The Pontiac Phoenix was a

compact car Compact car is a vehicle size class — predominantly used in North America — that sits between subcompact cars and mid-size cars. "Small family car" is a British term and a part of the C-segment in the European car classification. However, p ...

that was sold from 1977 to 1984 by

Pontiac Pontiac may refer to: *Pontiac (automobile), a car brand *Pontiac (Ottawa leader) ( – 1769), a Native American war chief Places and jurisdictions Canada * Pontiac, Quebec, a municipality **Apostolic Vicariate of Pontiac, now the Roman Catholic D ...

. There were two generations of the Phoenix, both based on popular

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941) and ous ...

models, and both using the

GM X platform General Motors has used the X-platform or X-body designation for two different automobile platforms. All X-bodies were compact car Compact car is a vehicle size class — predominantly used in North America — that sits between subcompact c ...

designation. It was named for the mythological

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, which would die in a self-inflicted fire and be reborn from the ashes. The Phoenix was replaced by the Grand Am in 1985. __TOC__

First generation (1977–1979)

The

rear-wheel drive Rear-wheel drive (RWD) is a form of engine and transmission layout used in motor vehicles, in which the engine drives the rear wheels only. Until the late 20th century, rear-wheel drive was the most common configuration for cars. Most rear-wheel ...

Phoenix was introduced for 1977Encyclopedia of American Cars (2006) as an upscale version of the

Pontiac Ventura The Pontiac Ventura was an automobile model that was produced by Pontiac. As was common practice at the time, its name was derived from Ventura, California, joining other similarly derived models such as the fellow Pontiac Catalina, the Chevrolet M ...

, and replaced the Ventura entirely for 1978. The Phoenix differed from the Ventura in only minor details such as the grille and its square headlights and yellow rear turn signals. The Phoenix was available as a 2-door

coupe A coupe or coupé (, ) is a passenger car with a sloping or truncated rear roofline and two doors. The term ''coupé'' was first applied to horse-drawn carriages for two passengers without rear-facing seats. It comes from the French past parti ...

or a 4-door sedan, with a 3-door

hatchback A hatchback is a car body configuration with a rear door that swings upward to provide access to a cargo area. Hatchbacks may feature fold-down second row seating, where the interior can be reconfigured to prioritize passenger or cargo volume. ...

available beginning in 1978. There were two trim levels available, the base and LJ, with a performance-oriented SJ package as an option. Available engines included Pontiac's then-new '' Iron Duke'' I4, a

Buick Buick () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Started by automotive pioneer David Dunbar Buick in 1899, it was among the first American marques of automobiles, and was the company that established General ...

V6, a Chevrolet ''LG3'' V8, and a

Chevrolet V8 Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941) and ous ...

. Transmission choices included a 3-speed manual (available with either column or floor shift), 4-speed manual, or a 3-speed

Turbo-Hydramatic Turbo-Hydramatic or Turbo Hydra-Matic is the registered tradename for a family of automatic transmissions developed and produced by General Motors. These transmissions mate a three-element turbine torque converter to a Simpson planetary geartra ...

automatic. Pontiac Phoenix (2469933386)

Second generation (1980–1984)

For 1980, the Phoenix was downsized and moved to the

front-wheel drive Front-wheel drive (FWD) is a form of engine and transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longit ...

X platform, and was available as a 2-door

or a 5-door

. The base and LJ models were still available for this generation, as was the SJ trim package; the SJ package was made as a full trim level for 1982. There was a minor exterior refresh and a new PJ model for 1983, followed by a name change for the LJ and SJ to LE and SE, respectively, for the 1984 model year. Available engines were a 2.5 L '' Iron Duke''

4-cylinder The engine configuration describes the fundamental operating principles by which internal combustion engines are categorized. Piston engines are often categorized by their cylinder layout, valves and camshafts. Wankel engines are often categorize ...

, carried over from the previous Phoenix, and a new 2.8 L '' LE2'' V6, both of which were mated to a standard 4-speed manual transmission or optional 3-speed automatic. The high-output 2.8 L '' LH7'' V6 was standard on the Phoenix SJ/SE for 1982 and was available as an option for all other Phoenix models. As with its sister cars (the

Chevrolet Citation The Chevrolet Citation is a range of compact cars that was produced by the Chevrolet division of General Motors. The first Chevrolet sold with front-wheel drive, a single generation of the Citation was sold from the 1980 to 1985 model years. The s ...

Buick Skylark The Buick Skylark is a passenger car formerly produced by Buick. The model was made in six production runs, during 46 years, over which the car's design varied dramatically due to changing technology, tastes, and new standards implemented over ...

and

Oldsmobile Omega The Oldsmobile Omega is a compact car manufactured and marketed from 1973-1984 by Oldsmobile, as the brand's most affordable, entry level vehicle — across three distinct generations. The first two generations of the Omega used rear-wheel ...

), the Phoenix's image suffered because of poor workmanship, two recalls for 1981,1981 Pontiac Phoenix Recalls, http://www.carcomplaints.com/Pontiac/Phoenix/1981/recalls/ (retrieved 22 July 2015) and a dangerous tendency for the car to lock the rear wheels upon braking. The Phoenix was replaced for 1985 by a revived Grand Am on the front-wheel drive GM N-body platform.

References

External links

{{Authority control Coupés Front-wheel-drive vehicles Hatchbacks

Rear-wheel-drive vehicles Sedans 1980s cars Cars introduced in 1976 Motor vehicles manufactured in the United States