20th Mar 2003, 08:49

I have a 98 GT with 80000 Hard, Hard miles on it... and it runs great... I love my GA, and if you speak to most GA owners, they love them too... i have yet, knock on wood, to have anything major happen, other than regular maintenance... you obviously bought the car used... did you buy it from a reputable dealer??? Did you check the car's history out??? any idea if the car was maintained properly??? Beat on??? these are all factors that could contribute to problems... when buying a used car, you really have to do your homework... take the car for a test drive and take it to a mechanic that you trust... just a little fyi...btw, I bought my car used with 15000 miles on it...

11th May 2003, 19:38

My wife purchased her 97 Grand Am new, and has since passed 105,000 miles. I think it's due for CV joints, and it has had the alternator, and power window problems mentioned also. The brake system has some poorly engineered parts, and the suspension had to be replaced at 80K miles. However I'm impressed with the way it runs, considering it has 105,000 miles on the original spark plugs (knock on wood). I do believe the horror stories mentioned below, but those experiences can come from any car manufacturer. My own personal experience with Pontiac has been positive, through 2 Grand Prix (94,99) and this Grand Am, so I'll be a repeat buyer when the Grand Am finally passes on...

14th Jul 2004, 14:04

I purchased a 97 Grand Am GT about two years ago and I have had the exact same problems. It is so exactly the same...it's scary! Two weeks after purchase I had to replace the alternator (now three times) and the water pump along with the radiator. About 6 months ago my paint started peeling away from my side mirrors- that the power does not work in. I have replaced everything under the hood including the engine. Now I am dealing with the AC not working, power windows are shot and the CD player has decided to die on me too. All I can say is this car is going bye-bye! Now I know I will never buy another Pontiac! They may look nice, but are truly junk!

11th Mar 2005, 00:02

How hard do you guys beat on your vehicles? I mean I've got the problem with the radio knob, but that's about it not anything real major and it has 100000 miles on it and runs great.

28th Apr 2005, 07:07

I have a black Beautiful 1997 Grand Am GT. You all are completely wrong, and it is plain to see that you have not taken care of your GT's. My Pontiac has 128,000 miles on it, and has had only few problems because I keep it maintained regularly. I have only had to replace the timing chain, the water pump, and my rotors and breaks. You know why? That is because I maintain my car very well. If you treat your car well, it will treat you well. I even rag the heck out of it, and it still runs great.

Sure, my volume knob has to be worked at a little, but I've figured out HOW to work it and it just becomes a way of life. My check engine light comes on for no reason, it's called suck it up and reset it yourself. It's not that hard. And I'm only a 20 year old female, and I'm not a butch. LOL. Just a daddy's girl. :-D My window motors are starting to go, but that is the same in all cars... and the more you use them, the worse it gets.

All this crap talk about the brakes...okay, that makes me mad. Number one, it's not the brakes on the car, it's how you are breaking. The harder you break, the faster the material will wear down, it's called FRICTION people. Get some breaks that are high quality (*hint* ceramic) and you won't have all the nasty black dust, it'll be less dust and more of a clearish brown color.

Also, keep your GT looking nice!! Nothing worse than a faded out GT. If you are in northern va, email me at lilitalianone7@hotmail.com and I'll detail your GT in full for $100. (i do it one the side for some cash and SUN!!) :-)

I've also noticed that GT's have this thing with their fuel injectors clogged.. Sometimes if I floor the gas, the gas will keep going even after I've stopped pushing... might be a fuel filter problem as well... but people, anyways, just take care of your cars... a GT can last you over 200,000 miles if you take care of it. Sure, it has expensive parts, but if they are maintained, they shouldn't have to be replaced as much as I'm seeing on here. Guaranteed, you people that have to replace things all the time, aren't checking you fluid levels regularly. Checking your fluids regularly is not getting your oil changed every 3,000 miles. Sometimes, ur car burns up more oil than usual, therefore, that's why god invented the user friendly dip stick... check it EVERY time you get gas. Oil is the blood of your car, ESPECIALLY in a GT, they are VERY tempremental about their oil. Need any more advice or help... email me at lilitalianone7@hotmail.com.

29th Apr 2005, 18:09

The problem is with the brakes… but not the pads themselves, it your ABS system which is failing. There is a relay that over heats and shut down turning the ABS light on and “enabling the ETS” which keeps your car on the road.

19th Jun 2005, 09:38

I have a White 97 Pontiac Grand Am GT, and the instrument panel quit working has anyone else had this problem and what can I do to fix it? Also the theft system light stays on all the time, can someone tell me why?

3rd Jul 2005, 08:46

My instrument panel has also stopped working in my 97 Pontiac Grand Am. It's not any fuses. Any help out there? As far as the auto theft light being on, I had to take mine to a dealer and have them turn it off.

16th Nov 2005, 04:57

I bought a 97 gt Sedan in 2002 and have put over 1500.00 worth of work into after in the last 1 and 1/2 years. It has needed a new fuel pump, the fuel filter replaced a couple of times, new brakes which are already going out I am told after about 5,000 miles and I am not a hard breaker. The power windows were shot and I replaced only the drivers side because it would have cost a fortune to do them all. Now I am told the transmission fluid had "metal" in the pan during a transmission cleaning and to be prepared for that to go out in the near future. I would not recommend this car to anyone.