1973 Canadian Pontiac Ad
1973 Canadian Pontiac Ad

Pontiacs were always a little cooler than Chevrolets, at least at Fremd High School in Palatine, Illinois, in the early Eighties. My take, and the take of my gearhead buddies at the study-hall table, was that the Firebird was a notch above the Camaro (thank the 400-cubic-inch V8), the Ventura was a bit better than the Nova, and the Grand Prix had it all over the Monte Carlo. On the subject of Bonneville versus Caprice, we were divided. Police versions of the big Chevy were cool enough to break down the barriers of brand loyalty.

Three General Motors brands bit the dust after 2010 (Hummer, Pontiac, and Saab), but I only mourn for one. Hummer was a debacle from the get-go, and Saab had been so completely stripped of its Swedish uniqueness by the end that there really wasn’t a corpse left to bury. But Pontiac…

Assuming we forgive Pontiac’s disturbing rocker-panel-cladding fixation of the Nineties, we’re free to admit that the brand still had a little “sporty division” mojo left when the plug was pulled.

Most exciting was the Holden-Commodore-based G8, a potent and refined large sedan that absolutely deserved a place in GM’s U.S.-market lineup. While the G8 never sold that well new, seven-year-old V8 examples now command surprising prices as used cars.

Alas, the product planners at GM never got the chance to build a product lineup around the G8 flagship, so were left guessing as to whether or not the Wide-Track folks were poised for a comeback.

To celebrate this storied marque we’ve collected ten classic Pontiac ads, which we present here for your consideration. If you’ve ever owned or spent time with a Pontiac, please tell us about it.

Future Collectibles: 2014-16 Chevrolet SS

 

1952

1952 Pontiac Chieftan
1952 Pontiac Ad (Chieftain Wagon shown)

 

1959

1959 Pontiac Ad
1959 Pontiac Ad (Catalina Convertible shown)

Art Fitzpatrick: The Man Who Drew Pontiacs

 

1964

1964 Pontiac Ad
1964 Pontiac Ad (Bonneville and Tempest shown)

 

1967

1967 Bonneville ad
1967 Pontiac Ad (Bonneville shown)

 

1973

1973 Pontiac Ad
1973 Pontiac Ad (Canadian ad, Grand Prix [top] and Parisienne shown)
Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1961

 

1978

Model-Year Madness! 10 Classic Ads From 1961
1978 Pontiac Ad (Firebirds shown)

 

1980

1980 Pontiac Ad
1980 Pontiac Ad (Grand Prix [left], Grand LeMans [center], and Grand LeMans Safari [right] shown)

1982

1982 Pontiac Ad
1982 Pontiac Ad (Phoenix shown)

 

1984

1984 Pontiac Ad (Fiero shown)
1984 Pontiac Ad (Fiero shown)

 

1990

1990 Pontiac Ad
1990 Pontiac Ad (Grand Prix shown)

More classic ads

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