1966 Pontiac Gto Hardtop Factory Tri-power And 4-speed Phs Documented Low Mile on 2040-cars

Auto blog

MotorWeek's 80's GM muscle coupe roundup includes Regal GN and Monte Carlo SS

Even with just four brands in the family, General Motors still represents a performance powerhouse. Between the Chevrolet Corvette Z06, Camaro Z/28, Cadillac CTS-V and ATS-V, The General can still deliver plenty of thrills. The 1980s, though, saw the brand go even crazier with performance. While the Camaro and Corvette were still around back in the day, GM had a number of other interesting performance offerings. The Bowtie was complemented by the long-deceased Monte Carlo SS, while the now-defunct Pontiac and Oldsmobile offered the Grand Prix and thumping 442, respectively. And Buick, which isn't short on performance with its Regal GS and Verano Turbo, offered a much more serious vehicle, in the form of the Grand National (not to mention the Darth Vader-spec GNX). MotorWeek, in its hugely entertaining retro flashbacks, looks back on these three long-lost GM performance icons, and it's just as good as you might expect. News Source: MotorWeek via YouTube Buick Chevrolet GM Pontiac Coupe Performance Classics Videos buick grand national chevy monte carlo oldsmobile 442

Pontiac could be a phoenix rising from the ashes

Of the deceased American car companies from the past 50 years such as Hummer, Mercury, Oldsmobile, Plymouth and Saturn, I believe the most worthy resurrection would be Pontiac. After all, it's no longer politically correct to drive an ex-military vehicle with single-digit gas mileage, nor do Millennials and Gen-Xers desire AARP-associated nameplates such as Mercury or Oldsmobile. Pontiac was originally founded in 1893 by Albert G. North and Harry G. Hamilton as the Pontiac Buggy Company, due to their location in Pontiac, Michigan. But as the early 1900s automotive revolution took off, they shifted their focus from horse-drawn carriages to motorized transportation. Taking a cue from Oakland County where they were based, they rebranded their organization as the Oakland Motor Company. Within a couple years, sales of Oakland cars were so good that it caught the attention of General Motors and they bought the company. In 1926, GM premiered the first Pontiac and its name drew inspiration from the legendary Native American War Chief, who was famous for the Battle of Bloody Run and opposition of British forces. His likeness was used in early promotional materials as well as the vehicle's emblem which was referred to simply as the "Indian Head". In 1956, the outdated emblem was replaced with a new, sleeker logo that resembled a red arrow head. It was known as "The Dart" and featured a singular star in the center which may have been a nod to Pontiac's successful Star Chief model. The 1960s saw the introduction of several popular models such as the GTO and the Firebird. The GTO was initially offered as an option package on the 1964 Tempest, and the name was the brainchild of John Delorean, who would later go on to form his own eponymous automobile company. The Firebird debuted in 1967 as a pony-car foil to Ford's award-winning Mustang. Although mechanically similar to Chevrolet's Camaro, the Firebird boasted a distinct sheetmetal nose and tail to help visually distinguish it. The 1980s were another adventurous time for Pontiac, and GM took advantage of the sales momentum by running a successful ad campaign. It proclaimed "We Build Excitement" and highlighted an arrangement with musicians Daryl Hall and John Oats. The fiery Fiero was a home-run for Pontiac and it was introduced in 1983 as an '84 model. Not only was it the first U.S. produced mid-engine sports coupe, but it also utilized lightweight, dent-resistant body panels.

'67 Chevy Corvair convertible vs. '86 Pontiac Fiero in cult classic showdown

Every few a decades, the folks running General Motors lose their minds briefly try to market a car that public doesn't see coming and often aren't ready for. In the '60s there was the rear-engine, air-cooled Chevrolet Corvair, then the mid-engine Pontiac Fiero in the '80s and the completely bizarre Chevy SSR in the 2000s. What all of these had in common was that they bucked the trend for American models of their era, for better or worse. The latest episode of Generation Gap tasked the hosts with finding two cult classic vehicles to choose between; they came come up with two of these quirky products from The General.
On the classic side, there's a 1967 Chevy Corvair Monza convertible. Being from later in the production run, it wears slightly more aerodynamic styling than the earlier, boxier examples. Hanging out back is an air-cooled, 2.7-liter flat-six pumping out a robust 95 horsepower. In the other corner is the somewhat more modern 1986 Pontiac Fiero SE with a mid-mounted, 2.5-liter "Iron Duke" four-cylinder, an engine nearly ubiquitous in GM cars of the '80s.
Judging by when they were new, the Corvair was far more successful than the Fiero with over 1.8 million sold. Of course, Ralph Nader's book Unsafe at Any Speed kind of poisoned the well, even if the poor safety reputation wasn't entirely deserved. The Fiero on the other hand only lasted for a few model years before shuffling off, but it eventually got its own performance boost with the V6 version and rather attractive GT models. Check them both out in the video and tell us in Comments which you want in your garage.