Pontiac Grand Prix: Problems & Solutions

timsgtp

New herebut have used this site to read the forums and fix my 2000 GTP. Recently started having the same problem, although intermittent is a pain in the a**. Im unable to turn the key all the way to the off position and remove it. Have you had any luck in reapiring this. My wife is making me drive it and she has my truck . I have found that kicking the car helps, but not to get the key out. I usally start it back up then turn off and it comes out or I hit the shifter forward into park with my hand and that works sometimes, I havent done what my wife did yet and that was just leave the key in it, go in the house and have a drink. Any new suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Tim

nate2424

Has anyone changed out a fuel injector on the 3800?
I have to do this and am looking for a little advice.
Thank you

mrrogers

Please see message #225.

beatonhoff

Aside from reading that it's an expensive job, does anyone have a strategy on how to remove the the top cover on the steering column? I spent a lot of time trying to get the pronged plastic (where the key goes) out of its socket so I could fully remove the cover and replace the ignition switch. Like many of the people who posted, I have a 98 GP GTP, and the key either wont come out or it wont turn forwards to start the car.
Also, from anyone who has done this job, do you have any idea how tough the job was? I'm going to a dealer to get the part tomorrow since the car parts store said they would order it (takes 10 days, I was told).

Thanks

cypher778

I have a '99 Grand Prix that has had next to no problems, but about a week ago when I was lowering the driver's side front window, the window would not go back up. My friends and I assumed that the window had slipped the track, but when went inside the door we found that there was a cable in there that had come out of the pulley, which we could not find to re-install. I was wondering if anybody else has had this problem, and if so, how you went around fixing it. If anybody could point me somewhere to get instructions on how to fix this, or maybe find a diagram that might help us out I'd appreciate it. Thanks in advance for any info.

glund

I have a 98 Grand Prix GT with a 3800. It runs great most of the time. When it is hot out 80+ degrees and you have been driving it runs fine, once you turn it off and restart it again 15 minutes later it will barley start, sound like it is running on half of the cylinders but can be feathered out and will run fine again. This only happens when it is warm out. Can any one help?

stuckpont

I drive a 95 grand piece. First my key was getting stuck. And now my car is stuck in my parking garage because I can't get it out of park! The shifter won't budge. Anyone else have this problem or know why it might be happening or what I can do to fix it?

nightrider1

I have a 2000 grand prix GT, and i have the same problem with my RPM's & Track OFF light. When i'm driving on the freeway my rpms drop to zero and track off light comes on, but the car keeps going. it resets for me when i just turn the car off then start it back up. Another thing my car does is just shuts off while i'm driving, and then i got to wait about 20 minutes at the most to start it back up. Its been doing it for like 2 months. I hope you got some answers that will help us both..

wakeley

I have a 98 grand prix and I am trying to remove my third break light assembly. Have any of you all removed your third brake light before? If so will you please let me know how to remove it with out messing anything up.Thanks

nightrider1

I have a 2000 Grand Prix GT V6 3.8, my car has not been acting right. First it cuts off and dies out on me then anywhere from 20 mins. to an hour it will start back up. Second while i'm driving my rpms drop to Zero while the car stays running & my track off light comes on. it all resets when i turn the car off. I've taken it in and they said it was the fuel pump, now it still does it. No one seems to know when i ask for help. Please help

tkrupa

Tim, I am feeling your pain !!!!! My wife has the same problem with her 2001 GP. It seems that if I park on an incline it happens more often. I was told by pontiac that I needed a new shifter assembly - I was told the part will cost about $368.00 - that does not include labor. The way they talked, it would take most of the day to do. I do not want to put that amount of money out to fix this problem. I am wondering if it is just a sensor on the shifter or transmission that is bad, maybe we might be able to override it ???? Cheaper solution: leave the key in and buy a steering wheel lock. If you keep re-starting the car and moving the shifter, as my wife does, you will wear out the starter faster and the shifter. Let me know what you end up doing, I'll do likewise, Tony

tkrupa

I had similar problem in my 2001 GP. As the years went by it became more annoying. Typically one would think it was a bad tire. But ended up being a rear brake rotor. (defective material -pitted)

dwhite3

I have a 1999 Grand Prix. After running the A.C. for sometime the other day i notice that there was water in the passanger floor. Was told that it may be that the elbow was plugged to the evaporater drain case .Could this be it??It so where in the heck is it at?

chatys1953

Daughter had same problem last week. The tow driver stuck a pin knife in the right side of shifter and manually released the shifter . Garage said there was a bolt missing that held the cable. We paid 75.00 for the labor to have the bolt replaced.

racenitro

I too have a 2001 Grand Prix. It is doing exactly the same thing. Sound slike there may be a need for GM to have a recall. I am going to investigate where I go with this to maybe cause such an event.

I have read that there are numerous occurances of this type. Makes it unsafe to drive, since you can't safely leave and lock the vehicle.

Maybe the insurnce company can help me since they are open for claims.

The only thing I have found is: If you let it set for 10-15 minutes and turn it on and back off the key will turn fully off.

I notice that the shifter indicator light stays lit when this event happens. That is what led me to believe it was a shifter problem early on. :mad:

wisper2

My 2000 gtp had the same keyjam problem. I am fortunate to be in the autobody business and hooked up with a good dealership and was very polite and forward about not getting hooked for B.S. The service writer was so nice. There are 2 electronic devices that control the release. One in the steering below the tumbler and one one in front of the shifter inside the console. The two brains have to talk to each other to operate correctly. Mine was the one in the column. the part retails appr. around 87.00$. Have to be car fluent to test them. The Shifter electronics has to have a reference voltage of 6 volts. The rest to diagnose would have to come from the hand held comp. that scans. Simple but not permanent help is drop the little dime sized patch from underneath the tumbler and take a piece of coathanger shank sized rod appr. 4 inches long and probe and press upward so you can release the key. By the way, your battery will most likely go dead because the car's brains are still running on juice. Good luck and I hope it works for you.

bellefeuille

My 99 Grand Prix Gt had white smoke come out of the pipes a little bit in the morning, but I always thought it was condensation. I was driving and my check engine light came on, and the performance went to heck. I immediately assumed it was a head gasket. I had to drive it another five minutes, but the temperature never went above 210. After the vehicle had been parked for three hours I tried to start it and it did start but huffed white smoke like a freight train and died. After pulling all the plugs all the cylinders where filled with water. The motor turned over after that with no problems (I was worried about a bent rod, I got lucky). The cylinder closes to the right side in the back was the fullest. I know these cars had intake problems, but is this typical. I'm thinking it is the head gaskets, but I have never seen headgaskets go at the same time like this. Any input on this matter will help. Thank you

elsahor

I have a 2005 GP GT2 and it can go above 109 mph. Does anybody know how to remove this to speed control?

gonzalez1

the mass air flow sensor needs to be replaced

sla545

My car (99 GTP) does this when it is cold, the guy who works on my car said it is a selondroid???? that needs to be reaplced, but when they took mine out to look at it and put it back in my car stopped doing it so who knows!!!!

sla545

My 99 chimes every time!!

hummer1

Raise your hood. The elbow is on the firewall behind your motor. Look on the firewall, left-hand side, then straight down behind a few wires and you'll see a rubber looking bent tube. Pull it off and clean and replace.

This solved my leaking problems. If you can't find it I can send you a pic of my cars elbow. Hope this helps.

stnlycup

I had a Bonneville with the same problem. It was the intake manifold. There's a plastic piece that goes bad. I ended up changing the motor. See the beginning of this thread for more info. It seems to be a problem Pontiac doesn't want to deal with.

jenkaysdad

I have a 99 gp gt do the same thing, and although it could possibly be a head gasket, I found that the gp has a plastic plenum attached to the intake, the throttle body is attached to this also. The problem is that they run hot water through here at the throttle body and they also dump the egr at the same area, which cause a lot of heat. You can get a coolant pressure tester from autozone and pressurize you radiator, if you'll take the intake snorkel off, and listen real close, if it's leaking here, you'll hear it leaking air. You can also smell the antifreeze if you smell here. There are 3 bolts that attach the throttle body to the plenum, there is about 4-5" distance between 2 on bottom and 1 on top, the area between is prone to warpage due to all the heat. I got a new gasket set and plenum from the dealer and he verified that this is a problem for these engines. They cost $200+ from the dealer, so had to pay what the want if I wanted my car. If you have time, I was able to google and found a place that had the whole thing for somewhere around $140, and they claim that it is reinforced for this problem. You will need to try and get as much of the water out as you can, and I went ahead and changed the plugs. Once it starts, it will smoke a lot for about 15 mins. or so. It's not that bad a job to do at home if you have the tools and are inclined to do this type of work. Hope this helps.

jenkaysdad

it's in the program of the computer, a performance chip such as from fastchip.com will take care of the problem.

Mr_Shiftright

of course you must change the oil, probably 2X. Antifreeze is hell on engine bearings.

witche42

hi there, i also have the lovely transmission problem of hard shifts on my '02 and it also seems like the transmission slips once it gets over 4000 rpms. i can let off of the gas pedal a little and it will then shift to the next gear. obviously i don't tach it to 4000 all the time i just did it once to see what was happening. i have been very easy on my grand prix but if i wind up having to replace a trans, i will buy an import next time. i seem to have crappy luck with domestic cars/suv's. the only way i will buy another domestic vehicle is if they give me a 100k warranty free, which won't never happen.

ok, here's my question : when replacing the oil and filter for the trans mission, i would like to go with synthetic, what brand/kind should i use. i have seen plenty of synthetic engine oils but i dont think i have ever seen syn trans fluid.

thanks,
steven

knippysing

I had a key made for my 02 GP SE at Walmart and the key fit the ignition, the car would start, then about 10 seconds later it would sputter and die. Only the original key works to start the car for some reason. Could be your key is wearing down and getting thrown out of position while driving???

I don't know for sure but thought I would throw the posibility out there.

bdawg

OK here it is. I own a 94 pontiac grand prix GTP with the 3.4 and here with in the last month it has been having trouble starting. Not only is it having trouble starting all lights including the dash lights and head lights go dim when ever i use anything electrical in my car (windows, sun roof). The speedometer and the RPM gauge jump as the lights go dim. I will be going 60 and my HUD is correct but my speedometer is anywhere from 3 - 10 mph off depending if i'm opening the window. when it doesn't start it just clicks about 4 - 7 times then it turns over. one time it took me 5 mins of turning it over and over and ect. to get it to turn over. it has died on me when at a stop. but only like 3 times. i have had it looked by AAA auto and they checked my alternator and my battery and they are both good. he said that my battery is borderline and that my alternator is great. (having replaced it a year ago). the starter is in good shape also. i am lost about what it is. any ideas would be appreciated. :confuse:

gmfan007

If you are just wanting to replace one or both of the two bulbs, I seem to recall accessing the sockets from inside the trunk. (It helps if you can stand on your head.) But, if you are wanting to remove the entire assembly so as to clean the glass, lite assembly, etc., good luck. The local dealer service rep said, "Don't go there." I managed to use a thin rag and a putty knife to get between the assembly and glass. It seemed to work for me, but I don't know how to remove the assembly without destroying it or pulling out the entire parcel shelf .... and I definitely didn't want to go there just to clean.

Earlier models had the light mounted inside near the roof .... a better idea, but must have taken more wire so it was a cost issue. The best idea yet, is to mount the lite OUTSIDE on the roof, rear panel or trunk lid giving you full access to the rear window. I often wish I understood the mindset of designers.

mphxaz

" I had a key made for my 02 GP SE at Walmart and the key fit the ignition, the car would start, then about 10 seconds later it would sputter and die. "

Your Pontiac was Correctly responding to you using a key that was Not programed for your car. Look up PASS-Key in your User Manual. Your original key has a chip inside that sends a signal to a decoder in your car that allows you to start it. PASS-Key is a theft deterrent feature of your Pontiac. You need to purchase a special key with the chip inside and then follow the instructions in your owners manual to program the new key to your car.

gmfan007

I think the first thing I would take a closer look at is the battery. Could be as simple as a poor (usually corroded) cable connection. How old is the battery? If it is a 60 month battery and this is the 59th month, it could be going. I don't have a lot of faith in those battery tests. I have seen so many tests which indicate all cells are good, but the battery still won't hold a charge. Also, check battery size, does it have the correct ratings for this vehicle/engine .... ie: CCAs, etc.. Good luck.

laura6

I have a 94 Grand Prix Se and a 01 Grand Prix Gtp. I have had similar problems with my 94. Lights going dim. Turning over too much and even stalling. The last time it freaked me out was when I went to give it some fuel and there was nothing there. It was running, it didn't stall and I thought it was tranny problems. It wasn't. I loaned my car to my soon to be brother in law and he found some loose wiring under the hood. I'm not a mechanic and I don't know much about cars, but you should definitely check out the wiring. I haven't had those problems since. I'll ask him to find out what it was, which wires.

profound

I need someone to help me figure out how to get the water pump off my 99 grand prix... I got it most of the way off, but one bolt is behind the pully for the power steering, and it seems that the power steering pulley wont come off or move out of the way so I can get the last bolt out... someone told me the p/s is pressed on and its not even a bolt, so how can I finish getting my water pump out???? please respond ASAP thanx

wisper2

Get a factory key /dealership item. it won.t recognize the the internals of a plain key blank cut to shape. The originals have an internal device like 2 brains talking to each other. Cerebral thing to as not allow someone to take your car. If it is not the new key, it would be the solenoid in the column acting up. I had the situation of the key never coming out of the column. It was the solenoid. Good luck.

klesw

Hi, I had exactly the same problem with my 1999 GP GT. I replaced the cellinoid in the steering column right by the ignition because I thought it was bad, but that did not fix it. The only work around I could think of was to disconnect this same celliniod from the steering column. By doing this I no longer have the problem.

Hope this helps.

Kevin

pack97

i have a 98 gtp w/ 124K on it and the following problem. The battery, trac warning, ABS, airbag, and info center lights are all coming off/going out intermittently (I can make the battery light go out by letting off the gas). NO SES WARNINGS! Also, the tranny seems to get stuck in a high gear, 3 or 4, because after I stop it takes FOREVER to get up to speed and i don't have overdrive. Reverse works great but when shifted into D, slow starts immediately resume. Tranny fluid/smell ok and recently changed and alternator only 8K old. All these problems began @ the same time. my local mechanic didn't have a clue. Any ideas? Thanks

bdawg

Hey, did you or can you find out what wires it was or just anything that might be helpful. im replacing the battery tomorrow. i think 760 cold starting amps will do fine. can't pass it up for only $59.99 lol
once again any info will help me a lot. tks.

jdc13

Couple of quick questions about a 2002 GT. I just had my catalytic converter replaced and I seem to have lost my top end. Doing about 110kph and hit the gas and no noticable pickup. Before I could jump on it and pass others with no issue. It was replaced about 4 days ago and this morning the check engine light came on again. OUCH!!!

Also, they charged me $115 ($100 deductible plus taxes...Canada) under my GMPP(extended warranty) to replace the catalytic converter. Is this not covered under the 130,000km emissions warranty and should be replaced for free?

Thanks in advance for the help!

97gpgtdriver

I have a 97 Grand Prix GT 3.8 and it has been making a loud groaning noise when the a/c is on and the noise can be heard more from the inside of the car than the outside. The noise is really loud when I have the a/c on and I am in drive and stopped with my foot on the brake or going a slower speed and when turning. The noise only seems to be a problem when stopped or going at a slow speed with the a/c on and diminishes when I get up to speed. The a/c works fine though the entire time. The noise can also be heard under the same conditions when the defroster is on but not as bad as when the a/c is on. The car has 150k on it but it has been an excellent car and has not had many problems. Does anyone have any clue as to what could be causing the noise? :confuse:

witche42

hi there,
i am having the same problem also, i just took my 02 gt in and it was the catalytic converter also. mine will be replaced free of charge, due to my car being under the 80k mile warranty that is put on all catilytic converters by law. i am not sure though if they can charge for the labor. i will find out tomorrow about that.

wolveman

My son's 1994 Pontiac Grand Prix coupe door glass on both the right and left sides comes out of the channel runs as the retaining clips have broken off the glass on the door handle edges. Is there a repair methodology for this or will I have to replace the glass itself?

redhawg69

Hello,
My girlfriend has a 99 Grand Prix. When you turn on the AC - the day time run lights go out and the AC doesn't come on, but you can sometimes turn the headlights on with the light switch and the ac will work. Is there a sensor for the AC that could be causing the problem? The unit had been working fine, until she took it to have the oil changed. They told her she needed to change the transmission fluid, which they no longer drop the pan and change the filter and fluid, they just give it a transfusion, so to speak. Is it possile that they unhooked the wrong line, bleeding out the freon casing the the compressor not to function properly and drawing excessive current?

bovi59

This may sound strange but my 2000 Grand Prix GT is very hard to start when I have a full tank of gas. It then has a rough idle for a few minutes and the service engine soon light blinks on and off. When there is a 1/4 tank of gas it starts better, but it still doesn't sound right. Sounds like the engine is flooded. The vehicle has 62000 miles. Suggestions?

alcan

If the engine light comes on, there's probably a stored diagnostic trouble code. Have the codes retrieved (AutoZone will do it no charge), and post them. Could be an EVAP problem or fuel pressure regulator.

Mr_Shiftright

If we are talking about the same thing it sounds like a glass shop should be able to re-glue or re-fasten new channels/guides to the glass.

bovi59

Here's the follow up to my posting # 316. Mr Goodwrench inspected and cleaned the fuel injectors. The vehicle starts and runs good now. He recommended I use high octane gas from BP or Shell in the future. Total costs of repairs $162.
Thank you.

lanceman

Did you ever get this fixed??? What was the fix?

prath20

I have a 97 grand prix gtp supercharged. I have been having problems with it for the last 6-7 months. Every couple of months it will begin stalling while i am driving around town. Sometimes it will start back up right away, but sometimes it takes a while. I have had it in the dealership several times and they have fixed so many different things, but it is still doing the same thing. After i get it from the shop though, it will be fine for a month or so then act up again. I know they have changed the temp gauge, worked on the mass air flow sensor, and some other things. When it dies it sounds like it is choking for air. I can't figure it out and my boyfriend has done everything he can think of. I NEED HELP PLEASE!!!

jamie1022

I have a 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP 3.8 ltr that starts only when it wants to. Sometimes when I try to start it nothing happens, it makes no noise, and just won't start. All of the lights inside and out come on as if it is going to start normally but it doesn't do anything. It usually happens after I have been driving around for a while, but then after it sits overnight, it starts right back up. I have checked the battery and cables and they are fine. I am confused by the problem and the mechanic told me this morning that I just need to drive it around until it does it again then tap the starter to determine if thats what is causing the problem. He said that otherwise it could cost me hundreds of dollars for them to determine what the problem is. The car is in otherwise excellent condition. It is a one owner car with no past major problems except for the water pump being replaced. It has 151,000 miles on it. PLEASE HELP!