Sorry, no pics.
I went by the Pontiac dealer today to check out the 2 Pontiac Solstices they have in stock. Here's my impression of them:
First off, it looks better in person than it does in pictures. I haven't been a big fan of the front end styling based on what I've seen in pictures, but it does look better in person. When standing at the front of the car, it has a much wider stance than I had expected. I like the back end.
The hood flips forward like Corvettes, older BMWs, etc. However, it doesn't seem like it flips forward NEARLY enough. Changing things like the belt and stuff at the front of the engine will be a royal PITA. Another interesting thing is that the headlight housings are mounted to the hood - makes me wonder if the lights vibrate, causing the beams to jump around slightly at night. That would be very annoying. Of note is that the battery is located behind the fender between the passenger side front wheel and the passenger side door. Yes, believe it or not, that means that you would have to remove the passenger fender to change the battery!!!!!! Wow, what a design!!! Furthermore, you can see the foam bumper support through the front grill - CHEAP AND TACKY!!!!!
The trunk is absolutely useless. Yes, I'm aware that the car is a roadster and isn't supposed to have a huge trunk, but this one is just ridiculous. The trunk compartment opens by flipping rearward (opposite to a standard trunk) because the trunk compartment doubles as the top storage when the top is down. When the top is up, the trunk compartment would be very large for a car this size except for one issue - the gas tank sits in the middle of the trunk compartment, taking up almost all of the space and making the remaining space around the edges useless for anything except plastic bags of groceries or other small deformable items. Forget carrying a rigid suitcase of any kind. With the top down, there is essentially NO space to carry anything. With the top down, there is a space of a few inches at the rear to jam something soft. The top is a fully manual affair with the exception of the power trunk release which is stupidly located in the glovebox.
I have always thought the interior looked cool in the pictures on the internet. In person, I also liked the interior layout and design. However, I was disappointed to see that everything except the seats is made out of a very hard injection-molded plastic. You can see and feel sharp plastic flashing lines and seams everywhere. The console is a nondescript slab of plastic and does not contain a storage compartment. The cupholders pop out of the rear bulkhead between the seats and are insanely cheap feeling. The door panels are a single monotone slab of ABS injection molded plastic and have absolutely no styling to them whatsoever. The seats sit VERY low and cradle you pretty well, but they seem like they may be a little too soft and cushy to be really sporty seats. The best thing about the interior is that the shifter has EXTREMELY short throws - probably one of the most solid and shortest-throwing stock shifters I've ever encountered in a production car.
So, how does it drive? I haven't a damn clue. They wouldn't let me drive it. The salesman told me that they are trying to keep the mileage down on them since they only have two and they aren't sure when they'll get more. I tried to talk the guy into it, but he kept refusing. Funny how the BMW dealer ENCOURAGES me to drive a $92,000 M5 that was parked in the showroom whereas the Pontiac dealer refuses to let me take a $25,000 car that was sitting outside in front of the dealer with the top down for a testdrive.
I came away from this car pretty disappointed. I have always had a place for GM in my heart since my family has always been a GM family. So, I really had high hopes for this car as a possible turning point for the company, at least in the domestic market. I don't think this car is going to do it. Yes, the car has an attractive base price, but the base vehicle is completely stripped (everything is optional) - A/C is a $900+ option!!! When you equip the car the way it should be equipped (leather, power windows, power locks with keyless entry, cruise, 6 disc changer), the car becomes $25,000+. That ain't cheap, especially for the car I just described above. Furthermore, the salesman told me that an automatic will not be available until at least next fall. Yeah, this car should be a manual, but the inability to get the car in an auto is undoubtedly going to hurt sales. I really don't think this car is going to compete well with the likes of the Miata.
I went by the Pontiac dealer today to check out the 2 Pontiac Solstices they have in stock. Here's my impression of them:
First off, it looks better in person than it does in pictures. I haven't been a big fan of the front end styling based on what I've seen in pictures, but it does look better in person. When standing at the front of the car, it has a much wider stance than I had expected. I like the back end.
The hood flips forward like Corvettes, older BMWs, etc. However, it doesn't seem like it flips forward NEARLY enough. Changing things like the belt and stuff at the front of the engine will be a royal PITA. Another interesting thing is that the headlight housings are mounted to the hood - makes me wonder if the lights vibrate, causing the beams to jump around slightly at night. That would be very annoying. Of note is that the battery is located behind the fender between the passenger side front wheel and the passenger side door. Yes, believe it or not, that means that you would have to remove the passenger fender to change the battery!!!!!! Wow, what a design!!! Furthermore, you can see the foam bumper support through the front grill - CHEAP AND TACKY!!!!!
The trunk is absolutely useless. Yes, I'm aware that the car is a roadster and isn't supposed to have a huge trunk, but this one is just ridiculous. The trunk compartment opens by flipping rearward (opposite to a standard trunk) because the trunk compartment doubles as the top storage when the top is down. When the top is up, the trunk compartment would be very large for a car this size except for one issue - the gas tank sits in the middle of the trunk compartment, taking up almost all of the space and making the remaining space around the edges useless for anything except plastic bags of groceries or other small deformable items. Forget carrying a rigid suitcase of any kind. With the top down, there is essentially NO space to carry anything. With the top down, there is a space of a few inches at the rear to jam something soft. The top is a fully manual affair with the exception of the power trunk release which is stupidly located in the glovebox.
I have always thought the interior looked cool in the pictures on the internet. In person, I also liked the interior layout and design. However, I was disappointed to see that everything except the seats is made out of a very hard injection-molded plastic. You can see and feel sharp plastic flashing lines and seams everywhere. The console is a nondescript slab of plastic and does not contain a storage compartment. The cupholders pop out of the rear bulkhead between the seats and are insanely cheap feeling. The door panels are a single monotone slab of ABS injection molded plastic and have absolutely no styling to them whatsoever. The seats sit VERY low and cradle you pretty well, but they seem like they may be a little too soft and cushy to be really sporty seats. The best thing about the interior is that the shifter has EXTREMELY short throws - probably one of the most solid and shortest-throwing stock shifters I've ever encountered in a production car.
So, how does it drive? I haven't a damn clue. They wouldn't let me drive it. The salesman told me that they are trying to keep the mileage down on them since they only have two and they aren't sure when they'll get more. I tried to talk the guy into it, but he kept refusing. Funny how the BMW dealer ENCOURAGES me to drive a $92,000 M5 that was parked in the showroom whereas the Pontiac dealer refuses to let me take a $25,000 car that was sitting outside in front of the dealer with the top down for a testdrive.
I came away from this car pretty disappointed. I have always had a place for GM in my heart since my family has always been a GM family. So, I really had high hopes for this car as a possible turning point for the company, at least in the domestic market. I don't think this car is going to do it. Yes, the car has an attractive base price, but the base vehicle is completely stripped (everything is optional) - A/C is a $900+ option!!! When you equip the car the way it should be equipped (leather, power windows, power locks with keyless entry, cruise, 6 disc changer), the car becomes $25,000+. That ain't cheap, especially for the car I just described above. Furthermore, the salesman told me that an automatic will not be available until at least next fall. Yeah, this car should be a manual, but the inability to get the car in an auto is undoubtedly going to hurt sales. I really don't think this car is going to compete well with the likes of the Miata.
