Lutz says Washington killed Pontiac, next G6 was to be ATS d

***Ed Blown Vert*** · 10-29-2013, 07:50 PM

Filed under: Videos, GM, Pontiac

How many people think Buick or GMC should have gotten the axe instead of Pontiac? You can't see it, but I'm raising my hand. Autoweek reports that former Vice Chairman of GM, Bob Lutz, has indicated that things didn't have to end up the way they did.

"The Feds said, 'Yeah, how much money have you made on Pontiac in the last 10 years?' and the answer was, 'Nothing.'"

In a talk given at the Petersen Automotive Museum for the Inside the MotoMan Studio series, Lutz says "The Feds said, 'Yeah, how much money have you made on Pontiac in the last 10 years?' and the answer was, 'Nothing.' So, it goes. And when the guy who is handing you the check for $53 billion says, 'I don't want Pontiac, drop Pontiac or you don't get the money,' it doesn't take you very long to make up your mind." Lutz even added that the next-generation Pontiac G6 would have benefitted from the rear-wheel-drive platform of the Cadillac ATS. How awesome would that have been?

Watch Lutz speak below for yourself, and take note that he makes his statement about "The Feds" at around 2:14:39. It's a great watch, but if you don't have two-and-a-half hours to burn watching the full piece, Autoweek also has a solid review of the chat.Continue reading Lutz says Washington killed Pontiac, next G6 was to be ATS derivative
Lutz says Washington killed Pontiac, next G6 was to be ATS derivative originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 29 Oct 2013 12:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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**2002ssslp** · 10-30-2013, 04:27 AM

I love our GTO and I do miss Pontiac. Maybe when uncle Sam gets out of the car business we can bring back the Tin Indian. JMO

**cammed goat** · 11-03-2013, 10:56 AM

My heart sank when I saw the news stories about Pontiac being killed off. Growing up around GTOs and T/As, I nearly cried. I literally went out to my driveway and hugged my GTO. Remembering the old "WE BUILD EXCITEMENT" ads, KITT, "Smokey and the Bandit", "Hooper", "Rockford Files", "CHiPs". And I don't buy the pricing competition crap because a new 5.0 stang is around $43-45K fully loaded and folks are still buying them. I DID, however, feel Pontiac took a wrong turn with the Aztek, Trans Sport and Torrent as Pontiac NEVER had an SUV before. I felt those vehicles were WRONG for the lineup. And now I am wondering if the new Chevy SS will sell as there will be no manual transmission option as there was with the G8 GXP which preceded. GM is shooting itself in the foot. I mean, to be honest, EVERY sports/muscle car should have a manual trans option. The CTS-V does.
, and that's a luxury/sport coupe/sedan. And now that SLP owns the rights to the upcoming GN/X, I am trying to stay optimistic as there are purists, who bashed the Monaro-based GTO, will be ready with their pitchforks again with the new Nat/X.

A sports/muscle car had POWER, not bluetooth, sat-nav or a trunk big enough to pack your entire life into it. You turned the key and drove...with a big smile on your face. At least that's me in my car.