Seems a lot people still mad about the Pontiac thing..did GM like Spike Lee says "Do the right thing" yes or no?
A few reasons why Pontiac failed.
1.The Aztek is arguably the number one reason for the failure of the Pontiac brand.
2.The Original Tran Sport concept was in keeping with the Pontiac tradition of an exciting people-mover. In reality, the production version of the original Trans Sport, along with its corporate cousins, the Chevrolet Lumina APV, and the Oldsmobile Silhouette, proved to be anything but exciting, or even practical for that matter.
3.The Discontinuation of the Firebird and Trans Am. The Firebird was Pontiac's signature car, what we now call a halo car, intended to cast a positive glow over the entire brand. When you thought of Pontiac in the 70's, the 80's and the 90's, this was inevitably the car that popped into your mind. This was the car that was used in all those "Smokey and the Bandit" movies, the campy "Knight Rider" television series, and was the car in the forefront of all those "We Build Excitement" television commercials throughout the 90's.
4.For years the Grand Am was Pontiac's best-selling car, but the last versions from 1999 to 2005 were truly--as our British cousins would say--rubbish. On paper they looked like a good value, but their ergonomics, structure, and reliability were substandard. There were issues with their braking systems, electrical system shorts, and that body cladding had a tendency to fall off. On top of all of these issues, Pontiac decided to remove standard features like ABS and traction control and make them optional. One good move was replacing the 2.4-liter twin-cam four-cylinder with the excellent 2.2-liter EcoTec that produced higher mileage ratings and was much smoother.
5.The GTO was a great car that was poorly launched. Basically, all GM did was to re-work the Holden Monaro for left-hand drive--which was no small task--then replace the grille and add badging.
6.Killing Model Names with Built-in Brand Equity.
7.Bonneville and Grand Prix "Updates" the Bonneville was once again re-designed for the 2000 model year, and you guessed it--the designers tacked on a lot of body cladding with different surface textures depending on the trim level.
8.Body Side Cladding. /to have the distinctive character the stylists were looking for while managing wherever they could to cut costs, plastic body cladding was used to achieve a distinctive look. This wasn't the first time that body cladding was used, but Pontiac was the division that used it the most, and on almost every model.
9.The Fiero and Solstice was never supposed to be a sports car; it was sold to GM management as a two-seat commuter car. The parts borrowed to make this mid-engined commuter car were decidedly bottom of the barrel, Chevette steering and suspension components and a wheezing 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine.
10.Badge Engineering The Excitement Division of General Motors was doing quite well throughout the eighties, even with an uninspired product line. Advertising of the period showcased the Firebird and Trans Am, the hot little Fiero, the Sunbird convertible, and Pontiac's best seller, the Grand Am. With the exception of the Fiero, each of them was styled just a bit differently than their corporate siblings, with brand-specific engines, wheels, trim, and interior furnishings.