Pontiac made some of the coolest cars of all time. However, the Pontiac Solstice wasn’t the most beautiful car. Now, imagine slapping a 1960s Pontiac GTO nose on a solstice. Even though someone technically made it work, it doesn’t really work, does it? It’s not that it’s overtly ugly right off the bat. In fact, a part of you may be tempted to almost like it for a second. However, keep looking. The longer you look, the uglier it gets. And, let me tell you, I looked for a while. This Pontiac mashup is one of the ugliest cars we’ve ever seen. 

What the hell is going on here? 

Look, I am no purist. I’m far from it, in fact. The idea of making a fantasy car by smashing two different models together is fun and exactly the kind of insanity that car designers need more of, now more than ever. That said, the designs still need to look good, not just be technically possible. 

CarScoops mentions that, although we don’t know much about this creation, this car seems to have been built some time ago. 

Again, the quality of the build is not under review here. It looks amazing. It’s the lack of taste we need to discuss. 

Jamming a muscle car nose on a roadster shouldn’t work, and it doesn’t. Any decent-looking car has many, many hours of design work invested. The transitions from one part of the car’s body to the next are what make the difference between decent-looking cars and truly beautiful ones. It is here where the Pontiac GTsOlstice falls short. 

Can you mix a Pontiac Solstice and a Pontiac GTO together? 

Apparently, you can, but that doesn’t mean you should. At the risk of over-explaining, the builder pulled the Solstice’s front fascia off and replaced it with one inspired by the instantly-recognizable Pontiac GTO. Although this isn’t a real GTO front end, it’s an approximation of sorts. 

The Size difference between the two models makes the GTO’s shrunken nose seem ever so slightly wrong. It took me a minute to realize the size was just wrong. As I stared at this weirdo, mouth slightly agape, my eyes slowly drifted to the middle and then the back end. This transition is bearable if you unfocus your eyes. However, if you actually look at it, again, it just doesn’t work. The curvy, bubbly rear of the Solstice simply doesn’t flow into the hard-lined angles of the ’60s. 

Lastly, the plasticyness of the mid-2000s shines like a beacon against the hard-bodied steel aesthetic given off by the repro ’60s muscle car front end. Again, like a chicken with an eagle’s head, it just doesn’t really work. 

When did Pontiac stop making the Solstice? 

The only redeeming part of this build for me is reliving the nostalgic conundrum of trying to figure out why I don’t like the Solstice. By all accounts, it’s a cool, inexpensive, American sportscar that so many of us fuss about not having. I always felt like I should like it. But I never could get there. 

Thankfully, ever since 2010 – when Pontiac gave the Solstice the ax – I haven’t had to do much thinking on the Solstice until now.