Many people who read this blog were born after Pontiac went out of business, so they may be wondering what the big deal is. For people younger than me, Pontiac used to be General Motors’ most daring name. Until the 1980s, that is. After that, it just turned into an exercise in badge engineering. When the 2004 GTO, 2006 Solstice, and 2008 G8 cars came out, they gave people hope. For a short second, Pontiac looked like it was going back to the dreams of its fans. In the end, it went away. With this 2008 Pontiac G8, we may see a “what if” that was never looked into before GM Design let virtual guests into its vault.
Bloat can be seen in the fall of Pontiac
According to GM Design, this is the best idea for the Pontiac name. It was made at the Advanced Studio in California. During the Great Recession, General Motors needed two bailouts from Congress to stay in business. They had to cut down on the number of names they held in order to get this lifeline. Pontiac was one of four that would close in the end. The world and we both didn’t know that GM was making an interesting new G8 car for Pontiac before it shut down.
Never Found Before
It’s too bad that the G8 Concept was never built because it looked great and hinted at the future of the brand, which would have been very different from the rest of GM’s lineup. Still, the G8 Concept has some aspects of the “good” GM corporate design language from that time. The idea has a grille that looks like it came from a Pontiac, but the headlights and upper fender bulges look like they came from both the Cadillac CTS and the Solstice. It’s interesting to note that the vents on the hood look a lot like those on the Saturn Sky, which is different from the noses that are usually on Pontiacs with strong engines.
Build and impossible to break
This car continues Pontiac’s “wide track” performance history, which began in the late 1950s, as shown by the large fender protrusions on the sides of the body. The Camaro’s “Coke bottle” pattern can also be seen on the back quarter panel. At this time, only GM cars had fenders with ports that went all the way into the front door. This feature was added to a new GM car in the second-generation Cadillac CTS. The front door handles stretch to open the door and then retract to flush when the car is moving, which is a sign of how cars will be made in the future. This is a touch sensor because the back doors don’t have handles, and the pre-painted design doesn’t show a hidden hole for one. For this plan, the doors were opened, but we’re not sure how the “floating” plate in the middle of the port moved to make that possible. It most likely looked like a cutout sticking out of the door.
The frameless doors in the G8 plan are also hard to see when the windows are open because there is no frame for the windows to fit into. There isn’t a full B-pillar in the middle of the roof to add more support to the structure. Given the current rules on rollovers, a production version would have had to give up one of those two traits for safety reasons. This is especially true now that electric cars are so popular.
By following the body out to the back of the 2008 G8 concept, you can see that Pontiac wants to use the Solstice’s design language in bigger cars. Both the exhaust tips built into the back bumper and most of the rear design are a nod to that amazing little roadster. The G8 idea is unique because it has taillights that look like those on the Saturn Sky and sporty side buttresses that are set into the rear glass. Both of these designs would be very different today. At that time, it was also rare for a sedan to have a hatch instead of a traditional decklid trunk compartment. It’s unclear if the final model would have kept the notchback shape or gone for a more classic liftback shape with a steeper roofline, but the Solstice coupe’s roofline may have given us some ideas.
An Interior of the Future Based on the Corvette
There is a show vibe on the inside. Four people can sit in the G8 Concept because each person has their own sports seat. The center bench goes all the way into the back passenger area, and the huge opening in the trunk makes it possible for the back seats to lie down. What makes it interesting is how the driver’s side is set up. It looks like a sneak peek at the creative (but controversial) center console setup of the C8 Corvette. Also, the dashboard doesn’t have a big screen like most current cars do; it looks like it only has analog gauges. The steering wheel has paddles that are easy for the driver to reach with their fingers. The shift position display is in the middle pod, in the middle of the speedometer and tachometer. It looks like this would have been a great place for a shift light.
What Could Have Been Done?
We are aware, yes. Some parts of the G8 Concept can be found in later GM cars, so it doesn’t look like it was built for nothing. However, the finished G8 would not have been as crazy. Also, the G8’s lasting influences would have made it a beautiful and interesting car even if it had been simplified for production. Would a sports car have won? This is hard to say because the Pontiac G8 is seen as a modern masterpiece, and the GM sports cars that came after, like the CT-series Cadillacs, were more dynamic. Pontiac is dead by the end and doesn’t seem to be coming back any time soon, so it’s really just a silly “what-if” story.
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