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Review: 2008 Pontiac G8 GT

Pontiac: G8 Review

As a tyke I staged an all-out assault on my parents' better judgment for a G.I. Joe hovercraft. Not three months had passed following their surrender when I ransomed my mischievousness for the next toy my happiness hinged upon. Oh, that hovercraft? Forgotten. The auto industry works the same way. We often convince automakers that we'll buy every cool car they'd make if they would just grow a pair and build 'em. They do their part and then... we don't. The trust is broken and we're back to ... Read the rest of the review →

More G8 news

Rumormill: Holden-based, RWD 2012 Chevy SS coming after all? 1 month ago on Autoblog

If it's Monday, there must be a big, rear-wheel drive Chevrolet four-door coming soon. Tuesday? We'll retract and deny everything. We know, we know. We also know we just reported that the next Chevy Impala will remain front-wheel drive – but check this out. We've been hearing rumors for ...

REPORT: Zeta-based Chevy "G8" police car to be unveiled Monday 2 months ago on Autoblog

The Pontiac G8 has not deserved its lot in life, and despite the Australians trying to steal it back with the debut of two special edition Holdens that look awfully similar, this rear-wheel-drive sport sedan will find one way or another to stay on sale in the U.S. Unfortunately, its customers ...

Pontiac G8 resurfaces in Australia as a pair of special-edition Holdens 2 months ago on Autoblog

Holden giveth, and Holden taketh away. While we're still mourning the departure of the Pontiac G8 here in the U.S., the General's Australian subsidiary – whose Commodore gave birth to the G8 in the first place – has just announced a pair of special editions that seem to take back what ...

REPORT: Pontiac G8 Sedan, Wagon and Ute to be sold... in Australia 4 months ago on Autoblog

It's sad enough that the dizzying, platform-sharing, don't-call-it-rebadging upcoming product extravaganza General Motors unveiled to the Twitterati and media last week did not include the terms Zeta, Pontiac, G8, or any derivative thereof, but if a new report out of Australia is accurate, ...

Pontiac G8 GXP spotted wearing HSV duds in Cali 4 months ago on Autoblog

Thanks to a tipster who shall remain anonymous, we have a set of photos showing what kind of fun you can have if you're the lucky owner of a Pontiac G8 GXP. This California car has been fitted the Aussie-market HSV front fascia, rear spoiler, hood, and wheels, but the vanity plate lets other ...

GM beginning to backpedal on Lutz' G8-turning-Caprice comments? 5 months ago on Autoblog

When General Motors' Bob Lutz talks, we listen. The reason, of course, is that he always gives us something good to write. Over the weekend, we told you about an interview Lutz had with Automobile Magazine where the Maximum One said that the G8 will live on as a Chevrolet Caprice. Lutz's comments ...

Hurst announces Pontiac H.O. G8 and G6 5 months ago on Autoblog

The Pontiac brand may be on its way out the door, but that doesn't mean it can't have one last fling with a renowned tuner. Hurst Performance Vehicles, the legendary shifter company that most recently has made waves with its Hemi Challenger, announced its new H.O. program for the Pontiac G6 and ...

One Last Time: Henderson slams door on Pontiac G8 revival 6 months ago on Autoblog

General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson held a web chat with journalists earlier today over at the automaker's Fastlane Blog. (Full transcript available here.) Now, despite persistent rumors to the contrary, it's been reported a few times over that GM has no intention of resurrecting the Aussie-built ...

Pontiac G8 could live on, sans Pontiac... but don't hold your breath 6 months ago on Autoblog

The brand's demise next year will mark the end of the Pontiac G8, but there's a faint glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel for the Aussie-built sports sedan. Speaking with Automotive News, Tom Stephens, General Motors' vice chairman of global product development, said "there's still ...

Burying the Dead: Pontiac G8 faces recall over faulty taillamps, tire-pressure sensors 7 months ago on Autoblog

General Motors may have already buried its Pontiac division, but the brand's recent passing isn't stopping a posthumous recall campaign by the automaker and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The action, which covers some 35,038 Pontiac G8 sedans from the 2008 and 2009 model ...

Officially Official: GM kills Pontiac *UPDATED with LIVE webcast embed* 8 months ago on Autoblog

Rumors from late last week have come home to roost, and as part of its restructuring efforts, General Motors has just announced that Pontiac will be "phased out by the end of 2010." GM will continue to build its accelerated viability plan around four brands: Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, and GMC. As ...

Tear in my beer: GM reportedly kills off 2010 Pontiac G8 ST 11 months ago on Autoblog

Hold on to your Budweiser coozies: Details are scarce at the moment, but Pickuptruck.com is reporting that Pontiac has quietly euthanized plans to introduce the 2010 Pontiac G8 ST. The muscular G8-based trucklet was to signal the re-emergence of the unibody pickup in North America, a genre once ...

Goodbye-amino? Pontiac could kill G8 ST; become one-car brand 1 year ago on Autoblog

It's been a bad month for Pontiac fans. While begging for money from Congress, GM mentioned its intentions to sacrifice the brand to aid the General's recovery and get a few billion from the feds in the process. Now comes word that GM may keep the brand around, but cut its lineup in half... or ...

Pontiac G8 GXP rumored to lap Nurburgring in 8:30 1 year ago on Autoblog

After taking a ride in the Pontiac G8 GXP and reading Jonathan's review, our adoration of the Aussie-bred sports sedan continues unabated. Nearly everyone we've talked to about the GXP says the same thing: "budget E39 M5." While the clichéd poor-man's Bimmer trope always causes our eyes to ...

Review: 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP 1 year ago on Autoblog

There's a Looney Tunes cartoon where Bugs Bunny is in charge of Yosemite Sam's inheritance, and every time Yosemite Sam loses his temper at something Bugs has done, the rabbit subtracts money. By the time Yosemite gets his act together... he's out of money. Substitute GM for Yosemite Sam and ...

SEMA 2008: Pontiac G8 GXP Street Concept gets rave reviews on show floor 1 year ago on Autoblog

We couldn't help but listen to the comments of other onlookers as we closely inspected the G8 GXP Street Concept in the G8 booth. Every reaction was overwhelmingly positive, from the overall design to the motor. After all, what's not to like? For starters, the standard 6.2L V8 has been replaced ...

SEMA Preview: 638-horsepower Pontiac G8 GXP Street Concept 1 year ago on Autoblog

One of the best parts about SEMA is getting to see the manufacturers build cars they might not otherwise. Take this G8 GXP Street Concept, for example. Sure, the 415-horsepower 6.2L V8 in the standard G8 GXP is plenty good enough, but why not stuff the new LSX454 crate engine from GM Performance ...

RWD Pontiac G8 will be dead in five years 1 year ago on Autoblog

It looks like things will be getting a lot less exciting at Pontiac, as some reports indicate that the erstwhile performance brand will be losing its best performers. Despite the fact that the G8 sedan has seen nothing but positive press from the media, including your humble scribes here at ...

Pontiac G8 GXP officially rated at 415 hp 1 year ago on Autoblog

The V8-powered Pontiac G8 GT has garnered a fair amount of respect around Autoblog HQ, with almost everyone who's spent time behind the wheel singing the praises of the Aussie-imported four-door muscle car. We're all suckers for rubber-melting torque and rear-wheel motivation, and even El ...

Correction: Pontiac G8 GT will NOT have an optional 6-speed stick 1 year ago on Autoblog

Last week, we linked to a CarDomain piece about a lunch that gang had with GM's Bob Lutz. One of their topics of conversation with the product czar was manual transmissions, and it was reported that the '09 Pontiac G8 GT would be offered with an optional Tremec 6-speed manual transmission. This was ...

Lutz: '09 Pontiac G8 GT gets optional Tremec 6-speed stick 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click above for high-res gallery of the 2008 Pontiac G8 GT CarDomain recently sat for lunch with GM car czar Bob Lutz, and one of the topics that came up was the ever-vanishing manual transmission. Lutz explained that modern automatics are no longer the less efficient option by default, and with ...

G8 nations ask for more oil, pledge to use less 1 year ago on Autoblog

It's a complex issue, this business of oil. With stock markets and unemployment numbers taking their lumps, civilian unrest at oil and food prices, and politicians weighing in with all manner of cures and pronouncements, the Group of Eight nations got together to try and figure something out. The ...

Donkervoort D8 GT in production, sales begin in June 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Donkervoort D8 GT. When we first laid eyes on the Donkervoort D8 GT back in Geneva in 2007, we couldn't help but be compelled by the minimalist coupe's aggressive styling and performance potential. Now, just over a year since it's initial unveiling, the ...

APS builds 557 hp twin-turbo setup for Pontiac G8 GT 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click above for a gallery of the turbocharged APS HSV Commodore. APS is in the business of making power and that's exactly what they've done for the new Pontiac G8 GT and its Aussie-spec sibling, the Holden Commodore HSV. The tuner's Stealth Intercooled turbocharger setup uses two water-cooled ...

Pontiac El Cami-"NO" 1 year ago on Autoblog

It comes as little surprise, but Cars.com has all but confirmed that the "El Camino" moniker has been nixed as a potential name of the new G8 Sport Truck. The site reports from a recent media event that a Pontiac spokesperson said that there was internal strife regarding use of the Chevy-associated ...

Review: 2008 Pontiac G8 GT 1 year ago on Autoblog

As a tyke I staged an all-out assault on my parents' better judgment for a G.I. Joe hovercraft. Not three months had passed following their surrender when I ransomed my mischievousness for the next toy my happiness hinged upon. Oh, that hovercraft? Forgotten. The auto industry works the same ...

Adam Carolla's audition drive for Top Gear (not really) 1 year ago on Autoblog

SpeedTV did a video podcast featuring Adam Carolla -- along with SpeedTV's Kendall, and 50 Cent -- flogging a Pontiac G8 around a track. Carolla gets a check mark for being able to make jokes at speed and while in a spin. Whether he's actually funny, we'll let you decide. Since it wasn't done as a ...

New York 2008: Pontiac unveils G8 GXP, featuring 50 Cent [w/VIDEO] 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click above to view more high-res live shots of the Pontiac G8 GXP It's a rare occurrence when honest applause breaks out in a press conference over a new model, let alone a transmission. But that's exactly what happened when Maximum Bob talked up the Pontiac G8 GXP, and specifically its optional ...

New York '08 Preview: 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP packs 402 HP... and a third pedal! 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click above for hi-res gallery of the Pontiac G8 GXP The Northeast is the Pontiac division's largest market, and the brand -- which has played the stepchild in recent years, banished to the outer limits of exhibition halls -- is finally getting its own coming out party in New York next week. The ...

MT claims Holden Coupe 60 is really 3-year-old Pontiac GTO replacement 1 year ago on Autoblog

Spot any similarities? Holden surprised and delighted when it rolled out the Coupe 60 at the Melbourne Auto Show this past week. Motor Trend put two and two together and dug up some three-year-old photos that show off essentially the same car wearing a Pontiac suit, instead. The nose on the ...

First Drive: 2008 Pontiac G8 1 year ago on Autoblog

Here's a question: what builds excitement? For Pontiac, the General's erstwhile "excitement" division, the answer hails from Oz. No, it's not another attempt to rebadge a Holden Monaro with the lofty GTO moniker, it's to rebadge a Commodore with some G-flava. The Pontiac G8 has potential, both ...

eBay Find of the Day: Right to buy a 'First 888 G8' from Pontiac dealer 2 years ago on Autoblog

click above image to view eBay Motors auction ('First 888 G8' model NOT shown) As consumers and perpetual car shoppers, we're always irked to hear of dealers marking up the price on whatever new hotness hits their showroom floor. While the upcoming Pontiac G8 sedan won't create the same chaos as, ...

Pontiac puts its faith in the internet 2 years ago on Autoblog

Pontiac has been revamping its brand, cutting the ass-ugly (Aztek, Montana) and adding the badass (G8, Solstice GXP). There's a strong desire to shift the median buyer age down. The effort's already underway, and has seen some success thus far, but Pontiac wants the coveted younger buyer. In the ...

SEMA 2007: Pontiac G8 GT SEMA Edition 2 years ago on Autoblog

click image above for more pics of the Pontiac G8 SEMA Edition Don't get us wrong, we're super excited about the Pontiac G8 entering production. There's little about this SEMA Edition of the Aussie-sourced rear-wheel-drive V8 sedan that adds to that excitement. It's basically a stock Pontiac G8 ...

No manual option for the 2008 Pontiac G8?! 2 years ago on Autoblog

On the eve of what could be the revival of GM's "Excitement" division, it comes to light that the new Pontiac G8 will make the trek from Down Under sans stick. For whatever reason, General Motors has decided to offer the G8 – one of its sportiest and most potentially enthusiast-pleasing ...

Walkaround: 2008 Pontiac G8 GT 2 years ago on Autoblog

Click image for photo gallery At the East Coast edition of the 2008 GM Collection, El General had one of his preproduction Pontiac G8 GT sedans on display for everyone's inspection. The car on hand was a red GT with an automatic transmission, the revised silver Pontiac badge, black leather seating. ...

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Autoblog Podcast #158: 'Twas a couple nights before Christmas...

Chris, Editor Paukert, and Dan send the Podcast off for the Christmas holiday in proper fashion

 
 

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