To be honest, I wasn't expecting to be excited by this GTP coupe version of Pontiac's G6. While I'd enjoyed the sedan version enough, a glance at the GTP's spec sheet didn't suggest it would be much better to drive (though it was certainly better to look at).
I discovered just how wrong I was within, oh, the first fifty metres' worth of driving. Whatever the Pontiac people had done between the introduction of the G6 sedan and this coupe, it was a car transformed. Pulling out of GM's roughly-paved parking lot, I was expecting the sports suspension to clomp and creak, but it glided out onto the road with barely a twitch. While the GTP's ride is taut, as you would expect of a Pontiac, it has a superbly-damped feel that's new to the brand.
Really, it should always have been that way: the G6 shares componentry and its basic platform with the Saab 9-3, which has always juggled ride and handling pretty well; perhaps it just took some time for the Swedes' chassis tuning to filter down to Lake Orion, Michigan where the G6 is built.
Here is the kicker, no attention to details. Unfortunetely it's a repeatedpaul3230 said:The interior simply just isn't up to snuff for a 25k car. Point blank.
Ummm... when was $28k regarded as "luxury"??? I'd maybe give it "near luxury"... and anyway its a sports coupe not a luxury coupe...He Drove, She Drove. Souped-up Pontiac G6 fails the luxury test.
With 42 cubic feet in the rear, I'd think the G6 sedan was one of, if not the smallest in class in the back. In comparison, the Mazda 6 has 43, the VW Jetta 40. I haven't test-driven one yet, but having gazed at the G6 GTPs of my regulars, it does appear to be snug.TransAmTrance said:i agree that the interior could be much better... but "trim pieces that fit together", "econo-car looking guages", "too little rear leg room"?????
there is not one thing in my 06 gt that doesnot fit perfectly inside, the led backlit guages look fantastic, and last time i checked g6 coupe and sedan had huge rear leg room compared to the rest in their class (being built on extended epsilon al a malibu maxx)
Totally agree with the g6 coupe ride height. It takes an otherwise attractive design and makes it look ungainly and awkward. The authors are right about the interior though, i just bought a new Tiburon and it looks much more distinctive than the g6 coupe while costing a lot less.mjd1001 said:I like the G6 for the most part, I only have 2 complaints about it that are what probably kept me away from buying it:
-Not the quality of the entire interior..but just the center stack with the radio and the climate controlls....why did they make just one big rectangular hole and fill it in with those items? It doesn't help the dash flow at all, that is the only thing that hurts the looks of the interior for me.
-Secondly, the ride height. This is a car with dimensions very close to the Grand Prix and Monte Carlo/Impala, and I think it may even be taller, so why when I sat inside was I sitting so low to the floor? I know it is supposed to be a 'sporty' car, but it isn't a Miata or Mazda3 or Scion TC. I expected to have more room between the floor and the bottom of the seat.
???FISH said:It isn't nearly as agile as such competitors as the Scion tC or the Hyundai Tiburon which, incidentally, are priced thousands of dollars below the GTP.
AndrewGS said:???Scion tC and Hyundai Tiburon are it's competitors?
Thank you Mrs. Lienert! What other slab-sided uninspired badly-proportioned vehicles do you like? Scion tC?Mrs. Lienert said:SHE: What a stylish exterior!
Ah come on... I can easily see how people like the look of this car. I love it. There are lots of cars I don't like that I can fully understand why other people might, like most Mercedes' and Lexus'. Calling her out for liking the looks of the car seems a little harsh for me. This isn't an unquestionably ugly vehicle.Bravada said:How to lose all credibility the very moment you begin:
Thank you Mrs. Lienert! What other slab-sided uninspired badly-proportioned vehicles do you like? Scion tC?
Are you sure it has LED gauge backlighting?TransAmTrance said:the led backlit guages look fantastic
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. Not sure where the Lienert's figure that the G6 is a "near luxury" vehicle. Kinda funny.jlt0x said:$27,250 isn't "near-luxury". It's everyday-average at best. If that coupe cost at least $35k, then maybe the HE-SHE critique (complaints) would be valid.