1980 Pontiac Phoenix 2.5L 4 cylinder. from North America
Summary:
Excellent vehicle, would buy again
Faults:
Blown head gasket at 125,000 miles.
General Comments:
Despite publicized problems with the X Body cars, this Pontiac Phoenix was an excellent family car. With the 4 speed manual transmission, we consistently got 30 miles per gallon overall on regular grade gasoline. That kind of fuel mileage for a roomy car is still hard to find 28 years later.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 29th January, 2009
2nd Jul 2021, 19:21
I rented a V8 and liked it. A long time ago now.
3rd Jul 2021, 20:05
A V8 FWD Phoenix? Nope.
4th Jul 2021, 02:37
These cars only came with a V6 and a 4 cylinder.
4th Jul 2021, 03:23
It was the previous generation with the V8.
4th Jul 2021, 18:51
Yeah the Phoenix model was rear drive with an optional V8 305 or 350, both Chevrolet built from 1977 - 1979. Really has nothing to do with the car on review on a totally different platform.
1st Jul 2021, 17:42
Oh my god I had one of these cars... 1981 2.5 litre with 4 speed manual. Bought it brand new in February 1982.
At around 15000 km I could hear a grinding noise from the transaxle in second gear when going around a corner. Took it to the dealer where they test drove it and agreed it wasn’t right. It needed a transaxle rebuild as it was missing a snap ring... turned out second gear was binding against reverse.
Constant power steering failure as the o-rings in the steel lines kept failing and all the fluid would leak out. Solution was to make a new line myself and use a flairing tool to properly seal the connection.
Plastic gear inside the cabin to operate the clutch pedal broke.
Rear brakes had a tendency to lock up.
Paint peeled off in spots revealing rusty metal.
Could have been a nice car, but overall quality was very poor.