GM Got the Memo: 2009 Pontiac Firebird

Quote:
GM, Pontiac. The GTO will be be discontinued at the end of this model year, with the last deliveries arriving at dealers by the end of September. The reasons behind the GTO's demise are many, but ultimately it came down to the fact that the architecture that the car is based on (from GM's Holden division in Australia) is going out of production in preparation for the company's newly revised ZETA RWD program. The GTO was one of the first things that Bob Lutz did to jump-start the Pontiac Division when he came on board at GM. Even though the plan was well-intentioned, the GTO suffered from unfair comparisons to the original GTO (not that any of the hard-core GTO enthusiasts could actually define what a modern GTO should look like), among other things, but the biggest problem for the car from our perspective was that it just cost too much money. If GM could have brought the car in for the mid-$20,000 range at intro, it would have taken off, big time. We made no bones about the fact that we loved the GTO, and the plain looks of the car never bothered us. After all, the original was a Pontiac Tempest with dog-dish hub caps and a couple of fake scoops in the hood, about as bland of a car as you could get back then. But the proof of the original was in the performance, just like the current GTO, which, if you haven't driven one you're missing out, because it is simply a blast to drive. The current car also has one of GM's finest interiors, and we find the overall package to be outstanding, which is why we called the GTO our Autoextremist "High-Performance Value of the Year." The retirement of the GTO presents a real quandary for the Pontiac Division, as the GTO is really the only other car besides the Solstice that is true to the brand's mission within GM's divisional structure. Pontiac had a narrow window of opportunity with the car, but now that's gone, which is a shame. So if you like RWD high-performance, you owe it to yourself to check out the GTO before it disappears. And by the way, Pontiac enthusiasts shouldn't give up on the brand just yet, as there is a RWD performance car coming for the division. After the new Camaro makes its street debut as a 2008 model, watch for an all-new Pontiac Firebird to debut 12 months later as a 2009 model. You read it here first.

http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/images/smilies/biggrin.gif http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/images/smilies/irate.gif http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/images/smilies/metaldevil.gif

Source:
http://www.autoextremist.com/page6.shtml#table

The info at the above link changes weekly. DeLorenzo, the webmaster, has long-time connections inside GM.

All the rumors and news are starting to come together. I think this may just happen yet!!

l think firebirds are history anymore.. l dont believe these comments..

l think firebirds are history anymore.. l dont believe these comments..

Mr. Luos will say the same, and thats fine. This link is like 8 pages deep already at gminsidenews.com also. Things are looking more like reality for this to happen, though, and that's my point!

Cool, this is good news. Now if only it doesn't look dorky. GM is fixing to lose it's collective ass to foreign competitors like toyota anyway, they need to come up with something tasty or it will only get worse for them. Hopefully it will be LS2 or LS6 powered and 400+hp, it will have to be to compete with the Challenger and Mustangs.

Not happening. The firebird was put to a rest in 2002 and probably will never come back. Everybody wants the to bring them back but we have to be realistic. This is all BS media hype.

Not entirely... the TRANS AM name was put to rest in 2002, not the firebird.

why are they getting rid of the GTO already? Not selling enough or what

why are they getting road of the GTO already? Not selling enough or what
Bingo.
It hasn't sold anything close to what any one of the 98+ F-Body's sold. Meaning I am very surprised the GTO made it this far.

I still can't see a new Firebird. Believe me, I am all for it. But GM will fuck it up.

they messed up with the gto because they had NO options what so ever, i know it is a "gto" and should have a good power plant, but they should have a good v6 option to lower cost and for your daily driver. And they did not desing it well at all. The should taken a extera year and desing it better.

why are they getting rid of the GTO already? Not selling enough or what

In the first post it explains very well about its demise also. Did you read that?!?!

Aren't you the same guy they chased out of the GTO forums?

BTW why would Pontiac ditch the GTO? Since leaving NASCAR, they have taken the GTO out to other types of racing from drag to road racingto drifting and have been racking up wins and championships. Honestly the car is the best thing to happen to pontiac in a while.

Don't hold your breath waiting for this.

GM has officially announced that the GTO is no more.

guys...

l read on a forum web site.. guys were being so happy and they were saying, ford proved itself with 03-04 cobras to f-bodies and to vettes..

so if GM would make a 400+ hp. trans am or whatever u say, that time cobra owners would cryy!!! (l wouldnt give a damn.. l dont have these kind of complexes:lol: )

Erdal

I will argue that point tomorrow morning when I am sober. :lol:

The end of GTO was planned at the start.
It is an imported car and because of the Unions they are only allowed to import it 3 years....

Now why the import companys dont have these restrictions I dont know. May be GM's union?

Believe me, I am all for it. But GM will fuck it up.


Yeah, they turned the muscle Nova into a POS Dodge Dart clone when it came back, then they turned the nice muscle Malibu into the POS family truckster that I drive now. If they turn the Firebird into a reincarnated Fiero, I'm going to Detroit to punch someone in the mouth. :evillol:

Aren't you the same guy they chased out of the GTO forums?
Are you talking to me? I only posted one thread in that forum and it was about the end of the GTO that was stated in Motor Trend. I can go dig it up and see if they tried to run me out or something, but I have no idea what you are talking about. The posts I read, they were talking crap on Motor Trend and such. EDIT:Nope. No one ran me out,>>http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=518004

Anyways, the GTO has since been officially canceled:

Gone for Now
Pontiac to drop GTO after '06 model year
By JAMIE LAREAU | AUTOMOTIVE NEWS
12:59 pm, February 21, 2006

DETROIT -- General Motors has told Pontiac dealers that it will discontinue the GTO coupe at the end of this model year. GM will make the last deliveries of the vehicle to dealers by the end of September, sources close to Pontiac say.

GM will produce 10,000 to 12,000 more GTOs before dropping the nameplate, one source close to the situation says. Last year, Pontiac sold 11,590 GTOs compared to 2004 when it sold 13,569. That's a 14.6 percent drop.

When Pontiac launched the GTO in 2003, it projected 18,000 annual sales. The vehicle was criticized for bland styling, and some fans of the original GTO complained that it lacked nostalgic styling cues.

A Pontiac spokesman confirms the GTO will be discontinued after the 2006 model year.

“There are some changes in the federal regulatory standards. One is an airbag deployment standard that would require some very expensive re-engineering of the car,” says Jim Hopson, Pontiac spokesman. “Since the architecture of this car is being phased out around the world it’s not economically feasible to continue this car.”

Pontiac will continue to build the GTO through the end of May, Hopson says. The last “boatload will hit the ground in June”, he adds.

The GTO first came to dealerships in December 2003 as a 2004 model, Hopson says.

The GTO is built on a rear-wheel drive architecture from GM's Holden division in Australia. The present model is going out of production as GM constructs the new Zeta RWD architecture, says the source.

There is no replacement coupe planned at this time and because of the strong Australian and weak U.S. dollar, the GTO had to be priced thousands over where GM originally wanted it -- in the mid-twenties, the source says. "It never did as much volume as we had hoped," the source says.

Pontiac is considering a replacement in the lineup for a RWD performance vehicle, but does not have anything to announce yet, Hopson says.

The GTO suggested retail price starts at $31,990, including shipping. One GM source says, "the 2005 and 2006 were pretty well sold out, and sales were especially strong in areas of GM weakness, like Southern California. It's a shame it has to go -- for now."
I just hope that the interior of the possible "new RWD car" GM is making (and the Camaro) have nice interiors. That was a very strong point for the GTO. It had one of the nicest GM interiors!!

its all rather sad with the gto... people did rather unfairly critisize it, but someone else did make the point that the gto didnt had the options they shoulda. im also surprised gm couldnt get around that import rule... i figured because it was gm owned they would be able to.

personally if you never saw the old gto or heard about it, you would like the new one, and think that it could run with the likes of the f body and vette. but because the gto is so famed (much like the chevelle) its hard to re make a legend. i like the new gto though, granted it has the styling of the grand am and prix that are distinctly pontiac. and i think its sad that they are killing it, it has great potential if they made more options, and through that the cost would vary.

but if.... IF i say.... the friebird returns, i hope they dont go after the challenger, the f body always slayed the mustang, but in turn it was always more expensive to buy. i see the challenger sticking around but i dont think it will be a titan, it will be like the chargers, and vipers. very rare to see. and soo expensive. and in order to runn with that the cost of the f bird must rise. which will be its down fall. pontiac was doing good where they left off, im just a little skeptical that they will be able to change every thing and get the same welcome as when it left.

Yeah, they turned the muscle Nova into a POS Dodge Dart clone when it came back, then they turned the nice muscle Malibu into the POS family truckster that I drive now. If they turn the Firebird into a reincarnated Fiero, I'm going to Detroit to punch someone in the mouth. :evillol:

say what u will about fieros....but if u have ever driven one in good shape...they are a blast. They also look very sharp when they are kept show room shiny.

say what u will about fieros....but if u have ever driven one in good shape...they are a blast. They also look very sharp when they are kept show room shiny.

whats up man?? how is it goin??

l hope you are doin ok..

Erdal

whats up man?? how is it goin??

l hope you are doin ok..

Erdal

what up dawg.

what up dawg.


l was just hangin here and time to go to bed man, l dont wanna get fired the first day l start to work..:D

take care..

talk to ya later..

erdal

say what u will about fieros....but if u have ever driven one in good shape...they are a blast. They also look very sharp when they are kept show room shiny.

i dunno even when not, and they are all beat up they can still put some power down if you got a good motor and tranny behind you. and i actually like fiero's they have and utterly massive jump because you go, more weight when you launch gets put on them rear tires that already have the powertrain on it.

Fieros are good for kit cars too, I hated the voice telling you to shift gears tho...

I didn't mean to dog the Fiero, I'm actually a fan of the little guys. I just don't want to see the Firebird come back as something that it shouldn't be.
I could actually see a Fiero in my dream garage someday.

Formyla, were you joking about a little voice telling you to switch gears???

Back on topic....

This news probably reduces the small chance we have of seeing a new Firebird.
New GTO coming around the bend
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Joshua Dowling
Special to The Plain Dealer
Geneva, Switzerland- The Pontiac GTO isn't dead after all, says a top General Motors Corp. executive, who also hinted there might be a new ultra-fast Corvette coming.

The current GTO will be phased out at the end of this year, but an all-new model is expected to return at the end of 2008 as a 2009 model, said Bob Lutz, who heads GM's global vehicle development.

Lutz stopped short of confirming that, saying: "There will be something special for the Corvette soon." When "Blue Devil" was mentioned, he simply smiled.

The GTO, however, is definitely on the way.

Last year, it appeared that GM had canceled any future GTOs as part of its efforts to reduce costs. And a Pontiac spokesman confirmed this year that the last GTOs would be sold this summer because the model wouldn't meet a new airbag standard taking effect in the fall. The spokesman said that the automaker would like to have another GTO but that there was nothing to announce.

Not kiddin' - My sister inlaw had one and it would tell you when to shift. I did not like that feature

Not kiddin' - My sister inlaw had one and it would tell you when to shift. I did not like that feature

ooooooohhhhh creepy. what did it say? just "shift"? or did it say something else?

edit: you know if they do phase out the gto.... i wonder if they can reskin the chassis... like the cavilier and the sunfire... or like all the ford and lincoln cars. that could give the possibility of the firebird... but i think lous is right the outlook is bleak. though i do wonder... in that memo they said thay they may bring the gto back in 08 or 09? thats cool with me. i actually wouldnt mind having one... ill give it a few years so i can afford it though.

Back on topic....

This news probably reduces the small chance we have of seeing a new Firebird.

Interesting:banghead:

Not to mention they are still looking at a possible bankruptcy deal if they can't straighten out in the near future and I don't think they will gamble to much on the bird. But if they do think about it it would all depend on how the camaro sells. I just can't see it happening anytime soon though if at all :(