The Pontiac Trans Sport was a minivan produced by General Motors from 1990 to 1999. It was also sold in Europe as the Opel Sintra and Vauxhall Sintra. The Trans Sport was Pontiac's version of the GM APV, which was also sold by Chevrolet, Oldsmobile, and Buick. All three brands used the same body with different frontal styling (the Trans Sport's "beak" nose was considered one of its most controversial features). However, the Trans Sport received its own unique rear-end styling, featuring wraparound taillamps.
Here are three things that make the Pontiac Trans Sport cool:
It was ahead of its time – When the Trans Sport was introduced in 1990, it was one of the first minivans on the market with a front-wheel drive layout. This made it more fuel efficient and easier to handle than its rear-wheel drive rivals.
It had a pretty powerful engine – The Trans Sport came with a 3.8-litre V6 engine that produced 200 horsepower. That may not sound like much by today's standards, but it was pretty good for a minivan in the 1990s.
It was actually pretty stylish – Ok, so the beak nose may not have been to everyone's taste, but the Trans Sport was actually a pretty good looking minivan. It certainly looked better than some of the boxy vans that were on the market at the time.
Did you know that the Pontiac Trans Sport was actually designed by ItalDesign, an Italian design firm? Giugiaro, who also designed such iconic cars as the Ferrari Testarossa and the DeLorean DMC-12, penned the Trans Sport's distinctive bodywork.