According to Bloomberg, talk is that General Motors plans to reduce the number of Pontiac models like the Grand Prix (though it's getting replaced by the pictured G8). The idea behind GM's decision is to do a better job of defining its eight U.S. brands. This is in addition to combining Pontiac with GMC and Buick dealerships in an attempt to more closely associate the brands together.
This comes after Pontiac has failed to achieve an annual sales gain since 1999. Pontiac sales dropped 20 percent this year, putting it behind Hyundai but ahead of Mazda. Worse, sales to rental car companies have been slashed as well as GM tries to improve its vehicles' value. All of this cost-cutting could result in as much as a 40 percent drop in sales for the one-time third largest selling car brand in the U.S.
Our take? Is Pontiac, like Buick (which is fairing worse) heading down the same path as Oldsmobile and destined to join that defunct GM brand in the great car heaven in the sky?