Pontiac Chieftain built in 1950

Pontiac Chieftain is built in the original factory configuration and is known as Pontiac Grand Marquis, Pontiac Firebird, or Pontiac Tinfare. Pontiac was the first American manufacturer of a hard top model passenger vehicle. Pontiac built their first hard top on the chassis of a small car that was to become the future of luxury cars. The name is kept in the name of the car to this day, as a tribute to its original hardtop design. Many of the Pontiac Chieftain' original convertible top designs still exist. As with all classic cars, modern variations on the hardtop concept have been developed over time, with many changes occurring on the exterior of the car.

The styling of the Pontiac Chieftain was very trendy, sporting a sporty look that many considered to be more "fun" than serious or luxurious. The car had a long and low cowl that dropped down slightly at its front end, allowing an extremely spacious and open airy look to be conveyed by the headlights and the highly porthole hood. Pontiac kept the styling of the car simple but retained the very basic structure of the car, with rounded corners and square headlights. The air-conditioning package was factory installed along with the hardtop and was also added later on to the list of optional features on the Pontiac Chieftain