AUTOMOTIVE HISTORY – APRIL 27, 2009 – GM PLANS TO PHASE OUT PONTIAC

Pontiac sales account for half of all new-car sales at Grand Auto in Thornton and put the dealership on the map as the top Pontiac seller in the state and second in the western United States.

Now, with General Motors phasing out Pontiac, dealers are trying to refocus on their other brands.

“We rely heavily on Pontiac,” said Mike Malin, co-owner of Grand Auto, which also sells Buick, GMC and Kia brands. “We are hopeful they will expand the Buick line; otherwise there will be some holes in our lineup.”

GM announced Monday it is phasing out the 83-year-old Pontiac brand, eliminating 21,000 jobs, and reorganizing under a plan that could leave it largely owned by the government and the United Auto Workers.

In Colorado, about 20 to 25 dealerships sell Pontiac along with other brands, said Tim Jackson, president of the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association.

“All the dealers in Colorado that have Pontiac have other brands they can stay in business with,” Jackson said. “We know GM needed to make changes toward profitability, and this reorganization will give them the opportunity to have a limited number of brands.”

Three other GM brands — Hummer, Saab and Saturn — are in play for sale or elimination, according to GM.

Downsizing from eight to four brands will give GM the opportunity to better market, advertise and energize remaining brands, dealers said.

Malin hopes the company introduces into the Buick line a small four-door, a small SUV and a sporty car like Pontiac’s Solstice hardtop.

“Being smart means you can’t be every man’s car store,” he said. “But it means you have to cover the segments.”

Pontiac lost high-volume status after peaking in the late ’70s and early ’80s. The brand is known for performance cars such as Trans Am and Firebird.

Last week, when GM said Pontiac would become a niche brand, the president of Suss Buick Pontiac GMC in Aurora knew the end was near. Pontiac accounts for one- third of his new-car sales.

“In the big picture, we saw the writing on the wall,” Paul Suss said. “It’s like finding out a relative has a short time to live. You just relish in all the good times you’ve had and figure out how to spend the remaining time as good times.”

Pontiac: Chronology of an American automotive icon

1909: General Motors acquires Oakland Motor Car Co. of Pontiac, Mich.

1926: First Pontiac car introduced, meant to be a low-priced companion to GM’s Oakland line. By 1929, half a million Pontiacs are sold.

1932: Oakland ends production, but Pontiac lives on, from the early models like the Chief and Master Six Coupe to the Star Chief and Catalina.

1948: Ford obtains spy shots of the 1949 Pontiacs and discovers both companies had created nearly identical grilles. After a phone call from Ford, Pontiac reluctantly redesigns its grille because the Ford was debuting first.

1957: John Z. DeLorean joins Pontiac to head advanced engineering, with division general manager Semon “Bunkie” Knud sen and chief engineer Pete Estes inspiring the GTO, Firebird and Trans Am muscle cars that would reshape the division in the 1960s and 1970s.

1964: The song “GTO,” by Ronny and the Daytonas, hits No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.

2000s: Efforts to revive Pontiac as a performance-oriented brand, with one or two models, fail.