The introduction of this new premier model in 1954 was the first application of the longer 123.5 inch (313.7 cm) wheelbase of the junior Oldsmobiles and Buicks to the Pontiac division.

Also for 1955, the new Star Chief Safari two door hardtop wagon, which was similar to Chevrolet's Bel Air Nomad, was introduced, shared with the Pontiac Chieftain.

[1] When the storyline of I Love Lucy pointed towards a Hollywood setting in the 1954-1955 season, the characters drove (in episode 110, "California Here We Come") to the West Coast in a red on white 1955 Star Chief convertible, that in the previous episode "Lucy Learns to Drive" was "bumped together" with a 1922 Cadillac Type V-63.

[3] In January 1957, some time after the rest of the new models, the four-door "Custom Safari Transcontinental" station wagon was introduced.

[3] For 1956 the design was lightly revised, with heavier looking bumpers and a vertical slash on the front door above the swage line.

In 1957, the high performance Star Chief Custom Bonneville was introduced as part of its divisional head's push to raise the marque out of the doldrums.

They featured Bonneville Badging, Chevy's manual linkage fuel injection systems mounted on Pontiacs 347 cid V-8 engine.

While no longer Pontiac's prestige model, the Star Chief remained a well-appointed car, and the division's finest four door hardtops and sedans.

The 1958 Star Chief received all-new bodywork and an updated chassis with an appearance that was shared with all GM cars for that year.

The Star Chief was equipped and powered in a manner similar to the lower-priced, slightly smaller Catalina series.

[3] The Ventura was more lavishly equipped in the manner of the high-line Bonneville, but was available with only two doors and rode the Catalina's slightly shorter wheelbase.

Compared to the Catalina, the Star Chief was equipped only very slightly more lavishly; the major additional interior feature was the electric clock.

For 1962, Pontiac offered a 421 cu in (7 L) Super Duty V8 with two four-barrel carburetors, rated at 405 hp (302 kW), as a US$2,250 option as the base Star Chief listed at US$3,097 ($31,195 in 2023 dollars [5]).

For 1967, Pontiac dropped the Star Chief name for United States sales and renamed the mid-priced model the Executive.