Paul, Now you're proving the other Paul's statement. And missing my point that it was the Camaro derived GTO being reminisced by the concept vehicle. The classic GTO was nothing like a Camaro or a Firebird. BTW concept cars that get to market have in recent times stayed pretty close to the concept. It's a long time since a 1960ish Ford Galaxy(?) concept was so outlandish that it became the TV Batmobile with very few changes.
I grant you that the US auto market is so big that it can do as it damn well pleases, and to hell with anyone else. But don't be under the illusion that the USA is the style leader of world motoring. Ever since I was 13 years old (over three decades past) I have observed American (and Japanese) car styling go through repeating cycles of clean simple styling > dramatic avant garde styling > ugly and excessive styling (eg. mid 70s Buick Riviera). And when it all gets too silly and extreme the market rebels and the styling returns to clean and simple. Right now your market has moved out of the dramatic avant garde stage into the ugly and excessive stage, but is still basking in the glory of dramatic creations like the Dodge Viper and the recent Ford Mustangs, and also BMW roadsters and some Japanese performance models. Meanwhile the rest of the world gets on with the job of designing cars that need to live through 6, 8, sometimes 10 year model runs, not just a faddish 2 or 3 years. So they keep the looks simpler. Bland you call it, well OK. But pap? Get real! You're talking about one of the best specified mass produced cars ever to have an American motor under the hood. Want better? Pay multiple times more for something like a TVR. Want American made? Just say so and quit finding justification in superficial style while deliberately ignoring the performance, handling and braking specifications. Pontiac had already condemned itself starting in the '70s when they began sharing bodies with Chevrolet, losing their unique identity. I also recall a substitution scandal where cheaper Chev motors were fitted in place of pricier Pontiac motors, which had to debase the brand in the public's eyes. So when the Monaro became the GTO and made the news over here for doing so, I was surprised to learn that Pontiac still existed. Their recent models had been so unimportant, so uninteresting that nobody else in the world knew or cared about them. If Pontiac dies, don't blame the Monaro. Blame Pontiac management and marketing, they made the decisions. regards, Anthony Farr > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Thursday, 21 April 2005 1:32 AM > To: [email protected] > Subject: RE: Hurrah for Shel Disrobing the Emperor > > This at least has some GTO reference, unlike the Holden gumdrop car they're > trying to sell. And don't forget, this is a concept car. A production model would have > been far less radical. In any case, they couldn't have failed any worse than they did. > The current car is evocative of mid eighties cars from everywhere. It's bland pap. > >
