Pontiac is a marquee of automobile first produced in 1907 as Oakland Motor Company, and in 1926 was renamed to "Pontiac Motor Co."  On April 27, 2009, amid ongoing financial problems and restructuring efforts, GM announced that it would phase out the Pontiac brand by the end of 2010. In the 1990's, with the focus back on performance, Pontiac was once again doing what it did best. Although updating and revamping continued throughout the 1990s, the vast change seen during the 1980s did not. 

The period between 1989 and 1997 can best be described as one of continuous refinement. Anti-lock brakes, GM's Quad-4 engine, airbags and composite materials all became standard on Pontiacs during this time. Beginning in 1996, Pontiac began mining its historic past. This was the last year for the 6th generation Grand Prix. 1997 led the way for an all new Grand Prix, which debuted with the Wide Track chassis making a return spearheaded by the "Wider is Better" advertising campaign. In addition, the GTP trim level was added to the Grand Prix. It was only available with an automatic with front wheel drive so its sporting appeal was limited, but it made a compelling case against the Accord/Camry.

Finding Iowa Used Pontiacs

Those in search of an interesting used compact wagon may take a look at the Vibe. The Pontiac Vibe began life as a Toyota Matrix twin and ended up as the only Pontiac model still in production. Of all the compact cars that wore Pontiac badges, the Vibe was by far the best. Smart packaging is what made this small wagon desirable, as the Vibe combined clean styling, a roomy interior and exceptional utility under one affordably priced roof. The first-generation Pontiac Vibe was sold from 2003-'08. It was available in base and GT trim levels. Base Vibe models had a 126-hp 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine and could be equipped with either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive (AWD). 

The Pontiac Grand Prix started out as a personal luxury car in the early 1960s. In more recent times, the used Pontiac Grand Prix offered consumers a sensibly sized family coupe or sedan, with plenty of performance on tap thanks to the availability of peppy V6 engines or even a powerful V8. Styling continued to be a draw, with a sweeping roof line and the signature twin-grille nose. The last-generation Pontiac Grand Prix debuted in 2004 and was terminated after 2008. It benefited from a refined engine lineup, fine-tuned ride and handling characteristics and a more driver-friendly cockpit with large gauges and, for the most part, simple controls. The coupe was dropped, leaving the sedan as the lone body style.