Pontiac was originally Oakland Motors located near Pontiac, MI. Shortly after William Durant incorporated General Motors in 1908, he bought out Buick, Cadillac, Olds and Oakland. Chevrolet was added a few years later. Saturn was the first addition to GM’s lineup in about sixty years.
The Jeep (Wrangler) isn’t going anywhere, trust me. It’s a vehicle that costs, comparatively speaking, very little to build and sells quite well. Chrysler has no plans to kill a cash cow like the Jeep.
Yeah, the food chain at Ford Motor goes, from top to bottom: Lincoln - Mercury - Ford. I would expect to see Mercury killed shortly as Ford looks to incorporate more Volvo (or Jaguar) blood into its line.
And to the OP:
The subject has been covered for the most part. The General has a few base platforms which it spreads over the gamut of its child companies. For instance, the “F”-body is shared by Pontiac (Firebird) and Chevrolet (Camaro). While these two vehicles may appeal to basically the same demographic, the Firebird is, historically, somewhat more flashy.
There is at least one sibling in each of the big 3’s automotive families that has become too redundant, they should trim the fat.
Most annoying to me is Plymouth, there is no brand identity for them anymore. Every car is just a cheap rebadged Dodge waiting for an idiot to buy it.
At least Buicks look a little different from their Oldsmobile/Pontiac brothers, but they are stuck in the “elderly” segment with a cushy ride, boring styling, and psuedo luxury. Compared to the offerings of the other two brands Buick is a real sleeper. Snip-snip.
And finally Mercury, the only thing they have going for them is the Cougar. Same story different corporation.
In general I think platform sharing is a great way to develop markedly different cars to sell to different markets, but the big three in particular have let it get way out of hand.
You said some interesting things, Kuwatto, but you missed a couple points.
Dodge = Plymouth.
Ford = Mercury.
These truths have been around for decades! Dodge and Plymouth were once very different car companies, but the 80’s showed us that there could be a Dodge Omni and a Plymouth Omni – at the same time! Just one more example of the fabulous marketing strategies of a company – Chrysler Corporation – that should have passed to the scrap-heap of history a long time ago. Talk about wasted tax dollars!
Buick has long had its own special niche. It’s the “doctor’s car,” implying that doctors, being in general a bit more affluent than your average Chevy owner, but not quite in league with corporate bigshots, choose the sort of quiet, understated luxury that Buick has offered. My dad just bought a new Regal; it ain’t NOBODY’S Oldsmobile.
Mercury’s Cougar has always been a somebody wannabe. It started as Mercury’s imitation of Ford’s wildly popular Mustang, but wound up being just a clone of the overweight Thunderbird.
I have to go take my medicine now…
I don’t know why fortune smiles on some and lets the rest go free…
GMC trucks are equivalent to Chevy trucks, the only real difference being the option and trim packages and marketing. I think they’re even made in the same factories.
My understanding is that GM produces vehicles with the GMC name so that Pontiac/Buick/Olds dealers can have a truck to sell without bringing on all of the other chevy car models.
Yup…it was the “old” big block I was thinking of. I remember seeing early Sting Rays with 409s in 'em at the old Connecticut Dragway but they may not have been production models. Back in those days it was a badge of honor to stuff the most motor into the least car. One of my beer buddies had a Sunbeam Alpine sporty car production model with a V-8 in it (can’t remember now if it was a Ford or Chevy motor) that they marketed as a Sunbeam Tiger. That little sucker would purely scare the bejesus outa anything, including Vettes.
The kiddies don’t remember it but back in those days all the GM lines were totally different cars with different drivelines and engines. I bought one of the “Night Rider” TransAms when they came out in the early 80’s and was appalled to find it powered by a small block Chevy motor. “Oh no” sez the salesman, “that’s a Pontiac Motor. It says so right on the air filter.” I hadda show him the 4 bolt holes on the front of the block for the '55-'57 motor mounts. (And they’re still there today) That block is gonna be 50 years old pretty soon.
The Tiger had a Ford engine under the hood, but something nifty is that Chrysler had bought Alpine, or something along those lines while Alpine had a contract with Ford to use their engines… Too make a long story short, Once upon a time, quite briefly actually, you could have purchased a Chrysler product sheepishly displaying a “Powered by Ford” badge.
Yes, Plymouth will be phased out by 2001. Too bad: it was a decent entry-level make for decades (though notorously underpowered until the mid-50s). But, as someone else noted, it’s little more than a low-quality Dodge these days.
