4th Mar 2007, 00:06
It seems to me that the Grand Am/ Alero line are less than reliable. I own a 2001 Alero GL with a 3.4L V6 170HP...
The Alero's top speed is 115MPH. I assume the Grand Am is similar since they are the same car. The Grand Am GT has a top 126MPH-132MPH depending on where you get your info. If you are looking for a fast affordable American Car, go with anything that has a Hemi under the hood. I rode in a 2006 SRT8 Grand Cherokee this weekend. The SRT8 goes 0-60 in under 5 sec and its top speed is 155mph+. I learned a lot about this vehicle, the guy driving it was a mechanical engineer for Daimler Chrysler.
Anyway, the Alero/ Grand Am line has reliability issues. It is a penny and Dime car. You're better off buying a Toyota or Honda. Not to mention Oldsmobile was discontinued in 2004, as well as the Grand Am was replaced by the Pontiac G6.
5th Mar 2007, 22:06
Just to add... i own an 03 grand am gt, its quick and sleek, I will agree it's not a race car. That's why I own an 83 big block camaro. If you abuse a grand am it will turn to trash, like I said it's not a race car. As for all the bad comments about them, I now have over 81,000 miles on mine and have shown no problems. The 3.4L is known to get leaky intake gaskets, I know this cause I work at a local auto shop and see it quite often, not a big problem, it's an easy low cost fix. Other than that I've seen these motors last over 180,000 miles with simple maintenance, as long as they are NOT ABUSED. You want a race car, build one...don't buy a car for racing just cause it says gt on it, that goes for grand am's and mustangs. My final thoughts are, that grand am's are good as long as they are used for what they are meant for, daily drivers. You also need to realize that not even a race car can be expected to not break down, I don't care if you have the highest dollar, strongest, and most advanced parts, racing is hard on any car.
23rd Feb 2007, 02:03
OK, you Pontiac people never give up.
First,
THERE IS NO 2003 OR 2004 FIREBIRD TRANS AM. If you don't believe me, then, on this website, go to Pontiac reviews, click Firebird, then look... the year selection only goes up to 2002. Oh yeah, Autotrader constantly has printing mistakes, I have seen a Mustang labeled as a Firebird before. So that is settled.
Second,
So you have reached 137 MPH huh? Well according to grandamgt.com, the SE is limited to 108 MPH and the GT is limited to 126 MPH. The reason you're seeing 130 or 140 is because after 100 MPH the speedometer become less accurate, causing it to read higher speeds than actually obtained. That information was also obtained from grandamgt.com.
Third,
Please explain to me how a Grand Am GT with a V6 and 175 horsepower beat a Mustang GT with a V8 and 215 horsepower. There is a 40 horsepower difference. Oh yeah, woop de doo, you can floor a pedal, it's an automatic; talk to me when you get a stick.
Fourth,
I obviously don't own a Grand Am, they are junk, but I can talk about them because my friend owned a 99 Grand Am SE. It was nothing but trouble and a money pit. The window regulators and radio went, the cupholders broke, the door panel material bubbled up, the car got terrible traction, even with the traction control on, the engine needed 1600 dollars worth of engine work done to it, and finally the car didn't even reach 84,000 miles; the transmission blew around 83,500:
Park - worked properly
Reverse - up to 2500 RPM it would stay in place. Any more RPM, and the car jolted FORWARD.
Neutral - the car went forward in 1st gear.
Drive - The car was stuck in second gear, it didn't shift at all.
3,2,1 - all stuck in second gear.
Finally, he got 800 dollars for the car at the Pontiac dealer, and bought a 2000 Grand Am GT. It has already exercised its 2 month warranty by going the the shop twice in 1 month. Probably only bad things to come.
Oh yeah, my friend's sister had 2 Grand Am SE's (not sure of the year, they were between 97 and 01). After the first one broke, she got a new one, the new one didn't last too long either. Now she has a GMC; a much better choice.
YES, THE CAR IS JUNK, AND I DO KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. END OF STORY.