vLane Blog

Articles Matching “Pontiac”

• General Motors wants you to Buy It Now

  Banovsky on August 11, 2009

  Today is the launch of General Motors highly-anticipated program to purchase vehicles online through the online auction site eBay.

  

  The General Motors / eBay promo

  Here are some details:

  • Pilot program for California only
  • Buyers in the state will be able to browse hundreds of California dealer online showrooms
  • Buyers are able to ask questions, negotiate prices, arrange financing and payment to buy a new vehicle
  • Can determine the value of their trade in through the site
  • Don't have to set foot in a showroom until delivery
  • Could be a new model of how to sell cars if proves successful
  • Site located at GM.eBay.com

  Click through for the official blog update from GM.

  Read full article | Comments (0) | Filed under GM, Future, News, Advertising, Discussion, Chevrolet, California, Pontiac, Pontiac, Detroit, Cadillac, Buick, GMC

• General Motors wants you to Buy It Now

  Banovsky on August 11, 2009

  Today is the launch of General Motors highly-anticipated program to purchase vehicles online through the online auction site eBay.

  

  The General Motors / eBay promo

  Here are some details:

  • Pilot program for California only
  • Buyers in the state will be able to browse hundreds of California dealer online showrooms
  • Buyers are able to ask questions, negotiate prices, arrange financing and payment to buy a new vehicle
  • Can determine the value of their trade in through the site
  • Don't have to set foot in a showroom until delivery
  • Could be a new model of how to sell cars if proves successful
  • Site located at GM.eBay.com

  Click through for the official blog update from GM.

  Read full article | Comments (0) | Filed under GM, Future, News, Advertising, Discussion, Chevrolet, California, Pontiac, Pontiac, Detroit, Cadillac, Buick, GMC

• Would you buy a Chevrolet Caprice?

  Banovsky on July 20, 2009

  I have a growing opinion that the General Motors CEO, Fritz Henderson, is an interesting character. I'm sure he's a wonderful choice on the company side of things — but he hasn't shown that he understands good product.

  

  The Middle East-market Pontiac G8 Chevrolet Caprice

  Bob Lutz, the new marketing chief at GM, championed the Pontiac G8's entry into North America a few years ago. It's a brilliant car. So, when asked if it would die with the Pontiac brand a few weeks ago, he said, "We're studying the feasibility of bringing (the G8) in as a Caprice for both law enforcement and the public."

  Then CEO Fritz Henderson, once quoted as saying the company would kill the G8 along with Pontiac because he isn't "a fan of rebranding," presumably got Lutz in his office. A few days later, Lutz said this to the media:

  "…The G8 will not be a Caprice after all. I'd mentioned it, and said we were studying it, giving it a serious look, because a car like the G8 was just too good to waste…We simply cannot make a business case for such a program. Not in today's market, in this economy, and with fuel regulations what they are and will be."

  Here at vLane, we do think the G8 is too good to waste. Our reviewers have said of the G8, "Best car for the money", "I test drove one last week and was VERY Impressed", and "Dirty hot." Oh, and over 50 per cent of respondents called it the "Best car Pontiac makes."

  Let's ask again…

  Powered by vLane.com See more | Create your own!

  Read full article | Comments (3) | Filed under GM, General Motors, Future, WTF, Sedan, Misc, Advice , Discussion, Chevrolet, Pontiac, Pontiac, Detroit, 2010, US, Poll, Opinion, Bob Lutz, Caprice, Fritz Henderson

• Would you buy a Chevrolet Caprice?

  Banovsky on July 20, 2009

  I have a growing opinion that the General Motors CEO, Fritz Henderson, is an interesting character. I'm sure he's a wonderful choice on the company side of things — but he hasn't shown that he understands good product.

  

  The Middle East-market Pontiac G8 Chevrolet Caprice

  Bob Lutz, the new marketing chief at GM, championed the Pontiac G8's entry into North America a few years ago. It's a brilliant car. So, when asked if it would die with the Pontiac brand a few weeks ago, he said, "We're studying the feasibility of bringing (the G8) in as a Caprice for both law enforcement and the public."

  Then CEO Fritz Henderson, once quoted as saying the company would kill the G8 along with Pontiac because he isn't "a fan of rebranding," presumably got Lutz in his office. A few days later, Lutz said this to the media:

  "…The G8 will not be a Caprice after all. I'd mentioned it, and said we were studying it, giving it a serious look, because a car like the G8 was just too good to waste…We simply cannot make a business case for such a program. Not in today's market, in this economy, and with fuel regulations what they are and will be."

  Here at vLane, we do think the G8 is too good to waste. Our reviewers have said of the G8, "Best car for the money", "I test drove one last week and was VERY Impressed", and "Dirty hot." Oh, and over 50 per cent of respondents called it the "Best car Pontiac makes."

  Let's ask again…

  Powered by vLane.com See more | Create your own!

  Read full article | Comments (3) | Filed under GM, General Motors, Future, WTF, Sedan, Misc, Advice , Discussion, Chevrolet, Pontiac, Pontiac, Detroit, 2010, US, Poll, Opinion, Bob Lutz, Caprice, Fritz Henderson

• PDW: 1989 Pontiac Trans Am Turbo

  Derek Kreindler on May 3, 2009

  For our penultimate installment of Pontiac Death Week, we skip past the iconic Burt Reynolds era "Firechicken" Trans Am to bring you a long-forgotten but still legendary muscle car; the 1989 Trans Am Turbo.

  

  Muscle cars of the 6's and 70s were notorious for having their true power ratings obscured, often with overly optimistic horsepower figures. The Trans Am Turbo was a little different. For starters, it actually made more power than what was printed on the window sticker. Second, it was missing a couple cylinders.

  To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Firebird, GM managed to get the car a gig as the pace car for the Daytona 500. Naturally, they couldn't have just any Jersey Shore-spec GTA carrying out such a great honour, so a plan was concocted for an über-Firebird. Originally, an all-aluminum V8 was slated to be shoehorned under its lengthy hood, but this plan was quickly scuttled, and in its place came GM's LC2 twin-turbo V6 from the legendary Grand National. More after the jump!

  Read full article | Comments (1) | Filed under Classic, Feature, Sports car, History, Misc, Coupe, This week, Pontiac, Pontiac, Trans Am

• PDW: Remembering the Pontiac Grand LeMans

  AshleyW on May 3, 2009

  Taking a trip down memory lane, I remember the very first car I truly enjoyed and that was the Pontiac Grand LeMans. With the news of Pontiac’s end drawing near, I can’t help but think about the car that stirred my imagination as a kid.

  

  A 1981 Pontiac Grand Le Mans.

  When I was little, I was given a toy that looked liked a miniature dashboard. It had a steering wheel, a key for an ignition and a gear shift that I could move. I used to take this with me in the car, place it on my lap, and mirror what my parents were doing driving their 1981 Pontiac Grand LeMans in British Columbia, Canada.

  This Pontiac was the first car I was ever exposed to as a kid and I loved it. With the news of Pontiac being phased out by next year I immediately thought of that car and how much I am going to miss the brand. I remember our LeMans had navy blue interior that was really soft and myself and my siblings would always call the "front seat" so that we could sit up front. It wasn't cool to sit in the back. You could actually seat three people up front and three in the back. My family all nicknamed the LeMans, "the silvercar" because that was the colour of it. Not quite gray... more silver. Click through to read more.

  Read full article | Comments (1) | Filed under GM, General Motors, interior, Feature, Sedan, Car seat, Pontiac, Pontiac, interior, grand, lemans, grand lemans

• PDW: Remembering the Pontiac Grand LeMans

  AshleyW on May 3, 2009

  Taking a trip down memory lane, I remember the very first car I truly enjoyed and that was the Pontiac Grand LeMans. With the news of Pontiac’s end drawing near, I can’t help but think about the car that stirred my imagination as a kid.

  

  A 1981 Pontiac Grand Le Mans.

  When I was little, I was given a toy that looked liked a miniature dashboard. It had a steering wheel, a key for an ignition and a gear shift that I could move. I used to take this with me in the car, place it on my lap, and mirror what my parents were doing driving their 1981 Pontiac Grand LeMans in British Columbia, Canada.

  This Pontiac was the first car I was ever exposed to as a kid and I loved it. With the news of Pontiac being phased out by next year I immediately thought of that car and how much I am going to miss the brand. I remember our LeMans had navy blue interior that was really soft and myself and my siblings would always call the "front seat" so that we could sit up front. It wasn't cool to sit in the back. You could actually seat three people up front and three in the back. My family all nicknamed the LeMans, "the silvercar" because that was the colour of it. Not quite gray... more silver. Click through to read more.

  Read full article | Comments (1) | Filed under GM, General Motors, interior, Feature, Sedan, Car seat, Pontiac, Pontiac, interior, grand, lemans, grand lemans

• PDW: 1989 Pontiac Trans Am Turbo

  Derek Kreindler on May 3, 2009

  For our penultimate installment of Pontiac Death Week, we skip past the iconic Burt Reynolds era "Firechicken" Trans Am to bring you a long-forgotten but still legendary muscle car; the 1989 Trans Am Turbo.

  

  Muscle cars of the 6's and 70s were notorious for having their true power ratings obscured, often with overly optimistic horsepower figures. The Trans Am Turbo was a little different. For starters, it actually made more power than what was printed on the window sticker. Second, it was missing a couple cylinders.

  To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Firebird, GM managed to get the car a gig as the pace car for the Daytona 500. Naturally, they couldn't have just any Jersey Shore-spec GTA carrying out such a great honour, so a plan was concocted for an über-Firebird. Originally, an all-aluminum V8 was slated to be shoehorned under its lengthy hood, but this plan was quickly scuttled, and in its place came GM's LC2 twin-turbo V6 from the legendary Grand National. More after the jump!

  Read full article | Comments (1) | Filed under Classic, Feature, Sports car, History, Misc, Coupe, This week, Pontiac, Pontiac, Trans Am

• PDW: 1964 Tempest GTO

  Derek Kreindler on April 29, 2009

  Before the Mustang, the Camaro, the Charger and even the Judge, there was one common ancestor. Without it, there would be no muscle car era to speak of. The Pontiac Tempest GTO broke all the rules and created an entirely new class of car, and immortalizing the classic American formula: small car, big engine.

  

  The Pontiac Tempest was a relatively unassuming mid-size car in GM's lineup. But with Pontiac's marketing division deciding to focus on the performance aspects of the brand, GM engineering guru John Z. De Lorean (Yes, that De Lorean) decided that Pontiac needed a new factory hot rod, and found an ideal candidate in the Tempest LeMans, based on the intermediate sized A-Body. Of course, there was a problem; models based on the A-Body platform were officially supposed to have a maximum engine displacement of 330 cubic inches.

  Click through for more on the GTO.

  Read full article | Comments (0) | Filed under GM, General Motors, Classic, Feature, Coupe, Pontiac, Pontiac

• PDW: 1964 Tempest GTO

  Derek Kreindler on April 29, 2009

  Before the Mustang, the Camaro, the Charger and even the Judge, there was one common ancestor. Without it, there would be no muscle car era to speak of. The Pontiac Tempest GTO broke all the rules and created an entirely new class of car, and immortalizing the classic American formula: small car, big engine.

  

  The Pontiac Tempest was a relatively unassuming mid-size car in GM's lineup. But with Pontiac's marketing division deciding to focus on the performance aspects of the brand, GM engineering guru John Z. De Lorean (Yes, that De Lorean) decided that Pontiac needed a new factory hot rod, and found an ideal candidate in the Tempest LeMans, based on the intermediate sized A-Body. Of course, there was a problem; models based on the A-Body platform were officially supposed to have a maximum engine displacement of 330 cubic inches.

  Click through for more on the GTO.

  Read full article | Comments (0) | Filed under GM, General Motors, Classic, Feature, Coupe, Pontiac, Pontiac