Who thinks it's time to start talking about Pontiac again? - Pontiac Discussions on GM Authority Forum

PontiacRulz

GM needed to get rid of Pontiac so it could get its act together, we all know this. But I think it's time to start talking about Pontiac again. GM is missing an important segment now, the affordble performance. All they have is the Camaro which isnt affordable for say a 20 year old if he wants a fast Camaro. The base is about the only affordable one. Where are the 4-door performance cars? Chevy competes with the generic mainstream brands like Honda, Ford, Toyota. Pontiac should compete with the sporty mainstream brands like Nissan, Mazda, Volkswagon and even Scion. Buick competes with the Japanese luxury cars and Cadillac competes with the German luxury cars. GM needs Pontiac!

wbodyfan

Ironically, the sport mainstream brands you mention are trying to become more less sporty and more mainstream, while the "generic mainstream" ones are trying to become more sporty. Case in point: Focus ST, Fiesta ST, Civic Si. VW, Mazda, and Nissan are trying to appeal to the mainstream with their offerings since they currently have a low volume, and much increase it to stay profitable.

I think what needs to occur is for Buick to go away and eventually get replaced by Opel, which will offer slightly more upmarket yet still affordable sporty vehicles. Chevy can easily offer affordable but high-performance versions of the Cruze, Sonic, Malibu, and even Impala. The base models of those cars are spot in terms of handling and drivability; they just need an option for more power and oomph. And that's really what Pontiac failed to do with the exception of G6 GXP and G8.

PS: I'm loving this forum guys :)>-

alex

Reply to @wbodyfan Thanks man! We're glad you like it!

Here's my question: can the new GM resurrect Pontiac even if it wanted to? As in does it not own the rights to the name anymore vis-a-vis bankruptcy?

PontiacRulz

@wbodyfan: I think GM should leave fuel effciency to Chevy, ya know have that brand compete in the fuel effciency game. Resurect Pontiac and make it about performance...but of course do their best to also make Pontiac as fuel efficient as possible haha. At the end it was sad that GM actually thought cars like the G3 and Aztek were suitable to wear a Pontiac badge, but they also had the some pretty sweet cars there at the end like the ones you mentioned and the Solstice...also did you forget about the Grand Prix GTP and GXP? Those things were beast! Pontiac needs to return, it will do GM a lot of good.

@Alex: Yes the New GM could resurect Pontiac because during the bankruptcy, they never sold the Pontiac name so they still own the rights to the name. Some guy actually tried to buy the Pontiac name during the bankruptcy but GM said no. Maybe they will resurect the brand when the economy and their profits are doing well enough!

alex

Reply to @PontiacRulz: I see. I feel, though, that whatever brand GM introduces or resurrects will be global going forward. At that, I think @wbodyfan is spot on about bringing Opel to the States. Opel already exists in Europe and will soon be made available in all locations excerpt for North America.

How do you feel about Opel?

PontiacRulz

I don't like Opel. But I don't know much about it either and dont want to honestly. You are right about the global thing, If GM were to resurect Pontiac then it would more than likely need to be a global brand from that point on or atleast be sold in a few other countries as well. I don't know if you have looked at GM's facebook page in a while but there is always SOOO many people on there saying they want Pontiac back. If GM listens to it's customers then it will bring the brand back because so many people want it back and I know GM sees, it's hard not to see it.

wbodyfan

Opel is basically the German sporty brand for the mainstream. It's affordable and its vehicles are fun to drive. You should really look into its entire lineup. Aside from the stupid Combo van that is now based on a Fiat, I would drive any Opel vehicle -- and this is coming from someone who drives a 2012 Camaro and is about to get an Equinox. Previously, I had a G8. And previous to that, the (new) GTO.

That said, Pontiac will never become a global brand. It sounds awkward and will simply cost way too much to globalize it (@alex should like that term).

PontiacRulz

I have to disagree with you, I think Pontiac has a lot of potential to become a global brand. What do you mean "sounds akward"? What are you talking about??

wbodyfan

Well, for starters, can you imagine a Russian or Chinese person saying "Pontiac" -- just the word itself? They've never even heard of it -- so take up would be very difficult.

Secondly, it would be extremely expensive to launch a new brand in markets that are new to it. That's why Opel, having a global presence except for that in North America, has a much better chance of being "globalized" -- it already exists (or will exist this year) in most of the world and is also respected in most of the markets in which it is sold. It would cost a tremendous amount less to bring Opel to NA than it would to 1) bring back Pontiac in NA and then 2) make it global.

On top of that, how and where would Pontiac be positioned in über-competitiev markets like Europe?

PontiacRulz

Well honestly I don't care what a Russian or Chinese person thinks about the word Pontiac. It is an American brand and when they say the name they wont forget that. How about Hyundai here in America? Do you think we Americans loved that name at first? No lol. I understand that Opel has global presence but your thinking is backward. You think that since the world (except for North America) knows about Opel that we should use Opel. I think that because the US people want Pontiac back and because Pontiac is a brand that AMERICANS love that it should be brought back soley for that reason. We do what America wants first, not what the world wants.

alex

It doesn't matter what kind of thinking we utilize -- forward or backward. If this ever does occur, it will be a business decision. Not one of sentimental value or national concerns.

And I'm willing to bet that Opel has a bigger chance of coming here than Pontiac does becoming a global brand. That's just business, plain and simple.

PontiacRulz

We will have to agree to disagree, Alex. I do have to ask though, where do you get your info about GM? I heard a rumor GM is thinking about bringing it back.

alex

Reply to @PontiacRulz: Which info, in particular?

PontiacRulz

Just all the new info on this site you put up as new news. How do you find out all the new stuff about the latest at GM? Let us know if you here anything about Pontiac coming back please!

alex

Reply to @PontiacRulz: Some of our stories are from internal sources the identities of whom we do not disclose. Other than that, other stories have 3rd party sources or press releases listed at the end of the particular article.

Nothing about Pontiac as of yet, though.

Vic1212

I would say they should bring back Pontiac as a affordable sports machine.

IainVauxhall

I think it's incredible how differently Americans view Opel to how Europeans do. In Europe it is possibly the least cool brand of car, and they're considered to be desperately dull to drive.
Europeans laugh at them, usually. It's extraordinary how you say their image is of 'the German sporty brand for the mainstream' when they're not even viewed as being particularly German. More 'pan-European'.

However in Britain, where they're branded 'Vauxhall', they're the second most popular brand of car (behind Ford, but considered cooler than Ford, with more potential to boost sales), and most young people want a Corsa as their first car.

Whilst Opel may have the right image in America, please accept that it's reputation and image COULD NOT BE WORSE in Europe. In this comment, I'm considering Britain and Europe to be different entities, as in terms of buying cars, we definitely are.

alex

Reply to @IainVauxhall: That's quite interesting -- thanks for sharing. I'm actually quite surprised by the opinions of many Europeans (outside of Britain, I guess) in thinking that Opels are dull to drive. Outside of VW, I can't think of another mainstream automaker that makes as great/fun-driving cars as Opel. Toyota and Nissan certainly don't come close. Neither does Honda, although its lineup is somewhat different in Europe compared to the States.

I think the image issues you describe can be repaired in the long run. It's amazing to me how Kia and Hyundai have turned the perception of their brands completely around in the US and Canada -- only in a matter of a few short years. Any reason why Opel couldn't do the same?

yabadabadoo

Like many GM faithfull I was shocked by Pontiacs demise. At the end of the day GM is only able to sustain one truly globalized brand which is Chevy. While it has its other 2 major brands in some international markets I feel to sustain any brand in the future these brands will have to expand further. GM might be able to sustain a small national focused sports brand in Pontiac but it would have to lean heavily on the likes of Opel based.platforms or even Holden platforms. My idea would be resurect the brand with 3 sporty vehicles that carve out a niche in the market. Pontiac would only offer V6's or all wheel drive only might have to be a sub-brand for Cafe reasons.

alex

It's also a bit of a business "swamp" for GM. There are so many Pontiac faithful that were pissed off by its discontinuation that anything Pontiac-related today could spur more hatred... Like making it a sub brand.

At some point, it gets to be more trouble than it's worth, you know?

yabadabadoo

True...

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