Breaking news: GM will drop GTO this year

[Mr.DJ]

GM will drop GTO this year

By Joe Guy Collier

General Motors Corp. confirmed Tuesday it will quit making the Pontiac GTO high-performance vehicle this summer.

The last GTO, made at an Australian plant, is expected to roll off the lines in June and reach U.S. customers in July, said Pontiac spokesman Jim Hopson.

GM decided to stop production of the GTO because of new U.S. safety requirements, Hopson said. The GTO uses the same platform as the Australian Monaro, which has been discontinued.

As this platform is being phased out worldwide, it simply doesnt make financial sense to make those kind of investments, Hopson said.

The original GTO was an icon of the muscle-car era from 1964 to 1974.

The current GTO, revived in late 2003, boasted a 400-horspeower engine that hit home with car enthusiasts. GM sold 11,590 GTOs last year, according to Autodata Corp.

As the current GTO is phased out, Pontiac is exploring options for adding another high-performance, rear-wheel-drive vehicle to its portfolio but no decisions have been made about a replacement, Hopson said.

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Source: Detroit Free Press
by Joe Guy Collier
Tuesday, February 21, 2006

[l3it3r@gmail.com]

TRANS AM!! If they want to bring back big rwd power, they need the trifecta.. corvette, camaro and trans am. I'd be interested in a new Trans Am.. haven't like the camaro styling since 1969

[ND RAM]

They're right it doesn't make FINANCIAL sense to keep it but they should make another GTO on a different platform. It's probably the only GM car I'd consider buying right now...and now they're killin it.

[bad2cudagirl]

Originally Posted by ND RAM

They're right it doesn't make FINANCIAL sense to keep it but they should make another GTO on a different platform. It's probably the only GM car I'd consider buying right now...and now they're killin it.

My thoughts exactly!!!!!

[WildBillTX]

Originally Posted by ND RAM

They're right it doesn't make FINANCIAL sense to keep it but they should make another GTO on a different platform. It's probably the only GM car I'd consider buying right now...and now they're killin it.

Yeah its a shame. The new GTO was doomed from the start, first being a rebaged import that the old Poncho faithful rejected as phony. Then so-so reviews in car magazines instead of being a smash hit. Dull styling with little optiions (no budget base V6 model) as well as a high price didnt help sales either.

For thier sorry state GM should put the Camero project on rush, bankrupcy be dammed and make a new Firebird TA out of it too. Otherwise Pontiac could be another GM marquee that could see the same fate as Oldsmobile.

[CHARGER_FAN]

Hey, that means they're all limited editions!

[l3it3r@gmail.com]

yeah, if you've got a GTO, toss that puppy in a garage somewhere, prep it for barrett jackson in 20 years.. lol, IMO that car will never be a 'classic'

[Yankee]

Guess I'd better put a cover on mine and lock it in the garage - it's now an instant classic!

The current GTO was never planned to be sold past 2006 anyway, so this isn't really news. Now whether or not GM will make an "in-house" GTO (read: domestic) along side the new Camaro is a different story. Seems like the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing at GM these days (especially at Pontiac), so guess we'll have to wait and see what really happens (what else is new )

[Vanishing Point]

..Too me,that was a nasty design gto,...it was a cancellation waiting to happen.Gm really needs to get their act together on designs (excluding Z06). ...I would never buy that cavalier lookin',import styled influenced,with a grand-am front car ever!!....It was a shame to the GTO name,...period!!!

[allhemi]

I know what killed this car.......I'T WAS NOT RETRO!! Thats what people want!!