Pontiac Bonneville

mfahey1 · March 2001

Iceman, I know your numbers said there are about equal #s of SSEis and SLEs but it seems I rarely see a SSLE. Wouldn't you know, today in our small town of 13,000, I saw two of them inside of five minutes. The one was a dark bronzemist and I think I have color envy because it looked a lot sharper than my light bronzemist. On the other hand, I then saw a white one and if a color ever negated a car's good styling features, that was it. I hope I'm not offending any white Bonneville owners but I actually had to double check to be sure it was a Bonneville.

theiceman · March 2001

Mark: I know what you're saying. The numbers I gave were actually applying Pontiac's projected Bonneville sales breakdown to the actual total sales figure. It is quite possible that they did made adjustments in the production schedule to shift assembly line time towards SE's or SSEi's and away from SLE's but they were initially projecting a 65% -17.5% -17.5% split in the sales. Based on the paucity of SLE's I have sighted to date (only one other versus dozens of SE's and SSEi's), I too wonder if the SLE sales numbers were lower. The SLE's got a kind of "odd duck" rep. - why look like an SSEi without the power, the HUD, the handling, stabilitrak, driver memory features, etc.? (don't flame me - I'm a proud SLE owner) I'm sure that the SSEi has been outselling the SLE.

wind noise: I have never been happy with noises intruding into the cockpit and I am happy to report that this is not a problem with mine. Apparently, one of the reasons why the Bonneville does not have collapsible mirrors is because they were concerned about the hinge seam creating too much wind noise. I have also read reviews which remarked on the quietness of the Bonneville's interior - against only one which observed the opposite. I'm suspecting loose or poorly mounted exterior trim.

theiceman.

lisacatera · March 2001

Hello All!

I am not a Bonneville owner (as the name may tip you) but I was looking for info on the DIC
personalization and saw that some yahoo is actually trying to sell GM Accessory Brochures on eBay! You
can go to http://www.gmgoodwrench.com/dhtml/parts/parts_access.shtml or your Pontiac dealer to get
these free of charge.

Enjoy your Bonnevilles

theiceman · March 2001

...for thinking of your fellow GM owners. Fancy that, huh? It's amazing what some people try to unload on ebay. What surprised me the most though, is the yahoo-ebay connection. Another dot.com merger in the offing?

theiceman

refiner · March 2001

Scott, I have the same problem with water in the trunk lid after it rains. It just pours out. I've had as much as a half a gallon come out. Just been to lazy to get it to the dealer. Other than that nothing else wrong after more than a year.

zzahh · March 2001

Boy, I must say, I have been so enomred with the Bonneville over these last 10 years, that I did not know if I liked the new styling. It certainly has been growing on me, and I have to say, the black SSEi's I have seen with the polished chrome wheels are a very attractive ride. Sighhhhhhhhh.......

Oh well, not having to live with her and still driving a very clean and quick '94 is still a far, far better thing that a new SSEi. As you can see, she was such a sweetheart...........

theiceman · March 2001

We gotta set you up with a new one man.

Still, I have to confess that, as my search for a 2nd car continues, I was intrigued by a low mileage '97 SSEi I saw advertised for $CDN18,000 (or approx. $US12,000) which I might be able to get for less. We shall see...

theiceman

zzahh · March 2001

although, I am not sure I can afford a new one............... I once heard something about busts, wheels or "O" rings. Eventually they will all give you trouble and cost you money.

Anyway, 12k US for a '97 SSEi with low miles sounds like a sweet deal, I believe that is the next generation 3800 also, and although I am not sure of the milage on the new Bonn's, I do know that on straight highway driving, cruise set at 80ish, and not having to dodge traffic, or major elevation changes, I get 30 mpg almost religiously. Good luck on the '97, it sounds sweet.

Now if you know of any young, filthy rich, passion starved, beautiful.........

tpken · March 2001

When in PA 2 weeks ago, I stopped at the Chevy dealer where I got our Suburban. There was a very nice 98 SSEi there in silver with the 12 way power leather buckets and sunroof. IT was a beauty and if I did not already own my 2000 SE I bet I would have driven it home. Not sure about the price on that one - my sales buddy was busy. Wish I'd had time to drive it

Great car

Ken

theiceman · March 2001

Consumer Reports recommends the '97 and earlier but not the '98 or '99. The latter two apparently have "hardware integrity" problems and seem inextricably drawn towards deer at night. But I don't see anything major. Does anybody have a clue that would justify the CR rating for these 2 years? Besides, they all have the series II. Any ideas?

Ken: BTW, the '97 I saw was green check it out: Eastern Ontario Autotrader. This one's got 71k kms. (or about 42k miles) and the asking price is $CDN16,900 (or about $US11,200 - sorry, my earlier memory was obviously flawed). The same rag (our autotrader) has a green '98 with 90k kms. (about 55k miles) for the same price. Problem? sunroof.

theiceman

tpken · March 2001

very popular color for prior series. Actually I prefer the shade I have - not a blue green but has more yellow hue - hard to describe if you have not seen it.

So far this green is deer safe - hope it stays that way. Saw 4 does at road side last night - staring into my headlights. Dumb animals!

Ken

zzahh · March 2001

Ken,

I didn't know you knew my ex too........

tpken · March 2001

I'd better leave that one alone!

Ken

theiceman · March 2001

I've only seen one post-'99 green Bonnie and I concur. I like the old colour but the new one's superior - IMHO.

About that owner's club thing? Any more keeners other than Ken and me? I'm sure if he was alive today, Groucho Marx would join...

Okay, I know - it's 4 a.m. (EDST) and I shouldn't be wasting time on the net at this time of the night/morning. Unfortunately, the sleeping patterns of the youngest in our house is affecting the sleeping patterns of the oldest (and the little @#&%'er has no trouble going back to sleep - very much unlike her old man). aaaahhh!

While I'm doing the insomniac thing, here's a link to a Bonneville review for y'all.

theiceman

jim237 · March 2001

I am the owner of a 2000 SSEI that I found from a leasing company in Canada. The car had 28 miles when I took delivery. It's loaded with the exception of the cd stacker in trunk. Light bronze mist with taupe leather, Good Color here in the desert in Southern Utah where July and August average 103-105 degrees, So far I love the car but would like to give it a little more exhaust " I'm hot " sound. Possibly a couple of Dyno-max mufflers. What do you think? I paid $ 27,700.

zzahh · March 2001

I for one would be interested in joining an owners club. Although I drive an '94, I am looking to move up a few years once again, and again, and so on. I am thouroughly happy with the performance, comfort, highway economy, durability and overall value of the Bonneville and intend to continue to be an owner.

I was part of a Fiero club, and a better group of people were hard to come by. Common interests, same passions, etc. I suspect the Bonneville club would be very similar; simply look at the postings here.

Look forward to hearing more.

Brett

theiceman · March 2001

Hey, if it came by way of a Canadian company, it can't be a bad thing, can it?

I kinda like the throaty growl of the dual exhaust on my SLE. Curiously, it is that exact sound that the Bimmer Boys would criticize as betraying Pontiac's "lack of refinement". It's refreshing to hear from somebody who wants to put more growl into their car.

So, what led you to choose the Bonneville and what other cars did you consider? We all seem to have compared different cars on our respective ways to the Bonnie but I think I've heard the words "Aurora" and "Grand Prix" a few times....

Again, welcome aboard Jim.

theiceman

jim237 · March 2001

Theiceman,, Thanks for the welcome. What did you do
to get the " Growl " in your dual exhaust?
I use to restore late 60's- early 70's muscle. cars mostly 440=6 Mopars and Boss Mustangs, so I have to have that rumble. I never restored a Pontiac,but were always aware the " Goats " were watching. I was blown away when I first spotted the 2000 SSEI. The styling, power and the "Muscle Car " look said take me home. Pontiac definitively set themselves apart from all others with this new body style. I really never considered another car .

ssillow · March 2001

Hey all,

1st post. I have owned a green 92 bonneville Se that I put 177,000 on. I still own a 97 black se with 120,000 on it and am currently looking for a
a loaded 99, but not having a ton of luck here in Rochester and surrounding parts. Almost bought one from a private seller last week that had "some rear end damage". He just forgot to tell me that the car had been totalled. Minor details...best twenty bucks I ever spent was for carfax!

Anyway, I'm stuck at the 1999 level because Pontiac in it's infinite wisdom decided to reduce the head room for 2000! Being 6'4" doesn't work for the new line...aargghh
Talk to ya later....

pat · March 2001

When I brought it up a few weeks ago, the only responses that I recall getting were "thanks, but no thanks" - if there is any interest here at all, what we could do is start one up and just see how it goes.

It doesn't have to change a thing for the folks not interested. This discussion will remain here and if it is the only one some folks want to hang out in, I don't think those folks would see any differences.

On the Owners Club board, this discussion would also appear, and there would be a few more discussions added at the request of members. Karen usually starts off with a few discussions like "Meet the Members", "Photo Gallery" and maybe a maintenance issues discussion.

If there is interest, at some point a regularly scheduled live owners' chat could be started.

This might make more sense to you if you go to the Owners Clubs Board and look at a few of the clubs. Chrysler 300M and Acura MDX are small ones that might give you idea of how it would start out. Notice that the main discussions for each appear both on the Owners Club Board and the original board (Sedans for the 300M discussion and SUVs for the MDX).

I'm really not trying to talk you folks into anything, I'm just a little puzzled at the responses I got earlier and now one person has expressed interest. Feel free to tell me to shut up and go away, if that's what you want to do. :-)

OTOH, I'm very happy to answer any questions you might have or address any of your concerns about this.

Pat
Host
Sedans and Women's Auto Center Message Boards

mfahey1 · March 2001

I went to the Acura MDX site as Pat suggested and it does have the same feel as this forum so I would vote to start one up. Some of us may not be capable of posting pictures due to lack of a scanner or the technical skills (guilty on both counts) but other than that, my vote would be a go.
Picked my car up from the dealer after the ignition module replacement. Almost suffered "the big one" as I pulled in. There was another SSEi exactly like mine parked in the service area that I assumed was mine. What stuck out was that it had a dent in the front fender. For those of you that have seen some of the earlier posts, even after a year +, mine does not have so much as a paint chip, let along door dings or dents. I told myself to be calm when I got out to look because maybe there was another explanation. As you can guess, I was very relieved that the car wasn't mine.
The first thought I actually had was where would I get the fender repainted because the dealer's "body shop" is little more than a stall next to the service area. When my car was delivered new, it had a blemish on the hood almost as if someone had put their hand on the primer before final painting. I elected to just let it go and chalk it up to GM's mediocre build quality rather than risk making everything worse by letting the dealer refinish the hood. Speaking of paint, I'm something of an amateur car painter and one area I was disappointed on this car was the amount of orange peel on the finish. I have done work in my garage that was better than this car even with GM's multi-million dollar paint shop. Look at a Lexus sometime for example and compare the two cars for orange peel. You'll see that there is no comparison at all between the two.

rea98d · March 2001

What is "orange peel?" Does paint fumes make people want to eat citrus while they work?

smfran · March 2001

1) I too would like to hear more growl from my 2000 SSEi exhaust. To me it is too quiet. I like my muscle car look but miss having muscle car sound. Any inexpensive way to add it? In the old days we flipped over the carburetor cover to enhance the sound.

2) What would be the difference between an Owners Club discussion and this one? I don't understand what sets them apart. pat?

pat · March 2001

It's the fact that you get to have more specialized discussions in addition to this one. And the fact that - if you want - you will have the opportunity to have regularly scheduled live chats with each other at some point. Did you take a look at the existing Clubs as I suggested? That should make it all clearer, but do ask me any questions you might have.

Pat
Host
Sedans and Women's Auto Center Message Boards

theiceman · March 2001

I probably have less growl than you SSEi owners and I certainly haven't done anything to enhance it. My background is with Japanese family machines where growl would have been out of place - so there wasn't any. The Bonneville's nicely tuned exhaust is music to my ears - enough growl to let you know that you've got 200+ ft.lbs. of torque available to you but not so much as to offend the "Toyota generation" (of which I am an one of the older members - having had one in my family all but continuously since 1968!). Still, the Bonnie's growl is evident enough when you floor it. Something I'm starting to do not that I've passed my psychological break-in point of 4,000 miles.

Despite the fact that my wife's brother is a diesel mechanic (or perhaps because of it), I don't think I could pass a more open exhaust sound by the boss. Maybe I buy that used SSEi and leave her the SLE...

theiceman

theiceman · March 2001

A couple of questions Pat:
can we have links to the existing archived discussion? how about the "Pontiac Bonneville Problems" forum as well?
is there any capacity for Edmunds to host a page where we could post links (as opposed to having them in posts)? I'm thinking that this could be a useful way for us to maintain direct links to other websites, perhaps even have a gallery of members (don't worry guys, photos wouldn't be required) and their vehicles (the images themselves could be hosted elsewhere).

Pat, my questions are getting at the root of how we access information - posts, by their nature, are sequential and topics meander. The same question comes up every few months as new players join into the discussion. With a little bit of work, one member could take the lead and organize past "intelligence" and capture and subsequently update it. If this is done as a chat forum posting, these summaries will eventually get lost and be hard to access in the future. In these cases, a maintained website will be far more effective. Obviously, this is not what you're offering here. Still, don't get the impression we're not grateful for Edmunds' TownHall - I personally think it's the cat's pyjamas!

To the rest of the guys: I think we could make this thing work provided that there is an understanding that if you post something to the problems discussion group (or perhaps others), you let the rest of us know in this main thread. At the worst, an owner's group would just be a consolidation of what already exists and perhaps a few additional underused fora (threads); at best, it could provide newbies a quicker way of "catching up" and researching (a) the club; and (b) any technical issues.

theiceman

P.S. I have experienced serious difficulties posting today - this is the 3rd attempt at posting this message!!!

theiceman · March 2001

Haven't noticed any on mine - beautiful, shimmering, paint job - looks like it was poured on. Certainly no dimples that I would call orange peel.

the iceman will "cool off" and leave this forum to the rest of you guys for a while.

refiner · March 2001

With the smaller pulley,the Thrasher cold air induction kit and a pair of Vortex mufflers. I have just enough growl. The sound of the supercharger with the CAI is great. I got the mufflers installed for $160.00. There aluminizied steel but the shop gave me a lifetime warranty. There's nothing like the sound of a supercharger in the morning.

theiceman · March 2001

how does it compare with the smell of coolant in the morning?

mlm4 · March 2001

As I mentioned almost a year ago in this forum, one of the biggest disappointments with my new Bonneville was the paint quality. There is orange peel, or even worse, a very thin coat of paint in the roof gutters and on the inside edge of the fenders along the hood, which is visible because the body panels do not align perfectly. The paint in the door and trunk jambs and under the hood is just as bad, but at least those areas are usually hidden. My parent's new Lexus puts GM build quality to shame - the paint and fit and finish are flawless. Even the $30K Acuras they looked at are exceptionally well assembled. Why oh why can't GM do the same? Actually, the paint on my Tahoe (built in Mexico) is ten times better than the Bonnie - richer, deeper, more glossy, but they missed on the tight spots too. What I don't understand is that Orion Assembly won an award for "most improved paint shop" a few years ago!

But I deal with it because the Bonneville is such a blast to drive and the styling rocks!

h101 · March 2001

I find the comments on paint and panel fit interesting. My black, 2000 SSEi, built in Dec '99 is really flawless. All the seams are uniform and no orange peel anywhere on the car. I wonder what causes the variance. The paint variance isn't limited to Bonnevilles, my '98 black Vette has flawless paint and I have seen other '98 black Vettes with orange peel.

zzahh · March 2001

I can't help it. I am still smiling, after stopping laughing my rear end off. I pick up a nail or some damn thing in the right front tire. Change to the space saver spare, take the tire home, locate the leak, and have to drive to the local auto store for a repair kit, etc.

Does anyone have any idea how easy it is to absolutely melt and smoke and scream, and spin, and did I mention melt and smoke that ugly little space saver doughnut right off the rim........

LMAO still....... I know, I need to grow up.... NOT!

refiner · April 2001

There's no comparison. I have the coolant with my coffee.

theiceman · April 2001

sweeter than napalm that's for sure....

jim237 · April 2001

Having orange peel in these days on a new car is definitley grounds for a new paint job. Make the dealer re paint or order another car. My light bronze mist is flawless as it should be. Would you believe back in the 60's-70's at car shows that were specialized judged events if your car DID NOT have the correct amount of orange peel,points were actually deducted from your score. If you had "Smooth" paint you were not correct because none of the car manufactures at that time produced cars that were free from some orange peel and other paint defects. For those of you that are not famailar with this term, just pick up a orange, look at it and imagine your paint surface looking like that .

pat · April 2001

Yes, the Pontiac Bonneville Problems discussion could be linked to the Bonneville Owners Club in the same manner that this one can be. I don't see why an archived discussion couldn't be linked as well - I'll ask Karen. Obviously it would just be for reference, since it would not be open for new posts.

And you could certainly ask Karen to create a discussion that would contain only links posted by the members - this would be a way to keep them all in one place and provide easy reference. But, this would still be in the same discussion-containing-sequential-posts form that Town Hall offers, not really a separate web-page.

Pat
Host
Sedans and Women's Auto Center Message Boards

rb8225 · April 2001

Hi All!

I've been lurking this message board for the last month or so while I waited for the right time to get my new car. I really enjoy reading the posts. I had some (small) temptation to get a 300M, but the comments in this forum killed any lingering doubt about staying the Bonneville course. (# 4 so far)
Last Thursday I picked up my Light Bronzemist SSEi; bun warmers, chrome wheels. Very nice looking. My original choice was a Black/DKPewter combo, but I couldn't find one on a dealer lot without the sunroof, and I couldn't tolerate the lost headroom. I almost didn't get this one either, because it had chrome wheels and I didn't want to pay the extra $$$. But, I guess the dealer wanted to get an extra sale in before the month-end. When I said I would wait, he made a counter-offer and I accepted. Thanks to Edmunds pricing info (big thanks!) I actually got this car at a little less than dealer invoice, and the $1000 cash incentive to boot!

RB

theiceman · April 2001

Welcome aboard. I think most of us would have been happy driving the 300M but, you obvious agree that your SSEi was the right choice.

You say #4 - tell us about the others. We're listening.

theiceman

bigred00 · April 2001

My red maple, 2000 SSEi with s/r and heaters passed the one year/25,000 mile mark yesterday. Some comments: Overall,I am happy with the car, and aside from one small problem that was easily remedied after two visits to the dealer, it has been the most trouble-free new GM car I have ever owned (the first/worst was an '81 Phoenix and the most recent a '92 SSE). Still,like some other posters here, I can't help but wonder what the engineers/bean counters were thinking when they made some of the design decisions. Primarily on the interior. There are just too many little quirks that keep me from calling this a truly great car... especially for the price. If I were to receive a customer satisfaction questionnaire from GM...I would complain about:

(1)the steering wheel-hidden odometer;
(2)complicated base wheel design, that makes for difficult cleaning(didn't like chrome on nice optional wheels);
(3)the cup and half holder(speaks volumes);
(4)lack of headlight washers(even the '92 had em);
(4)too flat "buckets";
(5)over-hyped sound system(I've had 901's since '77 but I've never met a Bose car audio system that I've liked;
(6)the HVAC system that ultimately ends up blowing cold air even when its set on 70 plus in the middle of a CNY winter;
(7)slightly too soft suspension(I swear the '92 cornered flatter);
(8)and last but not least, "there's a glove box?"

The '92 SSE I had seemed to keep me in the poor house with repeat repairs, but the engine ran great(165K), was super comfortable, handled beautifully, and had a great stereo. It was also green, which, though fresh in '92, became unavoidable by Y2K.

Did I say I'm happy with the 2000 SSEi? Love the color, looks, room, ride, safety, comments, heaters, perforated leather, s/r, power, etc. If I decide to keep this car long-term, I may have to shop Saner
and find some different wheels. About that TL-S...

rb8225 · April 2001

Thanks for the welcome, Iceman.

I am lucky enough to work for a company that has a very liberal company car policy. We used to get paid for using our own cars, but then they switched to having us lease cars. At first, we had a choice of 3: a Taurus, a Nissan something-or-other, or the Bonneville. My first was a gray '92 Bonneville SE. I bought it at the end of the lease, and my son is still driving it, with about 160K miles on it now.
In '95, we had the same 3 choices, but they decided we could kick in some extra $$ of our own and upgrade the base car, so I got a red SE with the Sport Luxury option. It was really nice. Just before it was to go off lease, the engine threw a main bearing, and it was toast. It wasn't worth buying out and putting in about $4500 for a new engine, so it went back to the lease company. My daughter hasn't forgiven me yet; she had her eye on that one.
So, to replace that one I got a '98 SLE, Dark Cherry. It's been a real good car with no problems except the radio quitting at 35K miles. GM replaced it under warranty.
The 3 year lease on that one was up in March, and so I started to think about what to replace it with. Our company has opened up the choices of cars. As I said, I was considering the 300M, but I really like the style of the new Bonneville. My boss at work just got a 300M with the luxury option package, and I have to admit it is really a nice car. But, it seems to be more of a luxury kind of car. Pontiac says that SSEi has 'Luxury, with Attitude'. But, compared to the 300M, I would describe the SSEi as "Attitude, with Luxury'. I like that better. The boss boasts that the 300M has more HP (253), but I guess we will have to get out on I-75 and see what's-what. (That is, after I have my final court appearance for the ticket I currently have under advisement. Ooops! Not a good role model for the two kids !). I'm still waiting to find out the buyout price on that one to see if I want to keep it or not.
Anyway, this time I decided to upgrade all the way to the SSEi. I was going to order it thru the lease company, but when I found out we could buy off the dealer's lot, my impatience got the best of me. And, as I said earlier, I got a good deal, so I broke out the checkbook. This one will definitely be a keeper after the lease runs out!

RB

smfran · April 2001

Welcome - I'm also a repeat Bonneville owner (5). I really am enjoying my 2000 SSEi. Obviously I have enjoyed them all or I wouldn't be so loyal. My partner has a 300M and also likes it. I like his interior and the higher quality leather but, his car is a dime a dozen and doesn't have that GM feeling. Besides the low quality leather, my fit and finish are good. I understand what people are saying about the paint quality. Mine could be better but is acceptable.

tpken · April 2001

Mark and Robin - good to hear from both of you!

Mark - sounds like a great Maple Red SSEi you have there. You mention CNY - is that Central New York State? And what color is your interior? I'm compiling a list of forum participants and would like to get your data down here.

Robin - I've seen a few Bonnevilles in your color - in fact someone nearby me here has that color SE - saw it twice this weekend - same model as mine and only second I've seen in the area. Mine is the 2000 Spruce Green - a color I've not seen on any other Bonneville yet (not offered this year I hear).

There just aren't very many Bonnevilles around here - to see another SE is great.

Have a great evening all - catch you tomorrow.

Ken

theiceman · April 2001

My brother in law (a car guy for sure) was over yesterday afternoon and he asked after the Bonnie. We ended up in the garage with the key in the ignition (discussing the DIC). With the engine off, we heard a electrical motor type sound from the rear of the car. I had heard it before and it concerned me so I said to him (like a complete doofus) "yeah, I'll have to get that checked out.." He throws me one of those looks - "why isn't it working properly?" He then proceeds to tell me about the auto load leveller, how it uses an air compressor, etc. etc. Okay, I knew the Bonneville had one but I hadn't put 2 and 2 together. Question for you car guys: is this a common feature on large cars and exactly how does it work?

theiceman

smfran · April 2001

Ice - I don't know about its being common in large cars, but I do believe I know how it works. It senses the weight in the trunk and adjusts the rear suspension accordingly. This way, when you are loaded up, the rear end isn't dipping down.

tpken · April 2001

Iceman - like you, I have been aware that the load leveling feature is present but have not had opportunity to utilize it - usually only kids in the back seat and have carried no loads in the trunk yet - that's what our Suburban is for. I have had a couple Caddies with this feature and it has always worked well - especially if you load up for a trip and then see the car return to a nice level stance - none of this sagging tail, nonsense that was common in days past.

Thank you Pontiac

Ken

mlm4 · April 2001

This feature is becoming standard on more and more GM vehicles. Even some of the trucks have it now. The way it works on the Bonne is there is an articulating arm attached between the vehicle chassis and the rear lower support arm (I don't remember if it is the right or left one). When the car is loaded, the motion of the arm trips a switch which causes the air compressor to pump air into the rear shocks to raise the vehicle until it is level again. Likewise, when the load is removed, the rear of the car will be high and trip another switch which opens an exhaust valve to purge air from the accumulator (and thus the shocks).

When you first start the car, after 30 seconds, the leveling system goes through a purge cycle to "recalibrate" (replenish any air that has leaked out while the car was sitting). This may be the noise you hear.

There is also an electric motor hum for a second or so just after the ignition key is turned to ON; this is the fuel pump pressurizing the system for starting. These high-tech cars create lots of clicks and whirs and hums!

frog_sc38 · April 2001

Hi,
I have been lurking in this forum about 6 months. I must say it is a lot of fun to be able to listen to people and discuss my car with people who love it like it was their own each and every day. I seen Bonnie on Car and Driver TV when it was just out and knew that one day I would have to have one. I never thought it would be so soon. I went to the dealer to "look" and as I sat in the chair waiting to be approved I thought never in a million years would I be. It was my easy out. OOOPS. Here I am with a 600 dollar a month car payment and "Kimberly", that's her name.
I have a 2000 SSEi black\gray interior with the 17" chrome tri-bar wheels. It has two 15" Memphis HP subs with 1200 watts running through them, and a Neo 35 with 400 CD's /6000 songs on it. 20% window tint, orange underbody, wheel well neons, custom pinstrip red and orange with a 2" high Pontiac stencil on the rear quarter.

I have heard a few complaints about orange peel and had assumed that since the car was black there was just some peel that had to be tolerated. The keyless entry range goes to inches sometimes and I know that I will never have a black car again. More later .... Websense is about to cut me off.

Frog
www.00bonneville.com

tpken · April 2001

That's a very interesting site you have there - to say nothing of a very interesting Bonneville.

Do you have side pics of Kimberly to post? The front shot is dramatic - red PONTIAC plate, red and orange stripe - you certainly win the prize for most unique SSEi here! BTW - out of curiosity, where do you live?

Thanks for posting - we look forward to hearing and seeing more!

Ken

bdreggors · April 2001

Just missed a few days (oops!). Back in the fold now...:)

Iceman,
That little story you had around post 1052 was really sweet and I enjoyed that.

Frog, RB8225, and Bigred00,
Welcome, welcome, welcome! Good to have more owners on board!

By the way, today is LeSabre Day for me. Took my Bonnie into the shop for an oil change/headliner repair (bought the car with a slightly loose headliner around the astroroof and was so excited that I haven't brought it back for 6 months!).

Oh, quick anecdote:
Two days ago around 10:00PM, I was cycling through the DIC at the gas station to recalibrate my compass to my magnetic zone (so sue me, I was bored), then I remembered that I had to drive in large circles several times. I didn't really want to ram gas pumps, so I drove to a local mall which is about an inch from closing shop (about 2 anchor stores out of five, dollar stores everywhere, you know what I mean) and started driving in the lot.

Wouldn't you know that the security guard just woke up and had to check this out? He tottled over in this lil' Tacoma pickup with his orange gumball light and asked me what I was doing. I said I was recalibrating my compass. I guess he either A) beleived me or

considered me so crazy that he'd get away as fast has he could. After he started driving away, I drove in circles again until the compass calibrated.

Only in a Bonnie...:)

smfran · April 2001

You are right Iceman - Even though I like to read all posts in one forum (discussion), I'd be willing to give the Owner's Club a chance. I just don't want to miss anything!

Pontiac Bonneville

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