1967 Pontiac Baby Goat Lemans Coupe on 2040-cars

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GM doing fine at retaining Pontiac owners

This isn't the first time we've reported positive news about General Motors retaining former Pontiac owners. Get a few more stories like this latest report from Edmund's Auto Observer, and it will mark an ongoing positive trend for GM. Edmunds.com crunched the numbers to see how well the General is hanging on to customers after shutting out the lights at Pontiac, and it found that nearly 40 percent of Pontiac owners stayed with a vehicle from a General Motors brand.
The numbers are a little lower than an earlier R.L. Polk & Company study, but Edmunds says General Motors is keeping more former Pontiac buyers than it has since 2007. Most are turning to vehicles from Chevrolet, especially during January and February of 2011, when GM incentivized Pontiac owners to stay under the umbrella. Those moves seem to have worked, and 28.1 percent of Pontiac owners trading up made the jump into a Bowtie.
Buyers that have gone elsewhere have largely stayed loyal to Domestic automakers, with Ford picking up the most conquests from Pontiac, with 9.4 percent switching. Toyota and Honda picked up 7.4 percent of the pool of former Pontiac drivers. The numbers are defying any predictions that Pontiac buyers would completely exit the General Motors fold, and have climbed up closer to parity with the retention figures of other GM brands from a 2009 low of only 16 percent retention.

700 horsepower Porsche GT2 RS is the wildest 911 ever

The Porsche 911 comes in a variety of flavors, each filling a certain taste for a certain customer. Sitting atop the range is the new 911 GT2 RS. In previous generations, the GT2 had a bit of a reputation as a widowmaker, a 911 with massive power that could snap and bite with the slightest agitation. Porsche says the new model has been civilized, but with 700 horsepower going to the rear wheels, we're sure it's going to be as mad as ever. Power comes from a highly massaged version of the 3.8-liter flat-six from the 911 Turbo S. The rear-mounted engine makes an outrageous 700 horsepower and 553 lb-ft of torque. Like we previously reported, the new car will use water injection to help keep things cool. The only transmission is Porsche's PDK. While enthusiasts may lament the loss of the manual, the RS models have always been about performance above all else. Simply put, the PDK is the better performance option. All that power translates to a 0-60 mph time of 2.7 seconds and a top speed of 211 mph. The engine makes 80 more horsepower than the previous model. That makes it the most powerful road-going 911 ever built. In fact, the 887 horsepower 918 Spyder is the only road-going Porsche that makes more power. The fact that Porsche trusts all of that power to go to the rear is both thrilling and terrifying at the same time. In order to manage traction, the GT2 RS gets a number of upgrades. Rear-wheel steering has become commonplace in the 911 lineup, so it's no surprise to see it here. Sticky tires with 265/35 ZR 20 section rubber at the front and 325/30 ZR 21 section rubber at the rear keep things planted. That comically large rear wing adds downforce, adding to stability. The car gets standard carbon ceramic brakes. While some people prefer traditional rotors for the street, like the PDK, this is all about performance. A number of intakes and outlets complement the rear wing and maximize aerodynamic efficiency. It's a bit of a surprise that with all the focus on downforce, the GT2 RS still manages to top out at 211 mph. The hood, front wings, wheel housing vents, door mirrors, side air intakes, parts of the rear end, and a number of interior components are all made from carbon fiber. The roof has been made of magnesium. If you want to drop any pretense of civility and comfort in the pursuit of speed, Porsche is offering a Weissach package that shaves off another 40 pounds from the already impressive wet weight of 3,241.

Junkyard Gem: 1992 Pontiac Sunbird convertible, with extremely rad W25 Appearance Package

Radwood has sparked a revival in the appreciation of goofy 1980s and 1980s automotive fashions, from neon-colored tape stripes to excessive TURBO badging to ads featuring horrifying Nagel-style women with radio faceplates instead of eyes. I see a lot of discarded cars that would have been ideal to bring to Radwood, and today's Junkyard Gem is even radder than, say, a purple Mercury Tracer Trio or a teal Chevy Beretta GT or even the elusive Dodge Daytona IROC R/T (yes, there were IROC Daytonas): a genuine Pontiac Sunbird SE convertible with the W25 Appearance Package and Bright White Star wheels. The W25 package got you a white Sunbird with kicky script badging, white wheels, and — if you opted for the optional 3.1-liter V6 — these candy-cane-influenced red-and-white displacement badges on the fenders. Now this is rad! The white interior got dirty fast, especially if the owner left the convertible top down, and these wheels were tough to keep clean for more than a few hours. This one appears to have spent many years sitting abandoned with the top down, judging by the completely trashed interior. The base engine for 1992 was the good old Cavalier four-banger, complete with 111 horsepower. This 3.1-liter engine made a respectable-for-1992 140 horses, for plenty of torque-steery, tire-squealy fun. As a J-Body car, the Sunbird was a sibling to the Chevrolet Cavalier in 1992 (the J-based Cadillac Cimarron, Oldsmobile Firenza, and Buick Skyhawk departed before the end of the 1980s). Starting in 1994, the Pontiac Sunfire replaced the Sunbird, continuing in production all the way through the demise of the J platform in 2005. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Where (in Canada) would you test-drive your Sunbird? Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.