The car looks too bland. It looked better as a Holden.
Pontiac GTO
- Thread starter SSDude
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I want one.......Can anyone give me 35 grand?
Car and Driver did make fun of how bland it looks. I don't think it's the nicest car out their, but I think it is nice when done up right. It has the LS1 engine and it's 0-60 times were 5.3 and the 1/4 mile was 13.4. Interior is suprisingly nice for a GM car. This and the Mustang are some of the only remaining few V8 rear wheel drive cars left in the mid $20's to mid $30's price range. Everything is going to the 4cyl Turbo/ V6 engines.
Ya know......I can't figure it out. C&D made fun of pontiac's overblown styling, as being too much "boy racer" looking......And praised toyota and honda for understated beauty. Pontiac makes a car that is as bland as a toyota.....and C&D says it's too bland.
Tupperware and Pontiac are teaming up to market a kit for those customers who prefer the more traditional Pontiac styling.
As an extra feature, you will be able to carry your lunch in the side cladding.
SLP is going to come out with a version of the
GTO (the Judge) that is suppose to look better and have better performance.
GTO (the Judge) that is suppose to look better and have better performance.
I was watching the SPEED Channel yesterday and they did a 1/2hr test of the new GTO. They really liked the car and I have to say it's very nice. They took it down the drag strip, road course and other racing and came away impressed. Anyone see this?
It looks better as a Monaro. The interior is better coz it was Holden (GM Oz) not GM US that designed it. Gotta say cars here are better than what US gets which is kinds strange when you think its Ford and GM but local design and we have only 20 million people?
Pontiac is answering a question that was asked about 5 years ago. I think the GTO is right in line appearancewise w/ the 64 original - it looks fine, and MUCH MUCH better than anything else Pontiac is currently producing (A$$-tec? Sunfire?). Where they missed the mark is pricing it in the mid 30s (should be 10K cheaper) and introducing a high powered heavy V8 hotrod just when gas is heading north of $2/gallon. Poor timing as usual.
Concise list of problems w/ the GTO IMO:
500 lbs too heavy
$10K too expensive
Gets really crappy gas mileage at just the wrong time.
[ May 25, 2004, 10:18 AM: Message edited by: tec97 ]
Concise list of problems w/ the GTO IMO:
500 lbs too heavy
$10K too expensive
Gets really crappy gas mileage at just the wrong time.
[ May 25, 2004, 10:18 AM: Message edited by: tec97 ]
According to Autoweek, they're having a hard time moving them off the lots because of bland styling and high prices.
article here
To me, it's a dated European design with a Grand Prix nose on it. Catera Coupe, anyone?
Maybe that USA Movie/commercial The Last Ride will boost sales.
MR
article here
To me, it's a dated European design with a Grand Prix nose on it. Catera Coupe, anyone?
Maybe that USA Movie/commercial The Last Ride will boost sales.
MR
The slow sales are due to other problems. Mostly dealers. This is exactly what the media and customers told GM they want for years. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.
Besides, from what I hear, it's just a stopgap until a new GM RWD platform arrives in the US.
-T
Besides, from what I hear, it's just a stopgap until a new GM RWD platform arrives in the US.
-T
Look, that's the problem. If GM had sold this car 5 years ago, they would have moved more of them than they could make. With todays economy and fuel prices, it's a tough sell.
I really don't get the bad gas mileage plug as the LS1 engines are actually very good on gas assuming you don't press on the loud pedal every stoplight. My 02 SS making 399rwhp can get 27-31mpg on a highway trip and around 18-21 in town. When you think of how much power these motors deliver and still can hit high 20mpg figures I wouldn't call that bad gas mileage.
I remember when Pontiac first came out that they were bringing back the GTO the big thing they pushed was it would hit the showrooms at $24K to $25K. I've seen ads by me with Dealers offering $3K off the $33K sticker price. At 25K it was a great car for a good price. At 25K I bet a lot of people were all ready to lay down cash, but $33K to $35K is pretty pricey for a Pontiac. Look at the Mercury Marauder same problem. It's a $22K car with wheels, bigger swaybars, decals and the same engine as the Marquee. And they add on $13K to $15K to the price of the Marauder. There is a dealer by me that has had three of them sitting out front since Thanksgiving and they haven't Sold. They just keep moving them around the lot.
They'd sell better if they hadn't insisted on that ropey Pontiac nose. A Monaro is far better looking, should have left it as it was IMO.
It's going to be interesting for sure. Now that people are actually paying attention to gas mileage, maybe they'll see what automakers have been up to the last decade. Gas mileage on small and midsize cars has dropped, while trucks and SUVs have gotten better. Currently GM gets crap for making so many SUVs, but doesn't get any credit for their efforts to increase efficiency. A lot of cars on the market are terrible on gas mileage compared to 10 years ago, especially "green" companies like Toyota. But they are smart and distact people from this by making hybrids. GM's cars are getting more efficient AND powerful, while other manufactorers have been concetrating on other things.
-T
-T
That's true, but it hasn't been a distraction, its been a response to the marketplace. Over the last ten years, ultra-fuel efficient, plain-jane cars haven't sold as well as reasonably fuel effecient cars w/ decent ammenities. About the mileage, I totally agree, but compare for example a 1988 Accord DX with a 2000 Accord DX - the 88 car was certainly decent, especially for it's time and it will beat the tar out of the 2000 in terms of economy, but the 2000 is a much nicer car, and generally people have seen that as an acceptable trade-off. Now it's coming back around and we'll see how much people are willing to give up in terms of really nice car for really high fuel economy.
The customers and dealers didn't tell them they wanted it priced in the mid $30k range.
Traditional Pontiac customers also prefer a more "distinctive" exterior. It's as much about poseur value as performance.
That's an interesting point. Without dragging out the numbers, I'm willing to bet that the newer Civics are more comparable to an 88 Accord than a new Accord is. The Civics are more powerful for sure, probably more room, quieter, more comfortable....
That would be agood topic for a magazine article. Get a real clean 88 or so Honda Accord and see which new s-box compares most closely with it in terms of performance, quality and comfort and see how the price compares in terms of real dollars.
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