The El Camino is Back!

[joeshell383]

Well... sort of...

PONTIAC INTRODUCES SEGMENT-BENDING G8 SPORT TRUCK
NEW YORK - The 2010 Pontiac G8 sport truck blurs the line between cars and trucks and is creating an all-new segment in the North American car market. This dramatically different vehicle blends the sporty handling of a performance coupe with the cargo capabilities of a light truck.

Link: http://jalopnik.com/366699/2010-pontiac-g8-sport-truck-the-el-camino-is-back

http://www.pickuptruck.com/IMAGES/2010/pontiac/g8/firstlook/st1.jpg

http://www.pickuptruck.com/IMAGES/2010/pontiac/g8/firstlook/st2.jpg

http://www.pickuptruck.com/IMAGES/2010/pontiac/g8/firstlook/st3.jpg

Chevrolet El Camino:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/1968_El_Camino.jpg/800px-1968_El_Camino.jpg

[marykay9507]

I personally don't like it-- the original is better in my opinion. The new one just looks like a car that is not finished.

[quagmire]

http://cache.jalopnik.com/assets/images/gallery/12/2008/03/medium_2332346125_4df1623008_o.jpg

Much better shot.

[jessica.]

I would hardly say the El Co is back based on that!! That is one ugly POS!

[TEG]

It is a awesome looking car. It is based off of a car that GM's Holden division sells in Australia. I believe that they are also planning a Chevy version, but I could be wrong. I like the consept, so long as it gets the gas mileage of a car. I kind of need a truck, but haven't gotten one due to the horrible gas mileage they get. This might just foot the bill.

TEG

[rdowns]

My high school Spanish is a bit rusty. Does El Camino mean Butt Ugly? The G8 is fugly as well but to each their own.

[dukebound85]

My high school Spanish is a bit rusty. Does El Camino mean Butt Ugly? The G8 is fugly as well but to each their own.

haha i think it means the road but i agree it isnt the prettiest car. i just hate pontiacs grill

[Abstract]

Ugly.

These are called "Utes" in Australia, and have been around for ages. Nothing new here, although I guess it's new to you if you're lucky enough to have never seen a fugly car like this before.

[GSMiller]

It's like the Chevy SSR from a few years back...

http://img32.picoodle.com/img/img32/4/3/15/f_chevyssrm_8b08ab0.jpg

...And I'm actually surprised they're giving the sport-truck another go, seeing as how they have since killed off the SSR. I liked it myself, but there's a local GM dealer that still has a new one for sale.

[evilgEEk]

That is one horrible looking car. I couldn't stand the El Camino then and can't stand it now!

If Pontiac is actually stupid enough to produce this car it will die pretty quick.

Just a nasty car.

:p

[TEG]

It's like the Chevy SSR from a few years back...

...And I'm actually surprised they're giving the sport-truck another go, seeing as how they have since killed off the SSR. I liked it myself, but there's a local GM dealer that still has a new one for sale.

The thing with the SSR was that it was marketed as a Corvette with a truck bed. They were over priced and had horrible gas mileage. That is why they killed off the SSR.

TEG

[ryannel2003]

Oh my god, GM is gonna ruin the G8 with a sport truck? Ugh. Most importantly: why?

[obeygiant]

Wicked. The original El Camino wasn't a pontiac tho, right?

[quagmire]

The thing with the SSR was that it was marketed as a Corvette with a truck bed. They were over priced and had horrible gas mileage. That is why they killed off the SSR.

TEG

That and the first MY had a 5.3 L V8, but was advertised as a "hot rod" truck. They rectified it by giving it the LS2 in 2005. It was also expensive due to the hardtop and the way it worked. It was also based off of the GMT-360 platform( Trailblazer). Not exactly what the platform was designed for GM advertised the SSR to be.

[Sirus The Virus]

Wow thats really ugly, just like the majority of new cars in the last 35 years or so.

[iPhil]

My high school Spanish is a bit rusty. Does El Camino mean Butt Ugly? The G8 is fugly as well but to each their own.



Re-fresh on your HS Spanish: here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_El_Camino)... ;)

[Rodimus Prime]

Unlike a lot of people here I think it looks kind of intersting and in 2010 is oddly enough the year I am kind of planning on replacing my current car in.

[Peace]

Wicked. The original El Camino wasn't a pontiac tho, right?


The El Camino was a Chevy. Made by General Motors.

[joeshell383]

Yes, the El Camino was a Chevrolet. The G8 Sport Truck is a very similar concept though, that's why I say "the El Camino is back".

The truth is it very well could be back anyway...

The G8 Sport Truck name is not permanent. Pontiac is letting the public decide the name.

At www.pontiac.com/namethiscar you can both submit a name and enter to win one of the first vehicles off the assembly line*. Many people are submitting the name El Camino (despite the fact it is a Pontiac). The winning name will be chosen on April 15.

Also, as mentioned by several other posters the G8 Sport Truck has been available in Australia since 2000 as the Holden Ute. It is also already available in South Africa and other countries under Chevrolet brand. The G8 Sedan (based off of Holden Commodore) and Sport Truck Products (based off of Holden Ute) are/will be imported from Australia.

Holden Commodore
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holden_Commodore

Holden Ute
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holden_Ute

Pontiac G8
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac_G8

* The Sweepstakes is open only to legal residents of the fifty United States and District of Columbia who are 18 years of age or older or of the age of majority in their state of residence, whichever is older, with a valid driver's license as of date of entry.

[devilot]

I read this thread title and hoped it wasn't the car...

Ugh. Not a fan of the original. Definitely not a fan of the new version. *retch*

[ErikCLDR]

OH. MY. GOD.

For a company that is kind of struggling to get by like other American auto makers, why would they reinvent the ugliest car ever made.

Honestly who is going to buy that? It's not functional at all and it's not even good looking.

They complain US auto companies are doing so poorly. Hmmmm I wonder why.

Why don't they bring back the Pontiac Aztec while they're at it. And maybe those huge woodgrain station wagons. Oh wait... I think chrysler kinda has that squared away with their "woody" PT Cruiser.

[Thomas Veil]

Given the cookie-cutter design of their biggest foreign competitors, I give Pontiac credit for coming up with something different, at least. Not the best design I've seen, but not the worst either.

What I do question is bringing out what is obviously a niche vehicle at a time when they need to sell as many cars as possible. You do this sort of thing when you are riding high and have the money to splurge for "fun" or "image" vehicles.

[carlgo]

I owned an El Camino for a few years. It was an '84, built right in the middle of the Smog Years when engines were both weak and had horrid gas mileage.

It was more a car than a truck and you couldn't fill it full of giant rocks or anything. Many owners installed air lifts to deal with that. It did have a positraction (limited slip) differential, so it would actually go up dirt roads in the rain. Many of the present 2wd trucks are really 1wd and have limited mobility, less than a fwd car.

I think they go back to 1959, so they were an American tradition. Some of the early models had optional huge motors with lots of horsepower. Those models can still be seen in car shows and collections and are worth a lot.

I always thought they looked good and lots of people really do like them. In California you see a lot of them in daily use, kept up nicely with decent bodywork and paint. Crate motors are readily available, so they can easily be kept going. They have survived more than one fuel crisis.

Ford had their own version, the Ranchero, but it was never as popular. I also owned one of those, the Falcon Ranchero, which was a compact model with a 6 cyl motor. Later, they were built on the big frame and got really huge. I just saw one in perfect condition yesterday at the lumber yard. People don't throw them away, either.

A few years ago, Ford showed a concept car, a Ranchero built out of a Taurus. Very nice, but a FWD truck will never fly in the US, ever. Even for going to Home Depot and getting two sheets of plywood, Americans want their trucks to be rear drive.

The only FWD pckup I ever drove was a VW diesel. Easily the worst vehicle I ever drove. Only 2-cycle cars from the old Soviet Block could have been worse.

Properly done, the El Camino concept will work and sell. I have always thought they should have done this a long time ago. It is just strange that Pontiac, rather than Chevrolet, is showing this.

Aztecs are good vehicles. Good for target practice.

[robanga]

I like the look of it. Sleek and utilitarian all at once.

[GSMiller]

The thing with the SSR was that it was marketed as a Corvette with a truck bed. They were over priced and had horrible gas mileage. That is why they killed off the SSR.

TEG

Yea, the SSR was definitely just for show. I read a little on it and as it turns out all the cars being made at the same plant as the SSR were killed off right around the same time, because they were replaced by GM. I'd say they saw no reason in keeping the plant open on such a low-selling car as the SSR so they ceased production on it as well.

[Rodimus Prime]

to me this vechile holds promise. I am not a truck person but I will say there are times it is really nice having access to a truck.

I will play the wait and see how it adds up but in 2010 I might end up buying one of theses if I can afford it and they fill my needs.

[Phazotron]

Will it come with a "Growing Mullets For Dummies" book and a dvd of "Joe Dirt" too? :D

[SactoGuy18]

However, it's likely that this vehicle may NOT use the 6.1-liter V-8 gasoline engine, though. A more possible scenario is a new 3.5-liter V-6 turbodiesel of around 245-255 bhp but with a torque peak like that of the 6.1-liter V-8, mated to a six-speed automatic transmission.

[Chundles]

It's a Commodore Ute. These things have been around forever here - we're not a "pickup" style of country.

They go like stink, ride beautifully and hold a hell of a lot in the back.

The people here who buy them are basically well-heeled tradesmen and cashed up bogans.

[carlgo]

Will it come with a "Growing Mullets For Dummies" book and a dvd of "Joe Dirt" too? :D

Only on the Primered Edition. Your choice of Traditional Gray or Bucks Up Red Oxide.

[twoodcc]

yeah, that thing is pretty ugly. why not just make a real truck?

[brad.c]

<Quietly waiting for the return of the Pace, Gremlin and Eagle>

I can't wait to buy it used in 2018.