1977 Pontiac Grand Prix Base Coupe 2-door 4.9l on 2040-cars

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Sell Your Own: 2006 Pontiac GTO

This is part of an occasional look at cars for sale in Autoblog's classifieds. Want to sell your car? We make it easy and free. Quickly create listings with up to six photos and reach millions of buyers. Log in and create your free listings. In the early '60s, Baby Boomers born immediately after World War II were beginning to buy cars and enjoy their own distinctive music. This wasn't yet the drug culture; rather, it was the drag culture, more Jan and Dean "Dead Man's Curve" than Beatles "Lucy In The Sky." And a Baby Boomer's desired ride, more often than not, was Pontiac's GTO. Introduced as a manned-up option for Pontiac's compact Tempest, the early GTO was 389 cubic inches of romp and stomp. And with a marketing campaign that hit Middle America via what it watched and ate (TV ads and cereal-box promos were a big part of the GTO launch), there was no escaping it. Like most performance coupes and convertibles, 10 years later it was became an emasculated version of its once lusty self. And then it was gone. Its revival, championed by General Motors executive Bob Lutz, was not by any stretch the Second Coming. Starting in 2004, GM modified its Australian-built Holden Monaro to approximate the excitement of the original formula: a coupe body propelled by a big V8. But the Holden's sheetmetal was quietly styled, and even the 400 horsepower available by 2006 didn't electrify buyers. With hindsight, the resurrected GTO is enjoying more attention and, slowly but surely, increasing in value. This for-sale example shows well, enjoys low mileage, and is – naturally – priced well above what is perceived to be its market value. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Pontiac Aztek rises from the ashes of infamy in Firebird Trans Am guise

What if the Pontiac Aztek, one of the most widely ridiculed vehicles ever built, was reimagined with a little flair from one of the former brand’s more legendary cars? Well, it turns out that someone not only came up with that idea, but followed up on it. And so, we present to you the Pontiac Aztek Firebird Trans Am, uh, trim package? ItÂ’s not real, of course, but it comes from Abimelec Arellano, an Hermosillo, Mexico-based car designer with too much time on his hands who goes by the name Abimelec Design. Arellano redesigned the midsize SUVÂ’s wimpy front fascia to surprising success by simply adding widened fender flares and perhaps modernizing the headlights. He also went all-in embracing the AztekÂ’s abrupt, flattened rear end by removing the rear bumper lip, adding a slightly more aggressive rear spoiler to boot. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Elsewhere, the dominating and cheap-looking gray plastic under-cladding is gone in favor of body-color panels. Arellano also added some probably larger Pontiac Snowflake wheels with gold accents that really make them pop and play well against the signature Firebird decal dominating the hood. Commenters generally fall into one of two buckets. As one put it, “I never thought the Aztek could look this good.” Others implored Arellano to do a version with a T-top. Or as one Autoblog editor put it, “So it turns out the reason the Aztek was a laughingstock failure is that it didnÂ’t come in a Smokey and the Bandit Edition. Somewhere, a dude who got shouted down in a product-planning meeting years ago is vindicated.” Sold between 2001 and 2005, the Aztek arguably reached the pinnacle of its notoriety as the metaphor for the drab, underachieving life of Walter White in AMCÂ’s meth drama, “Breaking Bad.” It came equipped with a 3.4-liter V6 that made 185 horsepower and sent it through a four-speed automatic to the front wheels, with an all-wheel drive version also available. The Aztek may have the last laugh, especially if it gets a screaming chicken. “The fact it was a controversial design and didnÂ’t sell well will make it an object of curiosity from a historical standpoint many years from now,” McKeel Hagerty, president and CEO of classic-car insurer Hagerty Insurance, told Autoblog back in 2016.

Pontiac could be a phoenix rising from the ashes

Of the deceased American car companies from the past 50 years such as Hummer, Mercury, Oldsmobile, Plymouth and Saturn, I believe the most worthy resurrection would be Pontiac. After all, it's no longer politically correct to drive an ex-military vehicle with single-digit gas mileage, nor do Millennials and Gen-Xers desire AARP-associated nameplates such as Mercury or Oldsmobile. Pontiac was originally founded in 1893 by Albert G. North and Harry G. Hamilton as the Pontiac Buggy Company, due to their location in Pontiac, Michigan. But as the early 1900s automotive revolution took off, they shifted their focus from horse-drawn carriages to motorized transportation. Taking a cue from Oakland County where they were based, they rebranded their organization as the Oakland Motor Company. Within a couple years, sales of Oakland cars were so good that it caught the attention of General Motors and they bought the company. In 1926, GM premiered the first Pontiac and its name drew inspiration from the legendary Native American War Chief, who was famous for the Battle of Bloody Run and opposition of British forces. His likeness was used in early promotional materials as well as the vehicle's emblem which was referred to simply as the "Indian Head". In 1956, the outdated emblem was replaced with a new, sleeker logo that resembled a red arrow head. It was known as "The Dart" and featured a singular star in the center which may have been a nod to Pontiac's successful Star Chief model. The 1960s saw the introduction of several popular models such as the GTO and the Firebird. The GTO was initially offered as an option package on the 1964 Tempest, and the name was the brainchild of John Delorean, who would later go on to form his own eponymous automobile company. The Firebird debuted in 1967 as a pony-car foil to Ford's award-winning Mustang. Although mechanically similar to Chevrolet's Camaro, the Firebird boasted a distinct sheetmetal nose and tail to help visually distinguish it. The 1980s were another adventurous time for Pontiac, and GM took advantage of the sales momentum by running a successful ad campaign. It proclaimed "We Build Excitement" and highlighted an arrangement with musicians Daryl Hall and John Oats. The fiery Fiero was a home-run for Pontiac and it was introduced in 1983 as an '84 model. Not only was it the first U.S. produced mid-engine sports coupe, but it also utilized lightweight, dent-resistant body panels.