The AP reports, "Pontiac wants to beef up its performance credentials with two new rear-wheel-drive vehicles that will debut at next week's New York International Auto Show." The models include a high-performance edition of the G8 sedan, the 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP, and a new V8-powered "sport truck." The vehicles are seen as part of a GM effort to re-build the struggling Pontiac's reputation as the performance unit of the world's largest automaker. But some analysts say "the timing couldn't be worse as high gas prices test consumers' appetite for growling engines." With automakers struggling to meet new federal fuel economy standards, many are not certain that Pontiac can survive. Aaron Bragman, an auto analyst with the consulting company Global Insight, wonders "Can they make it a four-cylinder, turbocharged brand, or are Americans so set on it being the rumbly, rear-wheel-drive V-8 division that anything else is not going to fly?"
The Car Connection says the G8 GXP is "the fourth GXP edition in the Pontiac lineup (sharing that status with versions of the Solstice, G6 and Torrent)." It reportedly "can shoot to 60 mph in about 4.7 seconds, and run the quarter-mile in 13 seconds and 108 mph." To distinguish itself from the standard G8, it "wears a new front end with an air splitter, and a new rear bumper," plus "optional red-and-black trim on its sport seats."
Autoblog has images of a new Solstice coupe that may also debut in New York.
Research what Pontiac has on the market now with U.S. News' rankings and reviews.
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