Today’s trip through Pontiac history comes courtesy of vintage dealership postcards spanning the marque’s glory years, from the 1960s into the 1970s. As expected, you’ll find plenty of Pontiacs on display—Firebirds, Catalinas, Bonnevilles, and more—but the dealerships themselves are just as interesting. The postcards capture changing showroom designs, evolving signage, and even a few unexpected automotive guests. Our opening image, which features a bright special-edition Firebird Esprit Sky Bird, comes from Kalaydjian Pontiac in Mt. Kisco, New York.
One note for the car spotters: there are some intriguing non-Pontiacs hiding in these lots. Keep an eye out for a couple of Mercedes-Benz models and other sporty ones.
Derrow Motor Sales, Pontiac-Cadillac-Rambler, Defiance, OH.
Heights Pontiac, Chicago Heights, IL.
Proctors, Cadillac-Pontiac-Jeep, Tallahassee, FL.
Tokay Motors, Pontiac-Cadillac-GMC, Lodi, CA.
Gary Widlitz Pontiac-Toyota, Westbrook, CT.
Jay Wolfe Pontiac, Kansas City, KS.
Leo Payne, Pontiac-Jeep-GMC-Volvo, Lakewood, CO.
Foster Pontiac-Buick, Scarborough, ON.
Red Holman Pontiac-GMC, Westland, MI.
Leo Payne, Pontiac-Jeep-GMC-Mercedes-Benz, Lakewood, CO.
Howard Pontiac, Elmhurst, IL.
Executive Pontiac-GMC, Randallstown, MD.
Mike Salta Pontiac-Renault, Portland, OR.
As a kid I worked at McKenzie Pontiac here in Omaha on 24th & Deer Park Blvd. That would have been `80 to about `82 when the Owner, Rod McKenzie passed away. He started the business down the street in 1955. Unfortunately I can’t say I ever saw a postcard advertising his dealership.
Gary Widlitz Pontiac-Toyota. Spotted the Corona Mark II in the service bay right off as I owned a ’70 2 door. And knowing those cars, It’s probably in for a mere oil change. And I remember Mike Salta well.
As a former MDer I can recall Executive Pontiac in Randallstown, it’s now a used car dealer.
As a current Denver area resident, that cool Leo Payne Pontiac building is now gone, replaced by Planet Honda’s rather boring structure. Leo Payne was a forward thinking dealer who early on embraced imports including MB and others, and sold his several CO dealerships to the large Key-Royale chain in 1987.
I visited Kalaydjian Pontiac in this era, probably more than once. At that time, Mt. Kisco, NY was a little too far from NYC to be truly suburban, but it wasn’t quite rural, either. I’m sure it’s much more suburban now. The Pontiac dealer had a bit more of a rural feel, though. It was very low-pressure, not like the big dealers in the suburbs. My sister almost bought her T1000 there, until Pop found a better bargain at another dealer.
The Foster Pontiac Buick dealership is in Scarborough ON, not Farmington, MI. There was a Pontiac dealer in Farmington Hills MI called Bob Sellers, but that transitioned to Buick GMC when Pontiac folded.
Thanks. I updated the text.
I hereby dial into the Way-Back Machine:
— Year: 1967
— Location: Lodi, California
— Place: Tokay Motors, Pontiac-Cadillac-GMC.
Objective: Must purchase 1965 Navy Blue Austin-Healey Sprite, that’s asking me to take her home.
(It’s the one next to a Lighter Blue, 1962 Olds Dynamic 88)
That one and the “Lincoln”, behind it, caught my eye too.
Not sure which building I like better, Leo Payne or Executive
My dad bought two cars at Heights Pontiac – a 1961 Tempest too small for our growing family, and a 1961 Dynamic 88.
After getting hired at Ford Stamping Plant in East Heights, (now Ford Heights), he and his brother traded the Olds in for a new 1967 Ford Galaxie 500 for us, and a Custom 500 for my uncle.
Halstead Street in Chicago Heights is a very sad downtown street today, as is most of Cook county south of Hyde Park, but this building still stands as a NAPA auto parts store!
It’s actually RED Holman not Ray Holman, here in Michigan. It might still be around I remember it at least from when I was a kid.
Yes, it is Red Holman. Typo fixed
The least glamorous dealership in this collection is definitely Gary Pontiac in Westbrook, Connecticut. So I just had to look it up, and it turns out the building is still standing. It’s now used as a trailer dealership, but aside for a color change to the building, the site looks exactly the same as it did in the vintage shot.
Google StreetView link here:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/zxyHbvXSfKFD7Ng16
This video appeared in my YouTube feed today, and this seemed like a good place to post the link. It’s a home movie of Laguna Beach from 1955, and the first few minutes are high-grade CC titillation.
I’m constantly reminded of a question asked of 1960’s Swiss-American photographer Robert Frank – ‘Why do you take so many pictures of cars?’. The answer… ‘It’s all I see.’
Wonder how much Kalaydjian got for that Sky Bird. Mike Salta had a Pontiac store in Long Beach CA. as well.
Loving all these .
I was lucky enough to have spent about a month in So. Cal. during the Summer of 1969 .
-Nate