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Pow! Pontiac’s Bonneville SSEi is the visual equivalent of a double-shot latte: It gets you going right away.

Pontiac is General Motors’ performance division, and its products show it. The top-line Bonneville is marketed as Luxury with Attitude, and it has plenty of both. Picture a four-door sports car and that’s what Pontiac wants the Bonneville to be.

Styling that seemed to be over the top last year looks a little less radical now. Maybe I’m drinking too much decaf, or maybe the pointed nose, bulging fenders and sculpted body side moldings have lost some of their shock value. The Bonneville’s basic body shape is quite pleasant. The Aurora is more subtle, luxurious and understated, but with the announced discontinuation of the Oldsmobile division it will eventually disappear.

Bonneville rides on a front-wheel-drive, 112.2-inch wheelbase and shares its basic architecture with the Oldsmobile Aurora and Buick Park Avenue. Torsional stiffness of the body structure is 62 percent greater than the previous model, and various reinforcements reduce body flex and give additional crash protection. The stiffer body pays dividends in sharper handling and a tighter overall feel of the vehicle.

From a power standpoint, the 240-horse, supercharged SSEi has more than ample acceleration to live up to its image as a sporty sedan. The 3.8-liter V6 lacks the sophistication of four-valve cylinder heads and overhead cams, yet it gets the job done in a yeomanlike way. There is a bit of coarseness when you give it the whip, and the front wheels wag gently from side to side as they search for traction, but the supercharger’s noise is worth the extra power. Fuel efficiency is pretty reasonable, being rated at 18 miles per gallon in the city and 28 on the highway. Unsupercharged models have 205 horsepower, which is hardly shabby.

In terms of handling, agility takes top billing over plushness, although the ride is certainly not uncomfortable. Seventeen-inch wheels have low-profile tires and considerable grip. The StabiliTrak vehicle stability systemthat comes standard on the SSEi is kin to that used by Cadillac, and it keeps skids under control by reducing power and selectively applying one brake at a time.

The interior is as boldly styled, maybe even more so, than the exterior. The instrument panel wraps around the driver like a cockpit, and it is punctuated with eight slotted air vents and white-on-black gauges. Steering-wheel buttons for the radio are standard on both the SLE and SSEi.

Seats have overstuffed bolsters for lateral support, but the under-thigh cushion was a bit too pronounced for my taste. The SSEi’s seat was 12-way power adjustable.

Seatbelts are integrated into the seats, which is great because the fit remains the same no matter how the seat is adjusted. I noticed that the belt’s metal latch occasionally poked me in the back as I slid into the seat.

In the event of a rear-end collision, “catcher’s mitt” st yle seats cradle its occupants like a ball in a mitt, and the headrests rotate forward to help reduce the severity of whiplash.

The SSEi is loaded with convenience items: Bose stereo, heated outside mirrors, head-up display, side-impact airbags and four-wheel, anti-lock disc brakes. Handy items include a tire-pressure monitor that signals low pressure, battery-rundown protection that shuts off a lamp if it is left on and two keyless remotes that can be programmed to set heatingooling levels, radio stations, door-lock preferences and perimeter lighting for each driver.

Price
The base price of the test car was $32,415, Options included power sunroof, chrome wheels and built-in garage-door opener.

The sticker price was $34,745.

Warranty
Three years or 36,000 miles.

To get in touch with Tom Strongman call (816) 234-4349 or e-mail: strongmn@kcstar.com.

Point: The Bonneville SSEi has bold styling and supercharged performance. Thein erior is plush, if somewhat overstated, and contains a long list of convenience equipment, including StabiliTrak and OnStar.

Counterpoint: If you want subtle styling, look elsewhere. The instrument panel is rather gaudy, the engine can be coarse under full throttle and the seats need softer under-thigh cushions.

SPECIFICATIONS:
Engine: 3.8-liter V6
Transmission: automatic
Front-wheel drive
Wheelbase: 112.2 inches
Curb weight: 3,790 lbs.
Base price: $32,415
As driven: $34,745
Mpg rating: 18 city, 28 hwy.