Pontiac Converts

With the new G6 convertible, and the new Solstice roadster, Pontiac now has two fun, sporty droptops

by Thane Peterson

Editor's Rating:

The Good: Retractable hardtop, sleek styling, low price

The Bad: Poor rear head room and trunk space; slow; clunky handling

The Bottom Line: Whoa! This is a Pontiac?

Reader Reviews

• View Slide Show

Up Front

Pontiac has another bona fide winner on its hands in its new G6 Convertible coupe. The '06 version came out late—in April—and quickly sold out, so dealers are now selling '07s. The company rightly describes the G6 convertible as "red-hot," noting that the cars spend just an average of 11 days on dealers' lots before being snapped up. That makes two best-selling new Pontiacs on the market right now. The other is the Solstice two-seater sports car (see BusinessWeek.com, 10/5/05, "Solstice: A Brawny Beauty").

The G6 convertible has one very big selling point: It starts at less than $30,000 ($29,150, to be precise, for the basic '07 GT model) and comes with a push-button retractable hardtop that folds down into the trunk automatically. The clamshell top, designed in cooperation with Karmann USA, the Michigan arm of the famous German design company, is something of an engineering marvel for a car this inexpensive. General Motors (GM) had some difficulties getting the top to work, which is why the G6 convertible was late to market. But I ran the thing up and down many times, and it seems to work just fine.

The G6 GT—the model I test-drove—comes standard with a 3.5-liter, 201-horsepower V6. There's also a GTP version of the convertible with a 3.9-liter, 227-horsepower V6 and standard stability control that starts at $30,640 in '07. For another $1,450, you can upgrade, with a premium package that includes leather bucket seats, a power driver's seat, heated front seats, and satellite radio. À la carte options include 18-inch alloy wheels ($550), satellite radio ($325), heated seats ($250), a remote vehicle-starter system ($190), and adjustable gas and brake pedals ($125).

Pontiac has sold 92,278 G6s of all types in the first seven months of this year, 45.2% more than last year, including 17,516 sold in July alone. That's enough to make it the ninth best-selling car model on the market. The G6 has been moving up through the ranks of best-selling models, and that's partly due to soaring sales of the G6 convertible, which GM says accounted for 9.5% of G6 sales in July.

Even though the G6 convertible is in short supply, dealers don't seem to be gouging customers on price. The G6 convertible's average real-world selling price right now is $30,415, according to the Power Information Network, about the same as the Toyota (TM) Camry Solara, and about what you'd expect, given the car's sticker price.

BEHIND THE WHEEL.

The front-wheel drive G6 GT convertible is sporty, but it's no sportscar. It weighs 3,858 lbs., which is a lot for the relatively small engine to get rolling. And, unfortunately, the G6 convertible only comes with a four-speed automatic transmission. To be genuinely fun to drive, a car like this really needs a smoother, more refined six-speed automatic—or, better yet, a stick shift. Both are available on other G6 models, and it's a shame you can't get them on the convertible, even as an option.

The G6 convertible is no speedster, either. Even with the bigger engine, it takes about 7.5 seconds to jump from 0 to 60 miles per hour. The GT version with the small engine took north of 8 seconds to get to that speed, which is pokey for a car that looks so sleek and swift. Handling isn't so much sloppy as "Detroit-like." You can't push this car very hard on curves and corners without quickly starting to lose control.

Pontiac's priorities are evident as soon as you start driving the car. It's just fast enough and sporty enough so as not to be annoying. The engine has an angry whine when you push it a little, and in the manual-shifting mode the clunky, four-speed automatic is a lot more fun to drive. It's sporty enough to satisfy most people, but it's no BMW.

The company put a premium on making the ride comfortable.