Introduced by General Motors in 1926 as the companion marque to their Oakland Motor Car line, the Pontiac name was actually first used twenty years prior by the Pontiac Spring and Wagon Works, and linked to Chief Pontiac, who had led an uprising against the British shortly after the French and Indian War. In 1908, Pontiac and the Oakland Motor Company decided to merge under the name of the Oakland Motor Car Company, and their operations were joined in Pontiac, Michigan, to build the Cartercar. The next year, General Motors purchased Oakland.

The first General Motors Pontiac was conceived as an affordable six-cylinder that was intended to compete with more inexpensive four-cylinder models, and it was outselling Oakland within months of its introduction. As the years went on, and Pontiac's sales rose, Oakland's declined. In 1932, Pontiac became the only companion marque to survive its parent.

Sold in the United States and Mexico from 1926 to the present, Pontiac is now a mid-level brand offering a sporty, performance-driving experience with reasonable prices. It was originally a luxury brand, but after the release of the Fiero in the mid-eighties, GM gave it a sportier facelift to compete with the invasion of Japanese imports. It has remained in that niche ever since.