R.I.P. PONTIAC 1926-2010
Pontiac is Dead. Long Live Pontiac.
After a very long and prestigious run, the Pontiac division of General Motors will be shut down in 2010. Regardless of how often lauded or chastised for the somewhat radical designs and providing an entirely new genre of jokes in the hysterical Aztek model, the "Chief" arm of GM will always be remembered with much admiration by legions of gearheads the world over. With it's earliest roots reaching back to 1900, the Pontiac Spring & Wagon Works company would eventually become a pillar in one of the largest and most influential corporations in history.
The story has been repeated through the decades but certainly bears it. In 1908 The Oakland Motor Company merged with Pontiac which proceeded to immediately decimate Oakland's sales and became the only company to survive its parent. Throughout the early years in the GM fold, Pontiac produced similar cars to its sister divisions yet all of them operated independently enough to be unique brands. Often the finished pieces that rolled out of the plants were bonafide works of art. Many pieces had to be handmade or at least assembled with care since the days of extreme automation were still a ways off.
After World War II GM resumed regular production and the lust for more power and sexy styling pushed American manufacturers in to a frenzied space race. Cars bulged with massive amounts of chrome décor and laid the groundwork for power levels previous generations of vehicular operators would have dismissed as the work of Satan his damn self. Although it has been proposed the "muscle car" ideology has it's earliest foundations in Buick during the late 1930's, Pontiac was the company that truly began the revolution in 1964 with the name that has become synonymous with performance - the GTO. The moniker stands for Gran Turismo Omologato borrowing from Ferrari of all things. While this sounds crazy, the story of how GM beauracracy nearly deprived human history of almost a decade of some of the greatest automobiles ever created is even moreso. In truly hypocritical fashion, there was an infamous global policy in GM banning any engine larger than 330 cubic inches, which would later be raised to 400. Three employees including the legendary John Z. DeLorean have been credited with the creation of the GTO which flagrantly violated the ban but was thankfully pushed through the system. It encountered major resistance through the ranks, but thankfully people who know a good thing when they see it put their collective asses on the line and it payed off big time. What followed was an orgy of psychedelic machinery that laughed in the face of logical and sanitary temperament. From the GTO's 389 CID engine to the behemoth 455 CID big blocks, the power unleashed on the general public was mind-altering.
Pontiac did it's part and then some for the performance world which in turn created much bigger aftermarket industries and racing groups. Royal Pontiac created some of the best asphalt abusing machinery ever branded with the arrowhead. Dealers were basically selling speed shop parts out the back door. Racers like Arnie "The Farmer" Beswick were driving Pontiac towards the performance persona that would shape it's future. There were and are some very tasty models through the years, with a very large spike that left an unshakable memory in the American psyche. Smokey and The Bandit. That beautiful movie sent 1977 in to a Trans Am buying frenzy, and further pushing Pontiac on the performance hungry public. The Fiero had mixed emotions but [of course] developed a cult following equaling the Raëlians in their passion. Occasionally striking the sweet spot with some fantastic cars, Pontiac soon faded out of the spotlight like a baseball star hitter that has seen one too many seasons.
GM's horrible tendency to embrace trends way too late didn't help once the tidal wave of problems in the '70s compounded their problems. OPEC, UAW, EPA, Vietnam, State Farm, Honda, Nixon, USSR, Donnie Osmond, satanic serial killer cults and a generally changing world view all perhaps contributed to the beginning of the end. It was a public-relations shitstorm in the most horrific sense of the term. The attitude began to gravitate toward the opinion that American cars were giant, lumbering Dinosaurs -- something crude and of the savage past. The quality of the vehicles produced throughout the 1980's was so shoddy it became a running joke. Because they didn't have a working car... get it?
What's the difference between an Aztek and a lunch pail? ...a lunch pail is useful.
Sure, it is easy in retrospect to hypothesize that GM's decisions to homogenize the 5 divisions played a major role in the downfall of the organization. And since many people are rabidly loyal to certain makes of autos, it would stand to reason they will respond in a negative way when all of the other brands cars look, perform and break in the same fashion. Quality was well below expected standards, performance was neutered thanks to so many restrictions and the styling was more kitchy than cutting edge. By the time the act of pulling one's head from one's ass made it's way through the overly complex web of managers and executives, it was quickly approaching the Y2K scare and the steady march of the dreaded imports claimed a very solid ground on what had once been the exclusive market of American companies. GM had some huge hits but the many misses proved to tax the aging General. Perhaps the old guy couldn't see clearly there was still plenty of opportunity to win back the hearts and minds of the people, or perhaps too many evil whispers prevented his hearing the cries of the legions of GM fans still hoping and praying GM would make some products worth the investment.
Some will claim that General Motors got too big and beaurocratic, which is true, but regardless of the company's size they should always have contingency plans for any scenario such as the Government's forced regulations, as well as insurance industry pressure, challenging competition, workers' union strikes, fuel embargos, economic downturns, or any myriad of problems facing such a volatile industry. Assuming they did have plans for any issue, GM and the other manufacturers do not appear to handle problems efficiently. Perhaps having all major decisions made by such a relatively small, wealthy group is a bad idea. Toyota, for example, views every person in the organization just as important as anyone else. This creates a true democracy which is generally beneficial to society as a whole. And the never ceasing cry of "doing everything for the shareholders" should not excuse inept managing of a group that impacts the entire globe in one manner or t'other.
Besides, those geezers wouldn't know a bad ass car even if it ran over them several times. They had plenty of opportunity with so many hands in every market and aspect of the automobile industry and lifestyle. In a little continent down under called Australia, the GM division had been busily perfecting a fantastic platform of vehicles known as Holden Monaros. These cars were already a cult status down under, so it was worth a shot. A bit late in the game, GM introduced the all "new" GTO in the US. Well, simply invoking that name had mixed results and obviously the car did not last long in the tumultuous market. But we should thank all the people who risk their livelihood and challenge the system to give us performance cars. They are the gearheads and fanatics. They are clearly exceptions to the standard issue GM white collar worker. There are exceptions as with everything. Unfortunately they are also considered exceptions in the boardroom and when the blue bloods get the itch to force the bottom line as much as possible it will invariably damage other areas of the company. For whatever reasons the high ranking officials make their choices, they do impact what was formerly the largest corporation in ways that are monumental and irreversible. Aren't the real shareholders the whole of American society and the world at large? The assembly line workers and their families in Michigan, the steel-belted radial tire supplier and his employees in Ohio, the rancher in Colorado who depends on quality vehicles to run the operation, the mining community in Argentina supplying metal ore to the foundry in Pennsylvania providing massive ingots to the machine facility in California shipping engines to the assembly factory in Texas and the list goes on. To let a corporation that affects the world in such a manner slip away so unceremoniously is a travesty. Much like so many war criminals throughout history, to reprimand the offenders too late is truly a punishment that does not fit the crime.
First, one of the eldest car companies in history and Pontiac's closest brethren - Oldsmobile - got the ugly axe and now the 2nd corner in the trifecta known as B-O-P has fallen victim to this beaurocratic homocide. For years the atmosphere has been very negative in all circles, particularly in Buick camps. They arguably have more to lose simply because being the founding company of GM it would have much more severe implications. But like any close siblings, when one of the group is harmed they all are harmed. Now with the entire corporation having filed for bankruptcy, the government purchase of a majority share holding, unreal pressures to change directions and having to restructure the whole organization including the way everyone thinks, the "New GM" is facing a very daunting task. Will they actually succeed in bringing back the legacy of GM from the brink of death? Will they continue along a downward spiral until every last ounce of profit is squeezed from the corpse? Will they be a zombie in the control of politicians pushing their never ending agendas?
One thing is for certain, the banks foreclosing on the dealerships, the offices, and the plants cannot take back the memories. Memories both good and bad, getting pulled over knowing you are screwed, taking your girlfriend out to the movies, the injuries sustained wrenching late nights, the smells of race gas and tire smoke, the friendships and bonds created because of those cars. Those beautiful machines that not only did the basic duty required of any vehicle, they became a comrade. They can become your best friend and can have an impact on your life that most people rarely achieve. Pontiac, our dearly beloved brother, you will be missed.
Rest in Peace.
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