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Driving Impression: Pontiac Solstice

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Four years ago, Simon Cox, a British designer at General Motors, created the fabulously sexy Lightning concept car, which was unveiled at the 2002 Detroit motor show to rapturous applause.

At the time, GM announced the slinky two-seater roadster would be made in both left and right-hand drive: in Europe it would become the Opel GT, replacing the Speedster; in the UK it would succeed the Vauxhall VX220; and across the Atlantic it would become the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky, two crucial niche products for a beleaguered GM.

Three years later, the reality has proven to be somewhat different.

Read more here:
http://www.channel4.com/4car/road-tests/driving-impressions-2005/P/pontiac/solstice05-.html
 
What cars have you Europeans been raised on? :shock:

Jeez, lighten up your standards a little! Every American magazine has universally praised the Solstice, and even some have said it was better than the legend that is the Miata. Even Car and Driver liked it, and they haven't had a GM product win a comparison test since the Reconstruction era (I may be exaggerating). So is it in your drinking water or something? Because that's definitely not normal! ;)

Once again, an American car falls flat on its face in the midst of excruciatingly high European standards and must compete on value again. Sigh...
 
i think the best description is somewhere between the 2 articles bc im sure there is a little bit of biased opinions going on in each article.
 
Kowalski said:
Sometimes, what it's good enough for Americans may not be good enough to Europeans.
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"good enough"?

It's not like our standards are lower, people just find things different on the different sides of the ocean.
 
I prefer the Saturn Sky's looks to the Solstice, however I do find the Pontiac to be quite attractive :|
 
p0w3r said:
haha this is hilarious...i read an american review from car and driver and they said its better then the MX-5 :? :eek:

http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=3&article_id=9969

i wonder whos the one that lying here :yucky:
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i can kinda see their point, and the solstice is cheaper. but the MX-5 is the better car, i think C/D did an in-depth review of the two in the mag. and the mx-5 wins most of the performance tests easily. and its more practical, and the interior is better. the only thing that the solstice does better is ride quality.
 
i have the mag and they liked the miata still, even though i don't really like american cars does that mean that any american car going against a legendary car like the miata will never be better than it? so if a little alfa romeo roadster (hypothetical situation here) was said to be better than you would believe it because it's italian and not american? And I like how people say that the solstice is worse than the miata? has anyone here even driven both?
 
From what I have read, the Solstice is easier to drive at the limit, where is the Mazda is twitchy and uneasy. But in the end the Miata stood it's ground by being slightly more fun to drive, and has more usable space. But on the other hand some magazines chose the Solstice because it was easier to drive, that it looked a lot better and that it was cheaper.

Aside from the Miatas great driving dynamics, i think it looks like a jelly bean :yucky:

Pontiac's Solstice exterior design on the other hand was referred to giving off a classic British roadster vibe...not sure if that's a great thing but timeless IMO

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Solstice's interior is impressive period, editors had nothing to really complain about, some subject comments like not being as nice looking or feeling as as the MX5.

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The Solstice interior theme is more driver oriented and i just love it.
 
Here is another quick note that might actually alter one's thoughts of the Pontiac.

The Solstice might not be as sharp, responsive or poised as the MX5. But at least it?s a car with character, something that goes its own way and doesn?t strive to be anything else but its own car. That?s where the real passion comes in because a real enthusiast will appreciate that regardless of its slight performance short comings when compared to the benchmark. It exhibits a very driver oriented feel and doesn?t disappoint quality wise, and it is undeniably sexy. That said how can anyone call this a bad car?
 
don't like the solstice looks or the new mx5 either but the sky looks very nice :) apart the interior that will no doubt fall apart and is most likely made from the same stuff as coke bottles, I'd have one :) coupe would be better tho
 
CanadianLoonie said:
A Lotus Elise is better than them both.
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So a M12 will rape a Elise, whats your point? The Solstice and Miata are two very affordable roadsters that compete in a different segment. I thought that would be obvious no?

:roll:
 
I honestly don't know who to believe on this car. I don't think that the Americans have any great interest in saying the car is great if they don't really think it to be so.
 
I was at the State Fair of Texas yesterday, and saw both cars in person. I *definately* prefer the looks of the Saturn Sky. To their credit, the plastics didnt seem nearly as cheap as I was expecting...

I also sat in the new Corvette Z06! That is going to be one incredible car. (But that's for another thread.)
 
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: if the Solstice was designed, engineered, and built by Italians, it would be considered one of the greatest cars ever despite its shortcomings.
 
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