Where did you go GTO? After a 30 year decline in sales Pontiac to say good-bye.

Where did you go GTO? After a 30 year decline in sales Pontiac to say good-bye.

Bye Bye Pontiac

On April 25th the Wall Street Journal reported that Pontiac is headed to the Junk Yard. Besides being mildly annoyed that the author was using the term Junk Yard to refer to the permanent demise of the brand (while I of course prefer to think of our industry as one of renewal and restitution) I was mostly saddened by the loss of another iconic American auto. I also learned that the GTO , first released in 1963, was the start of the Detroit “horsepower wars”,followed by the Mustang and the Plymouth Barracuda.

The author pointed out that Pontiac sales peaked in 1978 and tumbled downhill ever since besides a brief resurgence in the 1980s with the Firebird and Trans Am. Well, now that you mention it that does sound a little pathetic. It reminds me of the kids who’s popularity and sports abilities peaked in high school and then they never went on to make anything out of their life because they thought they had it so good. It turns out there is life after the 70s. While all things good must come to an end I think that the real tragedy is that Pontiac was never able to re-invent themselves.

Of course with the current situation of Detroit I am not surprised that Pontiac is on the chopping block. Any division of a business labeled as a “steady money looser” can not be good for the overall health of a company. Sentimental value is not enough to keep a brand in business when the numbers don’t support it. Or is it? I am interested to hear your opinions about what the end of this Pontiac-era means to you. Did you ever own a GTO? Do you currently own a Pontiac? What do you think GM should do?

Original article at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124060030328753755.html#articleTabs%3Darticle