No Mas GTO's

[Sarge]

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl.../1003&refsect=
I'm hanging on to my "classic"



Pontiac will drop the GTO this year

Jamie LaReau
Automotive News / February 21, 2006 - 10:08 am




DETROIT -- General Motors has told Pontiac dealers that it will discontinue the GTO coupe at the end of this model year. GM will make the last deliveries of the vehicle to dealers by the end of September, sources close to Pontiac say.

GM will produce 10,000 to 12,000 more GTOs before dropping the nameplate, one source close to the situation says. Last year, Pontiac sold 11,590 GTOs compared to 2004 when it sold 13,569. That's a 14.6 percent drop.

When Pontiac launched the GTO in 2003, it projected 18,000 annual sales. The vehicle was criticized for bland styling, and some fans of the original GTO complained that it lacked nostalgic styling cues.

A Pontiac spokesman confirms the GTO will be discontinued after the 2006 model year.

“There are some changes in the federal regulatory standards. One is an airbag deployment standard that would require some very expensive re-engineering of the car,” says Jim Hopson, Pontiac spokesman. “Since the architecture of this car is being phased out around the world it’s not economically feasible to continue this car.”

Pontiac will continue to build the GTO through the end of May, Hopson says. The last “boatload will hit the ground in June”, he adds.

[third_shift|studios]

FUCK!

[Sarge]

This is good news for the 08/09 Camaro in my eyes.....GM MUST have a rear wheel drive LS2 type muscle car.....other than the Vette....it has to be under $30K and run 12's right out of the box....no
big suprise though....they said in 03 they only scheduled production for 3 years and that is exactly what they did.....our GTO values just shot up though

[third_shift|studios]

lol @ run 12's Yeah, i can understand this gives room for the camaro, but Is this gm's way of phasing out pontiac also?

[Sarge]

Probably....they should shoot Saturn in the head....but I think the bean counters are going to try and scale down all the models from all the divisions and consolidate/streamline the various platforms....watch for the Caddie/Camaro/The funny lil truck all to have the same platform come 08.....

[third_shift|studios]

appearanlty saturn has some good pull somehow? i don't know. Damn, i love the GTO...well, maybe i'll get one for a daily driver later on

[BIG D's SS]

That is good but it kinda sucks that they stopped production. The main thing that hurts them is the price tag. Maybe things will pan out and the Camaro will make its return. If not Gm might as well go belly up. Not too many people can afford a Vette.

[Sarge]

No shit....man they have to make the Camaro and I am convinced they are...but they must keep it below $28K-$30K....Gear up for a 6 Cylinder and a LS2 model probably rolling out next summer.....the LS2 V8 they need to give folks the option such as Radio delete...AC delete so forth to keep the price within range of the 25-35 year old market.....If they can deliver a LS2 rear wheel drive Camaro for a "base price" of around $25K drive off they will wipe the floor with Ford and the Mustang....

[BIG D's SS]

No shit....man they have to make the Camaro and I am convinced they are...but they must keep it below $28K-$30K....Gear up for a 6 Cylinder and a LS2 model probably rolling out next summer.....the LS2 V8 they need to give folks the option such as Radio delete...AC delete so forth to keep the price within range of the 25-35 year old market.....If they can deliver a LS2 rear wheel drive Camaro for a "base price" of around $25K drive off they will wipe the floor with Ford and the Mustang....

I agree with the option list, but I don't see them doing that. I see the Camaro at 35K and up. That is really going to hurt the market too. That puts a fully loaded Camaro with a Vette. I will own one, but they are going to have to figure out the cost. Now once again Chevy will be without a rear wheel drive car till they launch the new Camaro. Hell go figure doing something that doesn't make sense.

[Motrv8d Steve]

Sarge dont kill me, but I thought the GTO looked pretty bland when it came out. I still think that it died from a lack of styling. Not many people got excited about it when it was released and usually a car cant recover from an intro such as that, don't you think?

Also, this announcement shouldn't come as a big surprise, as I had already heard rumors that GM was not planning to extend it's 3 year production.

[third_shift|studios]

i have a feeling that if GM looks at the GTO as a market model, than the camaro won't sell and won't be produced. Think about it: the GTO is a reborn name. It was a powerful, rear drive, un economic car and they killed it after 3 years. You think they'll make a Camaro looking at that model!? fuck no.

[third_shift|studios]

If GM is smart, they'll release 200 or so CE GTO's and make them "judge" packages. Really just go all out, sick spoilers, rims, front clip, ram air, brakes an incredible paint option. Something that'll put some damn value back into that car b4 it goes off the market.

[BillyT]

That's a damn shame.

[Motrv8d Steve]

i have a feeling that if GM looks at the GTO as a market model, than the camaro won't sell and won't be produced. Think about it: the GTO is a reborn name. It was a powerful, rear drive, un economic car and they killed it after 3 years. You think they'll make a Camaro looking at that model!? fuck no.

you make a good point. However, a big difference with the concept Camaro and the GTO is that it won't be a warmed-over, re-badged model that didn't have a lot stylistically going for it in the first place.

Big difference between the Monaro and the new Camaro concept. jmho

[CaptainCaveMan]

i have a feeling that if GM looks at the GTO as a market model, than the camaro won't sell and won't be produced. Think about it: the GTO is a reborn name. It was a powerful, rear drive, un economic car and they killed it after 3 years. You think they'll make a Camaro looking at that model!? fuck no.

It's wasn't killed because it didn't sell. They are killing it because they don't have a new GTO to sell yet.

This body style GTO was only supposed to be built until 2007. At that point it was going to get a complete redesign and be placed on the Zeta platform along with the new camaro. It was around 6-7 months ago when GM said Zeta North America was being aborted. This has been old news for awhile, this is probably just the offical word.

[Sarge]

Hey Steve....No...in 2003 I caught wind of the Holden/GTO and got on the list sight unseen....I saw an artist rendering....but it looked nothing like the car in person...hell I didn't have 200 miles on the car and had a custom made fiberglass hood built...couldnt stand the stock POS....I totally agree the 04's just ran like a stripped ape and looked like ape ass...that did not help them at all...us gear heads are few and far between in the big picture....most folks want classy look and feel and never mod nothing....GM missed the mark on the styling for the GTO for sure...it is a rock solid car though....And Captain Cave Man is totally correct....GM wasn't going to build the Holden Manaro for long anyway...the plan was to bring it back here and build it...but that fell apart....now I sold my 65 GTO....I ain't selling my 04 for shit.

[BIG D's SS]

I sold my 68 and I ain't selling my 00 SS for shit either.

[Corona-Extra]

that sucks... they need to get their shit together up there at GM

[Bigrus]

This does not make room for the camaro this makes enough room for them to fall even deeper.

[odinsonthor]

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl.../1003&refsect=
I'm hanging on to my "classic"



Pontiac will drop the GTO this year

Jamie LaReau
Automotive News / February 21, 2006 - 10:08 am




DETROIT -- General Motors has told Pontiac dealers that it will discontinue the GTO coupe at the end of this model year. GM will make the last deliveries of the vehicle to dealers by the end of September, sources close to Pontiac say.

GM will produce 10,000 to 12,000 more GTOs before dropping the nameplate, one source close to the situation says. Last year, Pontiac sold 11,590 GTOs compared to 2004 when it sold 13,569. That's a 14.6 percent drop.

When Pontiac launched the GTO in 2003, it projected 18,000 annual sales. The vehicle was criticized for bland styling, and some fans of the original GTO complained that it lacked nostalgic styling cues.

A Pontiac spokesman confirms the GTO will be discontinued after the 2006 model year.

“There are some changes in the federal regulatory standards. One is an airbag deployment standard that would require some very expensive re-engineering of the car,” says Jim Hopson, Pontiac spokesman. “Since the architecture of this car is being phased out around the world it’s not economically feasible to continue this car.”

Pontiac will continue to build the GTO through the end of May, Hopson says. The last “boatload will hit the ground in June”, he adds.

It was not really retro anyways. Good.....they need to get rid of it.