedan was stopped months back, and the Solstice plant will be making cars for Fisker. Pontiac is no more. This is a sensitive subject for me, as Pontiac was finally starting to build some nice vehicles. For more on the downfall of the once great Pontiac brand, head on over to MSNBC.
(Image source: GM)
Could the U.S. be getting a Chevrolet SS model based off the Holden RWD platform?
Rumor has it that the United States of America (God bless her) could be getting a rear-wheel drive model based off the Holden platform from Australia! Where does this news come from? Why a Pontiac G8 forum of course! According to a dealer publication, there are several fixes coming in for the 2011.5 model year Chevrolet Caprice police interceptor and also for the 2012 Chevy SS. That sounds like proof positive that some form of this car is headed our way! For more on this, click on over to G8board.com.
(Image source: Autoblog)
First Bob Lutz says the Chevrolet Impala will stay front wheel drive…
Reports have it that Bob Lutz has stated that the next generation Chevrolet Impala will stay front-wheel drive. This saddens my heart because I had hoped the rear-wheel drive Pontiac G8 would live on as the next Impala. No dice says Maximum Bob, but he did mention that the next Impala should feature GM’s hybrid system, meaning fuel economy and technology will be at the forefront for the new model. For more, head on over to the Straight Line Blog.
(Image source: TopSpeed)
Will the Pontiac G8 finally live on as a Chevy cop car???
If current reports are to be believed, then the answer is yes! The main reason is that the G8 will be one of the few rear-wheel drive vehicles big enough to fit a cop or two and some perps in the back. For more on this story, head on over to Autoblog.
GM looking into foreign Chevy Caprice as US market police enforcer
Looks like the Pontiac G8 may not be completely dead here in the U.S. According to Fritz Henderson, GM is reviewing the possibility of bringing a foreign market version of the G8, known as the Chevrolet Caprice, here as a police offering to replace the current front wheel drive Impala.
For more from Fritz, head on over to Autoblog.
In its restructuring, GM decided to kill off Pontiac, taking the G8 with it. Initial plans were to not rebadge the G8 as a Chevy, but the latest news is that Bob Lutz (he’s back!) wants to bring it back as the Chevy Caprice.
The Chevy Caprice already exists in the middle east and is also built on the same platform as the G8 (Holden Commodore). This means that it shouldn’t be much work to rebadge the vehicle as a Chevy in the US. Let’s hope this news holds true because the G8 is an awesome car!
Read the full article at BussinesWeek.
Pontiac G8 Sema concept (GM)
General Motors has just announced a few days ago that the Pontiac brand will be “phased out by the end of 2010.” GM will then focus it’s survival/restructuring efforts around the core of Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC. Frankly I’m very sad to see Pontiac go just when it was starting to get some really great products in it’s showrooms. The Solstice and G8 are top notch, however their success was limited and often overshadowed by the lack-luster G3 and G5. I just don’t understand why GM would kill a brand that has unique models and keep a brand like GMC which has only re-badged Chevrolet models? Whatever, I don’t make the decisions, I just report on them. For more, including an official press release, head on over to Autoblog.
Bob Lutz
That’s right folks, GM’s Vice Chairman for Global Product Development since 2001, Mr. Lutz will be retiring at the end of 2009. He has been instrumental in bringing products like the Cadillac CTS, Chevrolet Malibu, Pontiac Solstice and G8, and Saturn Sky to market, as well as being the driving force behind the Chevrolet Volt. Read the full article at Autobloggreen.com.
