Every Pontiac Powered By The GM 60° V6 Engine

When General Motors (GM) engines come up, many petrolheads will likely think of the automaker's highly-regarded LS engine. Then there are those with a more old-school bent, some of whom may remember the Chevrolet big block engine family, which includes the legendary 427 and 454 powerplants. No matter where one's loyalties lie, when it comes to GM engines, the V8s get the attention.

The V8s may be the most iconic, but the Detroit automaker has tried its hand at all manner of non-V8 powerplants, including the long-lived 60° V6. This engine debuted in 1980 as a means of cramming more power into the likes of the Citation, Omega, Skylark, and Phoenix. The 60° separation angle allowed the V6 to fit transversely in the engine bay of these compact, front-wheel-drive cars.

While the X-cars were an infamous disaster, the engine was a qualified success. The 60° V6 outlasted the X-cars significantly, with U.S. production continuing until 2005, seeing three generations and a handful of displacement increases along the way. As you may expect for such a long-lived engine, the 60° V6 made its way into GM vehicles across the board, with Pontiac being one of the brands to most consistently use the engine from its debut to its denouement. In the spirit of honoring the lesser-known workhorses of the automotive world, we take a look at every Pontiac to ever use a 60° V6.

Pontiac's Phoenix was one of the four Chevrolet Citation clones that GM released in 1980, entering the market alongside the Citation, the Oldsmobile Omega, and the Buick Skylark. Like its fellow X-cars, the Phoenix was not much loved then or now, ranking as one of the worst Pontiacs ever made in our estimation. Such a reputation is perhaps undeserved sometimes, but that's not the situation here. GM's X-cars had rust problems, poor interiors, and flaky transmissions. As if that wasn't bad enough, GM's most hated cars came with one of GM's most hated engines, the Iron Duke four-cylinder, as standard equipment.

Thankfully, that four-pot engine wasn't the only one available to buyers. GM offered the 60° V6 in its 2.8-liter LE2 package as an option for its X-cars, including the Pontiac Phoenix. The V6 made 115 horsepower in the Phoenix, which, while not particularly impressive, was a welcome improvement over the Iron Duke's mediocre 90-horsepower output.

GM seemingly couldn't resist the urge to give a bit of extra grunt to its X-body cars like the Phoenix. In 1982, Pontiac debuted the Phoenix SJ, a sportier version of the Phoenix with new graphics, aluminum wheels, and a new 60° V6 under the hood. This high-output version made 130 horsepower, enough for quarter-mile times close to the contemporary Pontiac Trans Am, as tested by Hot Rod back in the day. However, this injection of a sporting V6 couldn't save the Phoenix, and Pontiac discontinued it after 1984.

Most Pontiacs only ever used one or two variants of the 60° V6, but a few were lucky enough to see multiple versions occupying the engine bay. One example was the Pontiac 6000, which debuted in 1982 on GM's then-new mid-sized A-body. These A-body cars shared much with their X-body counterparts, including the engines, and thus the Pontiac 6000 debuted in 1982 with the 2.8-liter 60° V6, with 112 horsepower as one of its four engine options.

In 1983, GM introduced the well-liked Pontiac 6000 STE, a performance version of the 6000. Like the Phoenix SJ, the 6000 STE had the high-output LH-7 version of the 2.8-liter six-cylinder with 130 horsepower alongside upgrades like lower gearing, an upgraded suspension, and Goodyear Eagle GT tires. But that wasn't the end of the engine merry-go-round for the 6000. GM also introduced a fuel-injected version of the 2.8-liter V6 in 1985.

But that still wasn't the final version of the 60° V6 to find its way into the Pontiac 6000's engine bay. For that, we have to turn to 1988's Pontiac 6000 STE AWD, which had a 140 horsepower 3.1-liter version of the 60° V6 that sent power to all four wheels. The AWD wasn't much of a success, which likely prompted Pontiac to also offer the 3.1-liter V6 as standard for the 6000 LE Wagon and LE Sedan for 1990 and 1991, after which the company discontinued the model.

When Pontiac discontinued the 6000 in 1991, the boxy A-body looked like a genuine relic from the past. The company had found its groove again, ably proved by the '80s-tastic hair metal of its 1988 "Ride Pontiac Ride" ad and two-seaters like the Pontiac Fiero, which had debuted in 1984. The Fiero was worlds apart from the staid 6000, with sleek sportscar styling, a mid-engined layout, and rear-wheel-drive drivetrain, all examples of Pontiac's revived zest for life in the mid-1980s.

Despite the styling, the Fiero wasn't necessarily a sports car from the get-go. The two-seater launched with the Iron Duke as the only engine option available, with its 90-odd horsepower proving barely adequate even for contemporary reviewers — although the handling did slightly make up for the uninspiring engine. GM rectified that in 1985, however, introducing yet another variant of the 2.8-liter 60° V6 to the engine bay.

The L44, as it was known, was a fuel-injected, high-output version of the 60° V6 that was available as standard on the Fiero GT, in which it came attached to an optional four-speed manual. The V6 made 140 hp and 160 lb-ft of torque, a significant improvement over the original engine. Unfortunately, the extra power made the car's limitations more evident, with reviews highlighting a noticeable understeer issue. GM eventually addressed that by introducing an upgraded suspension in 1988, but it was too little, too late. Poor sales forced GM to discontinue the Pontiac Fiero at the end of that year.

As we mentioned earlier, the mid-1980s was a good time for Pontiac. Sales had climbed significantly and it was no longer the laughing stock of the GM stable of brands. One of the main signs of the brand's resurgence was vehicles like the 1988 Grand Prix, which was an eye-catching offering in that sleek new style, with a 0.287 drag coefficient to boot — a far cry from the almost land-yacht stylings of old-school Pontiac Grand Prix models of the 1960s and 1970s.

In its first year, 1988, the Grand Prix had the same 130 horsepower 60° V6 that powered the contemporary Pontiac 6000, but GM quickly swapped that out for the 3.1-liter variant in September of the following year. But that wasn't the only engine powering the 1989 Grand Prix. GM also introduced the Pontiac Grand Prix Turbo, which packed a McLaren-tuned, turbocharged version of the 3.1-liter V6 that was good for 205 horsepower and 220 lb-ft of torque — all wrapped in an aggressive body kit courtesy of American Sunroof Company (ASC).

However, the Grand Prix Turbo wasn't long for this world, and GM dropped the model in 1991. Buyers seeking 200-odd horsepower from a Grand Prix weren't out of luck, though. GM introduced an all-new 3.4-liter version of the 60° V6 that made 210 horsepower, and this larger engine stayed as an option for the rest of the sixth-gen Grand Prix's production run.

The Fiero and Grand Prix may have been great indicators of Pontiac's mid to late 1980s revival, but we shouldn't forget the iconic Firebird, which entered its third generation at the start of the 1980s. The third-generation Pontiac Firebird was far removed from the muscle car bruisers of the 1960s and 1970s. Instead, it was a lightweight, sleek, and futuristic offering, whose 0.33 drag coefficient made it cut into the wind as effectively as it looked like it should.

Pontiac offered four engines in the Firebird, with a fifth engine exclusive to the Trans Am version. The 60° V6 family was represented by the LC1, which made a paltry 105 horsepower. As with other Pontiacs of its era, GM wasted no time introducing a more capable engine, upgrading to a high-output version of the 2.8-liter with 125 horsepower on tap in 1983. The engine changed again in the 1985 Pontiac Firebird, with fuel injection offering a slight bump in power to 135 horsepower.

The 135 horsepower, fuel-injected 60° V6 stayed as the mid-tier engine offering until Pontiac introduced a 3.1-liter, 140-horsepower version of the V6 as the new base engine option in 1990. Power and displacement climbed again — to 3.4 liters and 160 horsepower — with the fourth-generation Firebird's debut in 1993.

Pontiac's Sunbird is one of the more long-lived nameplates on this list, first debuting in 1976 as a compact rear-wheel drive offering with a Buick V6 built on the H-body platform. But this first run was short-lived, with GM dropping the Sunbird after 1980. Pontiac didn't offer an immediate replacement, with the automaker waiting until 1982 to launch a successor. The 1982 Pontiac J2000 was a compact front-wheel-drive car built on GM's J-body and, while it didn't carry the Sunbird name at first, Pontiac quickly established a link to the past by launching the 2000 Sunbird convertible in 1983.

Pontiac continued revising the branding over the next few years, first removing the J to create the 2000 Sunbird in 1984 before dropping the Pontiac J2000 brand entirely for 1985, reverting to the Sunbird from that year on. But despite returning to the Sunbird name, the compact car would stick to four-cylinder engines for the remainder of this 1980s run, although performance-minded owners could buy a 160-horsepower turbocharged 2.0-liter four-pot by the end of the 1980s.

Owners who wanted more cylinders finally got their wish in 1991, when the 3.1-liter variant of GM's 60° V6 appeared in the Sunbird engine bay with 140 horsepower and 185 lb-ft of torque. Unfortunately, this return to six-cylinder power came at the cost of the turbo four-cylinder, which Pontiac dropped that year. Pontiac continued offering the Sunbird with a naturally aspirated four-cylinder or the V6 until it discontinued the model in 1994.

All of the Pontiacs we've discussed thus far dropped the GM 60° V6 well before the year 2000, with only a small handful making it past the midpoint of the 1990s. But now it's time to start discussing the later Pontiacs that continued the legacy of the 60° V6 into the new millennium, starting with the Pontiac Grand Am.

The fourth-generation Pontiac Grand Am debuted in 1992 with 2.3-liter four-cylinder — also available in high-output Quad 4 form — and 3.3-liter V6 engines on offer, with the latter only lasting a couple of years before Pontiac replaced it with the now-familiar 3.1-liter 60° V6. Available only with a four-speed automatic transmission, the new V6 made 155 horsepower and 185 lb-ft of torque. It was available in SE and GT trim levels for the rest of the fourth generation.

Pontiac debuted an all-new fifth-generation Grand Am in 1999, with a new suspension setup, an altered wheelbase, and a bolder aesthetic complete with aggressive fender flares. It wasn't all show, either. The 150 horsepower inline-four stayed, but the V6 was now 3.4 liters, which meant that owners who opted for the six-cylinder would have 170 horsepower and 195 lb-ft on tap — increasing to 175 and 205, respectively, with the Ram Air version of the engine present in the Grand Am GT. Pontiac retained both versions of the 3.4-liter V6 until the end of the Grand Am's run in 2005.

It may seem strange now, but there was a period in the 1980s when every car manufacturer was hopping on the minivan bandwagon. Pioneered, some say, by the Dodge Grand Caravan in 1983, the minivan soon became a must-have in every carmaker's portfolio. And, despite their ostensibly utilitarian nature, some of these were even surprisingly cool vehicles — case in point, the cooler than you think Toyota Previa.

The Pontiac Trans Sport was a supremely 1980s take on the minivan archetype, with a then-futuristic sweeping windshield and elongated body wrapped around a broadly conventional seven-seater van. The engine choice wasn't all that futuristic either, with the 3.1-liter 60° V6 — making 120 horsepower and 137 lb-ft of torque — the sole engine initially available to buyers before a 3.8-liter V6 came out in the 1992 Trans Sport GT.

The next big change for the Trans Sport came in 1997 when GM adopted a more conventional aesthetic for minivans like Oldsmobile's strange luxury minivan, the Silhouette, along with the Trans Sport, which had been renamed the Trans Sport Montana. The base engine was also new, with a 3.4-liter V6 engine capable of 180 horsepower and 205 lb-ft of torque instead of the 3.1-liter V6. Pontiac would eventually drop the Trans Sport branding entirely in 1999, but the newly-renamed Pontiac Montana would retain the 60° V6 for a few more years.

We're not going to beat around the bush here. The Pontiac Aztek is easily one of the worst-looking Pontiacs ever made, and deserves a place in the annals of automotive history for its front fascia alone. Despite having a face only a mother could love, the Aztek is notable for arguably prefiguring the modern-day crossover craze in its mix of on- and off-road capabilities, and maybe even looks, if the gaping grills of modern crossovers — 2023 BMW XM, we're looking at you — are anything to go by.

Under the hood was the 3.4-liter 60° V6, making a decent enough 185 horsepower and 210 lb-ft of torque. Pontiac offered both front- and all-wheel-drive versions of the Aztek, but both had the same V6 engine with no other options available throughout the crossover SUV's short run. There was also an Aztek GT trim level for the first year, but Pontiac dropped it in 2002, and the crossover would continue with one engine and one trim level — but with two driveline options — for the rest of its short life.

Pontiac discontinued the Aztek in 2005 and, while we expect that many were glad to see it go — not least GM, which allegedly wanted to pretend it had never existed — history has likely proven that the Aztek was, in some ways, a crossover SUV truly ahead of its time.

Pontiac's decision to discontinue the Aztek in 2005 didn't mean the end of its SUV ambitions, but it definitely scaled back the quirks and opted for a much safer product for its immediate successor, the Pontiac Torrent. Where the Aztek was certainly one-of-a-kind, the Torrent was mostly a restyled Chevrolet Equinox that, like its Chevy cousin, bore the fruits of GM's overseas expansion under the hood.

The Torrent's engine was a new variation of GM's 60° V6 built in Shanghai, China, which featured a wide array of changes compared to the previous American-made 3.4-liter 60° V6. Major changes included a new crankshaft, a different engine block, revised cylinder heads, and a new timing chain setup. The initial China-built V6s (codenamed LNJ) used the same camshaft as old 3.1- and 3.4-liter V6s, although that changed in 2007. So the Torrent eventually used a virtually brand-new engine, albeit one still part of the long-lived 60° V6's lineage.

Despite all the changes, the Chinese-built V6 made the same power as its American predecessor, with GM quoting 185 horsepower and 210 lb-ft of torque from the engine. Unlike in the Aztek, though, the 3.4-liter powerplant wasn't the only engine available, with a 3.6-liter 264-horsepower V6 available starting in 2008. GM announced the shuttering of Pontiac in 2009, and the LNJ went away with it. While the Equinox returned for a second generation in 2010, Chevy's SUV moved on to GM's 2.4-liter Ecotec inline-four as the base engine.