Pontiac Brings Back Excitement

Lately it seems General Motors has a new line of products to introduce at every auto show, and New York was no exception. As GM's featured division in the Big Apple, Pontiac delivered something for nearly everyone - a coupe, a sedan and a pickup truck (of sorts).

The Solstice Coupe takes the styling and performance of the popular Solstice roadster and puts it in coupe form, inspired by the Solstice Coupe Concept shown in 2002 at the auto show in Detroit. Luckily drivers of the Solstice Coupe won't have to sacrifice the roadster's open-air feeling - a panel in the roof is removable, similar in style to the one on the Chevrolet Corvette.

The roadster did not undergo any radical changes to create the coupe. "The Solstice coupe represents a major collaboration of design and engineering," said Bruce Kosbab, chief engineer of the project. "The sleek lines of the new roof give the car a fresh appearance, yet only minimal changes were made to the body structure - it's a great example of building on an already solid foundation."

The same two powerplants available in the roadster - a 173-horsepower 2.4-liter engine or a turbocharged 2.0-liter engine making 260 horsepower - will be available in the coupe. Because the coupe is only slightly heavier than the roadster, GM expects similar performance out of the coupe when it goes on sale early in 2009.

Need more room and power? The Pontiac G8 is beginning to go on sale and already the division is announcing a new version of the sports sedan - the G8 GXP. The GXP moniker designates Pontiac's higher-performance offerings; thus, GM's Vice Chairman of Global Product Development Bob Lutz described the new G8 as the "GXP-est."

Driving 402 horses to the rear wheels is GM's 6.2-liter LS3 V8 engine, which also produces an estimated 402 lb-ft of torque. This should be good enough to move the G8 GXP to 60 mph in around 4.7 seconds when teamed with the new Tremec 6-speed manual transmission.

"More than just raw power, the GXP delivers the sophisticated yet exciting driving experience that enthusiasts expect in a car costing far more than the GXP," said Jim Bunnell, Buick-Pontiac-GMC general manager.

The third Pontiac on the docket is being referred to as the G8 sport truck, but that won't be its final name. Reminiscent of the Chevrolet El Camino that ended production in the late 1980s, this new model is based on the G8 sedan. Behind the front seats is a pickup-like open cargo area. The sport truck is not a concept - GM will build this vehicle for the 2010 model year. But they don't yet know what to call it, so they are asking for help.

"As an important part of the G8 family, we know that "sport truck" doesn't fully describe the vehicle's ability to blur the lines between sports car and truck," said Craig Bierley, Pontiac marketing director. "Because its fans will surely be as unique as the vehicle itself, we're giving them a voice in selecting a name that reflects its appeal."

Consumers and budding marketers may submit their naming suggestions until April 15 at http://www.pontiac.com/namethiscar.