Pontiac Tri-5s and Beyond pt2... [PIC]

By 1957 the Big Three were totally consumed with the marketing philosophy of "Planned Obsolescence" whereby. by cosmetics alone, the car you bought last year would be made to look obsolete. This even included rebranding especially for the top tier models. As Chevy ditched the Belair for Impala, Pontiac ditched the Star Chief for Bonneville. So gone was the Chief Pontiac mascot, along with the 3 stars and waterfall trim which was continued in the center grill piece.. The Bonneville was to go full on Space Age. With now the sharp tail fins added, that tail lamp side trim was extended to create a jet turbine effect with a faux intake and exhaust at the tail lamps. The "chromed turbine" received a painted surround that extended to the front fender. This particular Franklin Mint model is the extremely rare, convertible only, 315 HP "Fuel Injected" model. That year, Pontiac had 630 dealerships nationwide, so Pontiac built one for each showroom. All but 12 were painted in Kenya White with either red or blue trim on the side spears.