Food for thought New Pontiac G8

[jonseyq45]

All,

I was reading Motor Trend last night and turned to the article about the new G8. They were gushing on how this is the right car for the US now. How the size and power are perfect and how well it works.

Going to the specification page I started reading. Whoa I thought, these looks familar. So I did a little research and found the following;

Dimensions (Src: NICO)

Infiniti Q45 4-door sedan........ Pontiac G8 4-door sedanWheelbase, in. 113.4........ 114.8Overall Length, in. 199.8........ 196.1Overall Width, in. 71.9........ 74.8Overall Height, in. 56.3........ 57.7Curb Weight, lbs. 4039........ 3995Cargo Volume, cu. ft. 14.8........ 17.5Standard Payload, lbs. --Fuel Capacity, gals. 22.5........ 19Seating Capacity 5........ 2+3Front Head Room, in. 38.2........ 39Max. Front Leg Room, in. 43.9........ 42.2Rear Head Room, in. 36.3........ 38Min. Rear Leg Room, in. 32.0........ 35

Powertrain

Engine:90-96 4.5L DOHC 32v V8 (VH45DE)........ 6.0L OHV 16v V84494 cc........ 5967cc274 ci........ 362 ci93x82.7 mm........ 101.6x92.0mm10.2:1 compression ........ 10.4:1HP: 278 at 6000 rpm* ........ 361@5300 rpmTorque: 292 lb-ft at 4000 rpm ........ 385@4400 rpm

* We know this is light on what it is really under the hood/bonnet (for my Aussie\NZ friends, I used to work for BHP)

I am thinking.... either the Q45 is ahead of its time or they copied a 18 year old car........

I know... I know, its not that simple. But you have to appreciate the geniusof Nissan\Infiniti at getting it so right the first time.

Looking at both, you will have to pry the keys from my cold dead hands before I would consider trading down to the G8.

And I used to sell Pontiacs..........

Jonsey

Modified by jonseyq45 at 2:27 PM 3/11/2008

Modified by jonseyq45 at 2:29 PM 3/11/2008
Modified by jonseyq45 at 7:37 AM 3/12/2008

[Kiven422]

Yup great car! BMW comes out with a 5 series that has no body roll 10 years later than the Active Q. But the consequences is that you feel EVERY bump on the road. The Q got it right the first time.

Another thing during the 90s... Chevy had their badass LT1 engine 5.7L 260HP 330TQ. Nissan had the VH45DE 4.5L 292TQ & 278HP@6000RPM. The car redlines at 7000RPM (meter goes to almost 7200RPM in my 93Q)... makes me wonder what could have happened if Nissan made a sports car out of the V8. They should have!

Whats the gas mileage on the Pontiac? The only downside to the Q is the mileage. Some of my friends SUVs get better mileage.

[IceCubeFoSho]

Stupidest part of G8 GT 6.0 Litre engine = Only 361 Horses

Interior looks like an Audi and Mazda had a baby, and put on a hideous steering wheel, needed to be more sporty, rather than euro-futuristic

Front looks ridiculous... mostly the vents

Seriously, they should scrap the Pontiac design, and make em like Holdens, I know they're the same car pretty much, however the front on a Holden always looks better, especially the grille

http://img.drive.com.au/drive_...m.jpg

That looks subtle and impressive, while the G8....

http://www.carphotosite.com/da...1.jpg

Looks downright absurd and takes design cues from a Japanese Riced up Civic

http://i65.photobucket.com/alb...4.jpg

Yes, I am obviously a Pontiac biased person so you might wanna take my chastisement with a grain of salt lol

[Denver90Q]

Whats the gas mileage on the Pontiac? The only downside to the Q is the mileage. Some of my friends SUVs get better mileage.

EPA CITY/HWY ECON 15/24 mpg. About the same as the Q

http://www.motortrend.com/road....html

[MinisterofDOOM]

Stupidest part of G8 GT 6.0 Litre engine = Only 361 Horses

It's only stupid for people who can't see beyond meaningless peak horsepower numbers.

Give me an idea, though:VH45 makes 64.8 ft-lb of torque per liter. The GM 6.0 makes 64.2 ft-lb/literVH45 hp/liter 62.8. GM 6.0 hp/liter 60.2Hmmm....

[maxnix]

Powertrain

Engine:90-96 4.5L DOHC 32v V8 (VH45DE)........ 6.0L OHV 16v V84494 cc........ 5967cc274 ci........ 362 ci93x82.7 mm........ 101.6x92.0mm10.2:1 compression ........ 10.4:1HP: 278 at 6000 rpm* ........ 361@5300 rpmTorque: 292 lb-ft at 4000 rpm ........ 385@4400 rpm

I know... I know, its not that simple. But you have to appreciate the geniusof Nissan\Infiniti at getting so right the first time. Looking at both you would have to pry the keys from my cold dead hands before I would consider trading down to the G8.

Another truck short lived truck engine powering another GM product.

The formerly big three recieved all there performance inspiration from trucks, whereas the Japense and Europeans looked at Formula 1 and endurance racing for their inspiration. Unfortunately, most under 30 don't realize how lucky we are to own a VH45DE or VH41DE.

[oldmako]

My neighbor owns last years version of that Pontiac, and a recent model Corvette. His Pontiac is black and so is my 99Q. We park side by side.

Last week he came out while I was doing my plugs and was quite surprised at what was under my hood. Then his wife came out and sat in the drivers seat of my car and was quite surprised at what was inside. She loved the interior, much more than her brand new Pontiac. He paid a fortune for that car, which will look like just another piece of GM junk when it's as old as my Q.

I ought to let them drive it!

[szh]

I ought to let them drive it!

They might be very surprised!!

Z

[ScottJackson]

car mags are notorious for making a big deal out of something that really isn't. They gotta make their money somehow. I agree the hood scoops on the new G8 are a bit much, but GM knows their target audience and they'll do what they can if they think it'll sell cars. As for it being a "truck engine", that's true to some extent. Just like the VH45 is similar in many ways to the Titan engine. I only wish the Q had 5.6L. While the HP per liter may not be too impressive in the 6.0L GM engine, it sure isn't bad... especially considering the rpms it comes with. As a 4 door family car that will mostly see low rpm cruising, I'd rather have that 6.0 than the VH in my Q. Let's see which one's got better acceleration, the G8 or the Q. If you want a small high winding engine, that's fine. I also love high rpm screamers. However, putting such an engine in a 2 ton car that's rarely going to see more than 4,000rpm is pretty silly. I think the new G8 appears to be a fine car that will fill its purpose very well. Hopefully the bean counters won't cheapen it out to the point it's a rattly tin can with ugly plastic all over the interior... but I bet they will. And then everyone's gonna keep buying Toyotas, Hondas, and Nissans. I hate the looks of the newer Caddies. Maybe GM can do the smart thing and put the Z06 engine in the G8 with some 300+ width rubber in the back, and sell it for less than the BMW 550i (under $60K). If they give it a good interior with the ZR1 brakes and stuff, that'd be icing on the cake. I may actually have to get a job so I could make payments if they'd do that.

[Dwasek]

The G8 seems okay enough, personally I'd rather have a Holden Caprice:

http://www.holden.com.au/www-h...=8000

[MinisterofDOOM]

My neighbor owns last years version of that Pontiac

There is no last year's version. It's a completely new chassis to North America. Any last-year Pontiac has no more in common with the G8 than your Q does.

[oldmako]

Well shazam! Excuse my complete and utter ignorance of all things Pontiac.

What he has is a shiny black Pontiac "something or other" with plastic hood scoops and fairings all over it. Fancy wheels and painted calipers. It's got a V8 and cost him a ton. His hot wife likes my Q better.

[gammer_ghn]

lease a G8 till 2010 till the new hopefully comes back than dump the G8 since its going to become less reliable by that time < general american cars age till things start to wear out and die... and enjoy the new Q till the wheels fall offf!!!!!!!!!! G8 is FTW but for short term...

[Jesda]

I often think about how much better off I'd be financially if I never bought a Q. Then again, I met some great people and had a lot of good times.

People here are stuck in the 1980s, pissing and moaning about today's cars from Ford and GM, but I've had far more enjoyable and trouble-free ownership experiences from American cars than Japanese.

The only Japanese car I'd consider buying today is the G37. The rest are too bland. Even my beloved Miata got hit with an ugly stick. I take that back. I'd go for a Mazda/Mazdaspeed 3 or 6.

I work for my money. Why would I piss away the hours I spend in the warehouse and the office on something dull and unrewarding?

[BadQ45t]

That Holden Caprice looks very nice.

One wonders why Jesda even frequents this board, dude, don't they have a Caddy or Buick board you can moderate?

[Skibane]

Also soon to be available in Ute trim...

Quote »Bold plan to sell utes to YanksHerald Sun

Nick Higginbottom

March 17, 2008 12:00am

VICTORIAN designers and engineers have helped pave the way for the iconic Aussie ute to break into the US market.

Premier John Brumby was joined by federal and interstate ministers at GM Holden's Port Melbourne headquarters yesterday, where managing director Mark Reuss unveiled the bold new plan to sell utes to the yanks.

The Holden ute and a high-performance sedan will be exported to the US under the relaunched Pontiac badge and will be called the G8 sport truck and G8 GXP respectively.

Production of the vehicles will take place at GM Holden's Elizabeth plant in South Australia and is planned to begin in the second half of next year, with the sporty machines expected in US showrooms in late 2009.

Mr Brumby said the automotive industry was worth about $9.9 billion a year to Victoria.

He also said the ute was a Victorian invention that a Gippsland farmer created when he wanted a vehicle he could take to church on Sunday and cart pigs and hay during the week.

"It's a great Aussie invention and it's an example of great Aussie know-how," he said.

Federal Minister for Innovation Kim Carr applauded the announcement, but said the Rudd Government expected more from industry.

GM boss Mr Reuss said it was impossible to know how many utes would be sold in the US, but he added it was a good time to enter the market.[/quote]

[Jesda]

That Holden Caprice looks very nice.

One wonders why Jesda even frequents this board, dude, don't they have a Caddy or Buick board you can moderate?

Amusingly, I moderate a Cadillac forum, which I was introduced to by Wes, where he used to be an admin. I mostly stick around to answer questions and bash Nissan for pissing away its design and engineering heritage (which BMW and Lincoln are doing at the moment). Maybe someone important is listening.

Few of the cars made today are cars you really keep. The W124 and W140 MBs, the G50 Qs, and other overbuilt luxury cars are a thing of the past. Its mostly disposable stuff coming out of auto factories now.

[99q45t_vl]

The new 2009 Maxima is UGLY!

http://supernissans.net/

[Skibane]

Maybe even a 4-door?

[greg_atlanta]

I sat in the G8 today. It's got a huge and comfortable backseat, plenty of legroom, headroom and footroom. The front seat is OK but one fatal flaw: the headliner (no sunroof in this one) has deep contours and there's a huge lump about 4" to the left of the driver's head (if you're tall like me)..... so if you take a hard right turn and you'll hit your head on the lump.

I doubt the contours in the headliner have any functional purposes unless they really need to waste that much space for the curtain airbags. It looks neat, but I don't see the point.

Looks like an oversized acura TL, but still makes an impression.

I'm leery of the cylinder deactivation feature on the V-8, but it does have a 5 yr/100K powertrain warranty.

[konatown]

The new 2009 Maxima is UGLY!

http://supernissans.net/

You, sir, are insane. There isn't a single design element that doesn't pay homage to the G sedan and GT-R. And they all work to make an effortlessly beautiful car.

[gammer_ghn]

I went and test drove the GT with 360hp i think? Well it had good power!!! inside is made too cheaply with no wood!!!! But as the sales man says a new model will comes out and it will have wood and 400hp with Satnav... Looks great and it has soul but inside is too cheap. Test drive her and see what i mean

[brizanden]

i think this is stupid they got rid of the gto cause it was to "boring" and replaced it with a more boring car with a couple extra scoops on the hood. pontiac

[MinisterofDOOM]

They didn't replace the GTO with this. That's like saying Toyota replaced the Supra with the new Camry. The G8 is basically the successor to both the Grand Prix and the Bonneville.And they also didn't get rid of the GTO because it was boring. The original plan was for a low-production 3-year run anyhow (partially for production-limitations at the facility that built them in Australia). And due to Pontiac's misunderstanding of their target audience, and strange fear of actually making a "real" car out of it until the waters were tested, combined with a crappy marketing scheme for the car that was further crippled by the aforementioned lack of understanding.

The new G8 is a whole different story. It is indeed based upon an Australian car but, unlike the GTO, whose chassis was an Aussie-only deal, the new G8's Zeta platform is a global platform that will underpin multiple US-bound vehicles (some of which will be built here in North America, though the G8 itself is still built in Australia).The G8 also isn't a limited production halo or "showoff" car. It's a full-fledged, full-production car that's intended to sell numbers to compete with the likes of Camry, Accord, Taurus, and Charger.

The scoops suck, but aren't anywhere nearly as bad as past Pontiac abominations. I still don't understand where they get the idea that anyone actually WANTS that garbage on their cars, but that's another matter, and I hardly have the desire to complain about some small scoops when a car that GM North America has needed for 20 years has finally arrived.

Back to the "more boring" comment:The Zeta platform is a replacement for the GTO's V-body platform. It is superior. Which means less boring.

[brizanden]

^lol pntiac

[Jesda]

You, sir, are insane. There isn't a single design element that doesn't pay homage to the G sedan and GT-R. And they all work to make an effortlessly beautiful car.

The new Maxima is rolling trash.

[Sil40_Mayhem]

The scoops suck, but aren't anywhere nearly as bad as past Pontiac abominations.

QFT

[konatown]

The new Maxima is rolling trash.

Didn't you also say that the new 7series is ugly?I'm taking your design posts with a bucket of salt

[DrewQ45]

The new Maxima is rolling trash.

Looks like Nissan has it's hand in Lexus' cookie jar to me.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Didn't you also say that the new 7series is ugly?I'm taking your design posts with a bucket of salt

Is there any Bangle design that is NOT ugly? No. And the 7 is no exception. Granted, it's the best looking Bimmer for sale right now, but it's an exceptionally poor follow up to what may be the most beautiful sedan of all time.

And I'd have to say it's a strain on the brain trying to think of any way I could be any more disappointed in the new Maxima. It was a nice consolation knowing the 2004 Maxima was better looking than the new G35. So when the 2009 ended up looking like a half-hearted homage to the ugly little beast, it was like a slap in the face along with the fact that, yet again, we've been given a Buick in disguise.

All the Japanese brands have traded in their souls for sales. First Toyota, then Honda, and now Nissan. At least Honda still knows their TL from a LeSabre, though.