Pontiac G5 (Pursuit) Owner's Manual

About The G5

The Pontiac G5 — aka the Pontiac Pursuit — started out life as a Chevrolet project, namely the Chevrolet Cobalt. The Cobalt was originally built to take the place of the Chevy Cavalier and the Prizm models.

Pontiac got their own version in 2007, which they marketed and sold both as a 2-door coupe and a 4-door sedan from 2007 to 2010. The Pursuit name was used in Canada from 2005 to 2006, followed in 2006 by the G5 Pursuit. In Mexico it was known as the G4.

Powering the Pontiac G5 was a 2.2-liter inline-4 engine delivering up to 148hp and 152 lb-ft of torque. This was paired with a 5-speed manual transmission and FWD drivetrain. The first models were also noted for the wide range of exterior color choices available, including bright yellow.

Despite Pontiac as a brand going through tough times in the late 2000s, the G5 was praised for its pleasing acceleration, smooth and quiet ride quality, and decent safety scores. Where the G5 let people down was in the quality of the interior design, which was plagued with cheap plastic whereas other OEMs were moving towards much better finishes at the same price point.

The Pontiac G5 was also seen as a big improvement on its predecessor, the Pontiac Sunfire, but it just wasn’t refined enough of a car to compete in a changing marketplace. It was affordable and a surprisingly good performer, though, which helped spur sales in the early days.

Standard safety features on the G5 include four-wheel disc brakes, ABS, traction control, full-length side-curtain airbags, and more. The higher GT trim adds nice additional features such as keyless entry, rear spoiler, CD/MP3 player, cruise control, a sport-tuned suspension, a leather-wrapped steering wheel with mounted controls, air conditioning and a split folding rear seat.