 2008 Pontiac Solstice GXP. Click image to enlarge |
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Review and photos by Michael Clark
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2008 Pontiac Solstice GXP
Welcome to the Adult Toys department of Canadian Driver.
I’ve been hearing the usual scuttlebutt amongst the auto scribes in regards to the Pontiac Solstice, as well as the Saturn Sky pocket roadsters. The knee-jerk reaction after a week in the Solstice is to advise potential consumers to point their checkbooks firmly in the direction of the current Mazda MX-5, especially when the Mazda offers such practical magic as a power-retractable hardtop, handling set on nano-damp, and something called cargo space. Who would have ever thought that we would ever hear ‘practical’ and ‘roadster’ in the same sentence. (Those who’ve ever attached side curtains in the rain, raise your pruny hand.)
It was almost two years ago to the day when my hide took its first ride in this Poncho, and there is one common thread that continues to this day; it’s still a Look Magnet. All the attention you can handle costs $38,975, when you opt for the full-whack turbocharged GXP version shown. (Prices shown do not include, freight, taxes, or regional incentives.)
 2008 Pontiac Solstice GXP. Click image to enlarge |
The GXP keeps the fanfare down to a minimum within, with the only model designations found embroidered on the seat cushions and floor mats. The steering column gets manual tilt positioning, with simply no need for the telescopic topic. Delay wipers are joined by an auto headlamp setting on the turn signal stalk. The gauge cluster concentrates on speed, RPM, and fuel levels. Everything else you have to look for, within the Driver’s Information Centre, accessed by a steering wheel-mounted tab. Here’s a GXP thought; lose the LCD display for the turbo boost, and dedicate some form of LED tracer sweep within the driver’s line of sight. (An A-pillar mount for a boost gauge would take up too much real estate.) The additional steering wheel tabs enable cruise control, audio, and OnStar chat.
The StabiliTrak switch is easily accessed, at eye level. The driver’s door houses the controls for the power exterior mirrors, shown in breakaway mode. Windows are power, with Auto-descent for the driver only. The windows have yet to receive an Auto-cinch when closed, which may or may not address the issue that taking a Solstice through an automatic car wash is still best attended with a spare towel riding shotgun. (A true roadster.) The integrated door armrests are in need of more padding. My left elbow is still set on Ouch. The five-speed manual stick is downright notchy, almost a muscle car feel.
HVAC controls are dialed in without difficulty. The audio head unit is standard GM corporate issue. Note the Holy Hanna grab bar on the right-hand side of the stack for your passenger’s white knuckle needs.
      2008 Pontiac Solstice GXP. Click image to enlarge |
Any smart roadster package knows that the glovebox had better be a locking one, like the Solstice unit. It isn’t much more than a sunglass or clutch/wallet holster, especially with the owner’s lit in place. Three cupholders? It starts with a tip-out unit on the right-hand wall of the centre stack, with minimal cinch. The cup clutch isn’t much better with the dual slide-out tray on the rear of the transmission tunnel. This is the holder best serviced by the passenger, unless the driver needs some low-impact tricep exercises. Above the tray is a non-locking rear compartment, with removable rubber bed tray. Both rear seatbacks flip forward, revealing seat pockets that have been placed higher up on the seatback for easier access. The subwoofer speaker, part of the GXP Monsoon seven-speaker upgrade, is found behind the passenger seat. A similar space behind the driver’s seat sports a mesh storage pocket. The front of each seat cushion has a thin storage pocket hidden in the leather stitchwork.
Hard plastic visors have but one vanity mirror; an unlit job with a protective slider on the driver’s side. Courtesy lamps are incorporated into the OnStar rear-view mirror unit. The manual top uses a centre lever catch. Interior fit of the top is good, which has now added upper protective panels. The panels protect the driver and passenger noggins from the sharp edges of the top’s frame. There are some slight manual exterior adjustments that are required when putting the top back in place, on the canvas B-pillars.
It requires a few ounces of Entry English for our Comfort Dummy to access the Solstice cabin. Once the noggin is dipped underneath the soft-top, headroom is impressive. Taller drivers will appreciate the power seat height adjuster, located on the front left lower portion of the seat cushion. Reclination is accomplished with a manual wheel adjuster for driver and passenger. Heated seats are currently unavailable.
The reverse clamshell could use a little more tension when aloft, maybe even a safety prop-rod to keep it in place in a stiff wind. With the top stowed, Pontiac claims 60 litres/2.1 cubic feet of storage space, which is best suited for deflated beachballs. When the top is up top, the cavity (13) grows to 153 litres/5.4 cubic feet. Either way, you’ll be parting out the packaging for bulk bathroom tissue on your next Costco run.
Spare? What spare? There is no rubber biscuit hidden within the Solstice, but there is an emergency inflation system in the cargo area. Pontiac will fiddle with it for you, during the first five years or 160,000 kilometres of ownership.
  2008 Pontiac Solstice GXP. Click image to enlarge |
A flip-forward bonnet reveals the 260-horsepower 2.0-litre four. Revealing the mill takes some doing, as the hood release is as well hidden as Chuck Norris in a Delta Force jungle. Fluid levels are well marked, and easily accessed. Note the rear-mount oil filler neck. Front engine servicing will most likely involve the backing off of the bonnet. The Solstice easily nabs the nod for Easiest Headlamp Bulb Removal.
They say you get only one chance to make a first impression. For some, that moment could be the red dress, or the killer suit. Few consider their transportation as having an impact, except for maybe giving it a bath to keep the rust formation uniform. Fashion is not always comfortable, or easy to put on or take off. The Solstice is ultimately a fashionable, transportation-based accessory. It is not without the practical, even though few will contemplate it as anything other than a feel-good driveway supplement. Working a Solstice into your day-to-day is much like the challenges faced by scooter and motorcycle riders; you have to adapt. I can’t help think of those black-and-white newsreels circa 1953, showing off another completely impractical roadster that was easily double the price of that company’s frugal, and practical base model. They called it the Corvette. At least the Solstice doesn’t have side curtains. Three stars.
Next week: Chevrolet HHR SS