Glory Days

• In 1964, Pontiac put a 389-cubic-inch engine in a Tempest and that marked the start of the muscle-car era. The Tempest eventually became the GTO, and the muscle-car war raged on through the early 1970s. Later the company crammed a 455-cubic-inch engine under the hood, making the car even more powerful.
  
  

Theories/Speculation

• The fuel crunch and rising emission standards put an end to the muscle-car era, and that began the decline of the Pontiac. The brand held its own but began losing ground in the 1980s. A New York Times article called recent Pontiac midsized cars "generic" and "unremarkable." That said, the article praised 2009 models, but added that it was too late to rescue the Pontiac.
  
  

Quality

• The quality of the Pontiac must have faded in the 1990s and early 2000s, as an Edmunds.com review advises consumers to stay away from the Sunfire and other mid- to small-sized Pontiacs. It cited a lack of quality workmanship and few revisions over the years, leading Pontiacs to fall behind other models as far as design and technology. Also according to Edmunds.com, only 16 percent of Pontiac owners bought another Pontiac when they traded in the cars in recent years, as opposed to overall General Motors figures of 50 percent.