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April 27, 2009 11:28 p.m. gamby SuperDork

jrw1621 wrote:

P71 wrote:

Original Grand Am - Bringing all of the luxury of the full-size Grand Prix to a mid-size car with actual handling and Trans Am power, the original personal sports coupe (which the M3 later copied )

When you say Original Grand Am do you mean 1973 RWD or 1985 FWD?

lol--that didn't go down in history like they had hoped.

bravenrace wrote: '73-74 SD T/A '77-'78 T/A 400 Trans Am

These imprinted on my during childhood. Ditto for the 1980 turbo Trans Am and Turbo Trans Am Pace Car.
April 27, 2009 11:29 p.m. Trans_Maro Reader

jrw1621 wrote:

When you say Original Grand Am do you mean 1973 RWD or 1985 FWD?

I've got a good opportunity to buy a '75 Grand-Am, 400, auto.

I just have to decide if I really want it.

Shawn
April 28, 2009 6:23 a.m. bravenrace HalfDork

Cotton wrote:

bravenrace wrote:

SD421 Catalina's etc..
'64 GTO
'65 GTO
'69 Trans Am
'70-'71 Trans Am and/or Formula 400
'69 Judge
Royal Bobcat
'69 Grand Prix, 428 4-spd
'73-74 SD T/A
'77-'78 T/A 400 Trans Am

Note: I have a Solstice GXP. I didn't put it on the list.

I have a 72 Firebird, 78 Trans AM SE, and 07 Solstice GXP (soon to be Stage 1) I would put the GXP on the list as one of the best modern offerings along with the G8 GXP. We love ours and another member seems to really like his Sky Redline. For what it is I think it's an excellent car.

That's okay, you can like your car. I think mine is mediocre at best when compared to other sports cars in the same price range. While they can be made to handle great, In stock form the handling is scary at the limit, and in fact I can take one particular on ramp in my 18 year old Civic, stock with the exception of Koni shocks, 9 MPH faster than I can in my Solstice. The interior is cheap, it sounds like a UPS truck, and I've had 7 major problems with it 12k miles that the dealer can't fix. So that's how I see it. BTW, I've also owned many Pontiacs, and have a particular afffection for '70-'78 Firebirds.
April 28, 2009 6:27 a.m. bravenrace HalfDork

Trans_Maro wrote:

jrw1621 wrote:

When you say Original Grand Am do you mean 1973 RWD or 1985 FWD?

I've got a good opportunity to buy a '75 Grand-Am, 400, auto.

I just have to decide if I really want it.

Shawn

I have that ad!!! The Grand-Am was one of the last truly cool cars, IMHO. If the price is right you should snag it!
April 28, 2009 7:00 a.m. ignorant SuperDork

my grandpa was a pontiac mechanic for 40 years. Never bought anything other than a pontiac. I bet hes rolling over in his grave.
April 28, 2009 7:06 a.m. SoloSonett Reader

I never could understand how GM could make $$$..?

Chevy engines, Olds, Engines, Buick .. Pontiac and Caddy??

Only GMC shared. ( There were a few cross overs in the 70's when supplies were short...)

Then toss in Holden, SAAB, etc...

It was time to cut losses and merge brands. I just hope they keep the "good ones " Solstice - Sky etc
April 28, 2009 9:17 a.m. P71 Dork

73 RWD Grand Am, duh!
April 28, 2009 9:37 a.m. pinchvalve SuperDork

I gotta give an honorable mention to the Sunbird GT Turbo. OK, it was kinda crap, but driving the 165hp GT back-to-back with the regular 95hp car was a real eye opener back in 1985. Most V6s of the day put out less, including the Fiero's at 140hp. At the time, I thought Pontiac would continue to offer high-output turbo motors and performance packages to set their cars apart and things would get better and better. It didn't last, the Sunbird got the corporate V6 and faded to obscurity with body cladding replacing performance hardware.
April 28, 2009 9:50 a.m. Lugnut Reader

Maybe I just haven't had any crappy ones but I have really loved every one of the 5 Pontiacs I've owned.

My current '05 GTO: My record holder. I have had this car nearly three and a half years.

Two V6, one Iron Duke Fiero. Loved 'em all.

1993 Bonneville SSEi. Great, great car. My first four door car, in fact.
April 28, 2009 10:14 a.m. Cotton Reader

bravenrace wrote:

Cotton wrote:

bravenrace wrote:

SD421 Catalina's etc..
'64 GTO
'65 GTO
'69 Trans Am
'70-'71 Trans Am and/or Formula 400
'69 Judge
Royal Bobcat
'69 Grand Prix, 428 4-spd
'73-74 SD T/A
'77-'78 T/A 400 Trans Am

Note: I have a Solstice GXP. I didn't put it on the list.

I have a 72 Firebird, 78 Trans AM SE, and 07 Solstice GXP (soon to be Stage 1) I would put the GXP on the list as one of the best modern offerings along with the G8 GXP. We love ours and another member seems to really like his Sky Redline. For what it is I think it's an excellent car.

That's okay, you can like your car. I think mine is mediocre at best when compared to other sports cars in the same price range. While they can be made to handle great, In stock form the handling is scary at the limit, and in fact I can take one particular on ramp in my 18 year old Civic, stock with the exception of Koni shocks, 9 MPH faster than I can in my Solstice. The interior is cheap, it sounds like a UPS truck, and I've had 7 major problems with it 12k miles that the dealer can't fix. So that's how I see it. BTW, I've also owned many Pontiacs, and have a particular afffection for '70-'78 Firebirds.

The acoustic headliner helps a lot with interior noise. I'm not sure if you have that on yours or not.

I've never noticed scary handling at the limit, then again I own an 85 911, which has some interesting tendancies of it's own.

I also love the 2nd gen birds. My 72 is a 455 4 speed car and the 78 is a 400/auto with the ws6 packages. It's amazing how cars so similar can be so different.

We've had zero major problems with our GXP in almost 3 years and 23k, so I guess that's one of the reasons my view is so different from yours.

What we wanted out of our GXP was a decent DD with max performance for the money. Sure the interior isn't the best, but honestly the interior in the 350z we drove wasn't any better. As far as other new cars in the same price range this fit the best for us.

Someone on this board had their GXP given to them as a company car/perk......was that you or someone else?
April 29, 2009 6:45 a.m. bravenrace HalfDork

The headliner is nice, but interior noise isn't one of my complaints. And it doesn't make up for the otherwise inept design of the top, IMO. The problem I have with it, and this is my opinion, is that the standard solstice doesn't really compare with a similarly priced Miata, and the GXP is very overpriced. For a couple grand more I could have an S2000 or a late model used Corvette, both of which I'd rather have than my Solstice. It's not a bad driving car, but it isn't a great sports car, again in my opinion. Keep in mind that I'm not saying it's a bad car, just that I wouldn't put it in the top 10 Pontiacs of all time. But I wouldn't put a Fiero in that list either. I don't know how old you are, but I grew up in the muscle car era (I know you have a couple), so those are the cars that I think of when I consider the best Pontiacs, not a late model.
You are correct that mine is my company car, but I think that just gives me a more objective viewpoint on it. I like it, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't buy one. I might give the coupe a look though, if they end up selling any. Let me know how the upgrade kit works. BTW, what kind of boost does your's produce? I've heard some guys say that they get in the high teens, but mine usually will only produce about 13-14 psi, which and occasional blip up to 15. That seems kind of low compared to others I've talked to.

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