Pontiac Grand Prix GT2

Pontiac Grand Prix GT2 Pontiac Grand Prix GT2
Short Take Road Test

The Grand Prix has a simple but ambitious mission: To allow owners the illusion that they're almost keeping up with those snooty folks zooming around in Audis and BMWs. Tricky, yes, but perhaps not quite as tricky as it sounds, since Grand Prix buyers rarely get around to cross-shopping the fancy German iron, and they're not quite ready for the sedate image that goes with sedans such as the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. As good as they are, those mid-size stalwarts don't exactly project an aura of rock-'n'-roll readiness.

Like a good many sports-sedan wannabes, the Grand Prix's image is one part swoopy styling and one part performance, the performance portion being derived from the hottest member of the family. In this case, that would be the supercharged Grand Prix GTP, particularly the GTP augmented with the Competition Group package. So equipped, the Grand Prix will sprint to 60 mph in 6.6 seconds, cover a quarter-mile in 15.0 seconds at 93 mph, and pull 0.81 g on the skidpad. Those numbers, excerpted from our July '03 issue, aren't quite heart-stopping, but they're certainly respectable.

However, they aren't representative of the Grand Prix that most folks buy. The Grand Prix GTP Comp G we tested rang the cash-register chimes to the tune of $30,370, a sum that would allow you to strap on one of those aspirational Teutons Pontiac allegedly benchmarks. But most Grand Prix buyers-about 75 percent, according to Pontiac-go for a more affordable setup. In the current idiom that means GT1 (base) or GT2. Pontiac dropped the old fleet-oriented SE version when the Grand Prix underwent its makeover for the '04 model year, and the 175-hp, 3.1-liter pushrod V-6 that went with it. So there's just one engine: GM's 3800 V-6 (venerable is a little too youthful for this Methuselah of internal combustion) bolted to a four-speed automatic.

In naturally aspirated tune-which is what you get with GTs 1 and 2-this trusty old nail delivers 200 horsepower at 5200 rpm and 230 pound-feet of torque at 4000. Operating with an asthmatic growl that's probably intended to suggest sportiness, the cast iron 3800 is the antithesis of the overhead-cam, multivalve variable-cam-timing high-revvers arrayed against it-a bulldog among whippets. Still, it gets the job done, hauling our 3558-pound GT2 tester to 60 mph in 8.1 seconds. And its most endearing trait: It's as reliable as the sunrise.

Other dynamic test results are less compelling. Rolling on all-season Goodyear Eagle LS tires (P225/60SR-16), this test car required 202 feet to stop from 70 mph, compared with the 181 feet recorded by the GTP Comp G, and exhibited more body roll with less grip (0.76 g) on the skidpad.

Body roll was also conspicuous in transitions, accompanied by resolute understeer. The only curiosity here is why Pontiac opted for such a quick steering ratio, just 2.4 turns lock-to-lock, when the rest of the car's behavior seems to be aimed at certainty rather than haste or entertainment.

On the other hand, with its softer suspension tuning and taller tire sidewalls, the GT provides a distinctly smoother ride than the GTP, and that, plus the tall final drive (3.05:1), makes for relaxed freeway cruising.

We've aired our quibbles with the new interior-oddly textured plastics that don't quite avoid looking cheap, a back seat that's only marginally habitable-in previous visits, so let's talk money.

At a glance, this car's as-tested price-$26,580-seems pretty high, only slightly below the BMW 325i threshold. However, our car was equipped with $2285 worth of options (power sunroof, leather trim, premium audio), and its base price-$24,295-is $1900 north of the GT1 version, which comes with steel wheels.

At that level we're still talking about pricing that's comparable to that of a Mazda 6 s or Nissan Altima 3.5, both decidedly more desirable rides, in our opinion. But this doesn't take GM's current pricing programs into account, a numbers game so kaleidoscopic as to defy description. Still, if you can't find a Grand Prix GT deal for a grand or two below sticker, you probably aren't trying very hard. And with deep discounting, the Grand Prix merits more notice.

This is not a car that satisfies our inner driver. But its smooth new skin looks good, it's priced to sell, and it provides the illusion of a fast-and-furious bad boy waiting to emerge. For some that will be enough.

-Tony Swan