Pontiac Shrinks to Four Nameplates

The 2009 North American International Auto Show is well underway, with GM unveiling new models for its Chevrolet, Cadillac and Buick brands Sunday, and executives spewing news tidbits left and right. Among them: Bob Lutz has confirmed which models will comprise the dwindling Pontiac lineup.

According to Lutz, the surviving members of the Pontiac genocide will include the G8 sedan, the G5 coupe, the Vibe hatchback, and the Solstice coupe and convertible. The Torrent SUV, along with G6 convertible, coupe and sedan, which share their underpinnings with the Chevrolet Malibu and Saab 9-3, will be dropped. Plans to bring the G8 ST sport truck to production have been cancelled, and the future of the G3 subcompact is uncertain.

Although GM has been unable to find prospective buyers for its Saab and Hummer brands, North American President Troy Clarke said yesterday at the auto show that the company will still be able to follow through with its plans to reduce to four core brands. "We have to re-engineer the way we're doing business in many regards," Clarke said. "We're going to be a smaller company."

Clarke also had a few words about GM's Saturn brand. "We've entered into a very, very open and candid dialogue with our Saturn retailers," Clarke said. "It just hasn't been a good business for us." According to Automotive News, Saturn's only annual profit came in 1993.

Posted in: Pontiac