2001 Pontiac Bonneville Ssei on 2040-cars

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Online Find: 1970 Pontiac Firebird Concept, cousin of the Weinermobile

So there's this for sale over at Hemmings: the 1970 Pontiac Firebird One concept designed by Harry Bentley Bradley and built by Dave Crook. For sale at the time of writing in Bellevue, Washington for $94,950, most of the seller's description appears to be pulled from a 2001 Barrett-Jackson listing, when the car was sold at auction for $61,600. Before we get to the car, it helps to know the man behind it: Bradley was a designer at General Motors from 1962 to 1966 who, against company policy, continued to submit designs to Hot Rod magazine under an assumed name. Mattel poached him in 1966 to design its brand new toy line called Hot Wheels, and Bradley designed all of them except one. He only stayed at Mattel for a year because he didn't think Hot Wheels would be successful, then left to start his own design company. Among other works, he penned the most recent example of the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile. Now can you see the Firebird One's design language? Since it apparently has a letter of documentation from GM design staff, we'll assume that GM asked the then-freelancing Bradley to work some magic on its muscle car, this being the totally Hot-Wheels influenced result. There are 17,456 miles on its 255-horsepower, 350 cubic-inch V8. The interior has tan leather, custom bucket seats, a wood grain dash, and one of the most awkward spare tire placements ever. The seller assures all prospective buyers that it is, like the Death Star, "fully operational."

Why Pontiac should come back and how it can be relevant again

When I was a kid growing up in Metro Detroit, our family was always entwined in the General Motors empire. My dad and some of our relatives worked for GM in various capacities, and we had our fair share of Chevrolet, GMC, and even Buick products in our humble driveway. However, it was my Uncle Ed that always had a vehicle from the one GM brand that always appealed to me the most: Pontiac. Seeing him pull up in his Pontiac 6000 and later the '90s era Grand Prix sedan that replaced it was always an exciting occasion, and both of these models also reflected the playful spirit that once defined the Pontiac brand. Back when Pontiac first got its performance groove on in the '60s, names such as GTO, Firebird, as well as Bonneville became iconic nameplates in the broader muscle car era. The '80s saw Pontiac lose some of its styling heritage, but also try new things at the same time including turbocharging as well as the mid-engine sports car with the flawed but still sleek Pontiac Fiero. When the Pontiac brand was shuttered in 2009, it was a mere few years after I earned my drivers license, and also when Pontiac was just beginning to regain some of its lost luster. Granted cookie cutter efforts like the Pontiac G3, (Chevrolet Aveo) G5, (Chevrolet Cobalt) and G6 (Chevrolet Malibu) certainly did not help matters during Pontiac's final years on the market, but two models in particular offered a compelling glimpse into what could've been for the storied brand. The first was the Pontiac Solstice roadster/coupe. Originally introduced as a concept back in 2004, and championed by everyone's fighter jet flying auto executive Bob Lutz, the Solstice was designed to be a serious competitor to the Mazda Miata, and while its interior ergonomics were flawed and the top solution not ideal. It proved to be a fun little car to drive, and also a sales success for Pontiac with initial demand exceeding expectations.This was especially due to its lineup of engines with the 2.0 liter LHU turbocharged four-cylinder engine delivering 260 horsepower in GXP variants. The second and (inarguably my favorite Pontiac model) was the Pontiac G8 sedan. Originating in Australia as the Holden Commodore VE, the G8 was designed to rectify the multitude of sins created by the last generation Bonneville. Front wheel drive was pitched in favor of rear wheel drive, and for the first time in a long time interior ergonomics and cladding free exterior styling were key building blocks for success.

Porsche Boxster Spyder to get GT3's 4.0-liter flat six?

It's been a merry-go-round the past few months, the rumormill focused on what will power the next Porsche Boxster Spyder. First came hearsay of a flat-six going into the special edition of a model line known for its turbocharged four-cylinder engines. Then came tattling that the flat-six in question was the naturally aspirated, 4.0-liter from the 911 GT3. A couple of weeks ago we wrote " we'd be surprised if Porsche packed anything other than a turbocharged flat-four under the skin." But Autocar has a new report that, indeed, a downtuned version of the 500-horsepower 4.0-liter from the GT3's rump will move to the Boxster Spyder's midsection. The Autocar piece follows a Wheels magazine article from last November, and the prediction isn't outrageous. When Car and Driver reviewed the last Boxster Spyder, it wrote, "the hand-me-down six comes from the older 911 Carrera S, not to be confused with the new turbocharged 3.0-liter flat-six that powers the refreshed 911." If we can believe a recent report from Automobile about the 992-series 911 due later this year, the same thing is happening: The 991.2-series GT3 bequeaths its powerplant to the smaller sibling, and the 992-series GT3 moves to a 3.8-liter, twin-turbo flat-six with around 550 hp. Autocar quotes Andreas Preuninger, the Porsche engineer leading the development of all of these wunderkinds, saying of the Boxster earlier this year, "Natural aspiration is one of our main USPs. ... [We] think we can achieve throttle response and immediacy a little bit better with an atmospheric high-revving engine than any kind of turbo." We'll guess that means, by inference, that the GT3 is about to age out of naturally-aspirated university. The limited-edition Boxster Spyder might carry the torch with the 4.0-liter, with output somewhere around 430 hp. The Cayman GT4 could do the same. Or, who knows, an evolution of the 375-hp, 3.8-liter flat-six in the previous Boxster Spyder might burble out of left field. We expect to see the Boxster Spyder late this year. Until then, we'll wait to see what the merry-go-round says next time the Zuffenhausen horse comes around. Related Video: Featured Gallery Porsche 718 Boxster Spyder spy shots View 13 Photos News Source: Autocar via JalopnikImage Credit: CarPix Rumormill Pontiac Convertible Luxury Special and Limited Editions Performance porsche 911 gt3