"We don't normally drive like this" quipped my wife rather excitedly as I flung the Pontiac G8 GT onto the freeway on-ramp and nailed the throttle. The 6.0 liter V8 roared as we reached warp speed merging onto 280. My son shouted "Whee!" from his perch in the back seat. I quickly remembered who I was driving and scaled things back to a more sedate pace. That's the thing about this G8, though, it can really make you want to get a little crazy. So begins my review of the 2009 Pontiac G8 GT: a car that isn't perhaps equipped quite how I'd like it to be, but is dynamically everything I'd hoped for.
Like its departed relative, the GTO, the G8 GT is a bit of an odd bird. The Pontiac has an engine made in Mexico, a transmission from the U.S., and is assembled in Australia. That's quite an international heritage! What do you get for you hard earned dollar? For my money, one fantastically well sorted out driving machine. I found the ride to be right in my comfort zone, nothing too plush but not harsh like a 328xi I recently drove. The six speed automatic had crisp shifts and I never felt it was out of sync with how I was driving. During partial throttle applications, the transmission would sometimes hang onto a higher gear, but I never found it intrusive and I'm sure it helped fuel economy a bit. As expected the throttle response was phenomenal, a great rush of acceleration that impressed friends and family.
It's all pretty positive so far, right? Yes, on the basis of driving the G8 GT it is a true winner. Unfortunately, when it comes to the complete package is where it will probably lose some buyers. The problem certainly isn't the price. My loaner stickered around $32k, and given the size and specs of the car that isn't an unreasonable price. The cabin certainly has soft touch plastics in most places, suffered from no rattles and generally had good fit and finish. Interior room is generous and passengers reported being comfortable from all seating positions. My car was equipped with leather, but sadly it didn't have the two-tone color scheme and was very somber and monochromatic. Bringing things down further was the fact that the car was not equipped with a sunroof to let in a bit more light. But hey, a sunroof is available and when it comes to somber interiors, look no further than the Germans, so I'm not dinging the car for that.
Navigation is not available on the G8 and I will grump about that. Oh sure, you can get a portable unit that sits on the dash, but I've done that and it's a pain in the tush. You worry about it getting stolen. In California you can't mount it on the windshield so you've got to place an adhesive disc on the dash so that the suction mount will work properly. Then there is the power cord flopping around. Because it's portable you'll probably move it to other cars or leave it in the house and when you need to find the nearest Burger King so that your two-year-old son can get his apple fries, well, it won't be there. "Ah," you say "Just use the OnStar system." Well, let me tell you all about that. Firstly, you've got to make chit-chat with the operator. I supposed you could be blunt, but I just can't do it, so I have to talk about the weather and hear all about the operator's last visit to the area, all the while the kid is screaming about his freakin' fries. The the operator tells you that they are happy to assist you in finding a Burger King and proceed to tell you about the Burger Kings that are miles away because they've typed in San Francisco when you are already in Daly City. In the end I just gave up and went to the one BK that I do know about 20 miles down the road. So, yes I want navigation built into the car and I'll pay the price for it.
Bluetooth is currently not available, but it should be offered later on in the model year. There are no auto-dimming mirrors and that's unfortunate. A car in this price class should have at least an auto-dimming rearview mirror. The driver and front passenger do not have assist handles, It'd be nice for at least the passenger to have one (a couple of my co-pilots reached for the non-existent handle). There are cupholders in the rear center, but not in the armrest, rather you have to open the entire trunk-pass thru to find them. I found that to be a bit odd. You can't get xenons on this car, something that most sedans in this class offer.
I don't want to nitpick, but here are few examples of why I'm not enamored with the interior. Firstly, the digital voltmeter and oil pressure gauges have been removed due to complaints they looked silly, but now there is just a back plastic cave in their place. How is that any better? Here's a an odd one, the dome lights look cheap. I haven't even thought about a dome light in years, but the plastic lens on the G8's are just a frosted piece of plastic that really looks like its out of my aunt's '78 Skylark. How much would it cost to mold a more technical piece? The emergency brake lever has an odd shape that on occasion would jab me, it's styled to fit into the center console, but there's got to be a better way. At least leather wrap the lever! It's small items like these that add up to hurt the G8. A few extra dollars spent inside the cabin would pole vault the entire G8 to a much higher level.
I find the exterior's styling to be innocuous, but does not induce Homer Simpson-like "Must have donut" drooling. I'm not a fan of the hood scoops, but I actually like the fender vent: something I almost universally hate on every other car.
I also really like the front fenders. I find the muscular bulge really helps to add some excitement to the otherwise milquetoast front quarter.
I learned several things from this test drive experience. Firstly, a car of this size can work for a family of four. Whereas in the Astra, X-Type and 328 the kids were hitting each other and kicking the front seats, there was plenty of space for them to co-exist peacefully in the G8. There trunk easily swallowed all our Trader Joe's bags and the double stroller. Certainly it was no minivan, but we didn't suffer. Another thing I learned is that the Zeta platform that underpins this car is fantastic and that bodes extremely well for the forthcoming Camaro which is also Zeta based.
For GM, the car's platform is a tremendous achievement. As much as I complained about the interior, don't lose sight of the fact that from a performance perspective the G8 is a gem. The heavy lifting has been done and all that remains is some fine tuning. The G8 does require its buyer to make some sacrifices in terms of available options. For some folks, they simply can't forgo a classier interior, navi, xenons, Bluetooth, etc and will search elsewhere. However, there are many who love the rumble of a V8 and excellent mix of ride/handling and will appreciate the G8 for what it is: a large BMW-like sports sedan at a bargain price.
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