GMs Pontiac Solstice, Chevrolet Nomad, and Saturn Curve Concep

We've seen the future, and a lot of it is rear-drive. But who would've expected rear drive to find its way back into small cars? That trend is being encouraged by GM's chief product dude Bob Lutz and his desire to get a four-cylinder, classic two-seat sports car into the Pontiac lineup. Enter the Solstice, the 2002 concept that becomes a real 2006 model in autumn 2005.

For $20,000, you'll get the base Solstice engine, a 170-horsepower, 170-pound-feet, 2.4-liter Ecotec I-4 (a 2.2-liter turbo or supercharged four will be available later for around $25K). The production Solstice's weight is significant, at "under 2900 pounds." Bob's baby uses Opel Corsa seat frames, Fiat HVAC controls, GMC Envoy backup lamps, and Grand Prix foglamps, but draws considerable inspiration from several Alfa Romeo roadsters of decades gone by. We think it looks terrific.

The Solstice employs GM's new Kappa architecture and innovative manufacturing techniques. The platform has hydroformed full-length frame rails with a boxed center tunnel enclosing the driveshaft. So it's a backbone frame like the Corvette's, which means none of the chassis flex associated with unibodies decapitated to make convertibles. This layout also allows for great design and production flexibility. Demonstrating this notion are two "aspirational" compact concepts, the Chevrolet Nomad and the Saturn Curve.

Leapfrogging the Mini, which has a three-door Clubman wagon on its way, the Nomad was penned at GM's United Kingdom studio. It recalls cues from the 1954 Motorama Nomad show car, including its 1953-1955 Corvette nose, forward-leaning B-pillar, and chrome-ribbed tailgate. The backlight rolls down into the tailgate, which folds flat, with a slide-out load floor and folding rear seatbacks. The nouveau Nomad also speaks to the Kappa's flexibility: Wheelbase is 107 inches versus 95.1 for the Solstice.

As good as the Nomad looks, some consider the Saturn Curve less successful, continuing the marque's tradition of generic styling coupled with the brand's new Seat-style nose. Designed at GM's Swedish studio, the 2+2 concept has a flattop roof over a canopy of glass. Its blown 2.2-liter Ecotec four is rated at 230 horses. GM says it doesn't need to build Kappa variants to make the Solstice economically viable. But why not spread the wealth of this new chassis architecture? As small-car engineering chief Jim Queen puts it, "it's unlikely GM wouldn't make further use" of it in the Vauxhall Lightning (MT, "News," August 2003)--or in something like the Nomad or Curve.