Being a lifelong Pontiac fan, I’d love to see Pontiac back within the GM fold, but I am also aware of the many differences between the past and present that make it a difficult proposition. I’ve seen the basic economics and also have listened to passionate people like Jim Wangers describe the long and slow death of a great car. Here are my thoughts with some historical context added.
We all know the original hierarchy of the classic GM line-up: Chevy < Pontiac < Olds < Buick < Cadillac. This was a great business model in the sixties before the Japanese auto invasion. As a result of that foreign competition, GM has had to remain competitive. This required increasing the content and quality of its base car – Chevrolet. If you could buy a Honda or Toyota with the quality of a Buick but the cost of a Chevrolet (as you could in the 80’s), the choice was fairly simple. By GM narrowing the gap between Chevy and Cadillac largely through badge engineering, the BOP got squeezed with the resulting casualties. The most likely reason that Buick survived is the profit margin that can be commanded. Sure Pontiac sold many more cars than Buick, but the profit margins were much slimmer. To the general public, Pontiac is/was just a step above Chevy, whereas Buick is ‘just’ a step below Cadillac. If you could spent $20k to build a car sold for $23k, or spend $24k to build a car sold for $35k, which would you choose? (figures are for illustration, and are my best guess.)
Pontiac couldn’t ask a financially solvent profit margin, because it didn’t have the right image. Trying to recreate that prestigious image Pontiac enjoyed in the 60’s would require a massive undertaking. Back then, they had Bunkie Knudsen, Pete Estes, John DeLorean, and ad/marketing guru Jim Wangers. All were passionate car guys that had a finger on the pulse of the youth market. The youth market is vastly different nowadays, and Chevy is leading the charge for GM in tapping into that demographic. There is no way they are going to bring Pontiac back to compete with Chevy for that market. Even the Pontiac of the glory days had to sneak things in as it was to be successful. The famous GTO was flown in under the radar as a mere option package – albeit a clever one.
Additionally, to create a full car line of performance cars is not feasible in this economic climate. Standards of performance have also risen in the past 40 years. To make Pontiac a performance leader would be cost prohibitive and also would be at the expense of the other GM brands. It just doesn’t make sense to resurrect a brand to offer a higher level of performance that could be offered in the existing brands more efficiently.
All that said, If GM were to offer a Pontiac, it would likely need to be offered not as a make, but as a separate model (probably under the Chevy banner). It would need to reach out to an in-demand youth demographic that doesn’t conflict/compete with other GM offerings. And most importantly, the public demand HAS to be there, and GM needs to see more than just petitions and facebook comments.
I’d love to see Pontiac come back, but only in a way that honors the legacy and pays proper tribute to its performance heritage.
