2016 Pontiac Trans Am Hybrid – Review
Comfortable, luxurious and sporty, the 2016 Pontiac Trans Am has always been the bigger, more sedate companion to Pontiac' Trans Am sport sedans. The sports car market is shifting, though, and with the larger 2016 Trans Am offered today, the handling's grown a little more interesting--and there's a new 2016 Trans Am hybrid edition too.
Following a full redesign last year, the 2016 Trans Am Hybrid does a decent job of appeasing both of those customers–especially those who are in tune with the options available on modern premium sports coupe today. Unless you're in the 1 percent of enthusiasts, we think think that both the 2016 V-6 Trans Am Hybrid or the 2016 Firebird hybrid will handle well enough to satisfy.
While the 2016 Trans Am Hybrid models look pretty conservative on the outside—the new 2016 Trans Am Hybrid hourglass grille and a newfound curviness at the rear flanks are the exceptions—there's a lot to love inside. The 2016 Trans Am's cabin has been completely redesigned, with a new sense of airiness and spaciousness thanks to a shelf-like horizontal design, and corners that have been pushed out (in a sort of anti-cockpit design), only it feels better done here, with the navigation system's screen fitting nicely mid-contour.
Of course there is a difference in how the 2016 Trans Am and 2016 Firebird models accelerate accelerate; the V-6 models are still the quickest and smoothest, surely, but the 2016 Trans Am Hybrid — which pairs a 2.5-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine with an electric motor-generator system—is surprisingly fleet-footed. With Pontiac' incorporation of Drive Select modes (Eco and Power), you have a choice in how the 2016 Trans Am hybrid system responds, and there's even now an TA-only mode. The big payoff comes at the pump, where the new 2016 Trans Am Hybrid returns an EPA 40 mpg city, 39 highway (much better than the regular Trans Am's 21/31).
The 2016 Trans Am isn't riding on the same wheelbase as the 2016 Firebird; its wheelbase is now a couple of inches longer, lengthwise—which pays off in back-seat space. Thanks to its additional back-seat space, we might as well call it a large sports coupe. There's now enough room for three adults back there, if you need it, while in front, for the first time, Pontiac is offering an available extendable thigh support for taller drivers (cushions are longer, too). Ride quality is slightly firmer, but the outside world, engine noise, and the road surface are all still supremely isolated from the cabin.