Rest In Peace...
With the advent of cutbacks, downsizings, and bailouts, the once venerable name of PONTIAC has fallen from the umbrella moniker of General Motors, following the demise of the Oldsmobile line a couple of years ago.
Now, I thought about doing something Shakespearean like Antony's speech to Rome when Julius Caesar got whacked, but I haven't the "panache" that the BARD had. What I DO have is something for you to peruse.
For ALL the thumbnail history of this motorcar division of GM (and a damn good read), here's the WIKI link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac
Now, as most of you regular readers know, I've been a Pontiac driver for close to 26 YEARS...with the SAME CAR (that has yet to surpass the 60K point on the odometer).
Back when I bought my Pontiac, that division was STILL a MAJOR player when it came to automobiles, and was outselling ALL but CHEVROLET.
But that was THEN...and this is NOW.
And NOW...I am officially PISSED THE HELL OFF.
When it comes to General Motors, we used to joke that it was the SECOND LARGEST corporation AFTER the Catholic Church...LOL!
The (soon to be closed) Wilmington, DE plant was quiet testimony to being one of the largest facilities I've ever seen. It would take over 2 MINUTES to pass the place (doing 55) along I-95. That's some big ass plant, people. Acres and acres of spanking new cars would wait for loading onto the rail carriers to the rest of the country (and even the world).
Personally, I've really enjoyed my "relationship" with Pontiac since 1983 (my car was assembled in the Norwood Ohio plant that closed back in 1987 for you historians out there).
Aside from a few (normal, to be espected) hiccups along the way, it's been relatively low-cost and damn fun. But the ravages of time do wear on man AND machine, so the old Firebird needs a little "tweaking" to get it back up to factory specs...no biggie.
Still, the abandonment (what else can one call it?) of Pontiac by General Motors is akin to casting off a productive, intelligent child, and that speaks volumes to our societal state. Nice analogy there.
When you stop to consider ALL the history that Pontiac created over ONLY 83 years of life, it boggles the mind.
Today, we have NO ONE with the talent, the perspicacity, and the balls like GM did when it had guys like Bunky Knudsen and John DeLorean working for their Pontiac motor division.
These were men who TRULY knew what it meant to think OUTSIDE the box (or the realm of probability), and create cars that put a shitload of money into GM's coffers!
Now, I could go into all the innovations that Pontiac pioneered, but if you read the WIKI link, you'll find out for yourselves.
Suffice it to say, that Pontiac was, in many respects, the FLAGSHIP division of GM for years, if not decades.
(And who can argue with such a LOVELY car like THAT, hmm?)
Whatever Chevy, or Buick, or even Oldsmobile did, PONTIAC did it better...and most times FASTER.
Even during the oil embargo of the 70s, Pontiac still produced cars that SOLD...and sold damn well. I'll bet you didn't know that the 75 MILLIONTH car (that's a LOT of cars) to roll off of ANY GM line...was in fact, a PONTIAC!
This was a time when 400K cars of the SAME MAKE were produced...AND bought. AND they were PONTIACS (Trans AM series for one).
Suddenly the music went away, like so many lyrics from a Don McLean song.
It was when all of GM's cars began to become poor excuses for "clones" of one another (as well as foreign imports) that problems started...and flourished.
There was no longer notable model lines like CATALINA, TEMPEST, LE MANS, or even the iconic GTO.
The FIREBIRD/TRANS AM had it's wings clipped back in 2004, and the BONNEVILLE followed a year after that, only to be supplanted with more "catchy" nomenclatures like G6, and G8...(GEE WHIZ, Wally, what the f*ck is that supposed to be? A car?).
The GRAND AM was even gone.
And what EVER happened to the FIERO?
The mid-engine sports coupe (seen here) with the "enduraflex" body panels and "space frame" construction?
Gone, after only a handful of years.
Thankfully, the Pontiac VIBE is still about, and that's a damn practical vehicle. The missus was even thinking about getting one.
So much for THAT idea, eh?
The phrase USED to proclaim:
"PONTIAC - WE BUILD EXCITEMENT"
Today..not so much, unless we're referring to the times when cars were REAL CARS, and not some cookie-cutter stamping that was sub-assembled in Mexico with parts from 35 other countries.
Yeah, it sure is NOT the motoring world I used to remember.
And to think that Pontiac was pretty much the last "horse out of the stable", as it were, regarding (new back then) GM divisions.
So maybe they weren't AS CHEAP as a CHEVY...or not AS OPULENT as a BUICK, not AS LARGE as an OLDSMOBILE, and certainly not in the same class AS a CADDY, but the division found it's OWN niche nicely, and consistently surpassed the sales of other divisions within GM.
Yeah...I'm pissed off alright.
I get pissed off at short-sighted namby-pambys that can't see past their damn billfold. I get pissed when REAL innovation is sidelined in lieu of competition numbers, kissing other nation's automotive asses, and profit margins. Sometimes you have to take a dive into the red, or go out on a limb for a year or so, until you get back in the black...Pontiac did just that, oft times blowing away the competition (within theri OWN company to boot), and surprising the hell out of the heads of GM.
I get pissed when I see good, old-fashioned AMERICAN ingenuity get tossed out the window with the bath water.
That WAS what Pontiac was all about.
They were about doing the improbable, even behind the "bosses" backs, in order to show the people what a car company (read division) WAS CAPABLE of doing. And the bosses couldn't get the thank yous off of their lips FAST enough when these engineers and workers produced cars that were at the top of their game.
But it's time to put that all to rest.
The patient has expired, the plug has been pulled, and little if anything will really be said on the patient's behalf.
We'll just let it all fade into another sunset...
Or will we?
Pontiac will live on, if ONLY in the cars produced before it's untimely cessation, along with the drivers and car-lovers that preserve as many as they can, and will ensure that happens.
In many ways, PONTIAC might even become BIGGER than it was when it was part of GM.
People are funny that way...they embrace much of what is good...and so often, for the right reasons.
As for me?
I'll keep tooling around in my PONTIAC, and should it eventually expire, I will feel as if another member of MY family has passed. Driving will definitely be missing something when that day arrives.
So, where ever you travel today, and no matter HOW MANY Pontiacs you might happen to pass...
Stay safe out there, America.