The American automotive market is one of the world’s biggest meritocracies. If a car is good, it sells well, and if it’s not, well, it gets a shorter Wikipedia entry. Now some may argue that vehicles like the Toyota Camry are too bland and don’t deserve their success. Then again, there’s a lot to be said for consistency…ask McDonalds.

Every now and then though, a car comes along that, despite a long list of merits, never quite achieves the ubiquity that you might expect. Sometimes it’s style, other times marketing, and yet other times it’s simply because the car was “ahead of its time,” that is, not exactly fitting in with contemporary consumer tastes.

Do these cars deserve their fate as also-rans? Not to me…they’re all good, and if people would be willing to overlook one simple thing (OK, maybe more than one in some cases), they’d find themselves behind the wheel of some very satisfying machinery. On the other hand, look for some great values on the used market in the near future.

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Pontiac is dead. Well, dying anyhow; it won’t officially be dead until 2010. Regardless, GM’s performance brand will join Saturn, Hummer and Saab as a victim of GM’s cost-cutting path to profitability. For all you fans, shed a tear.

Pontiac is the only longstanding GM brand to get axed in this current move, and rightfully so in my opinion. Perhaps no other single GM brand exemplifies everything that was right, and horribly wrong, with General Motors over the past several decades. Pontiac was the source of some of GM’s greatest cars, a hotbed of innovation and high-performance. On the other hand, it also boasted the General’s greatest blunders. Once in a while, the bad and good were mixed together within the lifespan of the car. What exactly am I referring to? Click the jump to see what made Pontiac great…and why it’s also pure garbage. If you agree, disagree, or think I missed one or more, sound off in the comments!

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Shopping for a new car is like navigating a minefield, doubly so when times are tough and money is tight. You never want to regret your decision, but with more than 450 different vehicles to choose from, how do you separate the good from the bad?

The good news is that most cars today are at least pretty good. The bad news is that there is still some bad picks out there, and not always from where you think. That’s where this article comes in. I’ve listed 10 cars you should just scratch right off your shopping list before you even get started. Whether they’re grossly uncompetitive, poorly built, unsatisfying to drive or all of the above, they’re not worth buying. If I missed one, or if you disagree, sound off in the comments!

2009 BMW X6

Five years ago, when I assume the BMW X6 was proposed, it probably sounded like a good idea. Take the BMW X5, make it a chop-top, beef up the engine and suspension and make it the world’s first sport-sedan-crossover-utility-vehicle thing. Problem is, the final product suffers from a acute case of weight (nearly 4,900 lbs), low grade materials (especially in the rear seat and cargo areas), and high price. The fact that BMW recently introduced an M version doesn’t help. The X6 does nothing that other BMWs don’t do better, except get “what was that guy thinking” stares from other drivers.

Instead…get a 2009 BMW x5. It’s roomier, handles almost as well, looks better inside and out, and has a lower price tag. It’s also coming in an M version, so you won’t miss out on the X6’s extra available power.

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You’ve seen the news about the failing domestic auto industry, and maybe it’s stirred just enough patriotism in you that you want to make your next car a domestic brand, just to help. Problem is, every single time you’ve visited a GM, Ford or Chrysler showroom in the past few years, you’ve come out laughing and headed down the street to the competing Japanese or European dealership.

Old Glory

The truth of the matter is that American manufacturers are really making some pretty compelling vehicles today, cars and trucks that compete on merit and not because their respective manufacturers have piled the cash on the hood. So you can go into, say, a Chevy dealership and drive off in a Malibu knowing that you actually have one of the best cars in its class. But the ‘Bu isn’t a one-off, as there are lots of good cars out there now with American nameplates. These are 10 of my favorites, running the gamut from sedans to crossovers to luxury cars. I skipped the trucks; despite Toyota and Nissan’s best efforts, they’re still blown away by Ford, Chevy, GMC and Dodge

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