A muscle car has a V8 engine or larger with more horsepower than a regular car. Its powerful engine allows reaching higher speeds. Are you perplexed about whether Pontiac or Chevy makes better muscle cars? Perhaps you’re wondering how these brands are similar.
Pontiac and Chevy are both brands from General Motors. Both are known for producing muscle cars although the Pontiac takes the lead. It introduced the first muscle car and the fastest. Pontiac and Chevy have similar parts because of GM’s strategy to cut costs.
Although most people have different opinions on what a muscle car is, the term usually applies to a two-door rear-wheel drive car with a V8 engine. Young drivers loved these cars in the mid-1960s. Apart from being sleek, attractive, and powerful, muscle cars were for everyday use.
What Are The Features Of A Muscle Car?
Muscle cars are known for their powerful V8 engines with the broad boxy body. Examples of classic muscle cars include the 1976 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am and the 1969 Chevrolet Camaro. These stood out with their long boxy hoods and larger-than-usual engines.
Modern technology today makes it possible to produce muscle cars with smaller engines but the same classical body. Newer models of muscle cars include the Ford Mustang GT, Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, and the Chevrolet Camaro SS.
The features of muscle cars include:
- V8 engine or larger to reach high speeds and more horsepower.
- Reaching high speeds but slowing down when turning.
- Larger body for more interior space for comfort and trunk space.
- Produced by American brands including Chevrolet, Ford, and Dodge.
- Low fuel efficiency because of the high-power engine.
- Heavier and more elevated for better handling in all weather.
Does Pontiac Make Muscle Cars?
Pontiac is among the iconic muscle car manufacturers with an excellent reputation. Oldsmobile, another brand from GM, experimented with a V8 engine in a lighter body and frame in 1949. It technically laid the foundation for the first muscle car.
An Oldsmobile Rocket 88 was the first American muscle car. Pontiac later put a 389 V8 engine in a mid-size tempest body to release the GTO in 1964. GTO means Gran Turismo Omologato, an Italian phrase meaning a car for racing and street use.
John Delorean helped create the GTO Pontiac as head of GM’S design team. He helped design other cars like the Pontiac Firebird. Pontiacs are considered to be the most reliable muscle cars to ever exist. You can find models over 50 years old today but still roadworthy.
Does Chevy Make Muscle Cars?
Technically, Pontiac introduced the idea of muscle cars with the release of the GTO. However, Chevrolet took time to catch up to become one of the greatest muscle car brands. Muscle cars were always head-to-head with those from Ford for a while.
The carmaker released the most extensive range of popular muscle cars from the early 1960s to the early 70s. Its small block V8 engine established its presence as a muscle car maker with the success of the Corvette.
Pontiac Vs Chevy: Who Makes Better Muscle Cars?
Chevy has a strong presence in the industry, the Pontiac is a class apart. Apart from offering speed and horsepower, its dependability puts it ahead of the competition. Chevrolet has made some impressive muscle cars of all time such as the Impala Super Sport in 1961.
Why Do Pontiacs And Chevys Look So Similar?
GM didn’t build cars but bought independent manufacturers and held 100% stock in those companies. The main office provided policy and direction but each division had its own design market studio, design studios, factories, and engines.
However, each had some common components including platforms. Each company would put its own spin on it. GM aimed to keep people hooked to the brand as their incomes improved. People would move from a Chevy to a more expensive Pontiac with a new image.
The oil crisis in the 1970s encouraged Ford to make its companies share its incidental parts apart from the platform alone to cut costs. These included common engines and similar bodies. It cheapened its brands while offering a variety of models for everyone.
Making every car in the range was for competitors to pick off their models in groups but not individually. Pontiac and Chevy are owned by GM and some models were sold under both brands with some cosmetic adjustments.
Badge engineering allows for making models similar. No wonder man Pontiacs and Chevys were identical. These had the same suspensions, transmissions, and engines up to the location of the bolds on the frame.
A common sourcing strategy also allows the design teams at Pontiac and Chevy to access similar features.
How Do Modern Muscle Cars Compare To Classics?
Classic muscle cars are periodically revived such as the 2004 Pontiac GTO. However, they don’t sustain the fame of the originals. Car enthusiasts continue investing in original muscle cars as wonderful investment opportunities.
These have a proven track record of outperforming other investment options. Classic muscle cars are appreciating assets with an annual return rate of over 9%.
What Happened To The Last Pontiac Ever Made?
Pontiac made its last vehicle in 2009 with a white 2010 Pontiac G6. A Redditor tracked it down in Hawaii where it belonged to a fleet of rental vehicles. It was bought and the new owner took it to California and drove it for nearly 60,000 miles.
After getting totaled in 2015, it sold for $450 at a salvage auction and shipped to Mexico where its life ends. It was an unceremonious end for the Pontiac brand that had been around for 84 years before GM shut it down.
What Was The Fastest Pontiac Ever?
The 2006 Pontiac GTO was the fastest Pontiac ever. This fifth-generation model came with a single engine. Its monstrous LS2 V8 engine produces 400 hp at 5200 rpm, and 400 lb of torque. The specs are the same as those of the C6 Corvette.
It comes with a standard four-speed overdrive automatic and an option for a six-speed manual transmission. The car has standard traction control and a limited slip differential. This model offers an old-school thrill reminiscent of the classic muscle car era.
The Chevrolet Camaro was the slowest muscle car. It reached from zero to 60 miles in eight seconds. Its 5/7 liter engine produced 299hp and 380 lbs torque. This wasn’t enough to make this muscle car rank amongst the fastest models.
Taking All This Into Account,
The Pontiac is the greatest muscle car ever. Apart from being the first to introduce the first muscle car with the GTO, its 2006 is the fastest muscle car ever. Chevrolet joined the muscle car wars but Pontiac was a force to reckon with before it was retired by GM in 2009.
