The Pontiac Banshee: The Most Influential Car That Never Was

With the passing of successive generations, a nearly endless number of vehicle designs and concepts have been pitched to execs across the automotive industry. Many of these designs die in the very meeting in which they are pitched. Reasons for this stem from a lack of creative originality, or a design not being consistent with the direction in which a particular manufacturer is heading.

However, in the case of the Pontiac Banshee, a design can fail to receive final approval, due solely to the fact that the car in question would likely become a threat to the sales of a brand’s flagship offering. This is a lesson that John DeLorean, much to his disgust, was forced to come to terms with.

Banshee (1964)

The mid-1960s were an ever-changing time in the automotive world. The vast majority of manufacturers were striving to set themselves apart from their counterparts. Out of this jockeying for position, the Ford Mustang was born. The Mustang was released to much fanfare, with sales numbers being highly reflective of this fact. This led a number of manufacturers to seek out their share of this highly lucrative market space.