I was on the phone yesterday with a guy from Pontiac (trying to score a Solstice media vehicle!) who gave me some more interesting tidbits of info on the Solstice. The passenger air bag cover, borrowed from the Chevy Cobalt, would have taken longer than the entire 27 months in which the car was developed to design from the ground up due to the messy process of certification and getting it approved for production. Wow. Another tidbit: every piece of sheetmetal on the Solstice is hydroformed except for the fender panels aft of the front wheels that contain the Pontiac "dart" badge. Most of the car's lustrous curves, especially the hood, could not be produced using traditional stamping methods.

Read on for news on Pontiac's intent to build a high-performance version of the Solstice…

I was also told that Pontiac and GM are currently considering how a high performance version of the Solstice will be tackled. Two obvious business models emerge: offer a force-induced version of the Ecotec motor in the Solstice as an entirely new model with a bevy of accompanying performance components or offer the supercharger/turbo as a dealer-installed option like Toyota does with its Scion brand or Chevy has done in the past with the Cavalier.

Our vote: spend the investment dollars and build a more powerful Solstice that increases the car?s performance in other areas like handling and braking ? something akin to a Solstice SS. Let us know how you think Pontiac should approach building a more powerful Solstice. They?re all ears over there.