I once drove off the road, screaming, at 80mph. Why? I was in love. When love turns blind, men do irrational things. As far as healthy, loving relationships go, the one presaging my off-highway excursion was a malignant tumor wrapped in an iron lung. I imagine that owning a Pontiac Solstice GXP is a similar affair. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury; the prosecution calls her a “femme fatale on wheels.” I ask you: how could something this beautiful be so damn dangerous?
The Solstice GXP is the first modern car I’ve ever felt like licking. More hygienically, the petite Pontiac is a slam dunk that shatters the backboard of gorgeous. I could describe the velvety sexiness of each angle. The perfectly judged headlight cluster. The long, European nose and properly sculpted flanks. The classic five spoke alloys. Suffice it to say, look at the pictures. Well, OK; here’s one:
Great looking rear ends have eluded car designers for decades. The Solstice gets it right. Park the Pontiac's derriere next to a TT Convertible and Ingolstadt's droptop looks like a Bug in a soiled diaper.
Entering the excitement division's roadster, I wasn’t entirely disheartened by the usual litany of sub-third world interior parts. In fact, I only counted one hard plastic edge capable of slicing open flesh (ideally positioned right near the door handle). And how could a gainfully employed designer place cup holders behind your elbow, strategically situated to open when selecting second gear?
Please, no accusations of nitpicking. The laundry list of ergonomic catastrophes continues.
There's no oil temperature gauge– essential for aggressive GXP’ers who fancy a track attack. There is an oil temp readout, but you have to toggle a button on the steering wheel to see it. Only the buttons on the steering wheel are too small for human thumbs. And even if there was a proper gauge, it wouldn't matter; the deep set dials are illegible.
When the Solstice debuted, it was rightly chided for having a center tunnel harder than tooth enamel. For 2007, Pontiac tried to rectify the situation by installing a slab of softer-touch plastic. It’s still as hard and cheap as Katja Kassin. If only they made it (the GXP) out of the softer, nicer material used for the door inserts. Sigh…
Notice I didn't even mention the complete and total lack of storage, hidden controls or the fact that you can raise and lower a Miata's soft top fifteen times in the span it takes to retract the Solstice's just once. And now, the good stuff…
The GXP's engine should replace every non-V8 in The General's stable. In the same way that Cadillac reduced the displacement of the Northstar V8 when fitting a supercharger to it for STS-V duty, Pontiac decreased the Solstice's Ecotec I4 from 2.4 to 2.0-liters. This was largely accomplished by reducing the stroke, which allows the eager motor to rev faster. Result? A four-banger with a single turbocharger and no detectable lag. No really. None.
Spitting out 130hp-per-liter, the GXP's direct-injected mill produces the highest specific output of any GM engine. Ever. The torque ain't bad, what with 260 ft. lbs. of the good stuff available between 2000 – 5300rpm. Sure, the engine sounds like it is made from sick clocks (what’s with that continual ticking just in front of the steering wheel?), but with the top down and the monumental thrump-a-thrump from the clownishly over-sized wheels, nothing could matter less.
Performance? Rest to 60mph happens in well under six seconds. A MX-5 Miata takes about seven flat. That's a big difference. In strict, straight-line terms, it’s worth the few thousand extra for the Pontiac. If the truncated (and rather brutal) Corvette driveline was massaged a bit more by the boffins, 60mph would live in the low 5s, if not less. But what about when the road, you know, bends?
Here's the truth. At or below 8/10ths, few cars are as entertaining to fling around bent backroads as the Solstice GXP. Turn in: sharp. Chassis: flat. Attitude: neutral. Brakes: faultless. Push a little harder and the car utterly fails. The steering goes from vague to dangerous. The suspension moans and stops thinking straight. The transmission backfires. You are suddenly overcome by the sensation that you are a driving a mutant machine made of cast-off pieces from other vehicles. Which, of course, you are.
How can Pontiac get so much right (looks, engine) and, at the same time, get so much wrong (everything else)? Enthusiasts (OK fine, Alfa Romeo and Triumph owners) are used to looking the other way when confronted with the sins of their beloved. Will Solstice GXP buyers be able to do the same? Sure. All's fair in love.
[Click on play to hear RF and JL discuss the GXP below.]
98 Comments on “Pontiac Solstice GXP Review...”
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Thanks for the entertaining review. The thing that bugs me about the interior is the inverted shift boot — it gives the impression that the drivetrain isn’t fully bolted in place (maybe that’s where the handling issues arise?). Damn beautiful ride, though.
alrighty then.at first pontiac didn`t reduce any displacement but took already a ready made 2 liter engine straight out of opel haus.
and why the car gives you such mixed feelings? because everything that was sourced directly from opel has quality and texture of finesse( at least by american standarts), everything that was improved there by detroit, was more mediocrishhh.
that`s how you get shoddy interior and good reving engine.pontiac stack this femme on german opel astra platform outsourcing everything- gearbox, engine, chassis. what did yankees do? well ,took round backlights from chevy blazer, outsorced sidemirrors and put them on this opel, sorry pontiac. is this a great car? yes it is a great german budget sportster car.
at leat what refers to german part of it. actually it is an opel vx concept that was unveiled in britain as vauxhall concept and later using opel parts `bin` plus opel designed `fuselage.`you wanted american pontiac?oops, wrong isle.
you have to go to old grand am, grand prix or gee, how to put it milder, … aztek gate.
lunatics@inbox.lv
For the money, it's hard to imagine a hotter car. I'm looking into a motorcycle these days, but were I looking for a second car, I might actually be considering this little 2-seater. Outside of the Vette, this is the only GM vehicle that looks as good in the flesh as it does in pictures.
Good to see you're still contributing Jonny.
Direct injection could be the death of superchargers. With it, it’s possible to engineer turbo engines with virtually no lag. I haven’t driven this particular example yet, but the BMW turbo six and the VW turbo four manage the same.
They did fix a few things since I drove the SKY. Apparently it’s now possible to hit a power lock button so you can open the door with the engine running.
My price comparison and reliability site’s page for the Solstice:
http://www.truedelta.com/models/Solstice.php
Jonny, you started my day out with a wonderful rush. I hope you can keep contributing ad-lib. And you might try licking your next soul mate as much as your cars…things might go better!
I really want this car (and the Sky) to really help GM finally get some much needed (and deserved) good press – you know, reviews that don't read like press releases that so many other sites and rags publish.
It might be wishful thinking as I am starting to wonder if the Fiero-curse is going to set in. They have the drivetrain (like the Fiero did once they ripped the Duralog engine and installed the small V-6.) they need to make this thing move, but, like the Fiero, when the cost of improving the rest of the car was too steep, they dumped it.
Mazda should start sweating if Pontiac/Saturn continues to install better materials in the interior, improve the top (it is a riot to see a first-timer work the top), and scoop out some storage in the "trunk" and interior.
If that doesn't happen, Toyota MR2 anyone?
Of course you can bet that Mazda is watching and prepping some kind of Mazdaspeed MX-5. With the only other close competiiton, the Honda S2000, possibly leaving the segment after the 2008 model year, this is still the race to watch.
GM plastic….yeesh. I’ll take the MX-5 or S2000 in a second.
Jonny-
An excellent way to start the morning- if you could drop in either to write a review or even post where we can find your stuff on Edmunds that would be awesome. Can’t believe the Katja reference.
K.
Note to readers: Mr. Lieberman's employ at Edmunds lasted 4.5 days.
Note to Edmunds: You want the truth? You can't handle the truth.
Jonny, fantastic review. Too many good lines to even call out a favorite. The TTAC review for the Saturn Sky Redline pretty much trashed that car. Did you have any of the same problems, such as leaking roof, or the engine quitting?
Although my current ‘middle income-family guy’ status pretty much eliminates any toys such as this from my shopping list, my mind constantly runs through the cars I would buy if I came upon thirty or so g’s. Right now, this car and a used Vette are at the top of my list. My concern with the Solstice/Sky is the highly boosted engine; I believe that it’s 18psi with 20psi for short bursts. Does such high boost kill the longevity of an engine?
Jonny Lieberman: I kid you not. The Solstice GXP is the first modern car I’ve ever felt like licking. More hygienically…
OMG, that is so funny!
You’ve a gift for writing, Jonny.
Welcome back!
Umm, makes one wonder:
What was the first (non modern) car you felt like licking? ;-)
For techies, a short overview of the Ecotec 2.0L turbo:
A .pdf file from GM.
Jonny’s still here! Hallelujah!
Will sports car fans turn the other way when faults are pointed out? I thought that was the definition of a sports car owner, “When it rains, it rains inside the car too, but it still drives like hell!” Been there, done that myself.
Is it late enough in the morning to start trolling about getting a used Boxster S instead? At least we don’t think Porsche warrants a DW.
“Note to readers: Mr. Lieberman’s employ at Edmunds lasted 4.5 days.”
I hope he got a free lunch at the end of that “.5″ of a day!
As for the Solstice GXP, I must admit if fills the nich of “toy” much better than the standard Solstice. If you’re gonna suffer with such an impractical car, it should at least be fast.
Of course, this just makes me wonder out loud how my (easy to love) MX-5 would do with a turbo and a suspension upgrade…
Clownishly oversized wheels doesn’t begin to describe it. They never show pictures of this thing with a driver in it. An average size man looks like a stick shift sitting in the drivers seat with just his head moving around around above the door sills like one of those bobble head dolls.
Jumping on the bandwagon before it gets too full, welcome back, Johnny!
I still think I’m one of the few people on the planet who thinks the Soulstice, in any form, looks like a defective Jelly-Belly. That may explain why you want to lick it. The Saturn Sky is the car with the crisp beautifully sculpted body.
I don’t think Mazda is sweating this thng too much, and if they ever put out the Mazdaspeed version of the current MX-5, well it’s Porche that should be sweating.
Note to readers: Mr. Lieberman’s employ at Edmunds lasted 4.5 days.
4.5 days huh. That sure beats my record. Welcome back, sorry you arent making any real money.
As for the car, I WANT to love it, but in the real world, once you are IN the car, you cannot see the outside of it any more. Like a partner who is only good in bed, sooner of later, you have to go to the store.
This cars exterior is so voluptious, pity its more like a trophy wife, sitting by the pool all day. Compared with the Miata, I must choose the Miata. Good in bed, good outa bed. Maybe not the most stunning looker at the party, but by far, the most fun.
Pity really. I could have a brief fling, tho…
Juris B.,
Solstice is on the Kappa platform, Astra is on the Delta. Vauxhall concept was based on a Delta, but the Kappa, I believe was engineered mostly in the US from a mishmash of other platform parts–wikipedia does a good job documenting it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GM_Kappa_Platform
Most of the parts seem to have American-engineered origins…at least more than the taillights.
Is this something to be proud of? Not really, but I felt a fact-check was in order–take it as you will.
Johnny’s another ass-man eh? Me too. ;)
I have to agree, no manufacturer has managed a nice looking rear in a looooong time, at least not affordably, since the Ford GT’s broad hips were a treat.
I keep looking for a nice rear, but when you have this to compare it to:
http://chuck.forest.net/jag/superbowlsunday/superbowlsunday-Images/1.jpg
http://chuck.goolsbee.org/archives/212
…it is a hard act to follow. (yes, I know the luggage rack detracts like a fanny pack on Catherine Zeta-Jones… sorry)
Nice review. Edmunds’ loss is our re-Gain. Welcome back.
I too look at the Sky/Sol pair as a nice hail mary pass for the General, but unfortunately it seems like a nice effort, a feww yards short. Nobody can raise mediocrity to an art form like GM eh?
–chuck
Love the car but don’t fit. Corvette it is then ;-)
Great review Jonny. The Solstices do look pretty from a distance, but only if the top is kept down. I thought they had wrung out this chassis at Silverstone or Brands Hatch long before the release. Evidently they didn’t.
Jonny:
Can we get a “The Truth About Edmunds” article about your 4.5 days there? That would be something great.
John,
Welcome back. Great review although the intro paragraph is a bit thick and the closing seems rushed.
I am definitely enjoying this more positive vibe on TTAC lately. Other sites like autoblog are such a pain to read because of all of the “OMG THAT CAR SUX” comments in reference to everything/anything. Very refreshing to see pros along with the cons.
Good to be back.
If you want to hear how good, check the podcast at the end of the review…
Also, Tim, this site always gives pros and cons.
Assuming that A) There are pros and B) there are cons.
Good to see you back Jonny.
Making mistakes in a brand new model, no matter how avoidable they may seem, is somewhat forgiveable. Whats not forgiveable is GM abandoning the model in a few years with out ever putting serious effort into refining the model and taking it to its full potential.
Imagine if they actually stuck with the basic design of the Solistice for 7+ years while making continuous improvements to the chassis and interior? They would no doubt end up with an automotive paradigm at least as significant as the Miata has been. Instead, if the past is any indication, the Solistice will likely end up as a Fiero for the 2000s.
A comment on the podcast…I’d put the front license plate behind the windscreen….lol
Great to have you back Jonny.
I too want to love this car, but the details are enough to annoy me. The top, no storage, the interior, are significant irritants in my book, enough so that I would go for the Miata.
BTW, this car drives much better with the automatic transmission. Not only is it smoother without all the problems of the linkage and clutch, but it’s faster as well. All it needs is a set of paddle shifters.
Robert Farago: Note to readers: Mr. Lieberman’s employ at Edmunds lasted 4.5 days.
Note to Emunds: You want the truth? You can’t handle the truth.
The story behind this may be even more interesting than the review of the car (which was very good).
Great review Johnny, too bad about the Edmunds gig.
As beautiful as the car is and I’m sure they will slowly improve the other parts (it is an entirely new platform) unless they can make a manual or power top that doesn’t make you get out and slam the rear decklid it’s not going to be the longterm sales success GM needs.
I’d put money down that we’ll see a Solstice and Sky coupe at next years Detroit show. What small, RWD, attractive, affordable coupes are on the market? 0. The closet thing is the 40k BMW Z4 Coupe. By adding a coupe they eliminate the stupid top issue and space issue. Two of the main issues with the car.
Robert Farago: Note to readers: Mr. Lieberman’s employ at Edmunds lasted 4.5 days.
Geez – I had just started checking Edmunds on a daily basis again, looking for Jonny’s writing. I hadn’t read Inside Line in almost a year. Well, they just lost me again.
Chick/poser car. ‘nuf said.
Steve,
Pontiac is trying to position the GXP as competing with the TT, Z4 and Boxster.
Don’t laugh too loud, as the 260hp GXP is faster around a track than all three of those.
Keith,
The base model, sure — but 0-60 in 5.7 seconds or so is not posing for anything.
That’s serious.
So are we going to hear the Edmunds story???
This car looks awesome – photos and in person. I dunno about driving it personally. but here’s what it has to overcome:
Buddy’s girlfriend moves down here to South Florida from Detroit (ironic, in a way – you’ll see why), wants the convertible to go along with the lifestyle. She owns a 2004 Chevy Cavalier. Shops convertibles…drives a Mustang, Miata, Solstice, and Sky.
So pissed off are both of them at the Chevy she has (I call it the Crapalier) and even her experience with GM prior, she buys a slightly used 2006 Miata. She thought the Solstice was zippier looking, and a little faster, but keeps vomiting a little bit of Crapalier in her mouth when she sits in it.
How bad does that suck? A car not only has to overcome its own issues, but all the issues of the crap that came down the assembly line years before it.
What a hole for GM to climb out of…
“They beat the Solstice with a ruler to get the Sky”
ROFL!!!!! Awesome line JL. Your return is our gain
Ergonomic catastrophes? The canvas top is worse than any Lotus lash-up ever!
But isn’t it nice to see so much written about a, gasp, Pontiac!
I agree with Jonny that the Solstice is much better looking that the Sky. To me the Sky looks like they took the Solstice and just filled the design with doo-dads, angles and schprokets. I can’t stand angles mixed with curves, either pick one or the other, they’re two different design languages and don’t mix.
Jonny Lieberman:
Pontiac is trying to position the GXP as competing with the TT, Z4 and Boxster.
Don’t laugh too loud, as the 260hp GXP is faster around a track than all three of those.
Sorry Jonny, I have to laugh. The GXP may be faster, but the Boxster is far, far, far more refined. That refinement is what makes everyday commuting enjoyable. (I prefer women in their 40s to women in their 20s for similar reasons.)
Welcome back. Looking forward to The Truth About Edmunds.
David,
Obviously, the Boxster is a better car. However, you cannot simply write the Solstice GXP off. I tired — you can’t.
Look, for essentially $20,000 less you get a better looking, faster car. To some people, that is what matters.
Case in point, compare the Z06 to the F430. I think the Z06 is much better looking and by all accounts it is faster than the Ferrari. Again, for some, the Chevy wins.
Its just the details are SO bad…
If the Sky had a working top, storage space, and a Mazda-quality interior, we would have bought one already. But the thing is a less practical toy than a F@#)$(* Elise!
For some, it doesn’t matter. If you want a phychopatchic toy, the Solstice/Sky are great. But I want a CAR. If we can’t take an overnight bag and fit in a couple of cases of wine purchased on the way, we won’t buy it.
How many guys will sell their soul for a good looking woman ????
Well, you are not giving up anything for a Sol… the platform is flex free and the car is gorgeous
I bought one just to gaze upon her lines and ending up liking her dynamics too!
Frontline — I agree, except when you really give it the beans.
Then… you suddenly are confronted by a very naked (and ugly) emperor.
nweaver,
How’s this then — the Solstice GXP is the ultimate car to tow behind your motorhome.
welcome back. excellent review – even better obscure porn star reference.
People are still calling me for my opinion on what kind of car to buy.
I always say —- When you walk out of your front door or walk into the garage and see the car , do you get [at least ] a little excited ?
If that feeling is not there , don`t buy it
Gee, I love sports cars, but $40,000 plus for all these new toys seem a bit much. So two years ago I bought a 1991 Mazda Miata, with 17 inch after market wheels, Racing Beat front end, special shocks and springs, and Racing Beat Induction system for $4,000. Looks good runs good, fast, fun to drive and reliable. In over two years and 23,000 miles fo driving, no repairs. I love parking it next to new BMW Z4’s, they make my Miata look so good.
I have had 500 HP sports cars, and 155 MPH Motorcycles, speed and power are overrated. Its balance and finese that will win in the end.
I don’t see how GM can afford to be taking these risks right now at a time when Toyota has just droped thier sports cars because there’s no profit to be had in them anymore.
Johnny, if I had the $$$ for a motorhome, it would be a Toyhauler and we’d just shove the motorcycles in the back. Why tow a Solstice when you can carry both a REAL trackday toy and the tourer in the back?
Nweaver,
Er… you want to drive around wine country and not purchase anything?