The Pontiac marque may be gone, but the San Diego Automotive Museum in Balboa Park is making sure it’s not forgotten. Through Sept. 25, several of those dandy cars that met the fancy of the buying public for most of their 83 years will be featured, defining the carmaker in terms of style and performance.  The end came in 2009. The decision reflected the decline of the brand over time as Pontiac lost its place as an industry leader. The story is not unlike that of any other manufacturer in industrialized  America of the 20th century. Other carmakers that disappeared included Cord, Auburn, Hudson, Studebaker and American Motors Beauty and performance — once cherished by car buyers — faded and gave way to conservative design and adequate performance. Efforts were made to bring back the excitement by re-introducing popular models in the latter years — but the efforts fell short.    On display at the museum are: a 1932 Pontiac Six sedan, a 1941 Super Streamliner  Torpedo, a 1952 Catalina, a 1955 Star Chief safari wagon, a 1959 Bonneville, a 1962 Tempest, a 1962 Grand Prix two-door hard-top sports coupe, a 1964 Tempest LeMans GTO, a 1968  Firebird, a 1969 GTO Judge, a 1977 Ventura and a 2009 Solstice GXP coupe.   The battle for No.1 Ford CEO Alan Mulally has outlined plans to boost the carmaker’s worldwide sales volume by more than 50 percent by mid-decade, putting it close to parity with the industry’s two 800-pound gorillas — GM and Toyota. Toyota continues to struggle to resume full production and is certain to slip behind longtime rival General Motors — at least for 2011. Volkswagen has long made it known it’s in the hunt for the global sales crown.  Ford is sniffing the chance to regain the lead it lost more than three-quarters of a century ago when it was still building the Model T. However, Ford needs to revive its long-struggling Lincoln brand and rebuild its European operations, which have been lagging behind Volkswagen for the last decade. Mulally agrees the global goal will require some real traction in Asia, which could account for at least one-third of Ford’s volume. Yet, Ford has had little success cracking the Chinese market, where GM holds a hefty 15 percent market share. Ford comes in at No. 4, All carmakers appear to view China as the world’s largest automotive market. Ford has counted on sales in North America to generate the lion’s share of its earnings to date, placing emphasis on big, profitable trucks like the full-size F-150 pickup.   Only $1.1 million per High-dollar lovers of British autos rejoice: Jaguar has announced plans to build a 200-mph hybrid super car. The C-X75 will go 0-60 mph in three seconds (0-100 mph in six seconds) and have an electric-only range of about 30 miles. It will be made in the U.K. in a partnership with Williams F1, a Formula One engineering and racing team. Only 250 will be made — with a price tag of $1.1 million. Jaguar has declined to say when it will start producing the C-X75 (it has  begun a list for those interested in buying). But it’s safe to say no one will be driving the C-X75 anytime soon.