2010 pontiac g8 Preview

When General Motors announced that some models were going to be postponed, I thought for sure the niche market

G8 ST would be on the short list. It's just such an oddball vehicle in the grand scheme of things, cool, but not a mainstream model like the Chevy Cruze that was pushed back a year due to cost cutting restraints. Fortunately for car-based pickup truck fans, or utes as they're known in Australia where GM's Holden division makes a version of this very truck, it's on schedule for a 2010 model year launch later in 2009.

"There are no efforts to delay the truck," commented Pontiac spokesman Jim Hopson to PickupTrucks.com. "Construction is scheduled to start in July 2009, and the first G8 STs are expected to go on sale here in the fall of 2009."

The point of its origins is the main reason why it's not being held back. After all, Holden has done all the ground work for a vehicle that will sell in massive quantities, so why not revise it and rebrand it for the North American market? A sort of reborn El Camino, of sorts.

El

Camino in mind, GM had a little marketing fun coming up with the new pickup's name, creating some buzz about the product in the process. It only took 18,000 submissions, with most playing the "Tame the Name" game wanting the new sport truck to be dubbed El Camino, despite it being a Pontiac rather than a Chevy, and the winning submission was... ST. Yes, that's the same name GM used when introducing the truck at the New York International Auto Show last March, and to be fair, it was popular among nominators too.

“Frankly, we were blown away by both the volume and quality of the names that were submitted,” commented Craig Bierley, BPG product marketing director for cars and crossovers. “'G8 ST' was one of the most popular suggestions, plus we noticed a far broader trend toward simple, easy-to-remember names... We actually thought very long about El Camino,"

added Bierley. “In the end, we felt it was more appropriate to honor the El Camino's unique place as part of Chevy's heritage and not use that nameplate on a Pontiac.”

Good choice, but ST is a bit dull. Being that all previous car-based pickups by GM have been given Spanish names, with GMC's dubbed Caballero, we were hoping for something like Tempestad, Fuego Pájaro, Torrente or at least Deporte Carro. Name aside, some will question the General's choice in bringing a large car-based pickup truck to market at a time when full-size sedans and pickups are suffering on what's left of the sales charts. Furthermore, this particular segment, previously held by the aforementioned El Camino and Caballero, plus the Ford Ranchero (what's with the Spanish names), has always been too small to call niche, but the 2010 Pontiac G8 ST, based on the GM performance brand's new rear-drive G8 sport-luxury sedan, will certainly turn heads.

The

ST, short for Sport Truck, boasts clean, aggressive lines and an upscale interior just like its G8 donor car, although there's only room for two up front and none, legally, in back.

Being that it shares its basic structure with the Holden ute, the G8 ST isn't much of a risk as far as new models go, so even if take-rates are low in North America it should still be possible to see a profit.

"Pontiac has never shied away from offering segment-defining vehicles, going back to the original GTO," said Jim Bunnell, Buick-Pontiac-GMC general manager on March 15, 2008, when GM initially launched the car at the NYIAS. "There's simply nothing else like the G8 sport truck on the road today, and we definitely believe that there are customers who will be excited by its distinctive design, performance and cargo capabilities."

So what can we expect with this

sporty looking truck? According to Hopson we should look for a two engine line, mirroring the G8 sedan's powertrain offerings.

"There's a growing movement to add a V6," Hopson added. "It's not set in stone but the odds are it will happen by launch, sharing the same V6 as the [G8] sedan."

The base sedan gets a 256-horsepower 3.6-liter V6 with 24 valves, dual overhead cams and 248 lb-ft of torque, so it would make sense that the entry-level ST would get the same setup if offered. The performance team at Pontiac is definitely going to endow the ST with the tire-smoke-inducing 361-horsepower 6.0-liter V8 from the top-line G8 GT four-door, so don't concern yourself about any lack of available power options. The truck, lighter than the four-door, should be good for 60 mph in just under five and a half seconds, according to Pontiac's press information.

It should

handle pretty well right out of the box too, as a sport-tuned four-wheel independent suspension with electronic stability control is joined by a steering box situated just ahead of the front axle line for what Pontiac calls “a quick, direct feel”. The ST's front stabilizer bar is larger than the sedan's by a millimeter too, while 18-inch machine-faced aluminum rims shod with 245/45R18 performance tires come with the base package; 19-inch alloys wrapped in 245/40R19s are optional.

Stopping should come easy as the ST gets the G8 GT's four-wheel discs, with 12.64-inch rotors up front and 12.76-inch discs at the rear. The front rotors are an inch thick, while those in the rear are 0.87 inches thick. They're clamped down on by twin-piston front alloy calipers and single-piston alloy calipers in the rear, with ABS standard.

And while performance is critical, the ST's pickup box isn't just for show. With a 73.9-inch length and 42.7 cubic feet of overall stowage space plus a durable composite bed liner, the cargo bed is large and rugged enough for an ATV, a couple of motorbikes or what-have-you,

and you won't be dragging the rear end on the ground thanks to 1,074 pounds of payload capacity. Its tow rating is 3,500 pounds, which is good enough for smaller boat and camping trailers. Incidentally, there's another 8.5 cubic feet of storage space behind the seats.

To make the bed useful, GM lengthened the wheelbase of the four-door donor car by about four inches for a total of 118.5 inches, while key structural points were strengthened to prepare it for hauling and towing. Altogether, more than sixty new components went into making the G8 an ST.

A full assortment of comfort and convenience items will make the G8 ST more than just a workhorse, such as standard electronic dual-zone climate control, cruise control, a Driver Information Center, Bluetooth connectivity, and all the powered functionalities vehicles in this class normally receive. What's more, a five-speaker, 230-watt Blaupunkt AM/FM stereo with a six-disc in-dash CD changer will also be on the list, plus a 6.5-inch audio display for controlling the sound system and climate control.

Fabric

seats will be standard with leather available, the latter featuring six-way power and heated cushions up front. Pontiac says a custom two-tone leather option will be available as well, with black and red inserts and a color-coordinating gauge cluster.

The safety list is strong too, of course, with airbags all-round, a tire pressure monitoring system, OnStar, and all previously mentioned items.

And what will it all cost? Final pricing will be determined closer to its launch date in September or October 2009, but Hopson said its window sticker should be close to that of the G8 four-door.

"We expect G8 ST pricing (for the V8 version) will start in the low 30 [thousands]," said Hopson.

So, whether the G8 ST name works for you or not, the truck itself shows that GM is willing to march to the beat of an extremely unique drummer in order to stir up excitement within its sporty Pontiac brand. Will it do the trick? Niche models rarely create the buzz needed to spur major sales, but the opportunity to utilize a model already developed for another market was too ripe to pass up, and the new G8 ST certainly can't hurt.

Preliminary Specifications (2010 Pontiac G8 ST):