Though the TV news, many newspapers, and many bloggers would have you believe otherwise, Pontiac ain't dead yet. At least not according to GM.
Despite the fact that the eulogies keep on coming, as reporters and newscasters wax on poetically about the Pontiacs that they remember while growing up, GM has not announced that Pontiac is going away. What it has announced is that the model lineup will be reduced and the division will become more focused--something most had already known. Lamenting Pontiac's "demotion" from a full-line division is fine, but that began long before last week, and does not mean Pontiac is extinct.
If Pontiac can get lean and mean by not having to build economy cars, and can instead concentrate on performance models, there is a glimmer of hope that some great, quick, and stylish models may once again wear the Arrowhead proudly once our crappy economy turns around.
Right now the larger worry is its parent corporation, GM. Given its losses and those of the other Detroit-based automakers, at this point, nothing is guaranteed regarding the future of any division of any company in the U.S. Auto industry. However, I respectfully request that we not say Pontiac is dead before even GM does. There is such a thing as a self-fulfilling prophecy. Hopefully, other dealers can avoid the fate that Cerami Pontiac of Paramus, NJ faced. It went out of business in November 2008 after 52 years.
For more info on how this layman thinks Pontiac could return to its performance heritage in the coming years, check out Full Throttle in the July 2009 issue of HPP.