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Edmunds Long Term Verdict: Pontiac Solstice


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Edmunds Long Term Verdict: Pontiac Solstice

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After 12 months and more than 17,000 miles, the sun has finally set on our time with our long-term 2006 Pontiac Solstice. If you've read anything we've written about the Pontiac in the last year, you won't be surprised that we're not terribly broken up about the parting of ways with this little roadster. While it provided us with lots of wonderful photographs, the sexy-looking drop top wore us down over the long haul with high levels of interior noise, a jarring ride around town and a drivetrain that provided more vibration than enjoyable performance.

Bottom line: The Solstice is a bargain-priced beauty, but with a few too many rough edges.

Details below.

Edmunds

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This article makes it sound like a car from the old GM:  not quite enough development time, crude around the edges, but is great at getting good numbers at the track and skidpad.

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Honestly, the platform IS old GM. Isn't it just a downsized Y-Body that had been sitting around GM for a while?

The review seems pretty fair... I mean, lets face it, the Solstice has some flaws that need to be addressed.

I'm not too thrilled to hear about the slowing sales, but I guess thats a product of 3 things. 1) People waiting for the GXP 2) Winter and 3) Demand leveling off after the initial glut of buyers.

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Design and performance are there, but compared to the slickness and quality present in cars like the Miata--among others--it just isn't there.

That's not to say it's bad or that it doesn't trump a ton of competitors as is, just that it is what it is by way of skimping on some other areas.

As people on other messageboards have commented (non-GM message boards, BTW) the Solstice interior looks fine in their own photographs.  Yet they accuse it of massive panel misalignments and the like.  The whole review just seems suspect.  :stupid:

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Certain things like that can't be told solely from photos. Not that I want the review to sound any worse than it does, but it seems pretty spot on to me, even with just looking at and playing with a few in person (not driving, however).

Edited by caddycruiser
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When it comes down to it, looks sell the car. Squeaks, rattles and cheap plastic can be fixed in future model years. Design is key and refinement comes with practice.

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Unfortunately, that's an old-age GM attitude that's led way too many product-development cycles....

It's one of the main reasons they are facing the challenges that they are today.

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While I will be the first to claim the car is not perfect it is far from as being as bad as some what you to believe.

I can remember a time when Miata Door handles were coming off in the hands of the owners but the press did not find much space to print that.

This was a car done on a very tight budget and a very short time line to keep Pontiac alive. I amn sure we will see the details fix and many are being adress as of this time.

Sales are slow due to winter and lets face it this is a low volume car and will not rack up big numbers. The Miata is not a major profit center for Mazda and we should not expect the same here. This is a car that will help make it cool to own a Pontiac again and help sell a lot of G6's by getting people into the show room.

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While I will be the first to claim the car is not perfect it is far from as being as bad as some what you to believe.

I can remember a time when Miata Door handles were coming off in the hands of the owners but the press did not find much space to print that. 

This was a car done on a very tight budget and a very short time line to keep Pontiac alive. I amn sure we will see the details fix and many are being adress as of this time.

Sales are slow due to winter and lets face it this is a low volume car and will not rack up big numbers. The Miata is not a major profit center for Mazda and we should not expect the same here. This is a car that will help make it cool to own a Pontiac again and help sell a lot of G6's by getting people into the show room.

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Great point on all accounts, but it's still worth mentioning the full truth about the car, even if it is only from a few people's experience.

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I can remember a time when Miata Door handles were coming off in the hands of the owners but the press did not find much space to print that. 

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When did you hear that?

IN fact, up until the current generation, Miata didn't even have "pull" handles on the outside.....they were always the "flipper-up" type....??

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