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GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Pontiac, A Eulogy: New York Times Edition

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SundaySunday
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Many of my best automotive memories have been Firebird-related:

1. My mom had the exact same specification Esprit as Jim Rockford's car, camel w/camel interior, 1978. The best was the "S" in the gear selector that made that thing roar.

2. A good friend of mine had a '94 6-cylinder, and despite the smaller engine, it still had a great exhaust note and was a fun ride, esp. with the T-tops removed.

3. I got to thrash a 6-speed WS6 that my former manager borrowed from GM Systems Engineering once in the mid '90s. Got it up to 65 mph in a very short distance on Big Beaver Road before the fear of an impound and the negative effect that would have on my career took over.

Good times. I shall wear my screaming chicken baseball hat today in fond remembrance of a once great nameplate.
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Cadavillac
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Welcome to 2000 when GM phased out Oldsmobile... right after finally giving it some seriously good products. The Alero had the Malibu and Grand Am trumped for style and interior quality. The Intrigue was hands down the best of the last generation W-bodies, including the LaCrosse. The second generation Aurora had the best designed and highest quality interior of anything else in the domestic stable--including anything from Cadillac. And the first-gen Aurora? Aside from the new CTS, it's still (in my opinion) the best looking upscale sedan from the General.

A few years down the road none of us will be very troubled over the loss of Pontiac.
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Six Flags Over Tomsk
04/27/09

@Cadavillac: I'm still pretty bitter about Olds. To each his own?
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Cognitive Friction
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Since this seems to be the place to post our Pontiac eulogies:

The 301 Poncho engine in my 1978 Buick LeSabre was my only exposure to Pontiac ownership. Calling that engine a piece of crap would be the kindest thing I could say about it. It had no guts at all, was constantly burning and leaking oil, and would never stay in tune. It was the worst engine I've owned by a mile, and I drive a HYUNDAI so that's saying something.

That's all I got.
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chucchinchilla
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
They still retain the right to revive the brand later on in better times...
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Six Flags Over Tomsk
04/27/09

@chucchinchilla: Don't hold your breath because you'll, like, die and stuff.
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mikedrawcar
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
my Grand Am wept this weekend at the news.

No seriously, it's got a massive seal leak in the firewall. there's standing water on the floorboard.

stupid f-ing 90's GM quality messing up my nostalgia.
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Charles_Barrett - Now with Variable-Valve Timing
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
RIP Pontiac. Rejoin your brother Oldsmobile, auntie LaSalle, and grandpa Oakland in the GM great beyond...
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Six Flags Over Tomsk
04/27/09

@Charles_Barrett - Now with Variable-Valve Timing: Don't forget cousins Viking and Marquette, and crazy Uncle Geo.
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Van Sarockin, rogue trebuchet
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
And why has my supply of Brefass Scoth been interdicted, when I need it most? Poor Pontiac, sacrificed so the mother ship can sail blithely on into the icebergs for a little longer. Well, at least Oldsmobile has good company now.
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Stoatmaster
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Anagram fun: Pontiac = To panic
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danio3834
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Is the end of Pontiac effive in 2011/12 like Saturn? Or is the Saturn exectuion off now? Details! I need to know if I'm still saving for that G8 GXP.

So sad because there was so much potential for awesomeness.
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MazdaSpeedy
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Obamunism claims another victim. We'll all be driving American made Trabants before too long if he has way.
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Megan Squier
04/27/09

@I love Capitalism...no I don't mean upper case letters.: You mean those old commie cars from Hungary or somewhere behind the iron curtain some nutball decided to import in the early 60's?

That was a crappy idea back then!
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Stoatmaster
04/27/09

@I love Capitalism...no I don't mean upper case letters.:

How is this Obama's fault? He's been in charge for 3 months, the car execs have had decades to sort out their businesses.

Obamunism? Nice wordplay, but in reality the 'communist as US president' doesn't stand up to a lot of scrutiny, does it?
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Stoatmaster
04/27/09

@Megan Squier:

I think you're trying to say iconic fibreglass bodied 2-strokes, emblematic of pre-wall-collapse East Germany.

Cute, but not very popular where there was an actual choice.
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scottcom36 has Weekday DT's, Weekend OD's
04/27/09

@Stoatmaster: Scrutinize this sentence: "The company had said it wanted to keep Pontiac as a niche brand with one or two models, but is buckling under tremendous government pressure to consolidate its eight brands, several of which lose money." It bears a certain resemblance to "central planning".
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Megan Squier
04/27/09

@Stoatmaster: Exactly, I wasn't born until '86 and I only learned about the Traby until I read about them in a book in obscure cars a few years ago.
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Stoatmaster
04/27/09

@Megan Squier:

My dear child! So young, in a world so brimming with possibilities!

Get yourself over to Berlin, and do the Trabant city tour: [www.guardian.co.uk]

Actually, forget the Trabant and just enjoy Berlin.
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Stoatmaster
04/27/09

@scottcom36 has Weekday DT's, Weekend OD's: It's either central planning, or the government being a bit heavy handed about saying "There's supposed to be a bail-out plan here, but you're still misusing taxpayer's money."

You might have a point in that respect, but to suggest that the US has a communist president seems a bit of a leap.
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OldeEnglishD
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
My Dad built Pontiacs for 30 years. I have bought 5 new Pontiacs over the last 13 years. Most were actually good vehicles (except the Sunfire, what a POS). I am sad about the end of Pontiac, but in reality GM needed to shed brands for a long time. Hopefully Chevy keeps the sporty spirit of Pontiac alive.
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FLB is on vacation
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Remember a year ago when Jalopnik was all a-buzz about a possible G8-amino?

...
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FLB is on vacation was starred

Paul Y. don't drive too fast.
04/27/09

@FLB: Yeah, those were the days.
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WilliamG.
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
This is so effin' rediculous. For all the bitching about badge engineering, there's a place for a performance division like Pontiac that makes performance oriented (i.e., stiffer suspension, aggressive stance, lower geared) variants of the volume GM platform cars.

But I guess that's what the SS badge at Chevy is for now.

It's the hood scoop and body cladding designers that should be taken out and shot (figuratively, not literally). Even the G8--in all other non-US variants, one of the best looking cars in the world--looked like a joke once they added all the slots in the hood and that pig-face snout.

Good to know they'll still be gluing meaningless GMC badges to Chevy trucks and SUVs and pretending that smoehow changing the emblem makes them "professional grade".
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engineerd
04/27/09

@WilliamG.: The real shitty part is there won't be any SS badges for a while since GM also shut down their performance vehicles group.

Malaise 2.0...Get your 4-banger!
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mechimike
04/27/09

@WilliamG.: "Good to know they'll still be gluing meaningless GMC badges to Chevy trucks and SUVs "

You mean:

"Good to know they'll still be gluing meaningless Chevrolet badges to GMC trucks and SUVs."

;-)
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twinturbo2
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
Anybody need a drink? pauljones, you never responded to me the last time I posed this question. You need a drinking buddy?
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Leeeeena the Jalopchick
04/27/09

@twinturbo2: Here's a drink to commemorate Pontiac's passing for ya.

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Leeeeena the Jalopchick
04/27/09

@Leeeeena the Jalopchick: dammit, that didn't work, let's try again:

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engineerd
04/27/09

In reply to GM To Officially Kill Pontiac, Assembly Plants Today
We knew this was coming. Like a grandfather who's been sick for a long time it's not a surprise, but it is still sad. So, I have some Bon Jovi reworked for this sad event:

As I sit in this factory

The shift about to end

I pass my time with strangers

But this GTO's my only friend

Remember when we used to park

On Adams Road out in the dark

Remember when we raced for pinks

And picked up girls at the skating rinks

Remember when we used to talk

About busting out - we'd melt your tires

Together - forever

Never say goodbye, never say goodbye

You and me and my old friends

Hoping it would never end

Never say goodbye, never say goodbye

Holdin' on - we got to try

Holdin' on to never say goodbye
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engineerd was starred engineerd was unstarred

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