Pontiac
USA · Founded 1926
GM's excitement division. Pontiac built cars for people who wanted more than basic transportation — they wanted to feel something.
Heritage
Pontiac started as a companion brand to Oakland, then outlived its parent. John DeLorean transformed it in the 1960s with the GTO, the first true muscle car. Wide-Track styling and 'We Build Excitement' advertising made Pontiac the performance arm of GM. The Firebird and Trans Am became icons. GM killed Pontiac in 2010, but the legacy lives on every time someone hears a Ram Air engine idle.
Pontiac Vehicles (2)
1967 Pontiac GTO
The GTO invented the muscle car. Period. In 1964, John DeLorean and his team at Pontiac dropped a big 389 V8 into the mid-size Tempest, creating a formula that every other manufacturer would copy. By 1967, the GTO had its own body — no longer just an option package — with more aggressive styling and the new 400 cubic inch V8. The 1967 model is the sweet spot: refined from the crude early cars but still raw enough to feel dangerous. Ronnie & the Daytonas wrote a song about it. Little GTO, you're really lookin' fine.
1969 Pontiac Firebird/Trans Am
The 1969 Firebird is when Pontiac's pony car came into its own. While the Camaro got more aggressive styling, the Firebird went racing. The Trans Am was born this year — a homologation special named after the SCCA racing series Pontiac wanted to dominate. Only 697 were built, all painted Cameo White with blue stripes. The Ram Air IV engine was Pontiac's masterpiece: round-port heads, radical cam timing, and performance that the factory underrated for insurance purposes. The '69 Firebird is GM's pony car for people who wanted more than a rebadged Camaro.