Bonneville G/XP Mixes 'Tuner' Car Styling with Full-Size Attitude
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Bonneville G/XP Mixes 'Tuner' Car Styling with Full-Size Attitude
CHICAGO — Lower the car by 1.5 inches, smooth out the lines on the body and front and rear fascias — last but not least, boost the supercharger and tint the glass, headlights and taillights. Plans for the next small car “tuner” vehicle? Not exactly.
With its clean, sleek lines, powerful form and enhanced supercharger, the Pontiac Bonneville G/XP show car brings the “tuner” ethos of today’s small car performance and appearance trends to the realm of the full-size, luxury-performance sedan market.
Visual exercise looks at potential Bonneville evolution
“The G/XP is a visual demonstration of Pontiac’s design direction, and hints at the potential design and performance direction of Bonneville,” said Lynn Myers, Pontiac-GMC general manager. “At its core, the G/XP underscores the importance of performance and sporty styling with clean design expressions.”
Supercharger taken to new level
The G/XP takes the Bonneville SSEi’s supercharged V6 powertrain to a new level, with a KN™ air filter system, Corsa Performance “cat-back” exhaust and an increased boost to the supercharger. The result is an impressive increase of 30 ponies from the SSEi application, to 270 hp in the G/XP.
Lower ride
In line with this boost in horsepower, the G/XP’s ride height has been lowered by 1.5 inches for a ground-hugging appearance. This performance attitude is further accentuated by 19-inch wheels and larger cross drilled and slotted brake rotors with Baer coated calipers.
Bob Kraut, Bonneville brand manager, explained that the increased focus on performance for Pontiac's luxury sport sedan builds on Bonneville’s tradition of offering performance and luxury without compromise.
“Whether it’s setting world land-speed records or cruising city streets, the prestige of Bonneville is in the performance,” said Kraut. “The G/XP offers the large-car luxury segment a ‘serious sport’ alternative with the muscle of a performance sedan and the amenities of a touring car.”
Clean, exterior design
Painted in a tri-coat metallic “Dark Argentinean Blue” finish, the exterior appearance is marked by “smoked” headlight and taillight lenses, Xenon fog lamps and windows that are tinted to the legal maximum shade. The clean exterior design takes in an integrated, flush-mounted spoiler, along with new front and rear fascias, exhaust tips, rocker moldings and a new taillamp design.
“G/XP is a no-nonsense approach to a luxury performance sedan,” said Pontiac Brand Character Chief Designer Phil Zak. “It maintains Bonneville character cues with strong, clean styling.”
More refined interior
Inside, the G/XP remains unmistakably a driver’s car with Pontiac’s trademark cockpit orientation, but with a number of design touches that add up to a more refined experience. Leather seats with custom inserts help create a comfortable environment and provide a performance-oriented function by keeping the driver more firmly planted. Carbon fiber accents are used on the steering wheel, HVAC vents and bezels. All interior switches are black, and the shifter is aluminum/chrome plated. And for listening pleasure wherever the road takes you, the G/XP is equipped with a custom audio system and XM satellite radio capability, which allows subscribers to hear up to 100 commercial-free radio stations.