For quite a few years, the Pontiac Motor Division of General Motors had a job to do. Its job was to recall the Division’s great bygone days as the company’s standard bearer for performance by bringing to market a hot road car that would make the buff books go into a swoon.
But all too often, once the buff books turned their GM-provided test vehicles back into the promotional fleet, the buzz went away and Mr. & Mrs. America would go on to buy other cars in great numbers. Sometimes this was because Mr. & Mrs. America were too dense to buy the really good stuff. But other times – it was the car.
In 1973 Pontiac played the performance card with the Grand Am. Everyone went wild about the Grand Am in the fall of 1972. Everyone who wrote for magazines, anyhow. It was not a stupid muscle car that made up for its lack of manners with way too much power. It was a finely balanced road car which showed us towards a market where handling and roadability were the reasons for its existence.
Sadly for Pontiac, there was something called the BMW 2002 which did what the Grand Am was supposed to be able to do, only without all of the superfluous flab of the corpulent GM A body. That BMW also charged slightly more money for a lot less car showed that the Bavarians had figured something out about the aspirational market in this country – something that General Motors was never able to grasp. Pontiac’s failure to move 71,000 Grand Ams over the original model’s three year life showed that the buff books were not always right.
The following decade, Pontiac would try again. The time period? The go-go 1980s. The car? The 6000 STE.
The 1982 Pontiac 6000 was one of four flavors of GM’s first all-new A body since 1978. Pontiac had spent the previous four years trying to sell a LeMans that had trouble getting traction in the sliver of daylight between the Oldsmobile Cutlass and Pontiac’s own Grand Prix. The LeMans would compete “up a division” for 1982 when it was renamed Bonneville, sent out to appeal to a dwindling number of traditionalists who still appreciated the traits of the broughams that Detroit had developed into an art form before the dismal era of post-peak-oil.
The 1982 A body cars were basically lengthened X body cars. The new models shared critical measurements like front (58.7 inch) and rear (57 inch) tracks and many other stats with their smaller progenitors. The new As even shared the 104.9 inch wheelbase of the Xs’ hatchback sedan body. The main difference was a roughly twelve inch increase in overall length, apparently split between overhangs up front and out back. The EPA calculated about three additional cubic feet of overall interior space, but most of this was likely due to the adoption of the “sheer look” upright roof design in place of the fastback bodies of the X sedans.
During the 6000’s first model year of 1982 it was essentially an updated LeMans, meaning that it was not much different from its siblings named Celebrity, Cutlass and Century. But in 1983 Pontiac tried to make things interesting.
In addition to offering regular (6000) and premium (6000 LE), Pontiac went all Grand Am and introduced the car it hoped would appeal to the sports sedan crowd – the 6000 STE.
In 1964 Pontiac had taken a vanilla Tempest and added a hot engine. However, the buyer still had to pay extra for many other items necessary to make the car into a truly appealing package, both mechanically and visually. The 6000 STE went the other direction.
“STE” stood for Special Touring Edition. With this car, Pontiac declined to follow the then-typical GM playbook which took a basic car and added some touches for a sporting appearance. The STE was an expensive upgrade which made for an extremely well-equipped car. If the brochure was accurate, leather and a sunroof were the only ways for one STE buyer to one-up the next. Pontiac threw everything into the STE from air conditioning and electronic ride control to carpeted floor mats. With this all-or-nothing package, there would be no stripper STEs.
Mechanically the car received a fuel injected “High Output” 130 bhp version of the 2.8 L Chevrolet V6, which was exclusively mated to a 3 speed automatic with a lockup torque converter. This powertrain was accompanied by specially designed or tuned components for suspension, steering and brakes, all of which interfaced with the pavement via beefy Goodyear Eagle GT tires. In the introductory brochure Pontiac claimed that the STE was “[p]ossibly the most exciting high-performance sedan to hit America’s streets in a long, long time!”
130 SAE net horsepower was not nothing in 1983. For example, it outpowered the base engine in the new Thunderbird, even though the Bird’s 3.8 V6 had a full liter in displacement advantage. On the other hand, the BMW 318i was down only 30 ponies against the STE with an engine smaller by one liter (and weighing 500 pounds less). And what did real performance look like in 1983? The Mustang GT was good for 175 bhp, which was definitely setting the new standard in bang-for-the-buck performance. Plus, each of these others (and the 145 bhp Thunderbird Turbo Coupe to name another example) offered a stick shift to cater to the enthusiast market.
The STE’s level of excitement (such that it was) did not come without a cost – the base price of the STE was about $13,500, which was a pretty fair amount of money for an American car of this size in 1983.
The buff books went wild. The car was named as one of Car & Driver’s Ten Best that year. C&D was effusive in its praise.
“If the downsized General Motors big cars of 1977 were the best American cars since the end of World War II, the 1982 General Motors A-bodies are the best since 1977, and the Pontiac 6000STE is the best of all. Exactly opposite the Firebird, the 6000STE is light and lively, features the most up-to- date technology available from GM, and comes wrapped in sheetmetal that can only be described as controversial. Another major point of differentiation is the fact that these cars aren’t selling very well. We believe that the appearance of the A-cars will grow on the American public, and the 6000STE ought to lead the way in that regard. It is, by our lights, the most handsomely trimmed and detailed new product in the current GM portfolio. It is also the least compromised, and the one that does the best job of telegraphing exactly what kind of car it is, and to exactly what kind of driver it is supposed to appeal. This is in every way a Car and Driver kind of car. Fun to drive, economical, distinctive in appearance, comfortable in an active participant’s sense of the word, and absolutely contemporary.”
Popular Science thought enough of the car to include it in a four way 1983 test which also pitted the Dodge 600 ES and the Buick Century T-Type against the $20,000 Audi 5000 Turbo. The Pontiac acquitted itself well in this test, approaching or beating the much more expensive Audi in performance numbers.
Unfortunately the excitement of the motoring press failed to retain potency in Pontiac showrooms. The STE’s production figures tell the sad tale:
1983 6,719
1984 19,236
1985 22,728
1986 26,299
1987 8,802
To put this in some perspective, there were 26,080 DeSotos built in 1960.
The car seemed to go out of style relatively quickly. PopSci tried again to compare three Amerikaners to an Audi in April of 1986, but the STE (by then priced at about $15,000) failed to make the cut. Instead the new Ford Taurus was the focus of the magazine’s affection as a bang-for-the-buck sports sedan. Like the STE three years earlier, the Taurus performed with numbers that neared those of the Audi 5000S and for a whole lot less money (and despite the Ford being saddled with all-season radials).
GM’s conception of a European-style sport sedan was skewed by the ’80s (as it had been in the ’70s and as it would be again in the ’90s). On the plus side, the STE was made to handle about as well as a front-heavy, MacPherson strut, fwd, twist beam rear axle car could handle. Sure, it was far from overpowered, but then neither were the European targets.
It got “the look” with toned down and blackout trim that GM thought would resonate. Unfortunately, stylists at Audi and Ford were beginning to take vehicle styling in a different direction, one that the square-rigged A bodies were ill prepared to go. And this ignores that to the untrained eye the STE looked an awful like Aunt Maggie’s Cutlass Ciera.
And while the STE carried full instrumentation, it was: A) electronic which pretty much every buyer in this class considered a gimmick and B) stuck in a panel that would have been right at home in Grandpa’s ’69 Catalina. And a 5 speed Getrag manual was not added to the options list until the 1987 model.
Add to all of this the fact that the cars never had that “machined from a single block of steel” feel that was so commonly found in German sports sedans of the era and you got . . . a really expensive GM A body that was fairly quick and handled pretty well.
The STE was undoubtedly the best version of GM’s ’80s A body sport sedans, outclassing the Buick T-Types and Chevrolet Eurosports in terms of both the effort put into building them and on the performance merits of the cars that resulted. But like those lesser models, they were still just decent cars with decent performance whose claim to fame was that they were better drivers than the models farther down the line. At least Pontiac put more distance between the STE and its base models than was the case elsewhere under the GM umbrella.
These STEs were not balls-out performers like the Buick Grand National or even the 1985 Ford LTD LX. Actually, they were not as powerful as the 1986 3.0 V6 Taurus. The first four model years also never got a stick shift, something that Chrysler was putting into cars like the Dodge 600 and Lancer. The final verdict has to be that the real Euro-American sports sedan of the ’80s was coming from Ford, albeit in a highly Americanized form. The Taurus had the look outside, had the look inside and was not really at a power or handling disadvantage either – and it wasn’t really even trying to be a sports sedan. And while the Taurus was never going to woo many buyers out of a BMW or Audi, the sad fact was that the 6000 STE wasn’t going to either.
The “Goooste” would take a year off then come back for a final lap in 1989, this time in AWD form. Pontiac was doing what it could with what it had, but . . . sorry.
All in all, the car was not really a flop, but it wasn’t a hit either. In its three best years (the only ones that got to five figures in production) the car sold about as well as the 1973-75 Grand Am had, though the STE had the advantage of a better economic climate.
When new, the 6000 STE generated a lot of respect but failed to turn that respect into decent sales figures. Sometimes time has a way of righting a wrong like this. An extreme example would be the Dodge Charger Daytona that languished on dealer lots in 1969-70 but is worth a fortune to collectors today. ’80s cars like the Buick Grand National and the Fox body Fords have fan support that has become quite robust. The 6000 STE, however, remains an inexpensive oddity – when you can find one at all. But then so are cars like the Omni GLH and the original Taurus SHO, both of which put more “sport” in sport sedan than the STE ever did.
Is it because the car was not powerful enough? Because it lacked a stick shift for all but its final year? Or was it looking for a niche that just wasn’t really there. It is not difficult to conclude that by the mid 80’s most buyers willing to consider a GM A body were not really interested in performance, and most buyers really into performance were not interested in a GM A body.
If you were a longtime GM buyer who wanted the nicest, coolest, best driving A body you could get in the mid ’80s, the 6000 STE was the car for you. But if you were looking for the best sports sedan you could get for the money? The STE may have been worth a look, but you could be forgiven for not falling under its spell.
Note: Measurements were obtained from www.automobile-catalog.com
Further Reading
1982-91 Pontiac 6000 – The Power Of The Halo (William Stopford)
1991 Pontiac 6000 LE – A Rare Sight (Carey Haubrick)
1980-84 Pontiac Phoenix – A Short (And Feeble) Second Life (Paul Niedermeyer)
COAL: 1984 Pontiac 6000 Wagon – 20 Years Of Use And Abuse (Carlo DiTullio)
To think that I thought STE stood for Suite. I stand corrected.
I thought the whole option package went by the label ‘Special Touring Designation’.
6000 STD?
I thought the ‘S’ added some Sportiness to the package…
No need to buy this troublesome FWD car, wait another year and the 1983 Monte Carlo SS is back… the earlier A-bodies were now called G-bodies… 175-180 HP and V8 torque and smoothness and longevity…
The 1982 GM A-bodies, along with the 1981 J-bodies, are the cars that really wised me up to badge engineering. And mostly tuned me off, ’80’s GM product design. They successfully powered my automotive interest, towards aero Fords.
Circa 1983-’85, the Celebrity Eurosport, 6000 STE, and Buick Century ‘T’ Type represented the best that domestic carmakers could offer, as European-style sport sedan competitors. At least before the Taurus came along. I liked the subtle presentation of the STE. And likely would have chosen between it and the Buick Century ‘T’ Type, if I had to choose a domestic sport sedan, during that era.
LTD LX, was too old-fashioned and Fairmont-like, for me.
There’s a 73 Grand Am at a local repair show near my house, drove by it today (it was outside over the weekend during the bad storms we had in Michigan too. I wouldn’t be too happy if I were its owner.
My English teacher in HS had an STE, his steering wheel was stolen probably because of the aftermarket need for replacements – foreshadowing air bag thefts decades later!
I still remember the drone of GM V6s from this era – not an inspiring sound – certainly it has never been dubbed into TVs or movies.
Still these did draw in some buyers for a last gasp at an American car before they either parted for the Germans or the Japanese.
Although I was a C/D subscriber at the time, I have no recollection of them being so excited about the ’82 A bodies. The best GM cars since the ’77 downsized big cars? I’d put the ’78 A bodies and ’79 E bodies well ahead. And what was so controversial about the 6000’s styling? It looked like nearly every other GM car built from about 1980 to 1987.
The added 6″ of front overhang was there to accommodate the Olds V6 diesel that hardly anyone bought and was soon discontinued. Well that and to make the car longer so they could charge more for it.
The 1983 STE had analog gauges bathed in red light at night (not the orange-red later widely used by Pontiac). But no tachometer. The ’84 and later got a tach, but also the gimmicky blue-green VFD digital display.
Not sure why Pontiac didn’t offer a manual trans from the get-go. The same engine was available with a manual in the Phoenix SJ amongst many others. Maybe because that manual was only a 4-speed.
Amongst the FWD A-bodies, the 6000 was unique in not using plastic filler panels between the grille and front fenders, or taillight panel and rear fenders. This gave it a smoother look (and better longevity given GM filler panels’ propensity to fade and crack), but also made it impossible to do major alterations to the front or rear appearance in later model years, as was done to the Celebrity, Century, and Ciera (sometimes twice), unless Pontiac reshaped the fenders and hood/trunk lid.
The “six headlight” appearance of early STEs looked cool, but I was always bothered by the added driving lights being just slightly narrower than the regular headlights.
The A body was indeed little more than an 82+ X body with longer overhangs. The running gear and engine cradles were the same. Even the dashboards would interchange with the bolt holes lining up. Somehow the overhangs were enough to put the car into a different class.
I’ve been a fan of the A body for a long time. Owned at least one since 1996. Two of them were 6000s. My SE rode and handled considerably different than my LE, and was probably the same package as the STE. While I never had an STE, I seeked them out in junkyards because of all the little touches I could swap into mine. Logo on hood insulation pad. Taller console cover, fabric covered vs vinyl. Taller sun visors with pockets you could put CDs in. “Soft” console cubbies, glove box with fuse puller. Pushbutton HVAC. First Pontiac with steering wheel radio controls, which was super handy and added to the whole “cockpit” instrumentation. Only A body with rear disc brakes, which for a long time was a highly sought after swap among the A community. Rear air suspension with external inflator, though that air suspension without inflator was on other GM models and was super troublesome.
I wasn’t a fan of the nose. Compared to the other A bodies and many other cars of the time, it seemed slapped together at the last minute. Huge gaps all around, pieces didn’t quite line up. Grille would often break when trying to remove it. But as a plus, you could remove the grille, headlights, and taillights with zero tools. What a shocker when you realize some modern cars require removal of the bumper to do that.
For 1987+ though, GM seemed to have improved the mechanicals a lot. No more morning sickness power steering. V6 was way improved, and I’ve got a Celebrity in my driveway with over 300k. Have had others that would have if it weren’t for severe rust in critical areas. I also loved the sound of that engine more than anything. They never did fix the sticking rear brakes, at least through 1990 which was my newest one. Main reason for the 4 rear disc swaps I’ve done from the STE.
The STE was a unique A body, but still just an A body. While I haven’t driven a BMW, I doubt the STE was in the same league.
The trouble I have with these “European” efforts by Pontiac (and others) is the newfound emphasis on handling just seemed to be a big cope in light of losing one of their most tried and true(to this day) selling points (horsepower and acceleration). Whenever I read the factory literature or early press about them it seems like they’re trying to will these sorts of cars into being industry game changers.
It is very very very obvious the Grand Am was what the 73 GTO would have been had the muscle car market not been snuffed out by rising insurance and emissions, and if not for those relegating the actual production GTO into a mildly tweaked Lemans (and later Ventura) the Grand Am simply would have been the 73-75 GTO without all the hyperbole about a whole new class of American car with European sensibilities, it probably would have had them anyway. Christen it with a new name however the marketers can shuffle around what it really means though, yet the most radical difference between the Grand Am and a would-be GTO is the availability of 4 doors.
The 6000STE is much the same, but even more cynical. It’s not the repurposing of an existing specialty model like the GTO to Grand Am, instead Pontiac simply made a 6000 that set it apart from the other corporate A bodies… which it should have been in the first place! Standard! It’s not like the STE was that exotic, it received no more changes to its suspension than any previous model with an HD suspension option got. It got better as time went on and in the usual GM fashion they actually made it truly special through and through in its final year when the body now looked really dated.
That said, I do like them. The early ones with the sealed beams that give off a 6 headlight effect with the driving lights is very unique and the smoked taillights are very cool in a classic Pontiac way. Would I ever buy one new back then? Hell no. But if I saw one on the highway today I’d probably miss my exit staring it
I’ve read the same thing about the Grand Am (or at least its styling) being originally intended for the GTO, which along with the other colonnades was originally to have debuted in 1972. It’s likely a similar story at other GM divisions – the Chevelle Laguna and Cutlass Salon were also sold as “sporty and powerful, but also luxurious and with good Euro-influenced ride/handling balance” much like the Grand Am. Also like the Grand Am, both of those cars were sales duds. I can’t recall if Buick had anything similar.
I thought the Ciera and Century were better lookers than the 6000, provided you didnt get the wire wheel cover/whitewall package 99% of them came with. But then that wasnt saying much, it was a dark time for styling in the domestic auto industry. Chrysler made even boxier boxes and Ford had such tradgedies as the Fairmont that actually had a bloody brilliant chassis under that ugly tan or brown wrapper.
Id also argue Olds did a better job with the sporty Ciera, you could option one with the bigger 3.8 Buick V6, stiff suspension, 15″alloys, console shift, etc like the 6000STE. They sold 5 of them optioned that way. Young people had moved on to Honda, Toyota, Nissan, the Germans if they had $$$$ GM built what sold to the young peoples parents and grandparents. The a body granny package with bench seat, column shift, pillow seats and wire hubcaps.
Much prefer the “Pontiac” to the “Ciera”! I was in the minority.
And I thought the 1982 and forward A’s were completely different new cars.
Amazing what slapping a new body on an existing chassis can accomplish.
Perhaps using the exising X platform limited the full potential of what the new A-bodies could have been.
Being a car freak and a new driver in the mid/late 80s, the STE was very much on my radar. The magazines raved about it, as did Motorweek. That was it for televised car content back then, we didn’t have 50 different reviewers giving their hot takes on youtube!
The STE was a great effort, a true attempt at an American Audi. There may not be much love for it present-day, but I can provide some context…. my first car was an 81 Skylark 2-door with the optional ‘big engine’, the carb’d 2.8L V6. 30k miles. 110 blistering hp, a real pooch. At the same time, my Mom had a new 86 6000LE with the base Iron Duke, 92hp. We also had an 85 Caprice wagon and an 84 Celebrity wagon, and I had plenty of driving time in all these.
After a year or so with the Skylark I was pining for an upgrade – enter my first STE, an 84. The first 2 years were actually carb’d but still they called them HO, 135hp. 85 finally got Fi and 140hp. Later I got an 86 STE which was amazing with the steering wheel buttons, fuel injection, ABS and the wall-to-wall digital gauges and readouts. My friends and I all thought it was the coolest. Other pals had parents with Centurys and Celebritys so I was able to really feel the improvements in handling and steering with the STE – it was truly a driver’s car, so much more planted than the others.
Later I went on to a Bonneville SSE which I also loved.
I have had BMWs and Supercharged AMG Mercedes over the years, currently an Audi and a Supercharged Jaguar XJR among other fun cars, and I would still love to have a nice STE again. It made that much of an impression on me.
The ’87 Bonneville SE and SSE killed the STE.
There was also an STE version of the Grand Prix sedan (and coupe?) from 1990 to 93 aimed at the same market (what little there was of it) as the earlier 6000 STE.
My Dad made the jump from being a life long Chevy guy to a Pontiac lover in November 1972 with his order of a Burma Brown GrandAm sedan. Only options were a/c and an AM/FM stereo radio -both a big deal for him. Even with a multitude of factory annoyances, it was a great handling car. 8 years later, I had a ton of fun driving it as newly licensed teen. His next and last new car was a 1986 6000 S/E. All the comfort and handling (except the electronic suspension) of the STE at a much lower cost. To me it was a clean looking design, with plenty of power and versatility. After 16 years of use, the interior looked new and the body showed little rust. Odd how the round STE badge lets you know twice that it’s a Special Touring Edition..
Buyers just were not ready for that kind of car from Pontiac/GM. If the sticker was $13,500 it could probably ne bought for around $12,000. Ads in the Houston Chronicle in June, 1983 show numerous Pontiac 6000s and Cutlass Cieras with air, auto, PS, PB, etc. for under $9700. Chevy Celebrities were offered around $8600. Paying over 1/3 more to get the STE would be a reach for many buyers especially since most did nod grasp or appreciate the value of a better engine and much better handling.
“Where”, in “IN”, is this photographed?
This was shot quite a number of years ago on the far north side of Indianapolis.
I ordered and bought a new 1987 6000 STE. The car had frustrating controls.Tiny switches had to be repeatedly pressed to initiate a function. There were no rear-seat shoulder belts; I had the dealer install them. The best feature was the four-wheel disc brakes with anti-lock. That car was the last GM car that I ever bought.
When these were released, my older brother went bonkers over them. He was particularly obsessed with video game dash panel that was an option on these cars. Alas, my brother has spent his entire life as a taxi driver. Cab drivers don’t have the money to buy car that was like double the price of a regular 6000.
Like a previous poster stated you could get get an SE package which had many of the the items the STE had without the electronic dashboard and other items which was quite a bit cheaper than the STE and for most drivers provided a nice driving and riding experience.