2000 PONTIAC MONTANA Complaints

MY 2000 PONTIAC MONTANA STARTED TO SHAKE AND VIBRATE IN THE FRONT END BETWEEN 50-65 MPH. WITH 66K MILES AND DRIVEN MAINLY INTERSTATE, SOMETHING WAS HAPPENING WITH THE FRONT SUSPENSION. FOUND BOTH OUTER TIE ROD ENDS WORN OUT WITH EXTREME PLAY. ONLY THE TIE RODS WERE WORN, NOTHING ELSE IN THE FRONT SUSPENSION. PONTIAC AND MY DEALER SEEM TO THINK THAT TIE ROD WEAR AT 66K IS NORMAL WEAR! ITS HARD TO BELIEVE WHEN I STILL HAVE THE ORIGINAL BRAKES. I AM JUST GLAD THAT THE TIE RODS DID NOT SEPARATE SINCE THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN DISASTEROUS. OTHER GM MINI VAN OWNERS SHOULD BE AWARE OF THE OBVIOUS PREMATURE TIE ROD WEAR. ITS TIME TO START SHOPPING FOR MY THIRD SET OF TIRES. AT 68K I AM ALSO USING COOLANT, SO I BETTER TAKE A NUMBER AND HAVE THE INTAKE MANIFOLD GASKET REPLACED. THANKS GM, I WISH YOUR QUALITY AND CUSTOMER NO SERVICE MIRRORED HONDA OR TOYOTA!

MY MONTANA HAS HAD PROBLEMS SINCE I BOUGHT IT USED AT A CERTIFIED GM USED CAR LOT AT LINDSEY CHEVEROLET. IT HAS BEEN BURING THROUGH AT LEAST 2 QUARTS OF OIL OR MORE WITH-IN LESS THEN 700 MILES. I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY CHECKED FOR LEAKS BUT COULD NOT FIND ANY. THERE IS NO SMOKE FROM THE ENGINE OR TAIL PIPE. THERE IS NO LEAKS ON THE ENGINE ANYWHERE OR AT THE OIL PAN. THEY WOULD NOT DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. I HAVE BROWSED THE WEB AND HAVE FOUND OTHER OWNERS THAT ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THEIR 2000 PONTIAC MONTANA. I DO NOT HAVE THE KIND OF MONEY TO SPEND ON OIL LIKE IT IS GOING OUT OF STYLE. IS THERE ANY RECALLS ON THIS PROBLEM OR CAN ANYONE ELSE HELP ME.

LOOSING COOLANT, COOLANT IN OIL. PROBLEM WAS DIAGNOSED AS INTAKE MANIFOLD GASKET LEAK. PROBLEM STILL EXISTS AFTER REPAIR ON 04-01-03, 24,535 MILES. CURRENT MILEAGE 26,000. EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERED $301.21 OF THE REPAIR. ROWAN PONTIAC/GMC DID NOT WANT TO HONOR EXTENDED WARRANTY FOR THE RENTAL CAR, ZERO DEDUCTIBLE, OR THE REPAIR ITSELF.

TRANSMISSION WENT OUT AT AROUND 44000 MILES. DEALER SAID THE "LIP SEAL" FAILED INSIDE TRANSMISSION, AFTER TAKING IT IN SEVERAL TIMES FOR DIAGNOSIS. WOULD NOT ASSIST WITH REPAIR COST. ENDED UP HAVING IT REPAIRED AT AAMCO. A/C IS CURRENTLY OUT ON THE LOW SETTING (#1). NOT YET REPAIRED. JUST REPAIRED THE COOLING SYSTEM. DEALER SAID IT WAS AN INTERNAL LEAK. VAN KEPT GETTING LOW ON COOLANT, HAD TO KEEP FILLING IT UP, HOWEVER NEVER SAW A LEAK. DEALER SAID PROBLEM WITH THE MANIFOLD, AND COOLANT WAS LEAKING THRU AND BEING EVAPORTATED, THEREFORE NO TELLTALE LEAK. COST $600 TO REPAIR (AT 53,000) MILES. I HATE THIS VAN. THIS IS THE WORST ONE I'VE HAD. UNFORTUNATELY, I DID NOT BUY AN EXTENDED WARRANTY.

ENGINE - VEHICLE WAS LEAKING COOLANT THROUGH INTAKE MANIFOLD GASKET INTO ENGINE. INTAKE MANIFOLD NEEDED TO BE RESEALED. PONTIAC ASSISTANCE IS REFUSING TO HELP AT THIS TIME. THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE V6 AND GM IS REFUSING TO ACKNOWLEDGE IT. EMISSION - SECONDARY AIR INJECTION PUMP FAILED AT 33025 MILES AND WAS COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. THIS PUMP FAILED AGAIN AT 44000 MILES, JUST 8 MONTHS LATER AND COST 160.00 FOR LABOR. EMISSION PUMPS SHOULD LAST LONGER THAN 8 MONTHS. POWER WINDOW - DRIVERS SIDE POWER WINDOW MOTOR FAILED 9/2002 AT 38500 MILES. FAULTY WIRING CLUSTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AT 12528 (N/C).

OUR MONTANA PONTIAC VAN HAD PROBLEMS FROM THE START. WE PURCHASED IT AS A USED VEHICLE FROM A GM DEALER AND EVERYTHING SEEMED FINE. HOWEVER WITHIN THREE WEEKS OF HAVING THE VEHICLE WE STARTED EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS. WE HAD THE STARTED REPLACED THREE TIMES, WE HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE FRONT STRUTS, REPLACE THE BRAKES TWICE, WE HAVE A NOISE IN THE FRONT RIGHT SIDE-NO ONE CAN EXPLAIN AND WE HAVE IT WORKED ON FIVE TIMES NOW, THEN YESTERDAY THE SIDE PASSENGER SLIDE DOOR OPENED IN A TURN IN HEAVY TRAFFIC - WE DO NOT HAVE AUTOMATIC SLIDING DOORS. THE CONTROL PANEL DID NOT SHOW THAT THE DOOR WAS AJAR. HOWEVER BECAUSE WE REQUIRE EVERYONE TO WEAR SEATBELTS THE CHILD DID NOT FALL OUT BUT IT COULD HAVE HAD A TERRIBLE RESULTS HAD WE NOT MAKE IT A RULE IN OUR VEHICLE. I LOVE THE ROOM THE VAN PROVIDES HOWEVER, THESE PROBLEMS THAT KEEP POPPING UP ARE GETTING TIRESOME.

THERE HAVE BEEN MANY PROBLEMS, MOST NOTABLE RECENTLY WHEN THE DRIVER'S SIDE SLIDING DOOR FEEL OFF AT 45000 MILES. GM WON'T PAY, IT'S NOT "UNDER WARRANTY". THIS DOOR HAS HAD CONTINUAL PROBLEMS WITH HITTING THE FRONT DOOR UPON CLOSING. REPAIR WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN MADE BUT OBVIOUSLY INEFFECTUAL DUE TO EVIDENCE OF CHIPPED PAINT AT THE SITE WHERE DORS COLLIDE. COULD THIS HAVE PRECIPITATED THE DOOR FALLING OFF? SUPPOSEDLY THEIR WAS AN ADJUSTMENT MADE, COULD THIS ADJUSTMENT BEEN MADE INCORRECTLY TO DAMAGE THE DOOR? I FEEL IT IS UNACCEPTABLE THAT THIS DOOR HAS FALLEN OFF MY CAR AT 45000 MILES.

ON JUNE 17, 2003 WHILE DRIVING NEAR MY HOME MY BRAKES FAILED, TOTALLY, I HAD TO APPLY THE EMERGENCY BRAKE TO AVOID BOTH MY HUSBAND AND I FROM GOING INTO THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY INTERSECTION. NO WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON NOTHING. I HAD JUST A FEW INCIDENTS OF THE BRAKE PEDAL SEEMING LIKE IT WAS GOING DOWN MAYBE A COUPLE OF TIMES THE DAY BEFORE. BRAKES NEVER MADE ANY NOISES TO INDICATE THERE WAS A PROBLEM STARTING. MASTER CYLINDER HAD TO BE REPLACED

1/3/04 VAN FAILED TO START-REASON UNKNOWN. TOOK TO MECHANIC TO CHECK OUT AND DISCOVERED OIL LEAK IN THE ENGINE AT 50,000 THIS IS CRAZY, THIS TYPE OF THING SHOULD NOT HAPPEN AT 50,000 MILES THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A PROBLEM IN THE ENGINEERING OR PART THAT ARE BEING USED.*AK

CONSUMER COMPLAINED ABOUT ENGINE PROBLEMS. A VARIETY OF GASKETS WERE REPLACED; HOWEVER, ENGINE PROBLEMS STILL EXIST. *AK