4th Jan 2009, 22:20

Well you are obviously one in a million. If you have had to make the repairs on this vehicle as the rest of us you wouldn't be criticizing how much we are paying for repairs. Another common problem with the 2.4 engine is the leaky valve cover gaskets. And believe it or not it runs about 600 to 800 dollars to repair due to the overhead cam. I have know mechanics and dealers at the Pontiac dealerships and they all warned me about buying this car because of all the problems.

5th Jan 2009, 15:09

I'm a mechanic and the 2.4 Grand Am is one of the best, most reliable and most powerful-for-a-4 vehicles I've ever owned.

Total repair expense in 8 years has been: Front brake pads $17, one headlight bulb $10. It's been much better than any of the imports we've owned.

5th Jan 2009, 15:58

I have a 2000 Pontiac Grand Am. I bought it with 23,000 miles on it and have had it for almost eight years. I haven't had all the problems that previous people have listed. Actually the car has been really good to me, until now. It has stalled on me three times and wouldn't start back up. The mechanic says it is either a gas gauge or the fuel pump. After reading all the other posts, I feel fortunate that I haven't had all these problems. I had normal maintainence on the brakes and rotors. I followed the books recommendations for changing the transmission fluid and the general up keep of the car. However, when I first bought the car there was a horrible squeking noise when I braked and the dealer tried to tell me that it was brake dust causing the noise. Thankfully, I have a friend who is a mechanic (and most recently, drives a tow truck) and he fixed the problem.

10th Jan 2009, 15:30

I have a 1999 Grand Am, and have had all the same problems everyone else is having.

The security light problem, and having to wait 10 minutes to start it; the map sensor cost about 20 bucks at auto zone or wherever you choose, not too hard to do yourself. But I think the problem is originally caused by the engine over heating and the oil getting fried, it gets gooped and gets in the sensor, which was caused by the leak of the intake gasket. It started leaking about a year after I bought it and I never had fixed, because I could'nt find where it was coming from, but eventually I fixed myself by changing the intake gasket and cleaning out all the fried oil. Do yourself a favor and get this fixed right away if possible.

So far two alternators, three map sensors, water pump, four set of rotors and pads, blower motor, and it only has a three way blower switch, so the 1&2 on the dial are only for looks.

Oh yeah, the gas gauge goes all over, so I use the trip mileage to know when to put gas in.

Wheel bearings went out, probably caused by the rotors warping and shaking like crazy all the time. Well time for a new brake job; guess I'll look in to those shims I just read about on here, hopefully that will finally fix the problem. Wonder how much they charge for the shims that I have to get because GM screwed up. Really I think they owe me and a lot of other people a lot of money for all these fixes.

wjei2008@yahoo.com

11th Jan 2009, 00:39

RE// car not starting if it is the fuel pump, get someone to turn the key on while you take the gas cap off and listen in the gas tank. If you hear a whirring noise when you turn the key, then the fuel pump is OK. If the security light comes on and flashes, change the M.A.P. sensor. About $20 bucks.

You can also wait 10 minutes till it stops flashing and it will start, but you better get that map sensor soon. Unless you've got 10 minutes to wait all the time.

Good luck... wjei2008@yahoo.com

18th Jan 2009, 14:26

The god forsaken security problem is the most inconvenient problem I have ever had with a car. I do take very good care of my cars. I am going to try buying an after market alarm so they will disable the factory one. I will update after a while.

20th Jan 2009, 21:23

Try the map sensor. It will fix the security light problem. Get it at auto zone for about 20-25 bucks. It's in tight space. It has about two small screws and a vacuum hose on it, but I replaced mine and haven't had the problem in 2 years.

3rd Feb 2009, 20:48

Yup...this 2000 Grand Am is a true piece of garbage. Won't bore you with the details but everything other folks have commented on have happened to this POS.

Can't wait for GM to go under and drag the CAW with it!!!

Burn in hell GM!!!

13th Mar 2009, 20:06

How can one love a car so much, yet hate it so much at the same? Get a Grand Am. I bought my 2000 SE in 2002 from a rental company. First mistake.

Since then I have been dealing with all of the same problems that the rest of you have - power steering pump, wheel speed sensors, strut springs breaking, window regulators, "ghost" turn signal ticking, head gaskets, brakes, blah, blah, blah, whah, whah, whah.

I am NOT a mechanic, but over the years I have learned a lot by wrenching on my cars myself. A few years back I picked up a Haynes Repair Manual. Best 20 bucks I ever spent. I'm sure it's saved me a couple thousand $$$ on labour costs. Changed a head gasket myself. BIG job. Trust me, if you have the time & the patience, pick up a few basic tools & do the work yourself.

Godspeed fellow Grand Am owners.

16th Mar 2009, 21:37

I bought my 2000 Grand Am new. The only maintenance I did was regular oil changes and many brake jobs. I am fortunate to have a brother who did them. I bought the lifetime pads, and always changed them as soon as I heard them going.

The car now has 189,000 miles on it, and I gave it to my son 6 months ago, and I purchased another Pontiac because of how well the Grand Am worked.

We do have the problem with the fan speed, and now the car has left my son late for work twice due to it not starting. Both times, the car was towed to a mechanics. Both times after the car was unloaded, it started up right away. Hooked it up to the computer and nothing is wrong and no lights.

I loved the Grand Am when I drove it and never had a problem... hmm, unless of course when I rear-ended a truck and hit a deer that those problems were taken care of when things were replaced due to the accidents. Maybe that is the solution... LOL. Rear-end a truck!!!

After reading all these complaints, I will suggest not to dump in too much money into this car, but replace it with something else.