Inside Scoop: Green Light for Solstice Bob Lutz has rarely been accused of being indecisive, so it came as little surprise when we learned from several sources at GM that the General's ur-design chief returned to his office right after the auto show press days in Detroit, and gave the Pontiac Solstice coupe and convertible the green light.
Solstice will be built on the front-drive Delta platform, modified to accommodate a driveline tunnel down the center. Power will come from supercharged and non-supercharged versions of GM's Lotus-designed L850 four-cylinder motor mated to a six-speed manual, or five-speed automatic gearbox. Production reportedly starts in 2004.
Well, here comes the next Fiero. Complete with a "Lotus" connection.
I really hope they make the car less butt-ugly before they release it! But it'll be interesting to see what the final product look like.
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04:07 PM
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BN Boomer Member
Posts: 2086 From: Snohomish, Wa Registered: Jun 99
Not sure. The quote says it's built on a front wheel drive platform, but modified to accomodate a driveline tunnel. I'm taking that to mean, front engine, RWD. Not very Fiero-esque, but still a 2 seater.
I just hope the car looks better than the current Miata/Jellybean hybrid I've seen.
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04:17 PM
Jaygee79 Member
Posts: 4259 From: Dartmouth, MA Registered: Mar 2000
A local paper, The Chicago Tribune, Had a story about GM and it's concept cars. Yes the Solstace has a green light. The disturbing news according to the article is Lutz doesn't like the traditional Pontiac front ends. He says they all look like they want to attack something. (and this is a bad thing how?) Anyways, he stated "I had a colleague tell me that Pontiac designs look like the cars are about to attack you. We are going to make them new, fresh, youthful and exciting with clean lines," he said, meaning no more ribbed sides. "All of the new Pontiac designs come out in the next 18 to 24 months [new Grand Prix '03, Grand Am '04, Bonneville replacement '05] and will reflect the new design philosophy of keeping it clean and simple," he said
maybe mid engine w/ front wheel drive ! That would be different. I dont see how they can get an engine in the front, its so small. But I didnt see the auto show yet.
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08:01 PM
The Fieromaster Member
Posts: 4124 From: Painesville, Ohio USA Registered: Jun 2001
The soul of any worthy roadster is the powertrain. The Solstice is powered by a rear-wheel-drive 2.2-liter DOHC supercharged EcoTec four-cylinder engine generating up to 240 horsepower with premium fuel. The supercharger is an off-the-shelf unit supplied right out of the GM Service Parts performance catalog. The engine is mated to a Borg-Warner performance six-speed manual transmission, the same one used in the Corvette.- clipped from the gm site.
------------------ Matt D 1984 Indy Fiero (auto) 1985 2m4 4T60, DIS V6 3.1 to be turbocharged
Originally posted by Oreif: A local paper, The Chicago Tribune, Had a story about GM and it's concept cars. Yes the Solstace has a green light. The disturbing news according to the article is Lutz doesn't like the traditional Pontiac front ends. He says they all look like they want to attack something. (and this is a bad thing how?) Anyways, he stated "I had a colleague tell me that Pontiac designs look like the cars are about to attack you. We are going to make them new, fresh, youthful and exciting with clean lines," he said, meaning no more ribbed sides. "All of the new Pontiac designs come out in the next 18 to 24 months [new Grand Prix '03, Grand Am '04, Bonneville replacement '05] and will reflect the new design philosophy of keeping it clean and simple," he said
Wow, how to screw over all cars. There weren't many great car designs out there. But I always loved the Pontiac front-end. And now they're going to make it like any other car. That Lutz guy has absolutely no balls whatsoever, does he? Somebody posted something else he said a while ago, and that was just as much crap. In a couple of years every car will look exactly the same if this goes on and no people with visions of their own stand up. This just makes me
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07:45 AM
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Fformula88 Member
Posts: 7891 From: Buffalo, NY Registered: Mar 2000
I am VERY happy they are giving this car the green light. Without the Firebird, this division is sorely lacking in anything sporty, and thats not good for the "Excitement" division. I am also glad to hear the S/C engine will make it to production! Give it some guts to start out with. Hopefully they stick with this car and keep improving it over time! Thumbs up GM! (For a change!)
I wouldn't jump to too big of a conclusion witht the Pontiac front end styling yet. Give them a chance to show what they are really thinking about. They are mroe distinctive than other cars on the road, but they can be distinctive without tacking a lot of garbage onto them also. In my opinion, cars like BMW's and Audi's are distinctive, and they don't have plastic ribs for nobody's pleasure. (The Fiero is devoid of Pontiac ribbing too for that matter, but on the other hand its all plastic! )
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12:46 PM
BN Boomer Member
Posts: 2086 From: Snohomish, Wa Registered: Jun 99
I was never really a fan of the excessive plastic body cladding myself. Kind of a stupid way to dress up a vehicle. I like a "clean" distinctive look.
I'm probably in the minority here, but I know that I'm not alone in liking the look of the new Impalas. It has a clean, aggressive, and definitely distinctive look to it, free of much plastic except for the rockers and the spoiler. Our black LS gets quite a few looks and compliments.
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01:16 PM
Cheever3000 Member
Posts: 12400 From: The Man from Tallahassee Registered: Aug 2001
hmmm, if its a FWD platform, maybe I could buy an escort, put on some insurance, wrap it around the sol-what-ever-the-ugly-thing-is, and then get the engine from my friend, who will more than likely two it away. Next step, trying to shove it in a Fiero.
Originally posted by Return of Fiero: hmmm, if its a FWD platform, maybe I could buy an escort, put on some insurance, wrap it around the sol-what-ever-the-ugly-thing-is, and then get the engine from my friend, who will more than likely two it away. Next step, trying to shove it in a Fiero.
Myke
Why don't you just save about 10 steps and buy a Saturn 2.2 then put a supercharger on it?
An front mounted aluminum 4 cyl with a rear mounted transaxle. Nice to see Pontiac's trying something new. (If anyone knows what I'm talking about here, please feel free to reply.)
[This message has been edited by Pontiaddict (edited 01-20-2002).]
"Raced That, Wrecked Better" 
(If anyone knows what I'm talking about here, please feel free to reply.)
