1st Feb 2010, 01:47

Oh, 2002 Pontiac Grand Am, how you have let me down so.

I've had it since 2006. In '06 both passenger and driver's side windows stopped working and had to be repaired.

We'd had some minor problems with it, service engine light coming on and having it diagnosed for a lovely $250 with no end diagnosis. That went away and it was fine until this past year 2009.

It was very sluggish, wouldn't go more than 50mph up a hill (I live in Hawaii, many hills) so we took it to a Pontiac dealer. They diagnosed it and "fixed it" saying that I had a leak and all my pipes and whatnot were shot. They showed them to us. Okay, so $3500 paid, I expect the car to be CHERRY. But no, alas, as soon as we drove off the lot, the blinker wouldn't turn off at all, kept going non-stop so I had to turn right back around and have them replace it. They did and said "we won't charge you, but the switch was hit and it wasn't our mechanic," right, because I WAS THE ONE who had just opened the hood and took out all the junk.

So, then the car worked for a good two days, then the entire electrical system broke down, shut down, I would drive and no windows, no A/C, no radio, no locks, nothing in 85 degree weather.

After several weeks that finally stopped. Engine light still on. We took it back to them and they didn't know the problem. They "looked" at it again and supposedly fixed it, but ever since they've looked at it for these "problems" they "diagnosed" it has had "transmission" problems according to them. NOW the car won't shift itself, you have to take your foot all the way off the gas and replace it, it won't go above 40mph (won't accelerate), at all. I was going 60mph on the freeway and it decreased all the way to 30mph, On the freeway! Goodness it was scary.

WHATEVER they did to it, whatever was wrong with it, I don't know but I will never buy an American made car again, there just isn't that trust anymore.

21st Feb 2010, 12:54

I've had my 02 GT, and aside from weekly, easy (like a fuse or bulb) fixes, it has ran great.

The car has 180,000 miles, and continues to get 26-27 mpg hwy. Many of these "problems" described are not the engineering faults, but failure to maintain simple regular upkeep, and failure to read an owners manual.

Apparently I'm not alone on electrical issues, but most of them are more annoying than anything else.

3rd Mar 2010, 11:29

I have owned my 2002 Pontiac Grand Am GT for 2 years now. Every month it has been a different problem with it.

I had to replace the window motors, head gasket, thermostat, an O ring sensor, now my tranny is going out; it has no pick up and it will go up to 5 rpm before shifting. You cannot even replace the fluid in these cars without taking the exhaust off.

I love this car; the way it looks, but am tired of all the problems; it is such a shame.

6th May 2010, 08:15

My Wife bought her 2002 Pontiac Grand Am GT 2 Dr brand new 3.4 ram air.

Three months after she had it, the main control module went belly up (under warranty).

Six months; drivers side window fell inside door. The dealership told us we used it too much, but did repair it.

The car had a fuel problem where it was what the dealership referred to as a "Fish Bite", where the car would act as though it was going to stall out, and when you stepped on accelerator it would clear itself. This problem got so bad we did not want to travel anywhere in the car. Dealership hooked up OBD2 monitor but no codes. I even went out and bought a monitor and ran it in car most of time, but still no codes. They did at one point say that the transmission could cause this problem, but we would get definite code telling us this. Still nothing. The car has 205,000 Kilometers on it by the way.

An older mechanic friend finally changed the transmission fluid, filter, and gasket, and guess what, the fluid was black, filter plugged badly, and now the problem is gone. Have also had the intake manifold gasket replaced as anti freeze was mixing with oil.

We change oil even 5000 kilometers and tune up regular and still looks new. Have had to have strut bushings replaced also. Other than the above, I really love this, car even though it has cost me some money. I only wish GM had taken more responsibility and issued some recalls for a few of the items.

14th May 2010, 19:16

I have a 2002 Grand Am GT, and I am the ONLY owner. This car was great, until my warranty ran out. Within weeks of the warranty expiring, I started having the security lock out problem, where the car would not start at random time. Took it to multiple places, dealerships and repair shops, only to be repeatedly told the car was not storing a code so they don't know how to fix it.

About a year ago the drivers side window fell and does not want to roll up and down. Now I have to have the head gaskets replaced. All of these seem to be common problems for this car, but I wish I had known before buying it!

30th Jul 2010, 08:14

I bought my 2002 Pontiac Grand Am GT in 2008 (used obviously).

Yes indeed, the car looked great and sounded great.

Had the car for one year, and had the engine replaced.

Heater blower.

Passenger side window doesn't work right. Driver's side rear window is starting to fail as well.

The rims cause leakage in my tires.

The stereo stopped working yesterday.

Check engine light always on.

Needs new bearings and brakes for the second time, along with rotors.

The A/C also stopped working this past spring.

I always get the oil changed 3000 miles. Check my fluids. Change filters. The car is literally falling apart at the seams.

The side molding under the doors is coming loose.

The wipers don't work half the time.

I went by looks of this vehicle. I wish I would have never purchased this vehicle.

My dad was a salesman for 25 years. He's been gone now for 15 years. He would have told me never to purchase a Pontiac Grand Am GT. Buicks and Chevy's are great vehicles. Should have stuck with what was good. Anybody looking for a 2002 Pontiac Grand Am GT?? (syke, sorry!!)

1st Sep 2010, 21:47

I, too, have a 2002 Grand Am GT Ram Air. I am the only owner and I love this car. It's my second Grand Am GT (1996). I have taken excellent care with regular oil changes and only 85,000 miles on it. Basically, this has been a good car; however, like many others I have experienced first the brakes wearing out quickly, the passenger window failing to work, turn signal issue, oh god yes, the turn signal issue... I also just discovered that quickly pushing the hazards will make the signals work for a while. But today I found out that the I have a coolant leak in my intake manifold, and the gaskets need to be replaced.

All this to say, I still love the car and these are the only issues I've had, but it's very interesting that these are issues that seem to have plagued Grand Am GT owners as well. I smell a rat! Anyway, this has now become my second car because I just purchased a new Mustang a couple of months ago. Just hope this holds out a little longer with no more major issues, as this is now my bad weather car. Gotta keep the Mustang safe!