had it with pontiac

[rampage]

first off i would like to say im a big fan of buying american products.its all ive ever had.im a pontiac fan always have been but this 2002 gp has been a nightmare.first my o2 sensor goes then my abs trac control cuts on ,thats still not fixed.now ive got this jerking the car is doin at different speeds.and i know at around 75000 miles my alt will go bc it always does on these cars.all this at 70000 miles from a car that has been well maintained.you cant beat the 3.8 but the rest of this car is crap!any one else having these same problems?

[matt5112]

Funny that my alt seems to have more than 75K miles on it...

Do you replace things as their life is up or do you wait till they fail on you then complain about what really is your negligence of your car's own needs?

[nawarkk]

I wish I only had those few problems haha..

That's not too many problems, but hey what can you do

FWIW, my alternator went out at 125K.

[blueguy]

Nope...no problems.

I still have my factory alternator. Just changed the battery. Sounds like you've probably never done plugs/wires/fuel filter PCV basic tune up to it...also...the TCS or ABS lights mean hub assemblys...to me it sounds like you just haven't kept up with the car and its hitting you all at once and you don't like it. Welcome to car life.

[TheManiac]

You can have good cars and bad cars. I had an '84 Buick Century that was the PITS! But since, I've been pretty happy with all my other GM products. I admit, I don't often replace things until they break or show signs of being worn out (I do regular oil changes, fluid drains, and I inspect hoses and belts, change as needed or I get uncomfortable with their age).

I currently drive a '94 Grand Am with a 3100. I used to complain about some of the "common" problems with it, but now looking back, that car has been GREAT! The problems I've had are not that big of a deal and when I look at "repair" cost each year, I have NO room to complain. That car has over 200K on it and I am darn proud to have it (even though it's beat up because of all the ohio winters it's been through). It still has a LOT of factory parts in it (such as the altenator) and the drive train just freakin runs great (still like new in my opinion).

But like I said, some times, you get a great ride and sometimes a dud.

BTW - See if you GP is part of a recall or extended warranty on the cat (that causes a lot of issues and you may fit a limitation for a free replacement on GM).

[rampage]

i said 75000 because ive owned 2 bonnevilles with the 3.8 and my moms gp all 3 went out at around 7500.i asked the guy who rebuids these for a living and he said if u get more than 75000 out of one of these ur lucky,and hes been doing this for 20 +years.

[BillBoost37]

Don't be beating down the Bonnevilles... I'm listenin...

My Bonne alt was stock to 190,000ish... At that point I figure the thing deserved to go bad as it did. Bearings only last so long afterall.

Current Regal was wearing it's stocker at 161K when I swapped it for a higher output.

[rampage]

u hit it on the head maniac.sometimes u just get a bad one, because its easy to say oh u dont take care of ur car haha,because thats the funny thing.i meticulously maintain all of my cars.i change the coolant every year oil changes every 3000 new fuel filter every 25000 new air filter every spring and put new plugs and wires on at 50000 and guess what still all these problems,guess i just got a bad one.i think what bites my ass about this is i have friends that dont do anything to thier rice burners and they never have any trouble.

[BillBoost37]

FWIW I picked up a 91 GA with the 2.5 Duke it in in 94. Ran the car from 65,000 miles to 191,000 miles.

I did oil changes, brakes (at those almost as fast as oil changes) and one valve cover gasket. At 120,000 miles my buddy made me change the fuel filter.

I saw the car 5+ years later, still on the road. Original axles, starter, alt.. name it. Unbelievable.

[blueguy]

My Iron duke Cenury Coupe always broke motor mounts...but that was it...got it at 48,400...that's right...in '04...grandma passed. She bought it new in '86. I drove it to about 129K with only changing the oil and having the coolant system flushed once and new tires halfway through ownership...it was a tank. Lost to a lifted Suburban though during traffic jousting.

[matt5112]

I love how he's complaining about alt, O2 sensor and hubs...

Lemme give you sort of a wake up call...

You're going to need a whole new suspension next.

Struts, LCA's, tie rods, trailing arms.

Easy grand + there.

[rampage]

thank u thats my point, front end 1000 plus really? my car has 70000 on it.alt o2 sensors and hubs at 70000 if ur ok with that good for u but i think its bs.im comparing this car to others ive seen run 150 plus before these things go out.if my gp had 150000 on it i woulnt say a word about anything breaking.im a huge pontiac fan ive owned several including a 81 trans am i still have now that has been a great car,but im not taking up for pontiac when hub sensors,intakes leaking etc are known problems for pontiac.everyones car is different but if u look at alot of the problems ive mentioned on the web it seems alot of people are having the same issues as me.

[beckys2000gt]

i have to say this....... my 2000 gt has been BY FAR one of the best cars ive had.... bought it with 152k last year, for a grand.... yes i put about 1200 in it, tranny, wheel bearings, btw, i just got home from replacing the driverside
and the regular things, oilchanges, plugs n wires, brakes n rotors....... and a new maf. rockin almost 171k, and still loving it

[matt5112]

replacing things due to failure will take much longer.

replacing things because they're outside of their usable life is much quicker.

parents acura, its an 01 RL, 200 K miles on it.

so far... rad, thermostat, one rear wheel bearing and brakes including one caliper, struts all around, upper control arms, rear control arms have all gone bad in the past 25K.

It burns oil, the transmission doesnt shift like it should, the control arms haven't been replaced yet. Doing the front ones soon, rear ones probably never. Exhaust needs replacing, its getting louder.

Now.... thats when it FAILED. (minus the exhaust) When do you think would have been a good idea to replace all of these things? Between 100-125K miles.

What most consider maintenance isn't enough.

Have you changed your power steering fluid every couple of years as well as your transmission fluid?

Have you bleed your brakes every year or two at most?

Have you inspected your brake lines for rust? Your front passenger line will probably be the first to go, I'd suggest you look at it before you pop it.

Power steering lines are probably rusting as well as the tranny cooler lines.

Sway bars are hollow... they rust and snap, how is the rust on those guys?

I know KY gets ice so you must get salt. Salt breeds rust. Rust means you need to replace these things.

[shawngtp]

Sell it.

[brand121]

I would have to agree with Becky.. My gp is the best car i've owned, bought it in 03 with 48k on it, it currently sits in the driveway with 227k on it. I've replaced the radiator, water pump, pass cv, solenoids in the tranny and that's it, other than routine maintenance. My tranny is giving me fits right now, but, I picked up a spare for $125 out of a car that had 60k on it. I will drive this thing til it literally falls apart...

Oh yea, it's also been totalled and rebuilt...

[MrPoopyButthole]

I have nothing bad on my car except, the wheel bearings (typical on any car) and the VSS Reluctor wheel.

The rest of the stuff I broke myself and have replaced it myself.

[rampage]

some of the maintenance that u guys talk about is just not gonna happen on some people income unless u do the work urself which most people dont do now days. think im just used to the older cars like my ta.196000 has been driven in salt snow, anything else u can think of and never anyprobs with things breaking due to rust but i have seen this with many newer cars.imo i think it has to do with the cheap steel we get from china now days.you never saw this with the older cars.i dont know of anyone that had to replace a whole front end within 10 or15 years on an older car.i dont care what brand u talk about thier all cheaper made now days.

[TheManiac]

If it's mechanical, it wears away eventually. And the auto manufacturers like everyone else are looking to save a $ when possible. So it would not surprise me if some of the parts GM uses over the years have different reliability factors.

I never took too much of a look at it, but I think almost all my GM cars had a "maintanance schedule" in them. If I recal, it gave timelines when to change certain things beyond just fluids (such as when to change the bearings or shocks or struts). It would be interesting to see what GM says to what you're seeing with your car.

What you are explaining is why a lot of people don't want a car hitting 100K, lots of stuff starts to need attention. Going back to my current daily car, the '94 Grand Am, I have owned it since '03 at 86K on it. I've done shocks/struts, a wheel bearing, control arm bushings, ball joints, later a whole control arm and half shaft, outer tie rods, radiator, exhaust (I had the exhaust done at a shop), intake gaskets around 90K, head/intake gaskets at 180K, O2 sensor, heater core, 2 coil packs and I think that's the big tour of stuff (in no particular order). All in 86K-200K. Some people I know feel that's unexceptable, and the car breaks down all the time. I scoff at that. As it sits today, I would not hesitate taking that car on a long distant car ride. Factor, I had a CHEAP and short lived car payment, did the work myself. It was a trade off.

Heck, I was impressed the factory heater core lasted so long it blew almost the moment the car passed 200K (plastic inlet/outlet tubes cracked, that was a funny day to me), that was impressive compared to other n-bodies I knew!

Win some, loose some. But again, you can have some cars that really exceed your expectations and others that really don't. Most of mine have met my expectations. Like I said, for a while, I began to despise the 3100 (I knew a lot of people with it, so when one had a problem, the others followed. But like I said, I look back on it and actually that Grand Am has served me well and still is. A have a friend with one that I'm amazed the car starts (his needs all new suspension and oil changes have been really neglected).
He's actually buying my mom's '97 Grand Prix once I get a chance to do the intake gaskets and a wheel hub on it.

[TLSheff]

Unless you bought the car brand new I really don't want to hear griping about an Alt, 02 sensors and the other REGULAR maintenance things. At 83,000 miles I had to replace my ENGINE! bad luck on my part for buying one that had a horrible previous owner but still it spun a bearing just before 83000miles!!!

Id have LOVED to had to replace and alternator or an 02 sensor or BOTH 3 weeks after signing the lease agreement on my new apartment, but no... F'N engine starts knocking louder than a dam cumming diesel!

Now granted, if you don't like the parts, buy a honda. The grand prixs are about as cheap to fix and keep up as you will get on a american car or truck. Most imports are getting even worse because they have to be ordered in so value goes up. It happens to all of them eventually, sometimes you get lemons sometimes you don't. If you don't want to play the game start kickin rocks