The new owner of our 2008 Pontiac G8 GT, Angel Acosta, will service the car himself.
We weren't in a hurry to sell the 2008 Pontiac G8 GT so we listed it for our True Market Value price and just relaxed. At first we got no calls at all but then we got a few nibbles. One caller was a scrap metal dealer who often traveled to Australia and knew the G8 as the Holden Commadore. But he couldn't buy until the end of the year when his current lease expired.
A short time later, a gentleman who identified himself as Angel Acosta called and scheduled a test drive. Since he was coming all the way to Long Beach from San Diego I knew he must be serious. He asked about my price and I said I would be willing to "adjust" it since it now had more miles.
I covered the blow-by-blow negotiation in my Savvy Shopper column on Edmunds Daily. But just to recap, I lowered the asking price from $21,700 to $21,000 due to additional miles, the need for a brake job, and a $100 military discount for a serviceman.
Angel returned a few days later with a cashier's check and his wife to drive his other car home (he owns a total of six cars). I was happy to tell him that the oil change indicator took 13,000 miles to recommend a change. Angel smiled patiently but said he would change the oil every 5,000 miles regardless since, "this is a policy which has served me well in the past." He is a mechanic in the Navy so he has a technical background to draw on when making auto-related decisions. He said he was looking forward to working on the car himself (brakes and oil changes).
Cleaning up the G8 before Angel came I thought about what a great car this has been for Edmunds and Inside Line. We drove it over 36,000 miles and had very few problems with it. Besides that it offered outstanding comfort and practicality for a performance car. Big trunk, roomy back seat and a 6-liter V8. You can't beat that.
wobbly_ears says:
09:59 AM, 01/ 5/10
It's a great thing you guys sold it to a fellow Gearhead & not to some snotty teenager. This G8 is a classic-in-the-making from a now dead brand. What a way for the storied brand like Pontiac to go out on (I don't want to be reminded of G3. Nanananananana)
It might even be a good idea for you guys to keep in touch with this new buyer to see how it performs. It would be interesting to see how the new GM handles the warranty & parts issue for a dead brand.
carguy622 says:
10:13 AM, 01/ 5/10
Sad to see the G8 go, both from the long term fleet and production.
fuhteng says:
11:15 AM, 01/ 5/10
$100 off for a serviceman? Geez. I figure you could go higher than that.
I wish Angel the best with the car that made me get my own G8 GT. I'm curious what the rest of his fleet is.
FYI, parts aren't fun. I was rear-ended and it took 2 weeks to get the bumper bracket from Australia. Great.
felonious says:
11:31 AM, 01/ 5/10
Angel, if you read this:
If some random person in San Diego honks and waves at you, it's probably me. :) Good purchase!
gharry says:
12:29 PM, 01/ 5/10
The G8 is the first Pontiac since the Solstice that made me lust for a Pontiac. But those have been the only two, and the Solstice fell off the list once it came out how annoying it is to live with. A used G8 might find its way into my driveway in a year or so. I still want one every time I see one on the road.
adrean8j says:
02:04 PM, 01/ 5/10
This car and the CTS coupe are the two American I could actually see myself owning (not saying there aren't other good American cars)....it sucks that GM will not rerelease it as the Lumina SS or something....
flyusmc says:
02:30 PM, 01/ 5/10
Angel Congrats on buying that G8! It was due in no small part to IL that I bought my 2009 G8 GT. Sad to see it go from the fleet but thanks (IL) for the yeoman work and great reviews.
flyusmc says:
02:30 PM, 01/ 5/10
Angel Congrats on buying that G8! It was due in no small part to IL that I bought my 2009 G8 GT. Sad to see it go from the fleet but thanks (IL) for the yeoman work and great reviews.
redwoodaggie says:
04:51 PM, 01/ 5/10
*sniff* so long old friend. Fortunately I don't have to just read about a G8 GT. I drive one every day.
greenpony says:
05:50 PM, 01/ 5/10
It's only a "Commadore" where people also write "Camero".
vgx says:
04:24 AM, 01/ 6/10
Very sad to see this one leave the fleet. Add me as another IL reader who ended up with a G8 thanks to this blog. Great car overall and still loving every drive at 18,000 miles!
mdpensfan says:
06:13 AM, 01/ 6/10
Darn, no more G8 posts.
Maybe now you guys can finally add a decent car to your fleet, like a 76 Caprice (Donna will never live that one down).
fuhteng says:
07:57 AM, 01/ 6/10
+1 mdpensfan. I like it.
zq8 says:
06:08 PM, 01/ 6/10
Thanks to the blog here on IL , I now own my 2nd 2009 G8 GT. LOVE IT !
g8driver says:
12:58 PM, 01/ 7/10
Sad to see the G8 leave the Long Term fleet. No more G8 posts to check out.
Oh well, guess I'll just enjoy driving around in my 2009 G8 GT with 30K miles on it.