Author Topic: 2006 Pontiac Pursuit GT (Read 34960 times)

Agiledood · « **Reply #40 on:** February 03, 2006, 08:43:23 pm »

Quote from: footlong58 on February 03, 2006, 08:09:37 pm

Sorry guys, the Cobalt/Pursuit isn't the Miracle car to put GM on the small car map... Yes, it's better than the Sunfire/Cavalier of days past, BUT it's still a far far far far ways from besting the Civic in anything really, other than price. So yeah, it is cheaper than a Civic... If it was an equal car AND cheaper, then I'd say GM was on to something... But it's a lesser car for cheaper, and really, that's just common sense...

have you driven a Pursuit? (I assume the reply will be "yeah and it's a piece of crap..." or something equivalent)

footlong58 · « **Reply #41 on:** February 03, 2006, 09:41:02 pm »

Quote from: y2chuck on February 03, 2006, 08:43:23 pm

Quote from: footlong58 on February 03, 2006, 08:09:37 pm
Sorry guys, the Cobalt/Pursuit isn't the Miracle car to put GM on the small car map... Yes, it's better than the Sunfire/Cavalier of days past, BUT it's still a far far far far ways from besting the Civic in anything really, other than price. So yeah, it is cheaper than a Civic... If it was an equal car AND cheaper, then I'd say GM was on to something... But it's a lesser car for cheaper, and really, that's just common sense...

have you driven a Pursuit? (I assume the reply will be "yeah and it's a piece of crap..." or something equivalent)

Yup, I have... Cobalt SS too... I drive new Civic's and CSX's on a daily basis as well...

I wouldn't say the Cobalt is a piece of crap... I'm sure it will provide adequate transportation, but that's it... The new Civic is on a whole different level IMO... I remember when GM brought out the Cobalt, they were all telling us how this, THIS was the car to have!! I can only picture GM's face when Honda replied with the new Civic...

The Cobalt competes with the last gen Civic tick for tack, but the new one just makes the Cobalt feel like it's 5 years old already...

The Mighty Duck · « **Reply #42 on:** February 04, 2006, 12:21:39 am »

Quote

The Cobalt competes with the last gen Civic tick for tack, but the new one just makes the Cobalt feel like it's 5 years old already...

There's something we agree on, at least. The Pursuit/Cobalt was a solid answer to the 2005 Civic... but the new Civic blows everything out of the water. Unfortunate timing on GM's part.

That said, the Pursuit still isn't a terrible car to live with. Comparing pricing straight up, I believe Pursuit GT and Civic EX should be near the same, with similar equipment? The GT will deliver more horsepower and torque, in exchange for some reliability...

*shrug*

It all comes down to preference then.

Seafoam · « **Reply #43 on:** February 04, 2006, 05:47:58 pm »

I'll take the reliability over everything else. I got stung when I bought a cavalier in 97. I just can't take the chance.If we wait a couple of years maybe it will show they are very reliable. There is a guy on another thread complaining about the squealing brakes on his new pontiac G6 that can't be fixed by the dealer. I'll stick to boring toyota.

Andrew

ArticSteve · « **Reply #44 on:** February 04, 2006, 06:22:23 pm »

The problem with the Pursuit and Cobalt is that they are 5 years too late. Too many ppl have been burned by the domestics for a very long time now. Its going to take a miracle to reverse this perception at least in Canada.

footlong58 · « **Reply #45 on:** February 04, 2006, 07:46:56 pm »

Quote from: articsteve on February 04, 2006, 06:22:23 pm

The problem with the Pursuit and Cobalt is that they are 5 years too late. Too many ppl have been burned by the domestics for a very long time now. Its going to take a miracle to reverse this perception at least in Canada.

Your 100% right.

The Mighty Duck · « **Reply #46 on:** February 04, 2006, 09:59:13 pm »

If they can make their prices competitive I don't know that's strictly true... you see a lot of Waves and Aveos on the roads; if they do a good job with these cars, people are more likely to upgrade to another GM when the time comes.

Not a lot of Pursuits/Cobalts though... evidently they need to drop the price (further).

Zoo · « **Reply #47 on:** February 05, 2006, 01:30:42 pm »

Cavaliers and Sunfires were sold essentially on price alone. The jump from an Aveo to Epica to Cobalt is pretty steep. Unfortunately they may need to aggressively discount the Cobalt to start to move some units. The good news is that if it a really good, reliable car then the car's reputation should lead to future sales. It will take GM a long time to overcome their reputation for making the substandard cars that they have made in the past.

barrie1 · « **Reply #48 on:** February 05, 2006, 05:13:19 pm »

It sure is strange that most of the Sunfires and Cavaliers from the last 10 years are still on the road to-day. They were and are a lot more reliable then you think or even realize. Don't take my word for it, look around starting to-morrow and you will see all kinds of them and if you ask the owners how they feel about them most will tell you they enjoy them a lot. Since when is any brand perfect especially if it cost many thousands more then basic transportation.

Zoo · « **Reply #49 on:** February 05, 2006, 06:37:49 pm »

You're right that there are a lot of Cavaliers/Sunfires on the road still Barrie. However, they had become long in the tooth and were far short on refinement. The trouble with that scenario is that when these owners/drivers had an opportunity to drive/be driven in a newer technology car then they might think that GM is leagues behind the competition. There is a penalty to pay for continually put out a 20 year old design year after year. You can get away with it with the Astro/Safari and Ford with the last generation Mustang which dated back to 1979 with the Fox platform. The Cavalier was a powerful; but rough riding, poor fit and finish car which sold primarily on price. The Civic and Corolla went through 4+ redesigns while the Cavalier/Sunbird/Sunfire got reskinned for the better part of 20 years. They were a proven design; but old tech. I hope that the Cobalt/Pursuit fare better.

robarakira · « **Reply #50 on:** February 05, 2006, 07:01:02 pm »

Quote from: barrie1 on February 05, 2006, 05:13:19 pm

look around starting to-morrow and you will see all kinds of them

I see them all the time, but then again my commute does pass the junkyard.

I'm sure they are better than their reputation (as with the neon).

Seafoam · « **Reply #51 on:** February 05, 2006, 08:23:20 pm »

Quote from: Zoo on February 05, 2006, 06:37:49 pm

You're right that there are a lot of Cavaliers/Sunfires on the road still Barrie. However, they had become long in the tooth and were far short on refinement. The trouble with that scenario is that when these owners/drivers had an opportunity to drive/be driven in a newer technology car then they might think that GM is leagues behind the competition. There is a penalty to pay for continually put out a 20 year old design year after year. You can get away with it with the Astro/Safari and Ford with the last generation Mustang which dated back to 1979 with the Fox platform. The Cavalier was a powerful; but rough riding, poor fit and finish car which sold primarily on price. The Civic and Corolla went through 4+ redesigns while the Cavalier/Sunbird/Sunfire got reskinned for the better part of 20 years. They were a proven design; but old tech. I hope that the Cobalt/Pursuit fare better.

Yes there are still lots of them on the road, many were sold as rental cars.
The thing I didn't like about my cavalier was all the parts you had to replace on a relatively new car[alternators, waterpumps,computer modules, door switches,etc].Yes parts are cheap but you need a lot of them to keep it going.Parts maybe more expensive for an imported car but you only have to replace them once in the life of the car. If GM could do this I might be a potential purchaser. I have heard good things about the ecotec engine in these cars.

The Mighty Duck · « **Reply #52 on:** February 05, 2006, 10:46:19 pm »

I think the Cobalt/Pursuit will fare better... GM obviously recognized the problem with the Cavalier/Sunfire, that's why the new models have been given a new name and a new style. I was very impressed with the fit, finish, and ride of the Pursuit GT, and for the money I think it's a great car.

It's just a matter of getting people into these cars, which shouldn't be hard except that GM has that horrible reputation thanks to Cavalier/Sunfire. So, unfortunately for them, they may have to be selling these cars at a loss in order to "prove their worth".

Assuming GM gets their quality up, once perception has changed they should be able to compete on a level field with Civic et al. It'll take time, and it won't be easy, but the new Cobalt/Pursuit is a much needed step in the right direction.

footlong58 · « **Reply #53 on:** February 06, 2006, 11:05:50 am »

Quote from: Demosthenes X on February 05, 2006, 10:46:19 pm

once perception has changed they should be able to compete on a level field with Civic et al.

Never going to happen. It would be great for the industry but it will never happen.

jww · « **Reply #54 on:** February 06, 2006, 04:03:44 pm »

I expect that the GM Cobalt/Pursuit will fare about as well as the Cavalier/Sunfire did. In other words, GM will sell plenty of them if they are cheap and easy to fix. I have a friend who has 2 Sunfires, and does virtually all his own work. For $50 and a couple of hours of his time he can do the brake shoes/pads on all four wheels. He admits that they are not good performers, but he is after economy all the way so they meet his need well.

I doubt, however, that the SS models will ever get to the tuner craze level that Civics have over the past few years.

Besides all this - they are simply butt-ugly. GM hasn't had a decent design come out of this side of the ocean in a very long time. In Europe, however.....

Vauxhall Astra Twin Top

Vauxhall Astra VXR

... they are putting out some very nice looking (and decent performing) cars!

jww

skypoint · « **Reply #55 on:** February 06, 2006, 05:30:35 pm »

The next generations of Saturns are very closely related to GM's Opel & Vauxhalls brands in Europe and the Old Country.

The thought of the Saturn Aura makes me slightly horny. If they can bring it over without cheapening it it too much for North American tastes, it should be mighty impressive....

The Mighty Duck · « **Reply #56 on:** February 06, 2006, 10:33:55 pm »

I took a quick look at the Ion when I was at the Pontiac dealership (they share land, and owners)... with that price tag, I'm surprised I don't see more of them on the roads. The clamshell doors were pretty unique and neat, I thought, too.

Zoo · « **Reply #57 on:** February 06, 2006, 11:47:06 pm »

From what I have read in Car & Driver the Ion is a different beast than the Cobalt and Pursuit. Yes, they share the same platform; but apparently GM went a lot futher with sound deadening etc on the Cobalt than the Ion. I don't know if they added the improvements which went into the Cobalt into later Ions though.

jww · « **Reply #58 on:** February 07, 2006, 11:34:08 am »

Quote from: Demosthenes X on February 06, 2006, 10:33:55 pm

I took a quick look at the Ion when I was at the Pontiac dealership (they share land, and owners)... with that price tag, I'm surprised I don't see more of them on the roads. The clamshell doors were pretty unique and neat, I thought, too.

But they drive horribly. You could give me an Ion for free and it would sit in my driveway and rot because no one in our home would drive the thing. You feel like you are sitting on the road, the steering is numb and disconnected from the road, the engine whines, and those plastic body parts scratch way too easily.

As you can tell, I am not much of a Saturn fan $:-\$
jww.

RunsinLight · « **Reply #59 on:** January 17, 2009, 10:50:59 am »

Dispite owning this car I admit I didn't know this. The battery is in the trunk.

Thanks again Motoring TV!

Author Topic: 2006 Pontiac Pursuit GT (Read 34960 times)

barrie1

robarakira