2008 Pontiac Grand Prix

Review

This is the vehicle that marks the close of an era for General Motors. As bad

as it may sound, this was an era for General Motors that was typified by average, ho-hum products that elicited great feelings of unbridled... indifference. It produced cars like the Buick Rendezvous, the Saturn Relay and the Chevrolet Cavalier, vehicles that were OK, but (thankfully) are very different than what is being producing by the General today. Most, but not all of the vehicles that fall into this category have been put out to pasture. A few still remain.

The sort of change that General Motors is making to its cars and brands is revolutionary. There's a lot of renovation going on, a lot of deconstruction, a lot of rebuilding, and in the process, a lot of listening, a lot of innovation and a lot of global cooperation. The new cars, trucks, SUVs and crossovers that GM is turning out are very good - two North American Car of the Year trophies this year alone, and tons of good, award-winning products are slowly changing perceptions about "Made in the U.S.A." It's nothing but good news, for GM and its loyal fans at least.

Buyers have embraced this change. Cadillac and Saturn have done 180s.

They're completely different brands compared to what they were just a few years ago. Pontiac has tried to do the same, with the Solstice, its first SUV (Torrent) and different vehicles like the G6 Convertible. But what happened to Pontiac's veterans, like the Grand Prix? This big car was a big deal when redesigned in model year 1997, with Wide Track, and then later with TAPshift and eventually a powerful V8. It was the American midsize car for drivers, and as a result it had special (and strong) appeal.

Now, two generations after this breakthrough Pontiac, the Grand Prix has practically disappeared from center stage. Fans of the brand aren't even interested in this car, so it seems, despite the launch of that V8-powered GXP. Instead, they've focused on the upcoming G8, the Grand Prix's successor. Oh, and the "will they or won't they build a new Trans Am?" question. While Pontiac fans wait, the Grand Prix looks to be suffering from the same symptoms the Bonneville endured back in 2005: neglect.

I don't blame Pontiac for wanting to shift attention away from the Grand Prix. I mean, it rides on a platform that they've already started to "disassemble". Out of the three W-body cars that GM produces, the Grand Prix always seemed to be on a different schedule, introduced a half generation ahead of its Bowtie and Buick compatriots. So while the Impala and LaCrosse will continue on, the Grand Prix will be making an early exit. The venerable 3800 Series III Supercharged engine that gave the Grand Prix GT (and formerly the GTP) the thrust to successfully put the beat-down on V6 Camrys, Accords and Altimas is now gone; all that's left is the outrageous V8-powered GXP, or this, the base model sedan.

I hate to bash - I really do - but there's really no other way of describing the GP's interior and exterior than being way out of date. Just like the outside, you can tell that in its early stages this design had huge potential. It's visibly clear that the styling theme of the car wasn't just produced by a random assortment of 1s and 0s in a computer program, and it certainly

wasn't a copycat of anything else.

A lot of people have a preconceived notion that the Grand Prix is just plain cheap, but it isn't. The dashboard is made of soft-touch plastics, and there's padding of sorts on the door tops and the nice feeling headliner. But that doesn't really change the fact that the dashboard itself is, um, still stuck in the ‘90s, not to mention that it just looks plain. Like the car's backside, the dash is bulbous and round, and it's adorned by too many small ball-style air vents, though all of the controls are pointed towards the driver for better ergonomics. It even uses the old, non-corporate headunit, which lacks a jack for MP3 players. But there are some less pleasing areas - some critical areas are made of lower grade materials, such as the area around the ignition switch; the hollow “tonk tonk” noise that the key fob makes when it hits the dash while driving is hardly the sound of quality.

But my biggest gripe has to do with the seats. While I respect that everyones' body is different, I certainly didn't find the seats comfortable. The Grand Prix's front buckets are pleasingly firm and offer an unusual amount of lateral support, keeping you nice and snug. It's unfortunate, then, that the headrests have been positioned so far back that unless you're lying down in the seats, you're supporting your neck upright all on its own. This make the seats rather uncomfortable over a long drive, at least for me (yes, I know that not everyone uses their headrest for actually resting their head). The news is worse for those who ride in the back. Although there's a lot of legroom (this is a big car), it lacks headroom for taller passengers due to the coupe-like roofline, and the seat cushion is very low, meaning your knees sit rather high.

Another thing I didn't like is GM's approach to safety on the Grand Prix. This car is quite literally as basic as you can get. It has two front airbags and that's it. No stability control or traction control, neither of which can be had unless you get ABS brakes which are an option. Yes, that's right. ABS brakes on Pontiac's flagship sedan are an option - an $870

option at that. Wow! And you'll need to shell out more for side curtain airbags too. It isn't as if GM isn't with the times either, because both the Impala and the LaCrosse come with standard ABS. Traction control also comes standard on these cars, while StabiliTrak is an option, not to mention that the Chevy and Buick are cheaper too. Likewise, the same goes for other less expensive GM products like the Malibu and Astra. The only real explanation I can think of is that the Grand Prix has actually been left for dead by product planners, or that the bulk of the orders for this car are for fleet and rental service customers who really want their vehicles as basic as possible.

Considering what I'm saying it might seem as if the Grand Prix is General Motors' bottom of the barrel, but it has some redeeming characteristics that show that the W-body platform was well engineered. It feels quite solid on the road, without any creaks or rattles. Its ride is also surprisingly well tuned; it's firmer and more buttoned down than the Chevrolet or Buick equivalents, but still very comfortable making it an excellent car to rack up miles on the highway. It's not surprising that this lesser version is a good cruising car and one that handles fairly well too. With such a good starting point, this was probably one of the reasons why the Grand Prix GTP Comp

G ended up being one of the better handling large, front wheel drive vehicles on the market.

And the engine - despite making a mere 200 horsepower - is surprisingly willing. The torquey Series III 3800 V6 and four-speed Hydramatic automatic transmission (items that sound as if they were fresh off the '55 Motorama Tour) make for a good combination that is responsive, and for this size and weight of vehicle, the Grand Prix doesn't feel sluggish at all. And with a fourth gear that's as tall as the day is long, the Grand Prix is quiet on the highway and has reasonable fuel economy for a vehicle with such a large engine.

Minus the surcharge for safety equipment that really ought to be standard, if there really is a final blow it's got to be the pricing. At $22,960, which also happens to be the as-tested price of this car, the Grand Prix faces very strong competition from competitors, as well as within

the GM brand. The more powerful and better equipped Impala and LaCrosse costs less, and an equivalently priced G6 contains an even better dynamic experience, although in a smaller package. Comparatively, Hyundai's Sonata V6 is $1,840 less, VW's Passat 2.0T is just a hair over $1,000 more, and a V6-powered Camry is just $680 more.

Although Grand Prix is a well known name, one that almost has legendary reputation, it's game over. Starting later this year, Pontiac's Australian designed, Australian-built rear wheel drive G8 will show up, a car that's got a lot of people talking, and rightfully so. This is the end of an era for General Motors, and more importantly the beginning of a new one. Although it's an era that signals the demise of the Grand Prix, it's an era that I don't think too many people will lament passing.