Lutz: GM planned G8-based GTO revival

[PREMiERdrum]

However, former GM VP Bob Lutz revealed in a recent Road & Track article that the automaker was working on a ground-up redesign of the GTO that would have address the car's shortcomings. Lutz didn't disclose all of the details of the project, but said GM “had a full-size clay model of what would have been the next GTO. It was essentially a two-door, four-passenger coupe that used the same architecture as the Pontiac G8 sedan.”

 

Lutz didn't reveal the timing of the project, but the G8 was launched in 2008, indicating the new GTO would have debuted around that time. However, GM announced in 2009 that it planned to shutter Pontiac for good, closing the door on what would have been a proper GTO revival.

 

http://www.leftlanenews.com/gm-planned-fifth-generation-pontiac-gto.html

[RichardJensen]

Gee.

 

I wonder why GM went bankrupt.

[PREMiERdrum]

Gee.

 

I wonder why GM went bankrupt.

 

You know the old GM saying..

 

"If at first you don't succeed, try the exact same thing a year later."

[akirby]

Gee.

 

I wonder why GM went bankrupt.

 

It totally wasn't their fault and had nothing to do with overcapacity and overproduction and too many brands and mismanaging investments. It was just bad luck.

[RichardJensen]

I mean, their house is burning to the ground around them, and they're on homedepot.com picking out new cupboards for the kitchen.

[jpd80]

A GM RWD platform primarily intended for Australian domestic markets and limited exports to the Middle East gets blown out of proportion.

Next thing we know is that GM is looking to replace as many North American large vehicles as possible with it.

 

The distraction continues for years as GM wrestles with itself in public, finally scaling back the project to Pontiac G8,

leaving other divisions with no suitable replacements in the pipeline. It was a mistake to tout RWD so heavily but then

it was an even bigger mistake to witdraw and leave no new products in the pipeline at a very crucial time.

 

And as others have said, what about all the other essential products GM failed to deliver in the lead up to bankruptcy.

Perhaps GM bungling year after year resulted in a financial crisis that underscored delinquent management.

 

RWD wasn't the problem, it was a symptom of deep cultural problems in GM's dysfunctional management.

[J-150]

Nothing wrong with the G8 as a car.

 

But like the Freestyle, no one knew about it.

[akirby]

Nothing wrong with the G8 as a car.

 

Except for the styling. Ugh.

[papilgee4evaeva]

Except for the styling. Ugh.

Like most Aussie cars (Ford not excluded), styling was quite a bit dated.

[twintornados]

You know the old GM saying..

 

"If at first you don't succeed, try the exact same thing a year later."

 

And if that doesn't work, import an Opel instead...