Planned obsolescence is when a product is designed from its inception to become unfashionable or obsolete shortly after its launch. In the 1950s, American automakers embraced this mantra and made extensive annual changes to the appearance of their vehicles in an effort to keep their cars looking fresh and their sales high. By the 1970s, these changes were becoming less and less dramatic as domestic automakers expanded their lineups to include heretofore nonexistent subcompact, compact, intermediate and specialty models and thus found the costs of these regular changes too much to bear. Intriguingly, during the 1971-76 run of GM’s last truly big B-Bodies, the Pontiac received fairly significant visual changes almost every year. This was despite Pontiac generally having the poorest sales of GM’s four B-Body lines and also despite Buick and Oldsmobile’s annual changes being arguably less distinct. So, which year did Pontiac’s Grand Ville, Bonneville, Catalina and Grand Safari look the best?
The 1971 full-size Pontiacs were perhaps the most dramatic, with a protruding grille and a very bluff facade that somewhat echoed the successful Grand Prix personal luxury coupe.
For 1972, things seemed to be toned down a bit and there was a more obvious front bumper which seemed to presage the upcoming 5-mph bumper legislation.
Of course, the bumpers needed to be a lot bigger for 1973 but GM also decided to dramatically change the front end of the ’73 Pontiacs. The grille appeared to shrink somewhat, but the hood was more sculpted and the overall look was just as formal.
For 1974, the front was bluff once again although a little less busy.
While, in my opinion, the rest of GM’s B-Body coupe fleet was much uglier for 1974, the Pontiac coupes’ new roofline seemed to fit better with the Pontiac’s elegant, almost coke-bottle contours below the C-pillar. Then again, maybe this is Pontiac brochure artists handicraft at play: the 1974 Pontiac brochure manages to make every car in the lineup look stunning.
Handsome new rectangular headlights were the biggest visual change for 1975 Bonnevilles and Grand Villes, and there were also new taillights and an attractive new grille.
The Catalina was less changed visually, retaining circular headlights and similar taillights to the 1974 models.
For the last year of the big Pontiacs before their dramatic downsizing in 1977, there were few visual changes. The Grand Ville was dropped, replaced by a new Bonneville Brougham flagship. Sadly, the slow-selling convertible was also gone. While the ’77 B-Bodies would be much more efficient and yet crisply styled and pleasing to the eye, there would unfortunately be no hardtop sedan.
While I love the clean rooflines of the ’71-73 coupes and sedans and the ornate styling of every year’s wagon, my personal pick for favorite full-size Pontiac of this generation would undoubtedly be the 1975 Grand Ville convertible. Being a convertible, its styling was never muddled by new rooflines and the front clip of the upmarket Pontiacs this year was the most attractive of the generation. Also, full-size convertibles were in their death throes and this was one of the last and one of the most beautiful.
What’s your opinion?
Make mine a ’76 Bonneville Brougham 4-dr hardtop with fender skirts and opera windows in the sail panels – gorgeous!
Agreed!
Looked like a Cadillac Sedan deVille from the waist up!
Great call on the Grandville. That’s my pick, hands down.
+1
+2
The styling never seemed to hit on all cylinders. Talking top line models, the ’71 and ’72 were a bit plain. The skirts on the ’73 and up really work for me, and were part of successful big Pontiac history from ’65-’70 before that.
The ’73 front is a bit busy, but overall the ’73 works for me. The rear detailing is nicely done on the ’73.
The ’74 may have the worst front end. It’s even worse in person with some odd exposed seams in the body color panels.
The ’75 and ’76 really wear the new rectangular headlights well, and have good overall detailing. The only point against these cars is the loss of the true hardtop roofline on two door models.
Coupe: Make mine a ’73 with the rally wheels.
Hardtop Sedan: Make mine the ’76 with the Bonneville name!
Convertible: Tough one. The ’71 or ’72 with rally wheels would look really good.
Beyond styling, the best car is probably the ’72. Post flow though ventilation, pre total smog strangulation, you get the long wheelbase and avoid the federal bumper weight gain. You do have to put up with the rather awful three piece lap shoulder belt, though.
My choice would be the 1973 Pontiac Grandville, what is strange is I normally find the 1973 models to be a downgrade to the 1971-72 models but I’ve always thought Pontiac really came together with the 1973 design on the Pontiac Grandville’s.
My vote is for the 73, even though that front bumper borders on too small looking.
There’s a Grand Ville coupe, or was, on my daily walk route. It’s at least a 74, but exactly which year it is, I don’t know. It’s a beautiful dark brown with a white vinyl top….and it has fender skirts.
About this time, all the full-sized GM cars had skirts and Ford/Mercury did too. While not crazy about them, these Pontiacs look good with them while Fords of this era do not. Strangely, Mercurys looked okay with them.
I’d have to go with the ’72 Grand Ville Convertible myself. It kinda reminds me of the ’72 Impala which has always been a personal favorite of mine.
If as you say, sales were lagging behind, there is probably a reason. I think that the large Pontiac’s were best in the mid 60’s. By the end of the 60’s and early 70’s styling is a bit off. The rectangular headlights help. The Buick’s and Chevrolets are best. The 76 Bonneville is OK.
+1
+2; my recollections are colored somewhat by a gorgeous ’67 Catalina 2-door fastback that my parents had briefly (until the engine blew a few months in). The ’70s versions are a bit too blocky for my taste, but if I’ve got to choose, I’ll go with a ’72 Bonneville 2-door, mostly for the pre-5 MPH bumpers.
Here’s how I’d rank them:
1) 1971–purest expression of the designers’ intent, and with the enormous, pointed grill, looked like it was ready to attack.
2) 1972–still kept the flair of the 1971 car mostly intact. Also the last year for the circular cutouts for the gauges on the instrument panel (the circular gauges inside square bezels that arrived starting in ’73 never looked as good to me).
3) 1973–I actually like the horizontal treatment on the front as it does a good job of toning down the beak a bit.
4) 1975–front and rear ends were nicely done, and I especially like the versions with square headlamps.
5) 1976–close to the 1975, though the plainer grille is slightly more boring that the crosshatch. I also liked the look of the Catalina Custom front end, which used square headlamps mated to the handsome Catalina horizontal bar grille.
6) 1974–my least favorite of the bunch, as the pseudo-Mercedes grille just looked out of place. It clearly wasn’t a Benz, but in the process came out less like a Pontiac too…
For all years, I loved Pontiac’s selection of wheel treatments. My favorites are the Rally II wheels, but I’m also a fan of the finned wheel covers as well.
Agree with first is the best, they managed to make a very large car look even more ponderous with every succeeding change.
There’s been a black vinyl-top delete 73 Grand Ville 4 door for sale on the next street for months, and every time I drive by, I picture myself driving it. Then I picture sleeping on the couch because my wife would have a fit, and that’s the end of that. The fender skirts really make the look of the car.
My next door neighbor had a 72 or so Catalina when it was new, stripped down 4 door, dark brown with brown vinyl seats…yuck. I think it had A/C and AM radio and that was it. He died in the late 70s, and his widow, who had never driven, tried to learn to drive that tank. It was quickly replaced with a Honda Civic in a similar dark brown color.
I wonder how sturdy the finned wheelcovers are…they look delicate to me, with all of that detail, but I’ve never actually touched one or even looked at it up close.
I also wonder if the Grand Ville down the street USED to have a vinyl top…there are little stub chrome trim pieces at the back of the back doors, along the belt line, which would line up with the chrome trim on the quarter panels if there was a vinyl top…surely a metal-top car wouldn’t have those little trim pieces, would it?
The fins on our ’78 were still going strong when I sold the car.
I was going to say ’74 Grandville 2-door coupe. A good friend’s mom had one in burgundy metallic with a black vinyl top. One of the neatest features were those finned wheel covers. The car really didn’t get any special treatment and those wheel covers seemed to hold up pretty well.
Not to mention that Jimmy Hoffa’s last car was a dark green ’74 Grand Ville 2-door coupe, too.
Those ’72 Convertibles were awfully pretty, but I’d have to go with this one…
Was thinking of that car myself 🙂
Yeah, if it was good enough for Bill Hickman (also the driver of the Charger in Bullitt), it’s good enough for me.
Having had experience of knowing friends, who had TWO 75/76 Pontiac GrandVille hardtop sedans(maroon with maroon top and a silver with black top)… I can truly appreciate the style and beauty of these luxury barges.
These convey much better style and curves, than the boring slab sided 77 downsized versions.
The rectangular headlights and classy grille design and slotted tail lights of the 1975 refreshening, really did wonders for the GrandVille.
Too bad the GrandVille was discontinued for 1977.
My pick would be a 1975 GrandVille Brougham… Coupe or sedan. Either or.
I love the richer look and texture of the ’74 grille, but dislike the odd strip of parking lights which clash with the soft countors of the grille. The ’75 and ’76 look a mite too plain and the ’73 is just awful.
Unfortunately the sporting image Pontiac had accommodated throughout the Sixties and into the Trans Am era just couldn’t stretch to encompass a car this big, probably why sales were always disappointing.
Limited to just Pontiac, I’d probably go for a ’76 Bonneville – I’m a sucker for wide wraparound taillights I guess. But given the choice of all GM biggies of the era I’d really rather have a nicely-equipped ’76 Buick Electra coupe with the “firm ride and handling package” and an Astroroof.
Grand Ville name dropped for ’76, not ’77. And Bonneville was the true top of the line.
72’s look more earthy, but I’d get a ’76 for a collection.
Never liked the ’73, plus a mean kid that drove my carpool in HS had his grandfather’s hand-me-down brown ’73 Grand Ville sedan that he beat the crap out of. So my memories of the ’73 full-sized Pontiacs are not good. Plus I always thought the ’73 looked weird. I really like the ’71 and ’76, in that order.
I’ve always been partial to the ’73, but my bias is that it was the grandparents’ car from ’73-’79 when they downsized to an LTD.
Amazing how many iterations of the B/C bodies there were, and the year to year changes that were made. In retrospect, I’m partial to the earliest versions, like the ’71s, for the simpler and cleaner lines, But even though I always thought it was weird that Pontiac, with their sporty image, really applied a luxury look to the top models with the fender skirts and all, I liked the Bonnevilles and Gran Villes, both sedans and convertibles. I think the later 1975 versions too, more so than other B/C bodies of those years. Love those red 1975/1976 sedans.
I’d say the ’71, not just at Pontiac but across the board with the GM B/C-bodies. The original concept before half a decade’s Broughamitis, change for change’s sake and
That being said, I have a soft spot for the later six-window 4 door hardtops and the ’75-6 Bonneville is a reasonably effective update. The same “face” on a wagon didn’t quite work though, there it was clearly a newer front on an old car.
I would concur about the ’75 Grand Ville convertible for the most part – but I much prefer the tail of the ’73 Grand Ville to that of any other year. Simple and elegant but without the unpleasant-looking block lettering of the 1971-72 cars.
Once I saw an almost new ’71 Bonneville 4-door hardtop, silver with no vinyl roof, that was gorgeous, at least in rear three-quarter view; the car was surrounded by northeast PA woods (at a summer camp), so that probably helped.
’49 Forever !
I am partial to the 73’s, probably because I have a 73 Grand Safari. To me, the 73’s seem lower and sleeker. That said, my overall favorite is the 76 Grand Safari…sure looks regal to me.
Jamie Yes I am still alive. I am so glad you still have my Dads Grand Safari. We now live in Shakopee, Mn moved from Fergus Falls in 2014. We winter in Apache Junction and have sold all of the old cars. I still have a Corvette but am contemplating sell this spring. We will see. Dad died in 1999 my mother is 94 and in the nursing home. My dad was so proud of that car. Nice picture. Dis not realize we had such a gem. Thank you for preserving it. Steve Babcock. My new email is stevelindababcock@gmail.com
Jamie,
I happened to run across this pic of your car and I am a collector of the b-body cars (I currently have 4 of them!) With that being said I have never had a wagon and have always wanted one for my permanent collection. If you are ever thinking of selling please let me know. I have attached a pic of my 7,000 mile 75′ Grandville for your viewing pleasure! My number is 920-366-7652 Thanks and I hope to hear from you!
In order from my most favorite to least favorite would be 1973, 1972, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1976 for the Pontiac’s, for the other GM biggies I liked the 1971-72’s the most.
Funny, the Chevys of the time look so big and bloated to me, but the Pontiacs look sleek and stylish.
Some nice cars there even though I can’t recall ever seeing a 74-76 at any time. Much like 74-78 C bodies as they didn’t seem to go over well in California for either. That being said the 75 Grand Ville vert is quite the looker.
I like any of the 4dr hardtops with rear fender skirts
I think they are all way too bloated. Too bad they could not recreate the magic of 1963. That car was almost perfect.
The ’71 was the most Pontiac looking of the bunch. Unfortunately, this turned out not to be a good thing, apparently, as full-size Pontiac sales began to slip along with their distinctive 1960s image. This was either due to or caused by the constant reshuffling of design elements, as they kept trying to give the next year’s model a shot in the arm. But overall, from ’71-76, the big Poncho was pretty confused, especially compared to the other giant B bodies. Seems like from year to year, it was trying to imitate Buick, then Chevy, then Cadillac. But it just didn’t know what a Pontiac was. I think it was a victim of the times, as everyone gave up on performance and just wanted to cruise in velour lined broughmaliciousness. And certainly the Bonneville and Grandville could do that with the best of them. But if your goal was to drive your button tufted living room couch down I-95, wouldn’t you really rather have a Buick? Or a Chevy? Or an Olds, or even a Cadillac?
I know this is outside the range, but I bought a ’78 Catalina from my grandfather (who got a ’98 Olds). We kept the Catalina until 1985, when I got a new 6000 STE. The Catalina had the Buick 350, and over 250k miles when I sold it. It was very trouble free.
I had a ’79 Safari wagon in Buckskin and woodgrain in the same timeframe for work.
Many cars since then have been good at certain things, but few were as good at everything as these two, given the technology of the day.
Would love to hear more about your ’85 STE! That’s a very interesting car.
The ’71 all the way. Cleanest front end by far before it got watered down with silly things like bumpers and visible turn indicators and insurance requirements.
The ’71, no question. It still looks like a Pontiac, kind of the last gasp of the ’60s sporty aggression. The ’72 looks like a ’71 that had to turn down the volume after getting noise complaints from the neighbors. By ’73, they’ve given up and switched to the easy-listening station. By ’75 the original tenants appear to have moved out to be replaced by the Capripala family, who never throw parties and studiously uphold all the homeowners association bylaws.
This is the comment of the week! 😀
Thank you for saying the 1971!
The massive bumpers are a horror for all the other years, except the ’72.
It seems to me growing up then, that the auto designers really couldn’t figure out what to do with those park bench sized bumpers, and it seemed that every manufacturer, with a few exceptions, went with the same design.
This car was not meant to have ginormous front bumpers. When GM redesigned and shrunk their full size cars, the designers had a few years to come to grips with these monstrosities, and worked them into the car better.
So – there is absolutely no competition.
1971!
The bumper were added on rather than integrated into the design. But as time went on, the idea of protecting the car from damage instead of the passengers changed. Now bumpers are hidden from direct view and the car is designed to protect the occupants.
I just can’t summon up any love for those, I much preferred the mid size Pontiacs. The full size ones just looked overstyled and bloated.
Sorry to say, but none of the above!!
The ’77 model year was the best!! The cars dropped 600 to 700 lbs, interior size grew, handling improved, and gas mileage vastly improved. My jerk brother in-law at the time bought a ’78 Safari wagon which got better mileage than my dad’s ’74 Comet.
+1
The 77 to 79 Bonneville coupe does it for me.
Well, check out this Bonneville Brougham coupe, that used to be owned by a friend of mine… It’s now owned by a young man, who dailys it.
This pic was taking last winter, parked next to my 83 Corolla.
Nice. I’m glad someone young appreciates it.
Yep, he went from a 2006 Acura TL, and said he prefers the V8 power and RWD, to the Acura.
It only has 59,000 original miles. 🙂
Definitely not this one….
That drove me nuts in that movie, no way I’d mistake that 71-72 for the downsized 80 they drove through the rest of the movie, ugh!
All of the 70’s Pontiacs look oversized and bloated, they have none of the class that
the Pontiacs of the 1960’s had-especially the 1963 Gran Prix.
Definitely the ’71 for me. It’s all about that big beautiful vertical beak! I like them all, though…probably ’73 the least. And the ’74 seems overlooked and way more stunning than I realized! Oh, and I love rectangular headlamps, but to me the Pontiac is the big GM car they looked worst on.
I’d take the ’75 convertible if I had to. I always liked the rectangular sealed beams on GM cars of this generation. At the time I thought this was a very modern feature, a real “suddenly it’s 1980” moment. Then when the ’77 downsized models came out with the same headlights, it was like the cars have now morphed fully into the new era that the last of the prior generation hinted at. So to me, the headlights make the car. And the convertible has its own charms, of course.
But honestly, I never really cared for GM cars of this era. I once owned a ’70 Catalina that I still think has a much prettier “face” than the subsequent models, and I also owned an ’82 Olds Delta 88, i.e. the next generation that was these cars’ superior in every way. The ones in the middle I skipped back then and still would today, given other choices.
I think the ’73 is the most attractive, to me, while the ’71 is the most distinctive. I’d have a hard time choosing between the two, but I think my first choices might be the two lead photos, but in reverse order: ’71 Convertible, then ’73 Hardtop Sedan.
Least attractive by a mile is the ’74. Just looks awkward, while also managing to look like a rejected design for the ’72. I like the square lamps but ’75-’77 are somewhat hard to distinguish.
Weakest of the 71-76 Bs IMO I’d pick 71 though. 74 is the worst.
a 71 grand ville convertible ,
then a 76 bonneville brougham in black , red leather
least favorite was the 73-74 models
I think for me the 73’s were the best of the bunch. they wore the 5mph bumper in the front better than most cars that year and the taillights on the grandvilles were super classy and foretold the 79 firebird taillights in my opinion.
the one exception to that was a friends dad who had a 76 parisienne brougham 4 dr sedan (I think the American equivalent would be Bonneville brougham) that was a different colour combination. it was snow white with a red vinyl roof and red velour interior and that big white body, covered in chrome with the contrasting red was a knockout!
Kinda still like the 71 but they appear to get steadily worse as time goes on huge bumpers not helping.
X2
None of them! They were all equally ugly.
1971, before those atrocious bumpers arrived.
If a gun were held to my head, I’d say ’71. The headlight/grill treatment was the best.
If not, gimme a ’70…or a ’77. MUCH better cars all around.
1976 Catalina Custom Coupe. This model offered the modern headlamps with the Catalina grille. The interiors were particularly attractive with the “seat mix” (white seats)or “color mix” options. The 1973-76 full-size, equipped with the proper suspension options, was the best handling full sized car of its time. The “RTS” option was not just a plaque on the dash, it included special shocks, spring rates, stabilizer bars etc. My 1974 Grand Ville hardtop equipped with “RTS” gave a great ride while also being able to handle. These Pontiac’s were also very QUIET cars.
Rectangular headlamps make the design so much better! They must have looked very modern, isn’t it? Is like a preview of the 80s. I’d say 75′, 76, and then 73′. I like the less prominent center grille, as I tend to prefer fronts with horizontal lines as opposed to vertical elements.
It could be interesting to imagine Pontiac keeping its 2-door hardtop for 1975 with rectangular headlights.
From what I saw on the Canadian 1976 full-size Pontiac brochure. We had both the Catalina and Bonneville in company of our Laurentian and Parisienne.
http://oldcarbrochures.org/Canada/GM-Canada/Pontiac/1976-Pontiac
Make mine a ’74 Grand Ville 4 door HT. The 455 was still standard and it didn’t have those weird looking opera windows.
Sometimes appealing boidies, true….but can’t beat the ’71 to ’73 full sized Buick bodies.
I always admired Pontiac’s insistence on keep full instrumentation (sometimes optional, but at least available) in their cars.
Got to vote 1974–our family had a 74 Laurentian 4 door.
The sly styling for the sides of the ’72s work for me, but the front and rear ends honestly didn’t come together until 1975. There’s just something about the positioning of the headlights in relation to the unfinished looking grilles that gets me going in the wrong direction. As for the rear end, the massive taillights didn’t work until the bumper was extended, making them look a bit less recessed and more flush with the body. The added touch on some of the cars of extending the taillights into the rear blades also helped quite a bit in establishing some identity compared to the similar taillights of that era’s Caprice and its sister car the Impala. Although the interior suffered a little bit after a while by glassing in the gauges (in squares no less!) and removing the metal bevels for the center console, the overall car eventually got better styling by 1975.
+ 1
The rectangular headlights and squared taillights of 1975-76… Gave the cars a more serious and classy look, which they were sorely missing in the 1971-74 years.
I wouldn’t mind finding a 75 or 76 GranVille to restore. The other years?… Meh.
Would have to be the 1971s. That snout is classic. But they were just too damned HUGE. The 1972s looked like the 1971s had the points on the snout and the headlight bezels sanded off. ’71s looked better.
Growing up Pontiac in the 60s and 70s, our driveway was graced with Catalinas from 1966, 1968, 1971 then in 1973 my dad moved-on-up to Bonneville and then again in 1976. Out of all the cars to pick from, my favorite had to be the 1973 Bonneville RTS. I suspect it may have a lot to do with it being the first car I drove when I got my license. It was not fast but a spectacular cruiser for me and 3 or 4 of my close, personal friends.