The Pontiac Solstice just looked too good to be true. Produced for just four short years, when it appeared for the 2006 model year it seemed like it might just be the car that would save Pontiac. By the time the last Solstice rolled off GM's Wilmington, Delaware, assembly line in July 2009, it seemed like just another under-delivering GM mistake. And yet the virtues of the Pontiac Solstice were undeniable.
Way back in 2002, the Pontiac Solstice appeared in concept form at car shows around the country. Cleanly styled around bulging fenders over big wheels with barely any overhangs at all, the two-seat, rear-drive Solstice Concept roadster was an instant sensation. And it was a real car that ran, too, cleverly incorporating bits and pieces from GM's worldwide parts bin in elegant ways. It was the sort of small sports car that just looked like it made sense. And when a production version of the Pontiac Solstice was announced, it seemed a minor miracle.
Underneath the Pontiac Solstice lay GM's "Kappa" platform, a purpose-built sports car structure with hydro-formed frame rails and a thick backbone along the car's center incorporating the transmission tunnel. The all-independent suspension used short and long arms both front and rear. GM designed the Kappa to only accept versions of the company's Ecotec four-cylinder engine, though at least a few Solstices have had V8s shoved under their hood. The first Pontiac Solstice was powered by a 2.4-liter Ecotec making 177 horsepower.
Though the Pontiac Solstice was praised for its styling and clever engineering (the front foglights, for instance, came straight off Pontiac's midsize Grand Prix), it was criticized for awful visibility when the top was up, minimal storage space and unsatisfying handling. The addition of the turbocharged, 260-hp Solstice GXP for 2007 added speed and better handling to the line, but did nothing to fix other criticisms. A Pontiac Solstice fastback coupe incorporating a targa-style roof was added to the line for 2009 and offered in regular and GXP states of tune.
The Pontiac Solstice doesn't rate as one of the great GM debacles, but it never lived up to the promise of that 2002 concept.
