In its heyday, in the 1960s, Pontiac was well known for its sports cars. However, in 2010 the make was shut down by the owner GM.

The history of Pontiac

The actual foundation of Pontiac goes back to the year 1893. Until 1907, however, carriages were produced, so that the entry into the automobile business can be related to the construction of the Oakland Motor Car Company in 1907. Only two years later Pontiac was part of the GM group. However, the cars were first distributed in 1926 under the name Pontiac. Within the brand structure of the GM group, Pontiac was initially aimed at the middle class, which helped it become famous and the largest car manufacturer in its class. As a result, factories were expanded and production increased, until the GM sister group Chevrolet also became successful, which led to a stagnation of sales for Pontiac. A restructuring of the Pontiac brand with the production of sports cars in the 1960s succeeded in bringing Pontiac back into the spotlight of the automotive industry. This time, a younger target group could be reached which previously had dismissed the Pontiac as an old man’s car. Due to the oil crisis in the 1970s and tightened emission standards, Pontiac cooperated with the GM sister group Chevrolet and the company's first small cars were developed. In the 1980s Pontiac was on everyone’s lips, when it produced the car for the famous tv series Knight Rider – the Kitt Pontiac.

Classic Pontiac models

The first car of Pontiac, the Pontiac Chief of the Sixes with a six cylinder engine, became very famous. From today's perspective, all of the models of the 1950s constitute wonderful, sought-after classic cars, such as the Streamliner, Star Chief and Chieftain. With regard to sports cars, especially the Pontiac GTO and the Pontiac Firebird Trans Am need to be mentioned. One of the Trans Am cars was used for the Knight Rider tv show. The Trans Am was considered a unique example of American Muscle Cars and therefore perfect for Hollywood.

The Pontiac logo

The Pontiac logo, an Indian head, refers to the corresponding Indian chief. As the leader of the Ottawa Indians he resisted British colonial rule.