Autoblog

The upcoming 2008 Pontiac G8 has a lot going for it. There's the oh-so-hot-right-now rear-wheel-drive chassis, a base price under $28,000 and the high-performance G8 GT with a 361-horsepower 6.0L V8 starts below $30,000. It's the performance bargain of the year, and if a forum post over at G8GT.com is to believed, the bargain is about get a whole lot better.

A dealership employee somewhere has posted a pic of GM's inventory controls website in which the engine option for the 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP is revealed to be none other than the LS3 6.2L V8. To refresh your memory, the LS3 replaced the LS2 as the base engine for the Corvette this model year. In the Vette, it produces 430 horsepower from 376 cubic inches, or 436 hp if you opt for a special dual-stage exhaust system.

There was a time when the Corvette kept all of its components to itself, but that ended when they started building the Cadillac XLR side-by-side with the iconic American sports car and began using its engines in the CTS-V. Nowadays, Cadillac regularly pilfers the Corvette parts bin, so why not Pontiac, too? An LS3-powered G8 GXP would be just short of epic in its degree of awesomeness, so let's hope the internet is right on this one. Thanks for the tip, John!


[Source: G8GT.com]

Ok, ok. Breathe slowly and relax. Just because Bob Lutz isn't opposed to a four-door Corvette, doesn't mean GM will build a four-door Corvette. But they might. There you go again with the hyperventilating. Just chill.

Sure, Porsche built an SUV and will soon have their own super-sedan, but it doesn't mean GM must challenge them. But they might. Panic attack? Hang on, we'll join you.

Ahhh. Much better now.

Speaking with Rick Kranz, product editor of Automotive News, Bob Lutz admired what Porsche had done with their brand, extending it past sports cars to "coupes, convertibles, crossovers" and the upcoming Panamera. Then Lutz says, "You could do the same thing with the Corvette."

Oh, now I feel lightheaded. Gotta sit down a second.

Kranz says, and we quote directly from his column, "But since the Panamera sedan is bound to be a home run -- ditto for the four-door Rapide -- there must be a market for a Corvette sedan... Memo to Bob, Ed (Wellburn) and Tom (Wallace): Build it!"

How about this? Memo to Bob, Ed and Tom: Before you go messing with success, ask Ford why the Vette is still in production, and the T-bird isn't.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]