Why do you like the Brand you like, what 1st grabbed you about the brand.

[Oracle of Delphi]

I'm interested in why most people here like the brand you do, what 1st drew you to the brand you like, and how old were you when you 1st got hooked on the brand?

[XP715]

Brand meaning one specific marque like Chevrolet, Pontiac, etc., or brand in the broader sense like GM or FoMoCo or Mopar?

[cletus8269]

chevy first and foremost... it was instilled in me by my dad. since high school though i have come to like everything gm and and mopar... occasionally theres a blue oval that grabs me and once in a blue moon i see an import that justifies a second glance.

[ocnblu]

I first got into Pontiac when I was 9 years old and my grandfather bought a new, 1973 Catalina four door hardtop, in green with white vinyl top and green vinyl bench interior. It was a 400 2 bbl, power windows and locks, but no a/c. It had an AM radio. I fell in love with it's styling (not the epitome of Pontiac style, to be sure, but still romantic and dashing, to a measure, in comparison to other B-bodies of the time, with its slim front bumper and horizontally slotted taillights). It was a tough, good riding car. He gave it to me when I turned 16 in 1980. I remember blasting the song "Elvira" out of the tinny, single radio speaker in the dash and thinking it was the greatest thing in the world.

The enduring traits I love about Pontiac are their romantic, sensuous styling (epitomized in the modern Solstice and to a slightly lesser extent, the G6), their performance image (even when they shared powertrains with any number of other GM divisions), just their distinctiveness, when the car that carries the arrowhead is done in deference to true Pontiac DNA. Rebadges I like less, but I do prefer the Torrent over the Equinox, for example. I prefer the sensuous, romantic, timeless look of the Solstice over the Sky, although the Sky is very handsome in a baby Corvette sort of way (just like the 1960's Opel GT).

As we enter the abyss of CAFE and ever-increasing fuel prices, I am reminded of the high-tech for the time, OHC inline six cylinder engine used in certain Pontiacs in the 1960s. Tempest Sprint and Firebird Sprint (another reason why I chose "Sprint" when I voted for the name of the new G8 Ute) were economical, yet fun, and the ads for the early Tempests touting the fun character of the 4 cylinder Pontiac engine under the hood, remind me that a big-cube V8 is not a total necessity when applied to Pontiac Driving Excitement.

For me, it is of paramount importance that Pontiac survive, with her own unique style intact. A fleet of rebadges simply will not do any justice to this brand with so much potential left to give.

[REDO1GPGT]

It's kind of strange, but back when I was about 12 and not too into cars, the first car ad that I remember catching my eye was back in 2000 when the 2001 Aurora debuted. It was sort of an eerie ad with some little girl in it, the car passed by her and she just stared or something. Don't ask why but ever since then Olds became my brand of choice, prior to that I had no interest in cars period. Around that time a lot of the Olds ads were sort of eerie and mysterious like that one and for some reason it sort of drew me to the brand. Weird? Yes.

[Oracle of Delphi]

Brand meaning one specific marque like Chevrolet, Pontiac, etc., or brand in the broader sense like GM or FoMoCo or Mopar?

Brand meaning one specific marque like Chevrolet, Pontiac, etc.

[XP715]

Hmmmmm, okay.....

I guess if there's any one brand I'm attracted to, it would be Cadillac. Of the fifteen vehicles I've owned thusfar, eight of them have been Cadillacs. None of them built in the last almost thirty years with the exception of the body on frame stuff they built into '96 (Coupe/Sedan DeVilles and later just Fleetwood Broughams) or the bustleback Sevilles of '80-'85 really excite me, but the ones from before that time when they were still truly the "Standard of the World" have always grabbed me because of their size, style, feel, and attention to detail put into their construction. I must say, however, that the latest CTS in both sedan and coupe version as well as the XLR are an incredible exception to my no new vehicles rule and look forward to the day when I have enough dough to make at least one a member of my fleet before I die. For what it is, the SRX is an interesting and good-looking vehicle too.

What got me into Cadillacs? Well, let's see. I believe I was about four when my mother traded in her 1979 Monte Carlo in on a gently-used, extremely low miles triple Colonial Yellow 1985 Eldorado. Being a young and impressionable tyke, I took a liking to the big yellow car almost immediately, and this was only reinforced when I looked around and began to realize that it was unique, and also when I'd get dropped off for school and the other kids would comment on it and tell me how cool it was. What is also interesting to note is that the Achilles' heel of Eldorados like my mom's, the dreaded HT4100, inadvertently got me interested in the Cadillacs I like today. This is so because the aluminum block/iron head construction of this engine required that the car periodically be given a special "tablet" in its cooling system to ensure that the dissimilar metals would heat up evenly to prevent the engine from pulling its own head bolts out. My parents always explained it to me as the car needing to take its medicine. This meant trips to the local Cadillac dealership every so often; in our case it was Woodworth Motors in Andover, Massachusetts, which one of the most affluent towns in the state. Woodworth is a dealership whose clientele is primarily older people that come from old money who don't go anywhere and always garage their vehicles, and in the early 90's it was still a common sight to see pristine mid 70's and older Cadillacs in their service departments and on their trade-in lots, and always in the bottom floor corner showroom windows where all their "specialty" vehicles are kept. And to a little kid who thought his mom's '85 Eldorado was a big, bold car, you can only imagine what I must've thought walking around 60's and 70's DeVilles in Firemist pastels with brocade interiors and the giant, stately Fleetwoods with their elk grain vinyl tops and plush leather. Those memories on Woodworth's property waiting for my mother's Eldorado to take its medicine stick with me to this day and probably did the most in terms of shaping my taste in cars.

[mustang84]

Ford was the first brand I got into when I was about 14. I didn't know anything about cars before then, except for the Corvette since my dad has two. Even then, I didn't know a thing about them except that they were sporty cars.

I was playing a game called Midtown Madness and it had a '99 Ford Mustang GT in it. The car selection was pretty limited and the Mustang was my favorite handling car of all in the game. That was the spark that got me into Ford. Then I started digging around Mustang sites and came across a fox body one where they had a sound clip of an '88 GT with an aftermarket exhaust. This was around the time that I was about to get my license and all the sudden I was obsessed with fox body Mustangs and wanted one. After that, I started looking more into other Ford vehicles and paying more attention to what was on the road, the years of cars, etc.

I also started to get into the Chevy brand shortly after because it's what I drove, and also a couple guys had IROC-Z Camaros in the parking lot and I thought they were just the coolest thing. I got a ride in a friend's '89 Camaro RS (with a 5.0) and I got to experience V8, RWD performance. Also, someone had an '87 Monte Carlo SS that totally stood out among the sea of W-bodies, Tauruses, and Grand Ams at my high school. That Monte Carlo got me into G-bodies, which then I discovered the Cutlass Supreme (and the fact that my dad used to have one), and not long after Oldsmobile became my favorite GM brand.

Edited June 2, 2008 by mustang84

[z28luvr01]

I grew up around Chevys, so I guess it was inevitable. Between my grandfather and my father, I've been exposed to lots of cool bowties - you've seen my grandfather's '73 MC (which is now my father's), but add to that list a '55 Bel Air hardtop, a '65 Corvette, a '70 Chevelle LS6, a '76 MC, a '78 Caprice, a '82 S10, a '83 Silverado, a '86 IROC, a '90 Lumina, and a '03 MC. I think the appeal of a Chevy is that you could get everything you could want in a car (performance, style, luxury) at a pretty good price. The trucks I revered for their bulletproof, indestructibe, start-on-a-time-no-matter-how-long-they've-been-ssitting nature. I've had the pleasure of owning two Chevys - a 85 S10 Blazer and my curent car, a 05 Cobalt.

Lately, however, I'm being drawn more and more to Pontiac, and I'd really like for my next car to have an Arrowhead on the grille if they're allowed to produce something that would satisfy my wants/needs. Though I'd never be mistaken for a rebel, ever, I'm nonetheless drawn more and more to the maverick spirit that's been a part of Pontiac for decades. Part of it is because that spirit is exactly what GM needs given the current climate of the industry. and part of t is because I feel the need to drive something that says FU to all the people who default to Japan, Inc. or Europe, Inc and feel they got the best car out there.

[daves87rs]

I would have to say chevy too..

I've always liked the classic Chevelles and Novas of their era...

And the 70s Impys and Caprices...

And they still stand out, like the new Malibu....

[vonVeezelsnider]

Ever since I was the age of two, I've loved cars... When my family would travel to Arizona I'd go walk with my grandfather in the parking lot of the condo complex we stayed at and I'd scour the parking lots for the 'cars with the birds on the taillights' (Ford Thunderbird), which were my favourite at the time as I can remember. My dad would occasionally bring home a Motor Trend magazine from time to time for me to look at the pictures and it was either a late 1992 or early 1993 issue (Had the Mach III Mustang Concept on the Cover, regardless I still have the magazine). In that issue was a three way comparo on the then new GM B-Bodies, the Caprice Classic, Roadmaster, and Fleetwood (it always stuck with me the picture on the title page of the article had them parked in front of a 747). More importantly, there was an auto show special in the issue and I took a special liking to a concept car that was featured.... It was, as I know now the Oldsmobile Aurora Concept, glass roof and all. Of course I was two and a half and couldn't get over that car. I loved it. I remember my dad telling me "it's a concept car and it'll never be made", so imagine my surprise when I opened a 1994 Oldsmobile Brochure to see that it made it to production nearly unscathed (!). Just over three years old, I began to learn to read, directly from the car brochures my dad would bring home from the dealers nearby... Especially vivid in my memories were the 1993 Pontiac and Cadillac Brochures, as well as the 1994 Oldsmobile and Chevy Brochures. I learned to read before my fourth birthday, and I owe it to the strangest thing. Through those brochures I picked my favourite cars. The most striking ones were the Aurora, 1994 88 LSS, Pontiac Trans Sport, Lumina Minivan, Fleetwood Brougham, Roadmaster Estate, and Cutlass Supreme. At that age, I just liked the styling of Oldsmobiles and they became my favourite brand. At the same time, I really loved the Dustbuster vans as well, I was overjoyed when we bought one. Loved that van, it, and the Cavalier always seemed like part of the family, more so than any of our leased vans, my car, or the Malibu. Time will tell if the Impala will live up to that emotional attachment.

I just kept feeding my hobby. I remember shopping for a car to replace our 1989 Grand Am LE Coupe (Gray on Silver two tone) with the Quad4 when I was seven. My dad took me with him to see our salesman that we still deal with today, and we went to the back used lot at Jack Carter Chev/Olds/Cadillac and saw a pristine loaded 1996 Achieva V6 Sedan in Dark Green. I loved it, but alas my mom didn't like its snout and opted for a new and not as loaded 1997 Cavalier in a clownish blue color named after a flower. This car would become my first car nine years later. When there were a few Identical vans on the lot and he wanted to know which one to get, I picked the colours...

I guess by that logic, you could say that the defining cars of my childhood were the Ford Thunderbird, Oldsmobile Aurora and Pontiac Trans Sport/Lumina Minivan, making the 2002-2006 T-Bird, the First Gen Aurora, and 1994-1996 Dustbuster hit the top of my Lifetime "Must Own" List.

[balthazar]

I gravitated towards Cadillac because of the design & image... but once I got within spitting distance of the age I could own one, I realized the ones I liked were not affordable to a broke kid. About the same time I realized my father owned Pontiacs ('63, '70, '77) continuously from '66 thru '95, and his father bought a string of Pontiacs ('55, '57, '63, '66, '69, '72, '76)- putting me in line to be a 3rd generation, multiple Poncho owner. Of the 20 vehicles I've owned, 7 have been Pontiacs ('64, '64, '64, '65, '65, '65, '66) and my brother has had a string too ('63, '68, '71, '72, '84).

Pontiac won me over with styling, innovation, power and their outlaw, rebel streak that often had them thumbing their nose at Corporate. I would rather own & drive a Pontiac from '55-65 than any other division's cars (tho various Cadillacs are a close second).

[Intrepidation]

My family, at least on my dad's side, has owned with rare exception Mopars for decades. My immediate family has owned Mopars exclusively since I was born. I remember in addition to the Cudas we had a Plymouth Satellite Sebring and a Dodge Aspen. I remember the Sebring was white with a yellow door. It sat the entire time I remember it until it was junked because of rotting. The Aspen, which, $h!ty as they were, I loved as a kid, was green and nicknamed th "Green Bomber". It had rust issues too although my dad patched them up. We had that until I was 5 or so, it was sold off and later ended up an accessory to a robbery. I dunno what happened to it after that. Someone tried to brake into it once, although they cut themselves up on the steering column (blood on it the next morning). I loved that car, when we got rid of it it was the first time I was sad to see a car go, and to this day I get sad when we get rid of one. Our family owned basically Dodge or Plymouth, the poor Town and Country we've only had a little while was the first Chrysler I remember us having.

We've had all kinds of Mopars...a Reliant, an Aries wagon, 2 Shadows, the Caravan, a Spirit, and now the Intrepid. My brother's first car will almost certainly be a Mopar, and if we have to replace the van it'll probably be another Mopar.

So I've got Mopar in my blood. However, it's not just the family tradition that makes me such a diehard fan. Chrysler has always zigged where others zagged. They pioneered so much, and created designs that not only made the competition looked dated, but set the standard for others to follow and play catchup. Look no further than the LH series to see this, and more recently the LX cars which brought back the large, affordable RWD sedan. I like that, and our cars have been good to us for the most part. I love my Intrepid.

Sure, ether designs aren't always a home run, but then the same can be said for any company.

[PurdueGuy]

Saturn: my college studies included a lot on lean manufacturing and business management, and I heard a lot about Saturn breaking the mold & doing things right. Later, I bought a used one because I wanted a car that looked good, got good fuel economy, and had a manual trans, plus the reputation of the company as already stated. The car treated me very well, and was fun to drive, and the other Saturn enthusiasts for the most part were very cool, down to earth people. Bought my 2nd one, which was a twin cam, more power, fun to drive, easy to work on, etc. Still not sure how I feel about where the brand is now, mixed feelings.

[Lamar]

Hmm... tough call. I don't really have an affinity for just one brand.

I like Chevy trucks, mainly because I learned to drive in one. In a sense, it was my first vehicle, even though it was still my dad's. That truck was great though... my grandfather has it now. I think it still hasn't crossed the century mark yet.

I like Cadillac because, well, they're Cadillac. My dad's STS doesn't hurt either.

And...

Lately, however, I'm being drawn more and more to Pontiac, and I'd really like for my next car to have an Arrowhead on the grille if they're allowed to produce something that would satisfy my wants/needs. Though I'd never be mistaken for a rebel, ever, I'm nonetheless drawn more and more to the maverick spirit that's been a part of Pontiac for decades. Part of it is because that spirit is exactly what GM needs given the current climate of the industry. and part of t is because I feel the need to drive something that says FU to all the people who default to Japan, Inc. or Europe, Inc and feel they got the best car out there.

... that's why I like Pontiac. Currently it's the best shot I got at an American muscle sedan (and no, Chrysler LLC doesn't cut it for me... )

[§carlet §wordfish]

Cadillac: vertical taillights.

When I was very young (early 90's), headlights and taillights were the styling cues that stood out to me the most, and looking back it's strange some of the cars I found attractive just for their lights: Grand Prix sedan, Cutlass Supreme, Century, dustbusters, Celebrity Euro (figure that out). But Cadillacs always had vertical taillights, and only they did, so somehow I knew that meant they must be special. I still think they are, and someday I hope I'll have the privelege of owning one.

[GMTruckGuy74]

My grandfatehr's 1955 second-series GMC 100 longbed pickup got me hooked on GMCs from a very early age. My grandfather bought it one year old in '56; my uncle owned it briefly in the early '70s and customized it at the time (327 V8, four speed floor shifter, push-button starter; aztec gold exterior paint and metallic green paint for the interior ). Mid-'70s my grandfather got it back, kept the colors but put a 350 V8 in it and converted the trans back to a more truck-like HD four speed trans. I was born in December '74 and I remember around the late '70s my dad always borrowing it and riding in it, or just sitting in it in my grandfather's driveway "pretending" to drive. Around 1980, the engine went; my grandfather bought a junker Impala for its 350 V8 and installed it, but soon after parked the truck behind his small shed and left it there for another 10 years. At that point ('80-'88), it was bascially a "playground toy" for us grandkids and I spent many days playing on it. Also, my neighbor started working for NJ's State DOT in the mid-'80s and always had GMC HD trucks to use to do his job. He got to bring them home everyday and in addition to seeing the many other GMCs in the neighborhood (mostly S15 Jimmy's and Sierra pickups), and my love of all things truck, I developed a love for GMC. To this day I have not forgotten the GMCs from my childhood.

As gas prices continue to rise and get out of hand, I can't justify owning what I really want - a full-size GMC Sierra Crew Cab, Z71 4WD pickup

[Brougham-Holiday]

Oldsmobile: I grew up in a GM family where people had everything from Chevettes to Cadillacs. Oldsmobile was my first car, I now have 3 of them. I love Oldsmobile for the interior design and comfort as well as the quality we have grown to love in our Olds over the years. Funny thing is Buick is the red headed step child in our family, everyones had one and they were always unloved. I also loved the more traditional style of the Olds models, and the way they always felt like they were carved out of a single piece of stone.

[!!!TED!!!]

I will begin by saying I love all GM divisions.

As a very young kid, I was drawn to a '57 Chevy that was always parked down the street from where I lived. At around age 5, I got really into cars, and was always facinated by GM's badge engineering. I always wondered "how can there be a Chevy Van20, and a GMC Vandura?!

In the early nineties, I would pour over and absorb all forms of car magazines and brochures (something I do to this day).

GM's string of awesome concept cars of the late 80's and early 90's really got my attention.

Im a Chevy guy if I had to pick a brand. I love their design DNA.

Deep down, though, I am an Oldsmobile guy.

My father had a '76 Cutlass coupe. My mom had a '92 Cutlass sedan. Now Im next in line...

...My dad took me with him to see our salesman that we still deal with today, and we went to the back used lot at Jack Carter Chev/Olds/Cadillac and saw a pristine loaded 1996 Achieva V6 Sedan in Dark Green. I loved it...

Your gonna love my new ride! :AH-HA_wink:

[siegen]

I grew up around Fords and liked them probably because my Dad loved Ford trucks and we owned several Escorts that were good little cars. I disliked imported cars, especially Civics. Not sure when exactly my opinion changed, but the 5th gen Civic body style grew on me (92-95), and after owning one I never looked back. Honda of course appeals to me because of its engineering and racing heritage, and simply because they do things a little different than others.

Edited June 2, 2008 by siegen

[RichW5]

A long, long time ago, I was dating a woman I really liked. She had a raffle ticket for a Cadillac and said, "Wouldn't it be nice if we had a Corvette (which I already had) and a Cadillac?

About a month later she broke up with me for a "safe" married man. I was heart broken and remembered the comment about a winning a Cadillac. I went out and found a year old, "Fire Engine Red" Sedan DeVille at the local dealer. I bought it and drove it to work the next day. Since we worked in the same company, it took her one day to call me and congratulate me on my new Cadillac. It took a while before I realized that she wasn't right for me, but my Red Cadillac got to be my trademark at work. It was also lots of fun to park next to my boss in his VW. He would comment that I must be making too much money and should cut my salary. I told him to try it, whatever I bought was my business, not his. I would sue him if he didn't pay me what I was earning. Besides, his boss controlled the raises and I was their best worker.

I had three more Red Cadillac's after that before I bought my Black STS, then the white CTS.

[Camino LS6]

I think I was already into cars while still in the womb.

At first, it didn't matter who made it - all cars fascinated me. But my Dad was a Ford man and had been a Studebaker man, and became an International Harvester man. So he had some influence over me, I liked those tough-as-nails IH beasts as well as Mustangs and classic Ford hotrods. But my uncle was a chevy guy and had a badass '55 210 followed by a parade of other GM cars and trucks, so I would say he had something to do with my Chevy obsesssion.

I've owned other GMs, but Chevy has always been home and Pontiac has always been an object of lust. A young neighbor had a 1970 Firebird Formula 400 in Lucerne blue that drove past my house day after day dragging my eyes behind it every time. After that, I knew that some performance Pontiacs would be in my future some day.

You have all heard the stories and seen the pics of what I've owned and driven over the years, and you know that the El Camino has always been my "holy grail". Who would have imagined that one vehicle would someday merge my major influences into a single package that I anxiously await at this moment?

The G8 Sport Truck takes my El camino obsession and my lust for Pontiacs and tosses in a pinch of my pickup-owning tendencies and stirs the mixture into exactly the sort of vehicle that is more "me" than any other could be.

What's not to love?

[bobo]

I come from a primarily GM family. As a kid I liked Chevy because of my dad's '71 Camaro. Over the years my favorite brand evolved to Cadillac to Oldsmobile to Honda to Acura to Mercedes to Oldsmobile and now to nothing. There is no particular automaker that holds my attention now. I go strictly with what fits my needs, regardless of the brand. I probably lean slightly towards Lexus due to my experience with my IS300.

[Oracle of Delphi]

Well I was a diplomats kid (don't know what was worse for my father, me or the Russians), so the brand I was 1st exposed to was Cadillac, specifically Cadillac Limousines and Nine Passenger Sedans, most were bulletproof. I think I was conceived in the back of one.

When I was in primary school, a young American guy who was part of the embassy staff, he was around 22 at the time or so, imported a dark blue 1967 Pontiac GTO. It was love at 1st site for me, I had never seen or heard something that was so beautiful, I still see that metal arrowhead on the hood of that car. And guess what, no B pillar! :AH-HA_wink:

I knew when I could drive, it would be Pontiac for me. The 1st car I owned was my 1969 Pontiac Custom-S in Midnight Green, it was built at the Baltimore Assembly Plant in December of 1968. I still have her to this very day, she and I go way back, we have built many memories together and I hope to have many more with her. We call her Christine, after the car in the horror movie, because when I was dating my wife the Custom-S' radio would stop playing every time my wife got in the car, no matter where in the car she sat. That lasted about two years, then suddenly it just stopped. That same radio is playing fine today, AM is all it gets, but that is part of her charm too. To me the Custom-S is Pontiac at it's greatest, when Pontiac was the Pontiac Motor Division, before all the pollution add ons and before the 1st gas crisis, when gasoline had lead in it, and no one cared.

I've had maybe 20 Pontiacs since her, but I still love her the best. I thought I would buy Pontiac all my life, but with Pontiac selling it's soul (in my eyes) to Holden, I have gravitated back to Cadillac, where it had all begun for me, I lust after the CTS Sedan/Wagon. So I guess you can say I have come full circle, I am where I started, back at Cadillac.

[2005 EquinoxLS]

Mostly Chevrolet though I like most all of GM. The 1981 Bonneville that my Grandparents bought in September of 1985(Which is now mine) and the 1978 Impala that my Mom and Dad bought in October of 1985 sealed my fate for what I like. Learning to drive in the 1978 and the 1985 Caprice (which is now mine bought by my parents in May of 1990) in 1993-1994 sealed the deal. Ever since I started driving I have ALWAYS had a B-body in my posession. I now have 2 and I dont plan on parting with them any time soon.

Edited June 6, 2008 by 2005 EquinoxLS