1997-2003 Pontiac Grand Prix Design (with John Manoogian) - Part 1

Learn more about the design and development of one of the most successful GM cars of the 1990s: the 1997-2003 Pontiac Grand Prix.
See Part 2 here:
• 1997-2003 Pontiac Gran...

[@dosgos]

These GM designs were decades ahead of their time. They look fantastic today.

[@powersurge001]

These never feel long enough! Could listen to John talk all day.

[@excellentlistner5925]

I enjoy the inside look that John shares. He is a humble man.

[@theperimeter1026]

John is such a great guest for these interviews. I appreciate his willingness to share this insider info that isn’t easily accessible to the public. Thank you, Adam, for another fascinating discussion.

[@jeffreypaul9428]

Agreed, love when these two get together.

[@gordonmacqueen8694]

I find these interviews absolutely fascinating. Adam, thanks to you for facilitating these conversations and especially thank you to your friends from the industry for sitting down and sharing.

[@leewaken5059]

Love these "behind the scenes" storys told by the people who were there. Very interesting. Fortunately these players are still around, available, and in reasonable proximity for you to take advantage of.🏁 Nice that John gives credit to whom credit is due. No "One Trick Pony"(Paul Simon album reference🥰) calling all the shots at GM. Thank you for the effort put forth to assemble this kind of historical content to us viewers!👊🏼

[@aaronrogers7692]

I owned a 2000 2 door coupe in red. The first brand new car I ever bought. I got looks and comments everywhere with that car. It was beautiful and made a statement.

[@joeywiegand6204]

I love the interviews with designers! It offers such a different perspective. They are my favorite videos to watch! Can’t wait for part 2!!

[@motomuso]

Another great look into the inner workings at GM and at the artistry that went into bringing out a model. Let's hope John will return again soon to the show.

[@CCharlesHahn]

I loved these GPs when they were new, and they're still an extremely attractive design. Still so awesome getting to hear from someone who was "in the room where it happened." Thank you for putting these videos out, and a huge thank you to John for sharing so many awesome stories of the work he and his teams did!

[@cub1009]

The 1997 to 2003 Grand prix really is a very different car for the 1990s. The 3.8l supercharged version in the GTP is just a great engine and makes these cars so fun to drive. Even after 25 years, these cars are still something special.

[@default123default2]

Lots of power, good visibility, heated drivers seat

[@cub1009]

@@default123default2 The good visibility thing is important. Get into any day modern vehicle, and the A, B and C pillars are much larger and they block so much of your view. The huge green house in the older vehicles is something I miss.

[@default123default2]

@@cub1009 Indeed. I taught my wife how to drive in a Grand Prix GTP. I told her how important shoulder checking is. And in that car, you can see everything when you shoulder check. Every new vehicle we have got since , there is huge dangerous blind spots.

[@Zneedsmore]

Wow, great interview! I purchased a dark teal green 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix GT sedan (not GTP) with the durable 3800 V6 shortly after its introduction. The car was literally loaded, with power sunroof, dual zone climate control, heads up display, and a trunk mounted 12 disc CD changer. The car even had a tire pressure monitoring system which was unusually rare for cars at that time. It was undoubtedly one of the most enjoyable cars that I have ever owned.

[@nealsidor1323]

Having a 2002 four door for about a year now, I have become a huge fan of the styling, performance and reliability of this wonderful sedan. With 216000 miles on the clock, she is my daily driver and has performed flawlessly up to now. Handling rivals anything I've driven and the 3800 V6 pulls effortlessly despite it's age. Can't wait to see part two. Thanks again Adam for another interesting & informative presentation...👍

[@The_R-n-I_Guy]

I'm so glad you got John to talk with us. I absolutely love these videos and I have a feeling that I'm not the only one

[@OBC-radio]

By far the best looking of all the W-Bodies across all the generations. I didn’t realize it until John’s last couple of interviews, but man I really miss Pontiac…

[@LucianoBove]

As a student in ACCD I was admiring all those color renderings, they inspired us a lot. Great job.

[@MyHumanWreckage]

The Pontiacs of this era were beautiful cars (maybe a bit too much cladding on some models). I drove a Grand Prix and a Bonneville of this era and they were great cars to look at and drive, and I loved the interiors!

[@davidstephanides2602]

Owned an ‘02 GP for 8 yrs., great power train, great design, very satisfying car, thanks!

[@jamesengland7461]

Thanks again, John and Adam, for a great conversation! Great shout out to your design team, John!

[@KyrosTheWolf]

I'm really loving this series, seeing John talk about his designs and showing us his work!

[@christopherkraft1327]

John's insights & sketches are fascinating!!! Thanks Adam for sharing these interesting videos!!! 👍👍🙂

[@Fleetwoodjohn]

Another great video. I met John this past weekend at a local toy/hobby show. Great guy. Keep the videos going. 😎

[@johnh2514]

Awesome video Adam. I drove a couple of these as company cars in GT form back in 2001-2002. Cheap-ish interior aside, it was a great handling “wide-track” car with the excellent 3800 V6.

[@volktales7005]

John certainly drew a lot of very sweet ideas. The four doors looked particular good, even though I was not a four door fan then, and still are not today...

[@aaronwilliams6989]

I had a 1997. Loved and miss it.

[@petermandics1517]

What an interesting story that only John could tell! Thank you both for sharing😁

[@nb7466]

I knew so many people with these grande prixs and all the other Pontiacs. I guess that's because of where I grew up. When Pontiac motors was going everyone had a Pontiac in the family. I knew someone with the last gen gxp that thing was fast. For the time the heads-up display was something from the future.

[@AnthonyEvelyn]

This is Mr. Manoogian's ultimate masterpiece, a magnificent tour de force of automotive styling. I remember the Pontiac Grand Prix concept car in a 1996 Car and Driver magazine and was floored! In my eyes this and the 2004 to 2008 Pontiac Grand Prix were the hottest styled Pontiac sedans in that Divisions history. By the way, GM should never have gotten rid of Bob Stempel and Lloyd Reuss, GM made a sad mistake.

[@MrJayrock620]

I used to see a lot of these on my used car lot when I was a detailer. They were such a nice driving car especially the GTP’s with the supercharged 3.8’s

[@tarkus522]

Love these interviews with the designers. Keep them coming

[@kroge007]

A great man who takes the time to recognizes the employees who worked with him. I love these series with the designers. Can you find any of the old interior designers??

[@anthonytbarnes8725]

I owned a 2000 GP GTP with a supercharged 3800 and that was one impressive car! So glad I got a chance to have one and if I could, I would do it again!

[@danielkatzel895]

Have owned a '97 Grand Prix sedan for a few months, and the car is fantastic. A sweet-looking cruiser that has a fair amount of get up 'n go if you need it. Even the basic velvety cloth interior is very comfortable. Highly recommend these cars to anyone that enjoys reliable, smooth autos.

[@nealstampley1546]

This man was a top notch designer!!!

[@ICECREAMAN1701]

I had a '99 GTP coupe and I loved it! 3800 supercharged V6 and it was a great ride!

[@cliffmourning2957]

Wonderful!

[@pjreynoldsa1]

I had a 1997 3800 Grand Prix loaded, it was torquey, comfortable in leather, handled great, road real smooth, easy to work on. wish I still had it!!!!

[@gordtulk]

Remarkable that eleven years later Pontiac was gone…

[@gordtulk]

@@Henry_Jones I think GM was became dead man walking during the Smith era - when high inflation rates made the pension investments the most profitable part of the company and worker demographics were at their best. The corp lost interest in cars and thus it’s raison d’être. It took 25 years for the final collapse but it looks inevitable in hindsight.

[@AlphaShark]

I cannot convey how excited I was to see this in my sub box, I absolutely love these types of videos!

[@rightlanehog3151]

Adam, I hope they gave John and the TEAM a grand prize for designing this Grand Prix. 🤩I believe they were made primarily in Oshawa but please correct me if I am wrong. 🤔

[@stepheng3667]

Only the generation after this that came out in 2004 was built in Oshawa. These were made exclusively in Fairfax, Kansas.

[@CJColvin]

My mom had a 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix GT 4-door sedan and man it looked good and felt very sporty and mom loved it, it lasted great for 5 years then after that it started to fall apart.

[@jamesengland7461]

I love your coupe/ sedan idea. I think the Corsica should've been a 4 door Beretta along those same lines, and it would've been gorgeous!

[@laserwizard2]

Unlike most of the vehicles built on this platform, the GP was a great looking car and it didn't feel as cheap as the Chevrolet Lumina. Well done and one of the last designs from GM worth spit.

[@hitek9too255]

I agree, especially the Lumina based Monte Carlo which was a joke. Putting the Monte Carlo name on a two door Chevy Lumina was a joke.

[@Tarmac76]

Any number of these designs would look right at home in this current era of electrification and they would absolutely destroy a Tesla Model 3 in terms of looks. That's a testament to John's immense talent. Thank you so much for these interviews, I'm really enjoying binge watching them all.

[@OLDS98]

Thank you Adam for bringing John back. I liked him being humble too. I like listening to his inside information. I recall them delaying a lot of models several years at GM. I now know the inside behind that. GM did have some tough times. I always thought the coupe and sedan did have what he said. It now makes sense. The only problem I had with this generation were the headlights. I always thought and still do think the Grand Prix should have had two headlights( quad design) on the front end. I cannot stand and I do not like the one headlight on each of the grille. It looks cheap and low end. This Grand Prix was a winner. I remember that saga and the story with the cars in the magazine. I have that magazine here in my home. There were a bunch of cars that ended up in the magazines. I liked hearing about that. It seemed to me at the end Grand Prix and Bonneville got too close in size and features and equipment. That line that was there was lost. Grand Am and Grand Prix were indeed bread winners at Pontiac and GM.

[@mattg8369]

I hope you continue to do videos with John! I love his insight and knowledge. Love the concept drawings, and he's so interesting to listen to. Great series of videos!

[@tomtumulec2504]

I love those interviews, thanks for making them Adam, they are history document. Big thanks to John for telling those stories. They have amazing value for car guys interested in american cars outside the USA.

[@njhampster]

Still have my 2000 GTP coupe. The design has aged much better than most cars of the ‘90s and it’s quite a looker to this day!

[@johnhall8364]

Some of those sketches sure look like the mopar LH cars.

[@duncanbrode381]

Thanks so much for sharing these conversations! How cool is that? We can hear from some of the folks who had a hand in designing our cars! Very Cool!

[@fgeiger41]

Great design review. Always cool to see John and the original sketches. Look very similar to my own from that Era. I had the 87 GP-SE manual which ate its clutch every year after the warranty expired. Moved on to an 97 GTP which would eat is after pump after warranty. Thanks GM board of leeches. I was always a fan of Pontiac design! ProtoSport4 being a favorite and the original GTO concept.... not the 2nd horrible Batmobile on Crack design that later graced 90's turntables. When the Stinger was shown I started saving immediately to no avail thanks to the bean counters. The 86+ Fiero GT's were amazing. Keep him coming back. 😁

[@hand12u]

Man this was a awesome video im honored i have this mans autograph on my dash in hellboi

[@KeithCars]

Thanks for doing this. My first car was a 2000 Grand Prix Coupe, and I absolutely loved it. Sold it 12+ years ago but still get excited on the rare occasion I see a coupe on the road.

[@mikehueter3982]

I bought a new '99 GTP coupe, black on camel leather w every option... Man I wish I still had it. They've all but disappeared now.

[@stevebyrne4235]

Thanks to you both; great interview and fascinating to see design development up close.

[@greggc8088]

"B.H.A.G." Love it. Going to use that one with my kids.

[@RageousMode]

John is my hero. I appreciate his BHAG mission but beyond that I'm just glad he appreciated coupes which are all but gone now. That generation of Great Prix was one of the last "big" cars that GM made as a coupe outside of sports cars. The ATS was the last coupe that wasn't a Camaro or Corvette. It's all just CUVs/SUVs trucks, and a few sedans now.

[@jeffshadow2407]

My latest Pontiac was purchased in September 2021, a 2001 Grand Prix GT Coupe with 41,245 miles. It came in trade for a Jeep Compass (I would have kept the Pontiac!). Only $850 and today it has just over 42,000 miles. It is the wonderful bronze color.

[@reverseperistalisis]

Got my 03 GPrix GT exactly 4 years ago with only 73,000 mi on odometer(now 100 K), still loving it. I just retired my 00 GTP with that same Bronze color!!

[@mitchlu]

I bought this car new in 1997, the "minute" it came out. It was a black, 4dr, GTP. I was so lucky to get one since only a certain amount (of GTP's) was alotted to each dealer based on their sales records.

[@markbehr88]

Very interesting. Thanks Adam and John.

[@brandonmorris2513]

B HAG! That’s awesome. I’ll never forget that.

[@michaelnault5905]

John does a remarkable job presenting the design process so it's understandable to anyone not familiar. I've always liked the styling of those cars, and was a bit lost as to the end of the brand considering the outstanding effort.

[@colinschmitz8297]

Thank you very much for doing this. This generation of the Grand Prix is one of my favorites that GM ever made throughout its entire history. We had an 02 GT coupe. Loved it; however, it wasn't very reliable unfortunately. It would be really neat to as some have pointed out about the history of the 3800 or in general just hearing about the powertrain choices that were put into vehicles why certain ones were chosen for one division versus one's chosen for a different division or changes mid cycle such as the using the 3300 in the a cars until about 94 until the end using the 3100. Why some engines like the twin cam 3.4 we're not kept for another generation or refined but were replaced by other engines like the short star 3.5 and why that was abandoned in favor of the high feature V6.

[@The_R-n-I_Guy]

A friend of mine had a supercharged model. It was pretty good. I'm not a big fan of front wheel drive cars, but I would definitely drive one of those. Although my hope is to get something from the 60's to 80's. If I find a supercharged Grand Prix, I'll have to get it

[@fitnesswithsteve]

This car is 25 years old and doesn’t look too outdated. A 25 year old car when it came out in 1997 would be a 1972 model which would have looked ancient at the time.

[@joshuagibson2520]

Wait. Will we get a video on the GP cars before these? Always loved the GTP with the gold GTA wheels and body cladding! 92-95 I think?

[@utahrides2903]

Love GPs!!!

[@stephenrutledge6045]

This is so awesome. I had this car and it was the best. I wonder if you could ever do a video on the extremely reliable GM 3800 V6. Had one in my first car, 1993 Pontiac Bonneville. You could not kill that thing, and I tried.

[@kirbyswarp]

I recently bought a 1999 Grand Prix GTP Black on black with 125k miles(now at 130k). Nice to see who designed it.

[@tombrown1898]

What gorgeous cars! I was fast approaching middle age when these models debuted, but they still look so new. It was interesting to see the attractive women in the background of some of John's sketches, as well as some themes reminiscent of the Pontiac brochures of the Sixties. Please give us more John Manoogian!

[@raytoal]

I absolutely loved my 99 Grand Prix. It was a beautiful car

[@sammolloy1]

I understand the low grille NOW but like most people I thought the more conventional grille looked better. Kudos for not messing up that change!

[@tungstun1977]

Hey Adam. Great video! Johns business perspective is fascinating!

[@eyerollthereforeiam1709]

It's too bad Pontiac didn't survive GM's culling. I was sorry to see them go.

[@CJColvin]

Same here mate.

[@fabiolas4]

Best daily I ever had, black '01 GP 2dr.

[@numlockkilla]

This was the best Pontiac for 30 years

[@MK356BC]

My first new car was a 2000 Grand Prix GTP- Coupe. I still have it only 6487 miles on. It's parked right next to my 1971 Grand Prix.

[@FLYEAL]

The ex-GM designer interviews and those with Mark along are among my favorite videos on this channel (along with Adam’s own cars). Yet, the ‘top-10’ type voice over with photos and more mainstream videos get many, many times more views. A very diverse and prolific channel either way.

[@RareClassicCars]

Same for me. I’m most proud of the interviews, but the other things get more views. Oh well, I’ll continue to do both-because I enjoy it!

[@AaronSmith-kr5yf]

I remember as a teenager new car shopping with my mom in 2000. We looked at a fully loaded 2000 Grand Prix GTP sedan to replace her 1991 Regal. Mom loved the way the car looked and drove, especially the horsepower. But that chintzy interior turned her way off, she felt like it was inferior to the 91 Regal she was replacing. Ended up in a 2000 Toyota Avalon, wasn't as fast as the Grand Prix but the refinement, quality of the seat fabric/carpets/plastics, noise isolation, space, huge back seat, trunk volume were all WAY WAY WAY better than the Pontiac. Also that Avalon wasn't a cheap car in its day, $30,000 or so in 2000 without leather seats or a sunroof. But at that time she was doing a 40 mile round trip commute on the interstate and that Avalon was a freaking quiet ass tomb on the highway, nice ride without being floaty, steered straight without a bunch of slop.

[@isakjohansson7134]

GM in the late 90s to mid 2000s just shoved out the coolest cars🤙

[@Romiman1]

This is better than every thriller on TV! (And for me as a German also the best English-lesson, yo can imagine...)

[@johnhull6363]

I had a 97 GTP supercharged in black/grey leather with every single option including moonroof and 12 disc Hughes cd changer in the trunk

[@TahoeRealm]

Wonderful. Thanks!

[@WhittyPics]

I grew up in the 70s and the real Grand Prix to me is the colonnade cars, especially the 76-77 models. I owned an 84 G Body Grand Prix that I bought new for over a decade. I still miss that car. I didn't much care for the rounded downsized 88 models.

[@WhittyPics]

The later Grand Prix looked better than the 88 models but the later Pontiacs I sat in just weren't as comfortable as the late 70s to mid 80s models. I really miss that pillow ride of those cars. I did own a 2001 Grand Am for a short while and it was a fun little car but it was too little.

[@CJColvin]

To me the best Grand Prixs are the 69-70 Pontiac Grand Prix SJs with the Pontiac 428 or 455 V8s.

[@JimFlanagan4206]

My brother had a silver GTP Special Edition with the 3800 supercharged V6. Awesome looking and performing car. I always thought the head up display was really cool.

[@andyj631]

A fantastic design, one of my favorites from that era

[@pcno2832]

The GP was a high point among Pontiac's later designs. Given the "4 door coupe" goal, I wonder if they ever considered semi-hidden suicide doors like those on the Mazda RX-8.

[@sunnohh]

John is a cool dude and I love these videos, not a fan of this car, but honestly I don’t like many GM cars and it is still great listening to him share

[@stevesmith6236]

No initial pics of the better /sportier looking coupe in the beginning of this vid? Give the coupe it's due respect! And yes, I've had 3 of them. Currently own a '99 GTP coupe.

[@The-615]

Would love to see John talk about his favorite cars from other manufacturers and maybe his thoughts on FLM or Chrysler design language.

[@varzilla1513]

Can you please discuss the 1995 Pontiac 300 GPX, which was the concept car precursor to the 1997 Grand Prix? I fell in love with that concept when I saw it in an issue of Motor Trend when I was in highschool.

[@firebird5288]

Pontiac had some really cool concept designs along with production models. The 90's and early 2000s Grand Ams, Grand Prix and Firebirds were great looking cars. Gotta admire Pontiac design teams...aside from the Aztek and a few others. I would love to see what they could design today. Are there any videos like this from the Firebird designers?

[@matt.604]

Please do a video on the 92-99 Bonneville if Mr. Manoogian was involved with its design.

[@Jack_Stafford]

I'm surprised he didn't speak about the Chrysler LH cab forward cars, The four doors looked very much like coupes especially in the second generation of those and they predated the GM cars by several years. And they also had the very smooth low sleek silhouette that many of his sketches reflected.

[@petestaint8312]

The LH was an awesome looking car! 👍

[@thomashill2965]

Mr. Manoogian is probably GM's last great designer. The fact that the 1997-2003 Grand Prix captured the essence of his design concept so closely indicates that while revolutionary, it was also workable. It seems that after that, Pontiac styling became incrementally weaker, with cars like the 2000-2005 Bonneville and the 2004-2008 GP. Both cars became caricatures of themselves, with extreme, high belt lines and exaggerated wheel openings and headlights. Later, when the push toward smaller cars was apparent, goofy-looking styles like the G6 were somehow approved to take the place of the successful Grand Am. The overall look and feel was now one of high-volume and cheapness. The GTO debacle of 2004-2006 didn't help matters much with a non-descript car that could easily be mistaken for a low-priced commuter car--who cared that it was quick?. Re-skinning the F-body platform would have been easier and more in line with what the GTO eventually became--heavy, but still powerful. The G8 was another blunder, with its lofty price and 4-door-only body choice. The base engine should have been a V-8 from the get-go; it was already too expensive to justify spending thousands more for the GT and GXP versions. Styling was cookie-cutter boring--bland at best; the wrong car at a wronger time than the GTO. Despite all this, Pontiac was still selling 246,659 cars to Buick's 91,803 in 2008. And somehow the geniuses at GM thought it made more sense to keep Buick, which hadn't built a memorable car since the Grand National in 1987. I have a 2001 Grand Prix GT which I've owned since 2016, and it's never left me stranded except for a dead battery. Unfortunately, rust is taking its toll, and electronic gremlins have appeared, despite the strong 3800 engine. I can't complain, though, with almost 154,000 miles things are bound to break. Once a common sight, these cars are rapidly disappearing from the roads. Thanks Adam and Mr. Manoogian, for this enlightening interview.

[@davidbolt5113]

Any chance making a video on the Buick Reatta? It’s quirks, what to avoid, and quality issues per year?

[@Just-a-guy926]

Would love to hear the design story of the CTS coupe by Mr. Manoogian .

[@biastv1234]

The likeness to Australia’s GM devision VT Commodore is striking. Same era

[@wingsley]

This video produced so many strong, conflicting feelings. John Manoogian's photos of the clay models, stolen and published in Automobile magazine, were awesome. GM should have green-lighted that car. From one standpoint, it was so impressive that GM finally completed the transition they started in the early 1980s when they introduced the first front-wheel-drive A-bodied Pontiac 6000 and 6000 STE. It wasn't until the late 1990s that the Grand Prix matured to encompass a coupe and sedan that realized the "we build excitement" ideal first captured by the 6000 STE. The 1997 Grand Prix would have made an excellent 1988 replacement for the 6000. But by 1997, the car was a decade too late and GM's front-drive engine options, while refined over the 1980s, were mediocre. The Pontiac 6000 STE offered all-wheel-drive in the later half of the 80s. Where was it now? For a while in the early 1990s, the 1st W-body Grand Prix had a 205 horsepower turbo V6. Why no 250-hp turbo Quad 4 for the newer '97? (For that matter, why didn't GM try all-wheel-drive and a turbo Quad 4 for the original W-body Grand Prix in the early 1990s. Having said all of this, I still believe Ford had the bright(er) idea with its MN12 Thunderbird and Mercury Cougar. Rear-wheel-drive and blown V6 / fuelie V8 power made the MN12's better cars in terms of their "Pontiac GTO" mid-size muscle car lineage. I can't help thinking what GM could have done if they had kept both the W and G concepts alive in parallel and made G-coupes rear-wheel-drive unibody cars like Ford's MN12s. The Chevy Monte Carlo and Pontiac Grand Prix could have stayed rear-drive on a newer unibody G-coupe, while the Buick Regal and Olds Cultass could have gone front-drive as Ws. Rear-drive Gs would have been prefect for either Buick's 3.8 turbo V6 and some 4.3 V6 variant, either turbo or as a Series 3800 treatment.

[@howebrad4601]

That full size clay is kick butt. How come the final production car only bears a passing resemblance to the design theme and in reality always looked so much cheaper, and less desirable

[@petestaint8312]

Agreed! Awesome. Pontiac missed a golden opportunity.