1996 Pontiac Grand Am SE 2.4 from North America

Summary:

I love the car, but is a little costly to repair

Faults:

Antifreeze leaks constantly.

The check engine light is on, and has been for a long time.

The car has 2 oxygen sensors, the dealer won't tell you this.

The compact disc player quit working after a month.

The window is broken, I tried to put it down in the winter.

The drivers door panel is busted, due to trying to put it down in the winter.

The passenger seat mover broke.

General Comments:

I purchased the car from a dealer, who got it from a lease deal.

It has broken down on me.

I had to have the alternator replaced.

Over all I love the car.

It can pick up speed great.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 31st August, 2003

1996 Pontiac Grand Am SE 2.4L 4 cylinder from North America

Summary:

It's never had a problem that left me stranded, but a $$$ eater

Faults:

This car is awful for maintenance. After a year and some odd months of owning it, I am considering trading it in because it is just too expensive to maintain. Here's a list of some of the rather costly repairs it's had.

5 A/C repairs. Two were under dealer warranty, and they did a shoddy job. However, the other three were just because the A/C system is so problematic- 3 compressors, a seal, and an evaporator later it still needs work. Have yet to track the real problem down.

3 ABS repairs. All on the left front wheel. A sensor, some wiring, and a wiring harness later, it seems OK.

New ball joint, new rocket arm, and new rocker arm bushing on left front wheel. New rocker arm bushing on right front wheel. You might say it's normal maintenance, but in 80,000 miles it seems a little odd.

New heater core- there wasn't a problem with the old one- other than it being plastic. Who on earth puts a plastic heater core in a car? Last I checked, plastic is an insulator, not a conductor. Tell me how this conducts heat well.

New alternator. I can see this with the car's age and mileage. Same goes for the battery replacement I did a few months back.

General Comments:

There's been over $2,000 on general maintenance on this car in the past year and some months. Too much for me. Granted, this is including general maintenace... stuff you'd expect. I certainly hope for all the other Grand Am owners out there that my car is an exception, but I get the feeling A/C and ABS problems are common from what I've heard from others.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 1st August, 2003

1st Nov 2003, 20:41

Update on the current status of this car- it now has 83,500 miles on it. I just got it back today, I needed new brake pads and rotors. Apparently, Pontiac ships their cars with rotors that are too thin to be turned, so you MUST buy new ones with the car. The back brakes, which were replaced 3 months ago, needed to be readjusted. The brake fluid had water in it and was possibly corroding the brake lines. Gee, another $400 down the drain.

1996 Pontiac Grand Am grand am SE 2.4 from North America

Summary:

Good ride for little money

Faults:

Nothing at all has gone wrong with the car. Only routine matience has been done to the car. New tires, oil changes, and a tune up. But nothing major has gone wrong with the car.

General Comments:

Performance wise, i think the car is excellent. considering it's only got a 2.4 in it

Take off is good, hardly any tire spin at all. Although the car is is very quick from 0-40 but gets sluggish till the car hits 55-60 then takes off.

Handling is decent, depends on the tires you have.

The car could use some better brakes, But over all there decent.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 30th June, 2003

1996 Pontiac Grand Am GT V6 from North America

Summary:

High performance when working

Faults:

Have had brakes worked on several times.

The front end shakes bad when coming to a stop.

Motor mount broke had to get this replaced.

Had lower intake leak. Had lower intake gaskets replaced.

Fuel lines were leaking could have caused a fuel fire.

Had to replace the cat converter.

I love the interior of my car and the stereo system is very good.

General Comments:

The up keep of this car is very expensive.

It does have speed and does handle good.

The seats aren't all that comfortable very low to the ground.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 18th June, 2003