World Cars Motor Show

As a space-efficient people mover with a very attractive price, the 2008 Pontiac Torrent fits the bill. This midsize crossover seats 5 and shares the same platform as the Chevrolet Equinox. For the 2008 model year, a sporty new GXP trim joins the base model Torrent, while the base model receives a retuned suspension to improve handling and ride quality. Both the Base and the GXP Torrent come standard with a V6 engine and can be configured with either front wheel or all-wheel drive.

A lengthy standard equipment list accompanies the Torrent Base model and includes 16 inch alloy wheels, air-conditioning, a CD/MP3 player with an auxiliary audio jack, cruise control, full power accessories, OnStar, a trip computer and three 12-volt power points. The new performance oriented Torrent GXP replaces the 16-inch wheels with 18-inch wheels and adds unique body color hood and bumpers, dual exhaust outlets, remote start, privacy glass, a cockpit style instrument panel, heated front seats, power adjustable driver seat, steering-wheel mounted audio controls and an auto-dimming rearview mirror. Individual options include a rear seat entertainment center a navigation system. The GXP also comes with more power and performance-tuned suspension and steering.

A 3.4 liter V6 engine powers the base model Torrent, which is rated at 185 horsepower and comes standard with a 5 speed automatic transmission. Though not very motivated, there is ample power for most situations. The Torrent GXP comes with a much more exciting 264 horsepower, 3.6 liter V6 engine mated to a 6 speed automatic transmission with manual over-ride capability. Like most car based vehicles in the midsize SUV and crossover vehicle categories, the Torrent is much better suited to paved roads than back woods excursions, and the Torrent GXP’s especially low ground clearance only emphasizes this fact. However, properly equipped with the optional Tow Package, the Torrent can tow up to 3500 pounds. Fuel economy is decent for this category, and the same for front wheel and all wheel drive configurations at 17 mpg in the city and 24 mpg on the highway with the 3.4 liter engine and 16 mpg in the city and 24 on the highway for the more potent 3.6 liter.

Pontiac’s strategy to design and manufacturer vehicles that will appeal more to this generations younger drivers is evident as one examines the 2008 Pontiac Torrent and its handsome, athletic exterior and equally sporty performance and handling. The materials used throughout the cabin won’t win any high quality awards, but they are durable enough and the actual design is very user friendly and flexible with a modern appeal. A spacious interior with multiple storage compartments and an adjustable 60/40 split rear seat that moves up to 8 inches forward and backward allows for 35 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats up and 69 cubic feet with the rear seats folded down. Flexible passenger and cargo configurations, and options like an MP3 capable audio system, navigation system and rear seat DVD entertainment are certainly appealing-as is the Torrents MSRP, which is one of the lowest in this class.

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The 2008 Pontiac G5 is an affordably priced compact sport coupe that seems to have no especially impressive features aside from the signature Pontiac twin port grille. Based upon the exact same platform as the Chevrolet Cobalt, the G5 only sports minor differences in interior trim and exterior style. Its competitors include the Scion tC and Saturn Astra, both of which are in the same price range and are built better, handle better and are just a whole lot more fun to drive.

The G5 is available in a base model or GT trim. The base model rests upon 15 inch steel wheels and both models come with air conditioning, remote keyless entry, satellite radio with CD/MP3 player and auxiliary jack, a 60/40 split folding rear seat to increase cargo space and full power accessories. The GT has 17 inch aluminum wheels and also includes fog lights, a sport tuned suspension system, cruise control, an upgraded 7 speaker audio system with steering wheel mounted audio controls and a leather wrapped steering wheel and shift knob. The 16 inch alloy wheels as well as most of the features found on the GT can be purchased separately for the base model. To further furnish and personalize either model, additional options include heated leather seats, a sunroof, a remote start system, custom interior lighting, ground effects package and a cat back exhaust system.

The engines that power both models are quicker than those found in many economy cars. The base model is equipped with a 2.2 liter 4 cylinder engine that delivers 148 horsepower and the GT has a more powerful 2.4 liter 4 cylinder with a horsepower rating of 171. Both models have 5 speed manual transmissions, though swapping it out for a 4 speed automatic is an option. Fuel economy numbers are mediocre, with the EPA estimating somewhere between 22 and 24 MPG in the city and 31 and 33 MPG on the highway dependent upon the engine and transmission selections.

The 2008 Pontiac G5 is an affordable coupe with a nice design and clean lines. The ride is quiet and relatively smooth and the engines are adequate. This car will suit most daily commuters who are just looking for an inexpensive ride to and from work just fine. However, because it lacks the refinement and high quality performance based handling of other cars in its category, it is advisable to look around before you buy.

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Pontiac gives us much-needed detail on its all-new Vibe hatch/wagon/crossover, which is scheduled to debut at November??™s Los Angeles auto show. This will be the second generation of the Vibe, which, along with its mechanical twin, the Toyota Matrix, first hit the road in 2002 as a 2003 model.

What has changed for ??™09 includes every body panel??”some a little, some a lot??”to inject some much-needed flair into the Vibe??™s styling. Gone, thankfully, is all that cladding, which presumably was there to fool people into thinking the tall wagon was actually an SUV. Also missing are the current generation??™s integrated roof rails, which effectively disguised the tall, flat roof and allowed stylists to present a more sloping roofline while preserving cargo space. The new model has a more conventional roofline yet still appears sporty.

What won??™t change is that the Vibe will continue to share its platform and certain powertrain combos with the 2009 Toyota Matrix that was unwrapped at October??™s Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show in Las Vegas. Word is that GM moved up Vibe production (at GM??™s joint-venture plant in Fremont, California) by a couple months to first-quarter 2008 to keep up with Matrix launch plans. The Matrix is built at a Canadian Toyota plant in Cambridge, Ontario.

The new Vibe will continue to be offered with front- or all-wheel drive, and marks the return of the GT model to the lineup that was discontinued for the 2007 model year. The base 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine now produces 132 hp and 128 lb-ft of torque, but remains fuel efficient with estimated fuel economy of 26/32 mpg in city/highway driving with a manual transmission. The larger 2.4-liter engine has 158 hp and 162 lb-ft of torque, and has a 21/28 mpg estimated fuel rating with a manual. A five-speed manual is standard, with an optional four-speed automatic with the base engine. The automatic is standard with the larger mill, or customers can opt for a new five-speed auto with Driver Shift Control.

We??™d have welcomed a turbocharged four-pot??”perhaps the same 260-hp mill that adds more than a dash of dash to the Chevrolet HHR SS and would make a Vibe so equipped an excitement-division-worthy competitor to the Mazdaspeed 3 and Dodge Caliber SRT4.

The new Matrix and Vibe have been engineered to accommodate a hybrid powertrain, which conceivably could come from either automaker, although GM??™s hybrid systems are geared to larger vehicles.

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Pontiac has been pushing itself as a performance brand for years while peddling not much more than plastic ribs and dual-nostril snouts pasted onto underwhelming Chevrolets. Woo hoo. The 400-hp, rear-wheel-drive GTO was a good start, but looked like everything else on the road all rolled into one large, formless blob. It foundered, died, and may or may not return, depending on whom you ask.

Then Pontiac rolled out the Solstice, a delightfully tossable little treat with oh-my-god good looks and performance to match. We started to pay attention to Pontiac. After all these years, is Pontiac going to try to capture our attention with product, rather than marketing? At the Chicago Auto Show this week, the Poncho crew is doing just that with the G8 GT.

The G8 GT Pontiac showed in Chicago is not, in fact, exactly what the G8 GT is going to look like when it hits showrooms early in 2008. This car is dolled up with a few SEMA-style tweaks that will not make it into production. For example, if you like the 20-inch wheels, tough nuggets. They won??™t make the cut. Ditto for the ride height (production will be about a half-inch higher), the paint color, the hi-po brakes and painted calipers, and most tragically of all, the lovely two-tone leather interior. An available sport package will include alloy pedals and a leather-trimmed steering wheel and shifter, but the leather-wrapped dash is a show-car one-off. So sorry.

On the other hand, take a look at what will make it into production: a 6.0-liter V-8 delivering a 362-horsepower and 391 lb-ft whack to unwitting passengers; a choice between six-speed automatic or six-speed manual transmissions??”the manual not available until shortly after launch??”and prairie-fire smoke billowing off the rear tires. Some semblance of environmental responsibility will be maintained with cylinder deactivation in low-load situations. The V-8 will headline the G8 GT, while base G8s will get the General??™s DOHC 3.6-liter V-6 making 261 hp and 250 lb-ft twisting a five-speed automatic. We figure the GT??™s combo ought to be good for 0-to-60 runs in less than 5.5 seconds, with the quarter passing in the low 14s at right around 100 mph. Braking duties will be handled by 12.6-inch rotors clamped by two-piston calipers up front, with single-piston calipers in the rear pinching 12.8-inch rotors. Rotors on base G8s will be about an inch smaller at each end. ABS is standard on all models.

Prices for this rear drive Grand Prix replacement should start just under $25,000 for a base V-6 model, about $27,000 for a bare-bones GT, and into the mid-$30,000 region for a loaded GT.

Just as the cost-saving but soul-sapping front-drive architecture is gone, Pontiac is cutting no corners with the G8??™s suspension, either. Each wheel of the G8 will be independently suspended, the front end riding on struts and the rear on a four-link setup, with anti-roll bars both front and rear. V-6 models will come with 18-inch wheels, while the GT gets 19s and stiffer suspension tuning. Actually, Pontiac shouldn??™t get all the credit, or even much credit at all. Holden, GM??™s Australian arm, designed and built both the platform the G8 is built on and the G8 itself. This is the first North American look at the platform formerly known as Zeta??”now Global Rear-Wheel Drive??”that will eventually underpin the production Camaro as well as the next-generation Impala and possibly a GTO replacement.

A full-size, rear-wheel-drive, V-8??“powered sedan from an American company? Who??™s thinking Chrysler 300/Dodge Charger? GM is. Both inside and out, the G8??™s measurements are similar, if not a smidge bigger, to the DaimlerChrysler twins in all critical dimensions. The G8??™s length (196.1 inches), width (74.8 inches), and height (57.7 inches) are all within an inch of the Chrysler 300??™s measurements. On paper, the 300 has a slightly roomier back seat, but the G8??™s 17.5-cubic-foot trunk trumps the DCX boys by more than a cube.

Dimensionally, the G8 is locked onto the Chrysler and the Dodge, but stylistically it takes a much different approach. Whereas the DCX cars are characterized by high waistlines, tight greenhouses, and bold faces, the G8 gets the more conservative styling of the Holden Commodore sedan upon which it is based. There are no muscular fender bulges, just a flared stamping around the wheel well. An upright greenhouse doesn??™t look as menacing as the 300??™s broad shoulders, but will provide excellent visibility lacking in the Chrysler and is actually lower by a fraction of an inch.

The most exciting aspect of the G8??™s styling is its divisive front end, which endows the otherwise characterless nose of the Commodore with a trio of split intakes stacked atop one another and bisected by a common tapered line. It is distinctively Pontiac, but not particularly attractive. More than one staffer here has drawn a comparison to the Dodge Caliber, particularly in SRT4 guise. Even so, this appears to be another competitive performance machine from Pontiac, and the company??™s most exciting sedan in decades. We??™ll just have to wait and see what the Poncho will do about those SRT8 cars

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