Automobile mag: Pontiac G8 = BMW 550i

[AdmiralViscen]

Got the magazine in today. Found someone who retyped the article since it's not on their site yet.

End Take:
"Of course, doing an apples-to-apples comparison between a tire-shredding, big-engine Pontiac and a doubly espensive BMW isn't really fair. Given the cost difference and the pedigrees of the two manufacturers, it only makes sense that one car would be more satisfying to drive than the other. Yet by the numbers --and on American roads --the 5-series and the G8 are equals. Nine out of ten drag races between them end in a dead heat. Weight distribution, speed through teh gears, and quarter-mile performance all check in relatively close to each other. Even given the contrasts in braking and grip, on a twisty road, helmed by similarly talented drivers, neither car will pull ahead.

On that note, the point isn't how well the Pontiac stacks up to the BMW (550i). It's that it stacks up at all. Should a $30,000 sport sedan --much less a Pontiac --even be comparable to a $60,000 one (let alone the $70,000 5 series wetested)? Not on your life. And yet, in more than a few ways, the Pontiac holds its own. Thirty grand for the speed, interior space, and much of the capability of a BMW 5-series? A modern Detroit sedan with ... dare we say it ...personality? Pontiac as a relevant carmaker again?"

As tested, $33k vs $70k



I look forward to test-driving one of these.




edit:

Also matches Dodge Charger SRT8 ($40k+)!



http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drives/FullTests/articleId=124876?tid=edmunds.il.home.photopanel..1.*

Honestly, we didn't think we had a chance. The 2008 Pontiac G8 GT is powered by a 6.0-liter V8 rated at 361 horsepower at 5,300 rpm and 385 pound-feet of torque at 4,400 rpm. Steve's Mopar, a virtual twin to the one we tested a few months ago, is packing a 6.1-liter V8 pumping 425 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque.

We clicked off the Pontiac's traction control with the clearly marked button ahead of its shifter and brake-torqued the big V8 to 2,000 rpm. To our right we could hear Steve do the same. On the count of three we went for it.

Both cars left clean, with just a turn or two of tire slip. Then Steve pulled a fender on us. No surprise considering his Bee's torque advantage. But that's all he had. Past 60 mph the Mopar was still just a fender ahead. The Pontiac's six-speed automatic clicked off clean, crisp gearchanges just before its 6,000-rpm rev limiter, and kept pace with that Charger well past 100 mph.

We raced again. And again. And again. It was like a scene out of Woodward Avenue circa 1969, only we were in sedans, with sunroofs and heated seats, on a deserted, burned-out industrial section of downtown Los Angeles. Every race was a carbon copy of the first.

We lost. But not by much.

[AdmiralViscen]

Possible next GTO?

[captainbiotch]

People don't buy BMWs because of price to horsepower ratio.

People don't buy pontiacs because they are pontiacs.

[Smooth Groove]

I'd still buy the BMW.  The BMW looks better and the prestige is worth the extra money.  

[captainbiotch]

Not to mention the resale value.  Pontiacs plummet like an am_nintenho thread.

[AdmiralViscen]

Worth $70,000?

The point isn't to woo BMW buyers, the point is that the G8 stomps anything available at its price point by using a $70,000 car as its benchmark.

And they're only importing 20,000 of these or something per year, resale should not be an issue.

[Smooth Groove]

The Pontiac is too ugly to spend $30,000 on. 

[AdmiralViscen]

On what planet is the 5 series attractive and the G8 is ugly? Other than the hood scoops the G8 is a looker.

[Smooth Groove]

BMW is known for making good looking cars.  Pontiac is known for making ugly ass cars.  That stigma will always be with Pontiac no matter what. 

[AdmiralViscen]

The article is about Pontiac. This Pontiac does not look like other Pontiacs. Being "known for" stuff can have merit in some ways, but in styling?

Anywho, this is an Australian car with a history in the UK, mainland Europe, China and the Middle East, now with a Pontiac badge. Not a home-grown Pontiac that you may have beef with.

Infiniti wasn't worth a shit before the 2003 G35, Cadillac for the CTS, Buick for the Enclave, Mazda before the 6, etc etc. There has to be one car to begin the change in perception. The G8 is one of the best cars available in the US today.

[abrader]

post up some more sexxy pix.

[AdmiralViscen]

[abrader]

its a good looking car - I forget what Pontiacs I have driven before - all rentals...I thin Sunfire and Grand Am....
One had an ALL RED hud that gave me a headache

[captainbiotch]

Looks good except for the ugly ass pontiac front end that has survived the last however many years.  Also, 4100 pounds 

[ferrarimanf355]

Remember, the G8 chassis will underpin the next Camaro...

[brawndolicious]

Not to mention the resale value.  Pontiacs plummet like an am_nintenho thread.

lawl but guns r safe.  anyways, considering that the BMW is 70k and the Pontiac is 33k but that you can easily find a 3 year old BMW 5 series for 40-50k, beemers lose value more quickly.

I'd still buy the BMW.  The BMW looks better and the prestige is worth the extra money. 

yeah it's definitely at compensating for your penis but you have to admit that from an unbiased gearhead perspective, the Pontiac G8 is more impressive.