Grand Prix For Sale

Checking out the dealer’s website where I bought my G8 GT I found the Grand Prix I traded-in up for sale. Quite a bit more than I got for trade-in (as expected)…

I wonder how long it lasts and what they actually sell it for. I also wonder if they took care of the vibration at speed, the slipping transmission (once at temperature), the ‘low coolant’ indicator, or any of the other issues it was having…

Valentine’s Day: Falling in Love

Valentine’s Day was very memorable this year. It was the first time I drove a G8 GT (after sitting in a few over the past two weekends). I knew that Hilltop Pontiac had the exact car that I wanted (2009 G8 GT, Magnetic Grey Metallic, Premium & Sport Packages with all-Onyx interior, and no sunroof). I’d actually been avoiding this dealer because of this… I didn’t want to find myself persuaded into a deal solely by the color/options I know I want. I sent an email to the internet sales people requesting a quote and was really impressed by the numbers… basically $2k more than the used 2009 G8 GT that I sat in two weeks ago.

The previous times I had sat in the G8 I never noticed how large the A-pillars are, but when it came to driving it they really stood out. Also, the smaller side mirrors (that I had read about and looked at last week) took some getting use to. It didn’t help visibility that there were a few stickers on the windshield (right next to the already large A-pillars) as well as the window sticker on the back window creating a large blind-spot on the driver’s side.

Once I got the G8 GT off the lot I was really being careful to not push too hard on the throttle. Coming from a 3.8L V6 that I need to give some throttle to, the gas peddle of the G8 was something I wanted to be gentile with. Even trying to be easy on the throttle, the first time accelerating through second caught me by surprise… I didn’t go peeling-out or anything, but it definitely put my butt in the seat and my head back.

Total Distance: 13.7 miles
Driving Time: 29 min

View Larger Map

The test drive started-out by making a loop around Hilltop mall. When I first pulled onto the ring and accelerated to a comfortable speed I was shocked to see that I was going 40mph in a 25mph zone. I was really impressed just how smooth the G8 was on the road. One thing that did stand out to me was the 6-speed automatic transmission. I’m familiar with Grand Prix’s 4-speed automatic, so the low gear in the 6-speed caught me off-guard. There is just an extra shift point much sooner than I am use to. In combination with trying to be gentile on the throttle this quick shift (typically before I even got through an intersection) I’m sure the sales person was having a jerky ride. I got a bit smoother over the course of the test drive and knew that it was me and not the car.

After finishing the loop around the mall I headed out to the freeway. Due to some construction we had to take a short detour that resulted in us having to make a U-turn. I was impressed with the tight turning radius of the 4-Door sedan. Pulling onto the freeway there was a minivan in my way for merging (right in that blind spot caused by the window sticker), but just a little blip of the throttle and it was no longer a problem. I loved the feeling of having power on-tap for when it is needed.

Unfortunately there were quite a few cars on the road, so I couldn’t get up to 80mph like I wanted to. The traffic also made lane changes or any other activities less than easy. I did like how smooth the car tracked and how quiet the road noise was. Pulling off the freeway and turning-back to the dealership I found myself behind an old pick-up truck spewing black smoke. The sales person turned on the recirculation feature of the heating/cooling system, which is very cool. So, I found myself behind a slow car (again) and gave the throttle a little blip (again)… bye bye slow truck… it didn’t even need to down-shift. I never even went past half-throttle and this car has serious get-up-and-go!

I wanted to take the car over some rougher roads, so we headed back through the detour area by the freeway (this time with me paying attention). I could hear when we hit bumps, but I couldn’t feel anything harsh in the wheel or peddles… it was nice. I had wanted to get a feel for the car during quick starts/stops, but there were too many people around to do anything too aggressive. I did put a little more into the last acceleration from a stop sign, but again barely half-throttle and I was already impressed.

After the test drive there was nothing standing-out in my mind that would be a deal breaker. The car felt good, was the right color and had all the desired options. One thing that was not in the car was a sunroof… before negotiations I wanted to sit in a car with a sunroof. As expected, it was not something that I was interested in.

After talking with the sales people about the specifics of the deal, it just seemed right. After going through the paperwork I was the proud owner of a 2009 G8 GT! I had planned on waiting a day or two to buy the G8 GT so had not cleaned-out the Grand Prix totally. The dealer wanted me to drive the G8 GT home, as did I, but since I needed to return the next day with the title for the Grand Prix anyhow, I figured that I’d take one last ‘Goodbye’ drive.

I return tomorrow to trade-in the Grand Prix and drive home in my new G8 GT!

Dealership Closed

Turns out the Dublin Pontiac dealership that’s down the street from my house is closed.  There are cars still on the lot, but no one answers the phones and the doors are locked.   Now the frustrating part is that the closure is not mentioned anywhere commonly accessible… not on their website, not on the phone message, and not even on the front door.   To find out they were closed I had to call the internet sales person listed on their website, who doesn’t even work for them!

The Next Day

WTF?  The dealership is still locked-up!  I tried calling the phone numbers, but  just kept getting the automated message system.  No announcements about changed hours or anything… I wonder what is going on?

Superbowl Sunday

I finally decided to just go down to the dealership (that I drive past every night on the way home) and ask some questions.  I’ll go mid-morning with plenty of time to ask all my questions and get home before kickoff.  So I drove to the dealership, parked, and headed towards the sales office.  Unfortunately, all the doors were locked!  Oh well, I guess they figured sales would be slow during the Superbowl and closed early.  I spent some time looking over the four G8 GTs they had in the lot (two with Sport package… colors on hand were Panther Black, Liquid Red, Sport Red, and Stryker Blue).  I really like the look of the 19” rims that are part of the Sport package, but the standard 18” rims are not that bad either.  I’ll plan on coming back tomorrow night after work.

What is my Problem?

I have been spending far too much time going through various configurations and searching dealer inventories.  I have a Pontiac dealership down the street from my house; I should just go down and ask some questions!

Research

I love research.  Sometimes I wonder if I enjoy researching something that I want to buy more than buying it…

The G8 looks to be the perfect car for me.  With the Internet being the wonderful place it is, I can start with one of my favorite activities… building cars online.  First decision with the G8 is the ‘Sedan’ or ‘GT’.  No brainer here… GT all the way!  Color… I’ve always liked black, but they are a pain to keep clean.  The reds and blues are cool looking, but way too flashy for my tastes.  Silver?  That would work, but I’m really digging the Magnetic Grey Metallic.  Interior… Onyx leather all the way.  The onyx/red (like the car color) is just a bit too flashy.  What about options… the Premium package gets me the leather seating surfaces.  The Sport package has a special steering wheel, rims, tires, and peddles.  I’ve never been a big fan of sunroofs for some reason (I always close my Mother’s once I get into the car).  Yup, that is the car for me!

Inside my Brain

I have owned a silver 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix GT 4-Door for the past 4 years.  I purchased it from my Father with 60k miles and it has been a great car.  It was previously his company car… and being that it was my Fathers… it was in immaculate condition.

I have driven this vehicle for work and fun (photography, so basically more work) all over California.  There are now just under 112k miles on the car and other than some leaking coolant and some squeaky brakes, this car has been very reliable (a treat after my previous car).

My previous car was a teal 1992 Mercury Sable (that replaced the tan ’92 Sable that I totaled) and while it lasted me through college… it needed major engine work after a head gasket failed.  Even after the extremely expensive work the car still continued to overheat and wasn’t really good for anything other than driving around town.  Oh yeah, this car also had to have it’s transmission replaced (probably my fault), but these are stories for another time I’m thinking (as they are not directly G8 related).

After driving the Grand Prix for 50k miles, it is getting on in age.   I mentioned the coolant system leak and the brakes, which I had repaired, but other parts of the car are getting old.  The tires could definitely stand to be replaced… fortunately in California I don’t have to worry about driving in the snow!  In addition to the wear there is also a vibration that appears between 60 and 70mph, which is quite annoying.  Also, the transmission of this car is starting to slip between gears… hinting at a future catastrophic failure.

Given that every time I drive my car I am wishing that I had something new, or better put… non-faulty, I started seriously looking into new vehicles.  I have always been into cars and have done research into several different cars over the years….

I’ve always liked the Subaru WRX.  The ability to get a wagon version was always a draw, as I need room in my cars to haul around my photography gear.  The STI version was nice, but I didn’t want to deal with the hassles of the manual transmission (more to come about this in future posts I’m sure) with the California traffic.

The switch to the newer hatch-back design was nice, but other than looking things up online I never really considered one a real option.

For several years I’ve been seriously contemplating getting a Dodge Magnum RT.  I looked into the SRT-8, but the added expense just couldn’t be justified.  At one point I decided against the SRT-8 (and actually the Subaru Legacy) because they required the use of 91 Octane fuel.  The real draw to the Magnum was the large rear cargo area that I could potentially use to sleep in while on photo shoots.  The 5.7L HEMI engine was also a nice perk.

I do not like the nose on the Magnum, but I really liked the idea that the Dodge 300c shared the same front as the Magnum and that a facelift was possible.  When I heard that the 2009 Magnum was discontinued I was disappointed.  While I have little experience with Chrysler/Dodge, I preferred getting into a vehicle that was going to be produced in the future.  At about this time I also made the decision that the ability to sleep in a car shouldn’t factor into what I buy, as I do it so infrequently.

The more I think about new cars I’m drawn-in by the new features that are available.  One of the really nice features I learned about first hand was the tire pressure monitoring/alert system.  After hitting something on a snowy freeway in Pennsylvania the warning light came on and I was able to get-off the freeway and find a quiet (snowless) location to change the tire.  Even after driving around a little I was surprised to find that the tire had not even fully deflated yet.  Without the pressure monitoring system I would have found myself stuck on the side of a snowy freeway trying to change a tire (at least it was on the passenger’s side).   To be honest, I don’t think I’d buy a new car without something like this.

So along comes Pontiac.  I have really enjoyed the Grand Prix and I know that my family has had very good success with Pontiacs over the years.  I spent the past year traveling quite a bit and it afforded me the opportunity to drive a rental Pontiac G6.

The G6 was a reasonable car, and the 2-Door configuration was nice and ‘sporty’ compared to the ‘old-man’ look of a 4-Door sedan.  I like the availability of the 3.6L V6 in the GXP version… without the requirement of needing a manual transmission.  However, by the time you throw in all the options that I’d be looking for, a 2009 G6 GXP Coup was running close to $30k!  While I like the sporty little 2-Door coupe idea and don’t do much people moving, I know that I use the 4-Doors of my Grand Prix far too often when hauling stuff around.  So, given that I’d probably be going with a 4-Door car again… that opened up the possibility for a G8.

What really draws me to the G8 (other than all the talk above)?  I would have to say a sort of sophisticated troublemaker type of thing.  I was a really big fan of the re-born GTO that Pontiac released a few years back.  I just loved the big engine and 2-Door configuration.  Unfortunately for me I was too young to be able to realize that vehicle… but fortunately for me the GTO ‘grew-up’ and turned into the G8.

The G8 has the practical and responsible body of an adult with the heart of a wild teenager!  I really like the idea of a car that doesn’t scream ‘I am fast’, but can put the power down when needed.

In the end, I think I have found what I want… a G8!