Pontiac

Pontiac or formally the Pontiac Motor Division of General Motors, was an American automobile brand owned, manufactured, and commercialized by General Motors. Introduced as a companion make for GM's more expensive line of Oakland automobiles, Pontiac overtook Oakland in popularity and supplanted its parent brand entirely by 1933.

Sold in the United States, Canada, and Mexico by GM, in the hierarchy of GM's five divisions, it was slotted above Chevrolet, but below Oldsmobile, Buick, and Cadillac. Starting with the 1959 models, marketing was focused on selling the lifestyle that the car's ownership promised rather than the car itself. By emphasizing its "Wide Track" design, it billed itself as the "performance" division of General Motors, which "built excitement."

Facing financial problems and restructuring efforts, GM announced during the 2008 financial crash that it would discontinue the Pontiac brand by the end of 2010, as was the case with Oldsmobile in 2004. The last Pontiac-badged cars were built in December 2009, with one final vehicle assembled in January 2010. Franchise agreements for Pontiac dealers expired on October 31, 2010, leaving GM to focus on its four remaining North American brands: Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac, and GMC.

The Oakland Motor Car Company was founded in 1907 in Pontiac, Michigan, by Edward Murphy, a manufacturer of horse-drawn carriages. The following year, another former buggy company executive, William C. Durant, founded General Motors in Flint, Michigan, as a holding company for the Buick Motor Company. GM soon bought other automakers, including Oldsmobile and Cadillac. In 1909, Oakland became part of GM. The first model made its debut as the Oakland Four from 1909 until it was replaced by the Oakland Six in 1916. In 1926 the Pontiac Series 6-27 was introduced as a junior brand to Oakland, which featured a six-cylinder engine. The Pontiac was more popular than the senior brand and became its own GM division when Oakland was canceled in 1931.

It was named after the famous Odawa chief, who had also given his name to the city of Pontiac, Michigan, where the car was produced. Within months of its introduction, Pontiac was outselling Oakland. Body styles offered included a sedan with both two and four doors, Landau Coupe, with the Sport Phaeton, Sport Landau Sedan, Sport Cabriolet, and Sport Roadster. As a result of Pontiac's rising sales, versus Oakland's declining sales, Pontiac became the only companion marque to survive its parent, with Oakland ceasing production in 1932.

Pontiacs were also manufactured from knock-down kits at GM's Japanese factory at Osaka Assembly in Osaka, Japan, from 1927 until 1941.