When Was The First-Ever Pontiac Car Made?

Of all the defunct car brands we wish still existed, Pontiac has an unshakable place in the upper portion of the list. Up until its farewell in 2010, the division of General Motors released some truly iconic cars that remain widely adored and talked about all these years later. Sure, there were some missteps along the way — we're looking at you, Pontiac 6000, even if you may not be as bad as you're commonly remembered — but overall, it remains a legendary brand that came a long way throughout its lifespan. For proof of this, look no further than Pontiac's first car.

Originally established as the Oakland Motor Company before being acquired by GM and renamed, Pontiac's first model hit the streets in 1926. Known as the Pontiac 6, or Series 6-27, this six-cylinder vehicle was designed under a directive from then-GM figurehead Alfred P. Sloan to keep the average buyer in mind. The folks behind it did just that, delivering a strong vehicle for the relatively reasonable price of $825. Buyers were responsive as well, with approximately 50,000 units selling within the first year alone. (Unfortunately, nearly a full century later, images of the car that started it all for Pontiac are hard to find, hence our use of the photo of the 1929 model above.)

The first version of the Pontiac 6 was a massive success, resulting in it sticking around for many years after its introduction.

[Featured image by dave_7 via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | CC BY-NC 2.0]

Considering the standout success of the 1926 Pontiac 6, it's no surprise that General Motors kept the car around for quite some time. Of course, in the years to come, car enthusiasts would see the game-changing vehicle undergo some changes. Throughout the remainder of the 1920s, various body styles were introduced. Performance improvements became a focal point when the more powerful and visually redesigned Big 6 Series took center stage in 1929, and prices ranged anywhere from $745 to $900 depending on the buyer's chosen body type.

The Pontiac 6 stuck around into the 1930s, albeit with a pretty notable shakeup early in the decade. Pontiac let its six-cylinder go in favor of an eight-cylinder in 1933 and '34, but it was ultimately brought back in 1935 and was kept around going forward. This turned out to be the right call, too, as six-cylinder models regularly outsold their eight-cylinder contemporaries. However, this didn't last forever. By the end of the 1940s, eight-cylinder once again took the sales lead by a wide margin. As the 20th century entered its second half and Pontiac continued to diversify and innovate its car offerings, the Pontiac 6 eventually became a thing of the past.

No matter how you slice it, the Pontiac 6 is a piece of automotive history and remains one of the most iconic Pontiac convertibles ever made. One can only imagine what would've become of Pontiac had the car not put rubber to the road and found multiple decades of success.

[Featured image by Charles01 via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | CC BY-SA 3.0]