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Pontiac Grand Prix: Problems & Solutions

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  • therockstartherockstar Member Posts: 1
    I have a 98 GTP which caught on fire last year. Insurance didn't cover it and when I spoke to GM, they gave me the runaround. I'd love to get my money back but one thing I can't get back is the secure feeling I used to have before it happened. I love that car but it's not the same anymore.

    I'm more than willing to join this cause.
  • jmac74jmac74 Member Posts: 10
    Hi anndj and therockstar,

    This is jmac74, you need to email me on my aol account and we can go from there. I have another lady with the same situation as us and i think we have a good case. You can find my email anywhere you see jmac74. I am serious, so don't delay.
  • jmac74jmac74 Member Posts: 10
    Hi msprainis,

    How's the car? Anymore problems? Where did the fire start? I have other people with the same problem, you could join us in the law suit. I don't know to what extent your damage was but you could at least be part of the law suit, maybe getting a recall or even a brand new car out of the deal. Email me on my aol account if you are interested. Let's stop GM or at least give ourselves a chance to get something for our misfortunes.
  • dautrydautry Member Posts: 1
    I have a 1999 pontiac grand prix when I go to start it up it will turn over and began to start only to stop I will have to hit the gas to get it going but once it is started it runs great no problems you can stop at a red light no problems now if I go to the store and come right out no problems will start right up but if i am in there for about an hour I would have to hit the gas during the start up to get it running. Please help thanks Dee.
  • riderprideriderpride Member Posts: 3
    99 GTP starting to cause a little grief. it does not drive as good as it did when i bought it. it seems to shifting gears poorly (some gears getting near 5000 rpm) and when im highway driving im noticing my boost gauge showing a constant reading even when my foot isnt on the pedal; has anyone had similar problems with these issues? if you did, what did you do to rectify them? thanks for any help!
  • vitalivitali Member Posts: 1
    It does seem high, on my 2003 GT it's about 2200 rpm. I noticed though that when temperature is low, it's above 2500 rpm until the transmission warms up
  • granprix98granprix98 Member Posts: 2
    i have a 98 grand prix 3.1 and my problem is it won't pass inspection because the service engine light is on and i don't know how to get it to go off.i've had it inspected and it failed so now i have 30 days to get it fixed. they reset code which was p0401 insufficient flow from egr. i don't know if i need to replace the egr or is it something else i need expert advice please someone help :confuse:
  • pointatobpointatob Member Posts: 30
    Sorry to hear that some of you have had car fires.... i hope no one was hurt. of those that have had this happen, is there any common reason or conditions which seem to lead to a higher fire risk? it seems that most of the descriptions involved driving and then shutting off the car before the fire started... i wonder why this is?

    anyway, if any of you know or have heard why these fires have started, i think all GP owners would benefit in hearing any insight that you might have,

    pointatob
  • bmwguy2bmwguy2 Member Posts: 13
    hi,i have a 2001 pontiac grandprix gtp special edition coupe,i work for a bmw dealership,in the service dept,i would say that either the connector to the low coolant sensor is disconnected or it is bad,it is located near the alternator but at the bottom of the coolant resevoir,it would be easy to see if connected or not if car was on lift and look straight up at resevoir a pontiac dealer should have part in stock if its defective,i would change if bad because if you do loose coolant with a bad sensor,you will never know ,thanks michael
  • crunge98crunge98 Member Posts: 1
    If your coolant overflow tank has a sensor on the bottom of it, Take your Coolant tank off and drain it. Put some water in it and Dawn dish soap and shake it around, Do this to clean the inside out. The sensor tends to build up a deposit. It may take a couple of times then it will be fine. Cavaliers have that problem.
    Crunge98
  • caseymcdcaseymcd Member Posts: 1
    Husband is driving a 95 Grand Prix which has been driving pretty well until last week. He steps on the gas and it runs really rough and jerky and just stops. Has been at a garage for three days and they have no clue! Any ideas??
  • 2004weasel20042004weasel2004 Member Posts: 2
    i recently have ran into a check engine light on my car... .and i have taken it to my local oil change location and they run a little computer on my car and it gives me 2 codes.... one is a Evap code and i forget the other... but it popped up a couple months ago and it was my gas cap that seemed to fix it by just tightning it.... here lately it has been comming on more often... i have made sure i tighten the cap every time... and i recet it everytime it comes on and it seems it goes a couple days until it comes back on... i drove a great distance yesterday and it didnt come on... but today it came on after just starting up... is this a failing gas cap
  • mitzijmitzij Member Posts: 613
    You might get by with having the EGR valve and passages cleaned out, or you need a new valve.
  • italia68italia68 Member Posts: 2
    Hey everyone! Wow I never realized that there are so many people that have had fires with their Pontiacs. Yesterday on the way to work, (after I hit Performance Shift) I heard a bunch of noise LOUD rumbling, so I tried to stop I lost my brakes and had no steering, mind you I was doing around 75 mph. I ended up slamming it into park to stop. I got out popped the hood it was on fire, to make a long story short they totalled my car the whole front left clip, burned away to nothing along with the whole inside of the engine... nothing left. Needless to say it only had 49k and I kept my car immaculate, I am sick over this I loved my car! I am all for a law suit please let me know how I can be a part of it.
  • cdamechcdamech Member Posts: 31
    Hi I have a 1999 Pontiac Grand Prix that had a bad transmission after 90K miles and was replaced. It is now at 240K but I have a problem where the Transmission does not engage in REVERSE when the engine is hot. It does engage after waiting for 5 seconds in Park and then by putting into REVERSE. It seems to be slipping and then once there is momentum it engages. Otherwise it works fine. I had the transmission fluid and filter replaced after this symptom appeared and does not help. I think it may be the Vacuum Actuator or a clog in one of the cooling pipes. ANY SUGGESTIONS?
  • cdamechcdamech Member Posts: 31
    I had the same problem. Solution is to clean out the drainage from the front window dash (esterior) tube. This often gets clogged due to leaves and dirt and overflows into your ventilation fan. Open up the front dash and follow the vent to the outsdie and you should be able to see where the clog is. You may want to put a thin wiremess to prevent this happening in the future. Just a bad design by GM.
  • cdamechcdamech Member Posts: 31
    It's not the car but the Dealer or the Mecahnic. Make sure you take it to someone whom you can trust or do basic servicing yourself. I have seen dealership Customer Service Rep and Mechanic teams being measured on how much post sales service revenues. Perfect environment for injecting faults and ripping you off.
  • cdamechcdamech Member Posts: 31
    I had the same problem on the Loud Whinning Noice. Check the Power Steering Fluid level. It is located low at the back of the engine compartment below the alternator. You should check it everytime you change oil.
  • granprix98granprix98 Member Posts: 2
    This started two months ago when the engine light came on and i took it to AZ and they told me it was p0401 and p0304{misfire on cylinder#4} so i bought some sea foam to put in the car to clean it out but to no avail the codes still popped up. Next i went to the junkyard and purchased an egr and still the 2 codes popped up.So then i took the intake plenum off and egr and checked to make sure there was no blockage everything looked fine. I put everything back together and took it back to see what codes would come up and only p0401 came up. When i had the car taken apart i noticed a little coolant leakage around the intake could that be part of my problem i've also on seperate occasions had to add coolant any help would be appreciated thanx
  • ken7308ken7308 Member Posts: 6
    I have the exact same problem with my 99 grand prix. Were you able to get the problem resolved? If so what was the problem?
  • ken7308ken7308 Member Posts: 6
    Ok, I hope someone out there can help. Today my car nearly cut off everytime I came to a red light. I had this problem before and it was a bad fuel injector. Only thing different about this time is that its ok after I floor it a little and get it going. Yet again at the light it tries to cut off. I also Hear a moderate to loud whining noise when I accelerate and the sound stays constant when im running it around 70 in cruise control. While whining the RPM needle fluctuates as if im accelerating and decelerating. My Transmission fuel was a little low which cut down the sound tremendously however its still there. Anyone experience similar problems that can give me advice on how to fix it or what could be the solution to the problem?
  • banckbanck Member Posts: 1
    I have an old 1990 Grand Prix that has been sitting in the yard for a few years. With gas prices soaring like they are, that car is looking one heck of a lot better than the old truck. Problem is, when I charged the battery and went to start it, there was a large amound of white smoke that came from the steering column, and the battery died shortly after. I am assuming that it is a simple wiring problem, but I can't seem to get the steering wheel off. Is there anybody who can either correct me in my diagnosis or tell me how to remove the steering wheel?
  • jcklimekjcklimek Member Posts: 1
    I have a 02' Grand Prix. I am getting water on the driver side floor board after a really good rain. I haven't ever noticed any water after I take it through the car wash though. I would like to get this figured out before the carpet gets ruined. I have had several people tell me that it could be a clogged plug, the bottom of the windshield seal or a door seal. Does anyone else have any ideas???? :confuse:
  • windchime51windchime51 Member Posts: 3
    Our 91 pontiac grand prix doesn't have a sensor. Any ideas why the low coolant light won't go off? We replaced the fan motor, and added to the coolant.
  • 95prix95prix Member Posts: 1
    I had the same exact problems with my 95 GTP. Stalling, no starts, poor idle, cutting out right in the middle of traffic. I replaced O2 sensor, idle control valve, change spark plug wires, you name it. NO results, except less money in my bank. Finally, I figured out the problem. I removed the EGR valve assembly on the top and scraped the inside with a screwdriver to remove the carbon. Put it back on and the car ran like a bat of hell again. I take it off and clean it on a regular basis now. It is much cheaper than replacing it, which is about $150. Also, just a little something else. The EGR valve will not set off any dummy lights and even a scan using a computer won't help. Hope this helps.
  • haro3haro3 Member Posts: 1
    Hey guys im new to the board hope im doing this right. I've got a 95 grand prix 3.1 and i've got a stutter that i dont understand. Sometimes it idles rough, but not all the time only when in gear tho if i put it in neutral it idles pretty well. Secondly when im driving and the car is in over drive with low RPM's it starts to stutter and jerk (like a miss fire) but if i get on it and it shifts down it runs fine at higher rpms (sometimes it feels like something slips tho) i've changed plugs and wires and that didnt fix it (possibly cracked a plug not sure) i've got another coil pack was thinkin of putting on it i've been told a transmission solenoid but im totally confused any ideas? thx for the help my email is (aasjuice@hotmail.com) if you it makes it easier to respond. thanks guys i described it as best i could.
  • lreddiablolreddiablo Member Posts: 2
    I am definately interested in participating in a class action. I HAD a '99 Grand Prix GT that just spontaneously cumbusted on Monday, 4/17. I had just parked the car, after a minute i noticed a little smoke coming from the right side of the hood, then decided to take a look, I opened the hood and saw flames and slammed it shut and called 911. By the time they arrived the whole engine compartment was engulfed in flames. It is a total loss. The fireman said it was too burned out to determine an exact cause. All he could tell is that it started on the right side. Has anyone determined what the cause might be?
  • laynelayne Member Posts: 4
    My insurance engineer investigator determined origin of fire enough that they (Farmers) are going after GM, but only for the settlement amount they paid me. He told my husband something about the poor design of the engine, that you would never lay a muffler over the supercharger/carbeurator, something like that. He said it was a fire waiting to happen. My scenario is nearly identical to yours, only it happened at night in our garage and could have burned our whole house down!
    You can look up my account under the name layne in this forum Dec. 21, 2005. Good luck, I hope we can organize this.
  • lreddiablolreddiablo Member Posts: 2
    Mine was only a GT though with no Supercharger. Was there anything besides the Supercharger location that they thought could cause it? If anyone has an attorney that is interested in contacting people with burnt Grand Prixs please feel free to email me. Just click my profile to get my email.
  • yufengyufeng Member Posts: 1
    My car is 2002 pontiac grand prix 3.1L
    I was on the high way the other day, the temperature suddenly went to the maximum and the gas stopped working. I had to slow down to like 40m/h and after a while the temperature just came down suddenly as it went up before, and the gas started to work again immediately. I went to the garage and one of them told me i have problem with the intake gasket and the other told me i need another head gasket. I am really comfused, I think may be the best way is to carry a lot of coolant with me.
    Please give me proper advice I really appreciate that.
  • talltall Member Posts: 1
    First, only got heat from passenger side vents while driver side control worked fine. Just prior to this, there was a sort of flapping noise.
    After about a month, the driver side temp. control also went out and now both sides produce nothing but hot air.
    When the fan is on I hear a whining screech from the vents. If I quickly turn the fan off then on a few times the screeching noise will sometimes go away, but not always.
    What is the problem and how can it be fixed?
  • ken7308ken7308 Member Posts: 6
    I had a 95 grand am that did the same thing. It turned out to be a bad crank sensor. If that isnt your problem I would test your fuel injectors, one of them may be faulty. Hope this helps
  • tdwrigtdwrig Member Posts: 3
    I have an 03 GTP that all of a sudden produces a very high pitched whine when I press on the accelerator. Almost sounds like a vaccum cleaner noise. I checked belts and everything looks OK. Any ideas?
  • tschocktschock Member Posts: 2
    All 4 of my windows have played the "sometimes i work, sometimes i dont" game until they all actually died within the last year. It was the window regulator. which is a pricey part. I have contacted GM and they have reimbursed me for 2 of the regulators. good luck with yours.
  • 99blkgtp99blkgtp Member Posts: 3
    I have a running problem. My car has miles 133000 on it and about 1 month ago it stopped running with out any warning.
    I took it to a shop and they had it for 3 days and said to come get it because they could not figure it out. They said a wiring harness might be the problem it is located by the air cleaner. They said that for the part it would cost 600 dollars. I was told that this might not even fix my running problem. The longest I can keep it running id 10 min then is starts to sputter and surge in Rpms and then dies and I can't re start it. Does anyone have help for me before I go spend 600 dollars in something I might not need. Thank you.
  • graccogracco Member Posts: 2
    I have a 1999 grand prix GT and last night I came home from work and I could not turn the ignition completely off to remove the key. I'm a single woman with NO knowledge of car repairs. I went on this site and after reading this thread. I found the small cover under the ignition and thanks to the inside of a pen. I was able to release the switch and my ignition shut off completely to where I could remove the key. But one more thing. What causes this to happen. Does something need to be replaced. I turned the car on and I had to use the pen again to release it again.
    Thanks
    ]Maria
  • amoody2amoody2 Member Posts: 1
    dont feel bad. my 96 wont even budge. transmission just went out last night.
  • graccogracco Member Posts: 2
    I have a 99 Pontiac Grand Prix GT and I have had the same problem. It goes out or half the numbers will display then when I tap the display it'll come back on. One time it wouldn't come back on so I really gave it a whack needless to say I tapped it too hard and I think now it's done. What do you think causes this problem. I've read so many of other's problems and I have experienced many of them. I wonder why these issues have not been recalled over the years. I bought my car brand new in 99 and I have 127K on it. I love my car but sometimes these isuues are a headache and very costly...
  • ken7308ken7308 Member Posts: 6
    My car has about the same amount of miles and does the same thing only i can start it back up. I was told by GM that my crank sensor was bad you may want to check it out.
  • 99blkgtp99blkgtp Member Posts: 3
    cool thank you anything will help have a starting point
  • 99blkgtp99blkgtp Member Posts: 3
    I have the same problem with my 99 there is pin there where you are putting the pen and the pin breaks off I just reach into the steering column to release mine
  • tommy77_1tommy77_1 Member Posts: 3
    I have a 99 Grand Prix 3.8, that has a whine to it when accelerating and turning but not in idle or high rev while in park. Does anybody have any ideas as to what would cause this and what to do to fix it ?

    Thanks
  • brandibissellbrandibissell Member Posts: 1
    I have the same exact problem. Passenger side blasts heat and the driver side is fine. I also hear a whining screech from the vents. I have not been able to find the cause of this. Hoping maybe you have been able to fix the situation you are having. If you have recieved any valuable advise on this problem, please let me know. I would like to have working A/C this summer.
  • blkhemiblkhemi Member Posts: 1,717
    Is your '99 a GTP model? If so you could be nearing the death of the supercharger. If not, then it could be the power steering pump going out. Better the steering pump than the s/c. I had the same symptoms on my '97, and the steering pump fixed all the noises.

    BTW, you mentioned that it whines when turning. Is it more like a roaring noise more than a whine when turning? If so, you may want to have your wheel bearings/hub assmemblies checked out. Be prepared when you get the price of the hub itself, not to mention labor.
  • tommy77_1tommy77_1 Member Posts: 3
    Thanks, I thought that too but why, when its idling in park its quiet and when I turn the wheels in idle park its quiet also. Problem is only when in gear and driving. Gets louder as I accelerate, whether I'm turning or not. No roaring noise either when turning. Oh, BTW its not a GTP. I thought seprentine belt or even alternator. Just don't wan tot start swapping things out that don't need to be replaced.
  • dvansandtdvansandt Member Posts: 1
    Did you get your problem fixed?? I have an 02 GTP that died at a stop light last night without warning and then acted as if the motor was flooded when I tried to restart it. It happened a couple more times on the way home and each time it acted as if the motor was flooded. Any help is appreciated.
  • bmwguy2bmwguy2 Member Posts: 13
    dear sir,i have a 2001 pontiac grandprix gtp special edition coupe ,purchased new ,i also work for a bmw dealership here in new jersey ,first i would contacr pontiac at the 800 number as you did ,2nd that you want to speak with a rep from pntiac ,this you have to work out with service manager at dealership to schedule they should know his schedule,send a letter to general motors of the problem that you are having ,you can contact pontiac customer service on line ,i had a problem and they were xtremly helpfull,i had a problem where 3 of my rims were leaking air thru the valve stem area due to severe corrosion ,each rim was $600.00 i do have a xtended warranty with gm ,the rims were replaced at no cost to me but you have to set the ball in motion,the next time it happens ,bring the car to the pontiac dealership were you purchased it,speak with service manager,possibly a fault or faults was set in cars computer ,speak with him at speaking with rep ,let me know how you make out,it sounds like a bad fuel pump or f/p relay
  • pontiacgrandprpontiacgrandpr Member Posts: 1
    Hi folks, first off my car is a two door grand prix gt. it has every feature you can imagine. anyways while i was cruising around. my information center where it tells me how many miles per gallon, my oil life, my economy, and a few other things. well today that was blinking with zero's. What does that mean? everyone of the icons are blinking zero. even tho i have a full tank it blinks zero. it worked just find until today. also i see that my traction control says trac off. that was never off before. i try and turn it on and it wont. my abs light comes on at the same time. i assume that it has to do with the same think. i do not know. something is going on with this car. it is running find its just the information center. i thougth it might be everything but my heads up display works just fine along with evertyhign else on the dash. Please help me with this problem. much appreciated
  • georgekogeorgeko Member Posts: 1
    Have the same problem especially the screeching. Also for the last few months blower worked only on speeds 3,4 & 5, yesterday stopped working on 3 & 4 and now only works on 5
  • bman64bman64 Member Posts: 14
    power steering pump is bad
This discussion has been closed.

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