What Is General Motors Planning With New Pontiac Trademark?
General Motors has filed a new trademark application for the Pontiac name—wait, what year is this?
Key Points
- GM has filed a new trademark application for the Pontiac name.
- The trademark move appears to be aimed at maintaining control over the defunct brand's intellectual property.
- Despite persistent enthusiasm among Pontiac fans, there is no indication GM intends to bring the brand back into production.
Don't worry, it's still 2025.
The filing, submitted in late April, covers items like hub caps, vehicle horns, and novelty license plate frames. The play appears to be administrative housekeeping for maintaining control over Pontiac's intellectual property rather than new product development.
Although GM stopped producing Pontiacs in 2010, there is lingering aftermarket demand for branded accessories among Pontiac owners who are notoriously diehard. Thousands of Pontiac models remain on the road, and enthusiasts have kept the brand’s memory alive through forums and social media.
The idea of a Pontiac revival has been popular with GM enthusiasts ever since the brand was buried following GM's bankruptcy. Pontiac was responsible for many of GM's most iconic performance models, like the GTO, Firebird, and Trans Am.
GM has shown no interest in expanding its current brand portfolio beyond Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC, and Buick. Under Mary Barra's leadership, GM has become increasingly hostile to enthusiast products as the automaker pursues electrification and global expansion— even as it lobbies to roll back CAFE emissions standards.
Pontiac was one of several nameplates GM shuttered during the restructuring that followed the financial crisis. At the time, the decision was about reducing brand overlap and cutting costs, not consumer sentiment. In fact, it's fairly well known that Buick was saved instead of Pontiac due to Buick's popularity with Chinese consumers.
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An experienced automotive storyteller and accomplished photographer known for engaging and insightful content. Michael also brings a wealth of technical knowledge—he was part of the Ford GT program at Multimatic, oversaw a fleet of Audi TCR race cars, ziptied Lamborghini Super Trofeo cars back together, been over the wall during the Rolex 24, and worked in the intense world of IndyCar.
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Bring back the Aztek, perhaps an Aztec SS for performance and looks! 😂
Barra's a fool!!