The Last of the Pontiacs

Recently, we had a sad day. No, I’m not talking about a mass-shooting or other type of disaster or a personal tragedy. It was a sad day for my wife Pam and I because we sold our final Pontiac automobile. Pam and I have driven Pontiacs almost exclusively since we married in 1970.

We just bought a 2019 Subaru Legacy and are selling our 2007 Pontiac G6.

You see, her grandfather Ralph “Pappy” Willis, started a family business called the Willis Motor Company in 1934 in North Canton, Ohio. The first year, he sold Plymouth autos, but switched to selling Pontiacs after that first year.

Willis Motors sold Pontiacs for more than 70 years until 2007 when Pam’s brother Jeff decided to cancel the Pontiac franchise and close the dealership following the sudden death of their dad Bill Willis. Pam’s father worked for his father “Pappy” beginning in his teens and took over the business when Ralph passed away in 1980. Jeff was the heir apparent.

In 2009, General Motors announced the termination of the Pontiac brand and the last cars rolled off the assembly line in 2010.

During the final days of the Willis Motors, Jeff had a handful of cars to sell and Pam and I decided to purchase the G6 sedan. So, it was one of the last Pontiacs sold by Willis Motors.

Pam and I married in 1970 and our first Pontiac, a bronze color 1970 Lemans was our wedding present. Pam’s dad always wanted her to drive at least a medium size car because he felt that would provide more protection during a crash.

Pam and I met at the end of our sophomore year at Miami University and I visited her later that summer. When I pulled into her driveway that Friday evening, I’m sure her dad was appalled at seeing my 1959 VW Beetle with the front hood tied down with piece of rope. After that visit, whenever I came to North Canton to visit, he made sure to have a larger used car available for us to use.

Sometimes he let us use a Bonneville, Pontiac’s largest sedan and driving that was a lot different than driving a VW Beetle. Looking out the front windshield, the Bonneville’s hood seemed as large as the flight deck on an aircraft carrier. Another time he let use use a four-speed stick shift GTO, Pontiac’s classic performance car and that was quite an experience, too.

My favorite “loaner” from my future father-in-law was a blue 1967 Pontiac Tempest convertible that he let us use during Memorial Day weekend in 1969. The weather was perfect that weekend and Pam and I logged a lot of miles enjoying the northeast Ohio countryside with the top down and the radio blaring.

I loved that car and I asked Bill how much it cost. The price tag of $1,300 was way too much for a kid who had another year of college and was making about two dollars an hour at his summer job.

After we married, we always had one nearly new Pontiac and I drove mostly older used cars. When it was time to replace my older car, we would check with Pam’s dad and buy a car traded in for a new Pontiac. Many of his customers traded for new cars every three of four years, so he had a steady supply of decent cars for us to choose from. Many times, those were not Pontiacs.

In the early 80s, when we both had good jobs, we splurged and became a two-Firebird couple. Pam got her Pontiac sports car first, a white 1980 model that didn’t seem too sporty enough for her. So her dad arranged to have a horizontal red racing stripe put on each side and replaced the interior with red, cloth seats.

A couple of years later, I bought a new bronze color Firebird that was the spiffiest car I ever owned. I had it a couple of years before it was stolen one day in Pittsburgh while I was visiting a friend. The police recovered it several weeks later, but the radio-cassette player had pried out of the dashboard, the seats damaged and the wheels and pop-up headlights stolen.

I used an insurance company loaner for a few weeks while my poor Firebird was being repaired. I drove it home from Pittsburgh one evening while looking at the gaping hole in the dashboard where the radio had been. Bill’s mechanic examined the car after I brought it back to Ohio and we decided to wholesale the car because it has been treated so poorly by the criminals who stole it.

Last year we decided to replace both of our older, high-mileage Pontiacs. First, I bought a 2013 Honda CRV from Pam’s brother Jeff, who currently sells for a used car dealer in North Canton. I sold my 2004 Pontiac Vibe with 184,000 miles on it and I hated to see that car go. It was arguably the best car I ever owned, a small SUV with a luggage rack on top that we used to take our son Brian to and from college in St. Louis.

So, the last Pontiac we own is currently for sale at Jeff’s used car lot in North Canton. The dark gray 2007 Pontiac G6 sedan with about 117,000 miles also was a great car. Because it was about the last car sold by Willis Motors, it holds a special, sentimental place in our memories.

It is more than a car, it’s a memento of a family business that was a big part of Pam’s life. And mine, too.