1999 PONTIAC GRAND AM Complaints

DT: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE HAVING NEW TIRES PUT ON VEHICLE AT A NEARBY GARAGE THE FRONT COIL SPRINGS BROKE. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN TO A REPAIR SHOP OR DEALERSHIP. NO REPAIRS HAVE BEEN MADE AT THIS TIME.*AK UPDATED 12/07/05. *JB

I PURCHASED MY 1999 PONTIAC GRAND AM GT IN FEB. 2003 WITH 55000 MILES ON IT. IN JUNE 2004 WITHOUT ANY KIND OF WARNING IT DUMPED EVERY OUNCE OF COOLANT 2 BLOCKS FROM MY HOUSE. I HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE THEY DIAGNOSED THAT THE MANIFOLD GASKET HAD BLOWN AND MY BATTERY WAS NO GOOD. THERE HAD NOT BEEN ONE PROBLEM WITH THE BATTERY UNTIL THE GASKET BLEW. I HAD THE CAR REPAIRED (500.00 DOLLARS). THEN THIS PAST APRIL 2005 I HAD TO HAVE THE WATER PUMP REPLACED. TWO DAYS AGO I NOTICE A PUDDLE OF COOLANT UNDER THE CAR, I INVESTIGATE IT'S ORIGIN AND THERE IS A STREAM OF COOLANT RUNNING ALONG THE SEAM OF THE MANIFOLD GASKET! I HAVEN'T EVEN PUT 10,000 MILES ON THIS CAR SINCE IT BLEW THE LAST MANIFOLD GASKET. GM KNOWS THERE IS A PROBLEM HERE, SHOW SOME INTEGRITY AND TAKE CARE OF THESE PROBLEMS! *JB

I OWN A 1999 GRAND AM SE. EVER SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR IN OCT '04 I HAVE BEEN HAVING NOTHING BUT PROBLEMS WITH IT. THIS PAST JUNE I HAD TO REPLACE THE ENGINE. LEADING UP TO THAT THE CAR WOULD DIE AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK. I WOULD BRING IT TO THE DEALER (MORE LIKE TOW IT) AND I WOULD ALWAYS BE TOLD NOTHING IS WRONG. THEN YET AGAIN IT WOULD DIE. AFTER THAT THE STALLING BEGAN. I WOULD BE DRIVING AND THE CAR WOULD SHUT OFF. IT WOULD USUALLY TAKE UP TO 10 MINUTES TO TURN BACK ON. ONCE THE DEALER WENT "WELL MAYBE ITS YOUR LIGHTS, YOU LEAVE THEM ON." MY RESPONSE WAS HOW DO I LEAVE ON AUTOMATIC LIGHTS? I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE MY ALTERNATOR 3 TIMES AND HAVE HAD TO REPLACE MY BATTERY TWICE. IT GOT TO THE POINT THAT ONCE I SHUT OFF MY CAR THE ONLY WAY TO START IT WAS BY TAKING OUT THE MAIL RELAY CHIP FOR 2 MINUTES THAN REPLACING IT. THAN THE CAR WOULD START UP. FINALLY I WAS ON THE HIGH WAY AND OUT OF NO WHERE YOU HEAD A LOUD POP. THERE WENT THE HEADER, PISTONS, OIL GASKET. THE ENGINE BLEW. HOWEVER IT WAS NEVER A EFFECT OF THE OIL. I WAS ALWAYS CHECKING IT AND GETTING IT CHANGED ONCE EVER OTHER MONTH (I COMMUTED A LOT). SO I GOT A REBUILT ENGINE PUT IN AND THE PROBLEMS WENT AWAY... OR SO I THOUGHT. LAST NIGHT I WAS DRIVING AND ALL OF A SUDDEN MY CAR STARTED SHAKING. IT WENT FROM A LITTLE TO A GREAT AMOUNT. THE MUFFLER IS MAKING AN ODD PUFF PUFF NOISE AND THE EXHAUST SMELLS LIKE WINDSHIELD WASHER FLUID (ONLY WAS TO DESCRIBE IT). I PULLED IT INTO MY DRIVEWAY AND ON WENT THE TRAC OFF LIGHT AND THE SERVICE ENGINE SOON LIGHTS. THANK YOU. ALSO PRIOR TO THE NEW ENGINE MY CDS WOULD NO LONGER PLAY. I WOULD GET THE E20 ERROR AND THE CDS WOULD SPIT OUT. ANOTHER PROBLEM IS MY REAR PASSENGER WINDOWS HAVE SCRATCHES UP THE MIDDLE OF THEM. I CAN NOT FIGURE OUT WHERE THE MARKS ARE COMING FROM. *JB

MY 99 PONTIAC GRAND AM IS SLOWLY LEAKING ANTI-FREEZE, THE MECHANIC I WENT TO KNEW EXACTLY WHERE TO LOOK, THE INTAKE MANIFOLD. HE SAID THEY ARE GETTING ONE OR TWO EACH WEEK AND DID NOT KNOW WHY THEY HAVE NOT RECALLED THE VEHICLE. I FIGURE THIS WOULD BE AN ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN AND I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF ANY VEHICLES LEAKING A COOLANT AFTER ONLY 60,000 MILES. *JB

I HAVE A 1999 PONTIAC GRAND AM. IN NOVEMBER OF 2004 MY TURN SIGNAL STARTED TO MALFUNCTION. IT WOULD JUST NOT WORK FOR A PERIOD OF TIME THEN IT WORKED PART OF THE TIME. I STILL HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM TO THIS DAY. NOW MORE THAN EVER IT HARDLY EVER WORKS. I AM NOW USING MY ARE WHENEVER I HAVE TO MAKE A TURN IN MY VEHICLE. I HAVE ASKED A MUNROE MECHANIC AS TO WHY IT WOULD MALFUNCTION AND HE STATED IT WAS PROBABLY AN ELECTRICAL MALFUNCTION. I HAVE NOT HAD THE MONEY TO PAY FOR A MECHANIC TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE PROBLEM BECAUSE HE TOLD ME HE WOULD HAVE TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE WHOLE ELECTRICAL PANEL. *NM

LOUD CLICKING NOISE COMING FROM CENTER CONSOLE SOUNDING LIKE TURN SIGNAL WHEN ON, BUT TURN SIGNAL IS NOT ON. TURN SIGNAL FUNCTIONS PROPERLY, BUT CONTINOUS CLICKING IS HEARD. TOLD BY MY DEALER THERE WAS GOING TO BE A RECALL IN 2004, HAZARD SWITCH WAS REPLACED AND PROBLEM IS STILL THERE. *NM

BROKEN COIL SPRING FAILURE - REAR OF VEHICLE - FOUND DURING YEARLY VEHICLE SAFETY INSPECTION. *NM

MY 99 PONTIAC GRAND AM STARTED HAVING COOLANT PROBLEMS, THE VEHICLE ENGINE TEMPERATURE WOULD GO UP AND DOWN FOR A MONTH, FINALLY THE VEHICLE JUST ONE DAY OVERHEATED. I HAD THE WHOLE COOLANT SYSTEM REPLACED, ( 600.00 LATER). ABOUT A WEEK OR TWO AFTER IT STARTED TO OVERHEAT AGAIN, BEFORE I COULD BRING IT BACK TO THE MECHANIC TO CHECK IT OUT, THE ENGINE BLEW. I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO REPLACE THE ENGINE YET, NOR DO I KNOW IF I WILL AS THE VEHICLE IS NOT WORTH THE COST TO REPAIR. I REFUSE TO PAY ALMOST 2K TO GET AN ENGINE FOR SOMETHING ELSE TO GO WRONG.. I KNOW THERE IS A DEFECT IN THE COOLANT SYSTEM CAUSING THE ENGINE TO OVER HEAT.. MY MECHANIC SAID MY CAMSHAFT COMPLETELY SPLIT IN HALF, AND HE HAS NEVER SEEN THIS BEFORE BUT KNOWS OF A FEW PEOPLE WHO HAVE SAME YEAR MAKE AND MODEL THAT THE SAME THING HAPPENED TO. IT CANT BE A COINCIDENCE. *JB

I WAS BACKING UP OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY WHEN I HEARD A LOUD "BANG" MY DRIVER SIDE FRONT FELL I TOOK MY CAR TO THE SHOP AND THEY DISCOVERED MY SPRING HAS BROKE IN HALF AND OF COURSE YOU CAN'T JUST FIX THE ONE SIDE BECAUSE IF THEY DID THE OTHER SIDE WOULD BREAK SO IT'S GOING TO COST $736.88 TO FIX THE FRONT SPRING AND IT'S SO VERY NICE OF PONTIAC TO HAVE THOSE SPRINGS IN STOCK I'M BEING SARCASTIC IF THEY KNOW THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH SPRINGS WHY WOULD THEY NOT DO A RECALL, BUT FROM WHAT I CAN GATHER IS THEY WON'T EVEN LOOK INTO UNLESS THERE IS A DEATH THAT IS VERY SAD THAT IT WOULD TAKE SOMEONE'S LIFE FOR THEM TO INVESTIGATE.*JB

GRAND AM 1999, MY PASSENGER SIDE MIRROR FELL OFF AFTER TOUCHING IT, FOUND THAT ALL THE PLASTIC SCREW HOLDERS WERE BROKEN, WE DISCONNECTED THE MIRROR AND CALLED FOR PRICING, VERY EXPENSIVE TO GET THAT PLASTIC SUPPORT PIECE. MY DRIVERS SIDE MIRROR WAS HANGING BY THE CABLES ONE MORNING WENT I WENT OUT TO GO TO WORK. I HAD USED PLASTIC TYPE STRING TO TIE IT ON, THEN TRIED DUCK TAPE BOTH TO NO AVAIL. MY NEIGHBOR TIRED SCREWS BUT THEY HAVE COME OUT, WILL TRY LONGER ONES TODAY. WHY DOES GM USE SUCH CHEAP PLASTIC TO HOLD A MIRROR THAT IS SUBJECT TO PRESSURE FROM NORMAL DRIVING ON HIGHWAYS. MY OTHER BIG ISSUE IS MY BACK PASSENGER WINDOW, I CAME OUT FROM WORK AND FOUND IT COMPLETELY OPEN, IT WILL NOT GO UP WITH THE MOTORIZED SWITCH AND WILL FALL DOWN WHEN IT FEELS LIKE IT, IT IS DIFFICULT DRIVING ON HIGHWAY, HAVE TRIED WEDGING IT, WILL HAVE TO GO DUCK TAPE I GUESS THAT AFTER READING REPORTS ON MY CAR STATS IT IS VERY EXPENSIVE TO REPLACE. IT IS A SHAME THAT THE CAR FALLS APART BEFORE IT IS PAID FOR. *JB