Is There Hope For Pontiac?

While I was in Detroit, I had the opportunity to sit down and talk to Susan Docherty, General Motors Vice President for Marketing at Buick, Pontiac and GMC. I mostly just wanted to talk about Pontiac. First of all, there is no plan for a Firebird. Sorry about that. Susan said that right now the plan is to focus the brand down to few models, much the way they took the Buick brand from eight to three models. So how many models will Pontiac end up with (from the current six, which incudes the new G3—basically a rebadged Aveo)? “Less than six,” is all Susan would commit to.

In our discussion Susan seemed to really focus in on the G8, the Solstice and the Vibe. Now, those are three very different vehicles, and to me, make for a somewhat confused brand image. The only one that really screams Pontiac to me is the G8. I like the Solstice, but it doesn’t really fit my idea of what Pontiac should be. And the Vibe seems more pratical than exciting. If it was up to me, I’d love to see a RWD G6, a Firebird, the G8, a two-door G8 with the GTO nameplate, and maybe a super hot hatch. But what do I know? It’s clear that the next year or two will be rocky for Pontiac. Susan emphasized that they don’t have all the answers, and that plans for the Pontiac brand have not been finalized. So stay tuned, and let your voice be heard.