GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Some may not have known this...WJR Auto Report: Pontiac 's Slide It's trivia time: so can you name the only General Motors division that actually posted a sales decline during the automaker's June blow-out? As TheCarConnection reports in its Daily Edition, the big loser was Pontiac . So far this year, the division's sales are down 16 percent, and there's likely to be no short-term fix, despite the expanding line-up of new G6 models, and the launch of the all-new Solstice roadster. If anything, Pontiac is losing product. The aging Bonneville will soon be dropped, along with the Sunfire and the disastrous Aztek, one of the most reviled cars on the road. There is, however, an all-new small car in the development stage for 2007, something dealers were desperate to get their hands on. It's been a long time since Pontiac could brag that it built excitement. If anything, the brand is struggling for survival. As part of a shake-up at GM, Pontiac will effectively be merged with two other divisions, GMC and Buick.

Well, I'll blame the marketing guru's @ GM. They should just swallow their pride, accept the fact that one of their best cars is built on a Toyota platform and push the economical and environmentally friendly Vibe. This whole situation makes me feel like an Mac owner...

Yeah it was hurt only by corporate internally for sure! Now Pont gets an SUV! An Equinox with a new front and rear, WOW! OK that makes sense take a great selling Chevrolet and hurt its sales with a clone!

word of advice for any auto maker...LOSE THE CLONES!!!! Be Original!!!ok so thats 5 words.

taken from auto extremist today...Bowing to the dealers, Pontiac is getting a version of the Chevy Equinox called the Torrent. (I blasted this decision many columns ago as an example of GM doing exactly the wrong thing. If it were a Japanese company, they'd take the moderately successful Equinox and hone and refine it to the point that the nameplate became known for excellence on its own. What does GM do? They take the short-term view and toss it to Pontiac to appease their dealers, not thinking that diluting the burgeoning impact of the Equinox nameplate in the market might be a bad thing). On top of that, they have a minivan that should never have happened and is not worth mentioning.

In order for Pontiac to survive, Pontiac operatives have to figure out a way to circumvent the GM "system" - just like Pontiac managers did in the late '50s and throughout the '60s. They have to manipulate the GM system to their advantage and basically push Pontiac in a direction that the rest of the company isn't going in order to generate products that will resonate on the street. And that means cars - not people movers, mini SUVs, crossovers or pickup trucks - but cars. Preferably, very hot cars. Pontiacs that bristle with performance, breathtaking design and an unmistakable "maverick" attitude that can't be found anywhere else. But most of all, cars that exude an edgy rebel soul that other manufacturers shy away from out of fear of offending someone. That's what Pontiac was all about, and that's what it needs to be again if it has any shot at all of surviving. Thanks for listening, see you next Wednesday.