Pontiac Grand Prix: Problems & Solutions

zujo · September 2002

Hallo,I have been owner of Pontiac Grand Prix`98 for a year and half now and with 68000 km I haven`t had no problems till few months ago.Then I had problem taking out key from ignition.If I would wait couple of minutes I would hear "click sound" somewhere in driving wheel and not until then I would be able to take out the key.
Several mechanics took a look into this matter,but no one was smart enough to solve a problem.Last of them even changed ignition tumbler,module,electric release and did coding,but unfortunately for me and my CDN$400, I still have the same problem.If anyone knows how to deal with this,please let me know.

tedmonds · October 2002

Hello all. I have had my 1995 grand prix for 3 years now and the wife just loves it. But we just had the transmission go out and have been trying to get some one to fix it for the past 4 months. they want $1800.00 to fix this trans, that is alot of money. We can not find a used trans any where. has any one else had this problem?
the car will go forwards in 1st and 2nd but not in drive or Overdrive. I hope this does not happen to any of you, it's not fun.

Tobie

cutehumor · October 2002

you should post in the existing thread "transmission traumas" to get an answer

vbonamo · October 2002

I have a 1999 Grand Prix SE which is now taking on water during rainstorms. I previously had a 15 year old car with this problem, but this car is 4 years old! The water is leaking in on the front passenger side floor, coming down the slanted foot rest (whatever it's called). What could have happened? Is this easily fixable? Whatever the outcome, it's GOODBYE PONTIAC.

stubborn1 · October 2002

Do you happen to be using the AC during these rain storms? Do you get water in the floor with AC on and its not raining? A common problem for these vehicles is that the drain from the AC coil will get plugged causing the condensate from the coil to drain into the passenger side floor. Just something else you might want to check into.

-Rob

vbonamo · October 2002

Rob,

No, I'm not running the AC and never had a problem when it was running. I read in the other GP forums that others have had this problem (other makes also)so it's not just me. Something about the evaporation unit???...

aviatorman · October 2002

I own a 2000 Grand Prix and love it! I bought it brand new and it has never been in the shop, except for normal maintence

vbonamo · October 2002

I took my 1999 GP SE to my mechanic - there was no clog in the drainage tubes, and hosing the car down did not produce another leak. All of the seals were intact. So how did the water get in? Does it take a specific kind of windy rainstorm? I'll have to wait for the next storm...

richm4 · October 2002

For 4 years, not one ounce of trouble. But now I've had the injectors replaced 4 times in 6 months. Thank goodness for the extended warranty.

speedshift · October 2002

I had the transmission go out in my '98 GTP around 2000. I don't remember the mileage but would guess it was under 30k.

I understand it is or was a fairly common problem--something about the torque converter locking up prematurely which quickly fried the transmission. The dealership never told me what the problem was so I'm only assuming that's what it was. I noticed what felt like slight lugging under certain conditions and thought I'd mention it the next time I was in for service. A few days later I was by the side of the road.

It was replaced (twice) under warranty, actually rebuilt the first time by the dealership and when that went out on the way home they just replaced it. They helped pay for the rental car, a very nice Volvo 850 GLT.

shesfyne · October 2002

It was replaced (twice) under warranty, actually rebuilt the first time by the dealership and when that went out on the way home they just replaced it

>>>>>>

Had exactly the same thing happen with my Bonneville. The rebuilt tranny died on the drive home from the dealership. Luckily, both times were under warranty. They too said it had something to do with the torque converter.

bunky36 · October 2002

My wife drives a 2001 GTP. She formerly had a 1998 GT. The GT, when low on fuel, would chime as well as the low fuel message coming on. The 2001 has never chimed, so when in for service recently, we asked that they fix that. After replacing a couple of parts (don't know what parts), they declared that a recent service bulletin said that any GP produced 1999 or later does not have the low fuel chime feature even though the owner's manual says it does. So we accepted that. Last night, however, we reached low fuel and the message came on and, guess what, it chimed. Hmmm. Anybody else have a 2000 or 2001 GP that chimes?

speedshift · October 2002

Interesting about the failure rate on rebuilt transmissions. At the time I had this feeling that all the mechanics drew straws and the one with the shortest straw had to rebuild the tranny. It took him over a week IIRC.

But I loved that Volvo so I didn't mind too much.

chuckles4 · November 2002

I am the original owner of a 97 GTP which just turn 69K miles.

Within the past year I have replace the alternator (failed), water pump (leaked) and installed its third battery.

I also have a power steering problem with the power steering not being smooth or supplying the correct boost for the different speeds or amount of turn on the steering wheel. Have an appointment for repair.

Maybe the car is jealous that I have been looking at new cars, but it seems to me to be a bit early it the car's life to have these failures.

WRT to other problems in this discussion, no water getting into the people tank thru AC, seals or otherwise.

delcom · November 2002

In the last 6 months i have replaced my alternator, water pump, lock tumbler, and my battery. i cant say that i am to happy with my GP. My new problem is this horrible whinning noise that i hear when i hit the gas. Im thinking transmission since once in a while the engine hesitates and i have to dip deeper into the throttle for the car to start moving faster. Anyone have these problems or know what they could be??

shesfyne · November 2002

In the last 6 months i have replaced my alternator, water pump, lock tumbler, and my battery. i cant say that i am to happy with my GP. My new problem is this horrible whinning noise that i hear when i hit the gas. Im thinking transmission since once in a while the engine hesitates and i have to dip deeper into the throttle for the car to start moving faster. Anyone have these problems or know what they could be??>>>>>

I have a 97 Bonneville. 3.8 I had a similar progression, alternator, waterpump, and then the whining. It turned out to be the intake manifold which is problematic on the 3.8's. Unfortunately it caused my engine to seize. It's worth looking into if you have the 3.8, because it's kind of a silent killer. The whining kept getting chalked up to pulley noise every time we took the car in.

heng · November 2002

Any details on how the intake manifold resulted in a seized engine? Coolant leak maybe?

delcom - 5 years on a battery is normal

alternator and water pump - I guessing you have about 75K miles or more on the GP - that is also normal

shesfyne · November 2002

#18 of 18 shesfyne, delcom by heng Nov 09, 2002 (07:45 am)
Any details on how the intake manifold resulted in a seized engine? Coolant leak maybe?>>>>>>

Long story. Here's the condensed version. We knew the waterpump was going bad, and there was some loss of coolant, not a significant amount, and it wasn't external. Took it to the dealer because this was the second pump and it was a lifetime warranty. They fixed the pump and the squealing pulley. Said the plenum on the manifold was bad. There's a TSB out on this. Replaced the plenum and upper manifold. Drove it less than 100 miles and the engine seized. They're saying coolant leaked into Cylinder#4 and ruined the bearing. We're saying how did that happen when you fixed the manifold and we had no engine trouble previous to the fix? Now the car is sitting up there being autopsied and investigated by an independent investigator and we're waiting to see who gets to pay the $5400 for a new engine. GM is denying all responsibility for putting a plastic part in an area that is exposed to excessive heat, however have since replaced that part with a metal one as per the TSB. Currently there's a petition floating around with some 1000 signatures of people that have GM cars with this problem. I think it's Bonnevilles, Grand Prixs, Cavaliers and one of the Buick models that are involved.

delcom · November 2002

Actually 50K on it, shesfyne after you got the manifold replaced did the whining stop and how much was did it cost?

shesfyne · November 2002

Actually 50K on it, shesfyne after you got the manifold replaced did the whining stop and how much was did it cost?
>>>>>>

You know, it's tough to know what to attribute that whine to. At one point they tightened the serpentine belt, and it stopped, but shortly after that the engine went. Now they had tightened that belt before, and it stopped whining short term, but came back. Was it related, was it not even that belt? I don't know. I was just commenting on the similarity in the sequence of events. That and the fact that you have the 3.8 that is mentioned in the TSB. The manifold job, (upper plenum and upper intake) was $700. That seems to be the going rate give or take 100. I had 64K on mine. I looked at the petition and it seems to generally occur between 40K-70K.

charliemike · November 2002

What years are affected? I have just purchased a 2002 GP and would like to know if I need to have this done.

Anyone have a good online reference for GP TSBs?

chuckles4 · November 2002

Got the power steering fixed. Dealer replaced the rack and pinion assembly. Cost $845. However---

www.nhtsa.dot.gov has a recall posted on 11/6/02 for 97 Grand Prix's (on others) for rack and pinion problems. Notifications going out in Jan 03. Describes my problem exactly. Hard to turn left and over boost to the right. Have to wait until I get a recall letter to get reimbursed.

For TSB info, go to www.alldata.com. It lists all the TSB's for each vehicle. Has TSB number, date and brief title. At least a start to tracking down a particular one.

fantascp · November 2002

Here we go- one month in and 1,300 miles on the NEW 2003 GP GT- the car started to buck and lunge between 20/30 mph- yesterday afternoon- a little while later the SERVICE ENGINE SOON light came on.
Anyone have anything similar, New or Older????

I have an appointment first thing this Monday morning at the Pontiac dealership for repairs-fully covered but already a pain in the a**- for the time and inconvenience. - this should not happen with a NEW car. I'll post on what the
problem was sometime this week.
I hope this is not a pre-cursor of things to come with this car- I had the 2000 Bonneville SE for almost 3 years with only 2 problems- incorrect brake pads and a bad driver side window motor- never did the" Service Engine" light ever come on or did the car run rough !!!

Chuck

charliemike · November 2002

I have a new 2k2 GT with 1400 miles on it and no problems so far. Perhaps you just were unlucky or a simple part failed. Hopefully this isn't any indication of the overall quality of your car.

fantascp · November 2002

Thanks for the info/support.- the problem is a faulty transmission- their not sure right now if its just a certain part or if the entire trans has to be replaced by GM. I got a loaner vehicle- a Jeep Liberty- at least for the next three or four days. When I find out exactly what is was in the trans i'll re-post.

Chuck.

kudzucreep · November 2002

Anybody have any problems with the air flow control? I have the manual hvac sys and when I selct floor, it comes out thru the front vents. Also, had the problem with water on the passenger floor, dealer fixed it said it was water coming in thry a seal and the near the fan, which is almost behind the glovebox, almost $300 out of warranty (could also explain the blown fuses for the fan) I have 65K miles and only repl'd the water pump and alt., otherwise a very solid ride. Had the 3.2ltr dohc yamaha in a sho before this and the 3.8II blows it away.

gmvictim · December 2002

My son's 1999 Grand Prix recently suffered a catastrophic engine failure. All he noticed was a slight loss of power before the engine seized. It would not crank and was towed to the nearest Pontiac dealer. This dealer did not have time to even look at the car and suggested we leave it with them for 2 weeks and they would try to get around to it(I'm serious). So we had to have it towed again to a nearby Chevy dealer. They looked at it that day and found the intake manifold had a hole in it and all cylinders were full of water. Engine was completely ruined and had to be replaced for a mere pitance of $5125. This is quite a boost to the bottom line at Pontiac. I contacted the 800 number for Pontiac and of course they basically told me to jump in the lake. I guess they knew they already had my money so why care? Let me add another 2 cents of mine I would not have another Pontiac if you gave it to me(I'm serious).
This car was well cared for and had 57k miles when it bit the dust.
Anyone know anything about the petition that is going around about this problem with the 3800 series engine? Maybe if enough people get together on this issue Pontiac will decide to actually care about their customers while they still have some left.

pluto5 · December 2002

Here's the site:

http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?GMcnsmrs&1

but I would go straight to small claims court

good luck

eblum · December 2002

It's easy....just trade it in for a better car! I had nothing but trouble with my GP, steering racks, sunroof leak and squeek, trunk leaks. So many other people had the same issues...so not just my car. Had to sue GM to buy it back. It was well worth it. My new car is not perfect, but a 1000 times better that the GP. I miss its styling but not its lack of durability.

bill226 · January 2003

I have a 2001 GP SE with 38k miles. I purchased the car used and have been hearing excessive valve noise on cold starts ever since I have owned the car. I took it in to the dealer while it was still under warranty to check out the problem. The dealer stated that there was a Pontiac technical service bulletin that stated that there would be valve noise with these cars on start up and it would go away as the engine warmed, so there was no problem.

My SES light just came on so I am going to have to take it to find out if there is a problem. Before I take it in for service, I was wondering if anyone found the valve noise to be a problem that should be repaired.

mrsc920 · January 2003

I have a similar problem with my 98. It only has
15K miles on it(really), and am not able to shift
into gear or pull the key out after it is shut off. Dealer says its the solenoid by the gear shift lever. Price $345. Dealer asked if anything was spilled in it, and the answer is no.
The car looks new inside and out. Anyone if GM
will warranty something like this?

mrsc920 · February 2003

Picked up my 98 GP at the dealer last evening.
They originally thought the sensor in the shifter
was bad, and replaced the entire shifter (can't
get just the sensor). After the replacement, the
problem continued, so they put the old one back in
and replaced a small solenoid near the ignition in
the steering column. Total cost is $245, cost of the
part is $108. Seems they could design a piece that would last longer.

naatz · February 2003

I have owned 2 GPs since 89, the most recent a 94 4DR 3.1L automatic 97000 mi(I have been pretty happy with them except for occasional brake work). The past 2 winters my 3.1L seems to go through a fair amount of oil: 1 QT every 800-1000 mi, less during summer. No burning in tailpipe, nothing on floor. My bkyard mechanic friend theorizes it's going around valve seals and worse when it's cold due to parts tolerances. It also has always had lifter clatter when cold as mentioned in a previous post.
My real question relates to rough idle during warm up. It warms up real slow despite a new thermostat a year ago. At stop lights when in drive during the first 5-10 minutes it idles real rough, smooths out when in you put tranny in Neutral. Car has plenty of pickup and does not stumble. It has brand new plugs. Does not throw any codes from computer. Mileage is good, 24 Hwy. Mechanics are stumped...any ideas of other things to look for?

stubborn1 · February 2003

Does the rough idle go away after warm up?

I had a similar year Pontiac with the 3.1L. My car had the same symptoms you described. It was fine idling in neutral, but under load it would stutter. I ended up having 2 bad fuel injectors out of the 6. My mechanic told me to check the resistance on the electrical connectors and replace anything that read less than 12 ohms.

Just an idea.

naatz · February 2003

The rough idle goes away after it warms up, that is why it's not as noticable in the warmer months since the car will warm up in a few minutes vs 8-10. It is possible it could be the injector(s), just seemed odd the mileage and power are both so good. That may be the next thing to check, thanks for the <12 ohm tip.

dmcgiffin · February 2003

I have 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix GT that has 63K miles. Recently, when accelerating from a stop I started to hear a whining sound and I would feel the transmission pull back for each gear in the sequence to overdrive. This problem seems to happen after driving the car a long time. I took it to a mechanic shop and they could not duplicate the symptoms and the compute analysis showed no problems. They told me based on my experience that the transmission needs to be replaced. So I am going to take it to a Pontiac dealer and let them take a look at it. I have not changed the transmission fluid yet, so that might be the problem. Does anyone have a suggestion?

knitron · March 2003

I have a 1995 Grand Prix it has 86000 miles on it and it seems to burn oil at high speeds. It doesn't drip, it also aces the emission test. I've checked it out and I can't figure out why. Anybody ever heard anything about it? It's a 3.1L. She perfroms great other than this detail.

hieber · March 2003

Greetings from Ohio! Recently my parents sold me their 1997 GP SE with the 3.8 with 49,500 miles for an amount next to zero.... (I don't recall this offer with their old house!). During the warranty period not too many things went bad, just a few radios, a water pump, and a power window regulator. After the warranty period, I've done all repairs to the car for my parents: battery, alternator, front rotors and pads (suspect wrong pads from factory because new ones were totally different) and rear pads (again, news pads looked totally different; rear rotors were wearing odd like the front ones but I didn't bother replacing since in the rear). I honestly don't think that's a horrible amount of problems for what was a then first-year General Motors product. I've heard much much worse....
  Apparently there are problems with the intake gaskets on many General Motors cars of this era allowing antifreeze to mix in with the oil and vice-versa. I did price extended warranties... only to be blown out of the water. So my thinking is, with the potential of coolant making its way into the engine potentially, would it be safe to assume using synthetic oil such as mobile one would prevent seizing of the engine if that happened? Any input would be appreciated... peace of mind would be great!
  BTW, been a great car so far. Coming from a 1990 plymouth acclaim with 100 horsies and a 3 speed auto with 150,000 miles, I think a Kia Rio or Hyundai Accent would have been an improvement! The Plymouth was a surprisingly reliable car that was easy to work on! I think my parents were just embarrassed when it was parked in their driveway when I came to visit with all of its rust!
  Again, input on using synthetic oil to potentially head off engine failure from coolant getting into the engine would be appreciated!

kudzucreep · March 2003

I've checked this problem out and most people say the problem is not related to the dexcool coolant, but rather to an intake manifold design flaw and the plastic intake plenum becoming warped. There is a TSB for this problem for the '97 GP's w/the 3.8II engine. I had this problem at 65K miles ('97 GP GT). Some things I noticed, coolant becoming very dirty with black sludge building up in the reserve coolant tank, coolant build up/leaking around the plastic plenum on top of the engine, and of course coolant loss. My car eventually would not even run but after $1900 she runs great. Also had the steering rack replaced under recall, ps pump, alt replaced, radio replaced, trunk leaking, xmission seals leaking, hvac control failure, 3 new belts, water leaking inside the car, and of course, several headlight assemblys replaced due to water condensation. Been thru it all... :-) I used Mobil-1 also but I don't think the water/oil contamination ever got bad enough to cause catastrophic engine failure. I think any amount of water in the oil is bad regardless of whether it's synthetic or conventional.

hieber · March 2003

Thanks for the input... I think I will use Mobil1 just in case I end up keeping the car awhile.... i think synthetics are worth their cost if you're the one driving the car at 200k miles!
I did forget to mention my parents had all kind of problems with the headlight assemblies... by the 3rd trip in, my dad sealed the thing with silicone or something and drilled a few 1/16" weep holes at the bottom through the silicone... condensation has not been a problem since. I've heard arguements this would somehow overheat the bulbs in the assembly, but both bulbs are original still with 50k miles. There is some problem with the foglamps... they go through bulbs at least once a year, and my mother hardly ever used them. Nothing looks more tacky than just one of the fog lamps working!

greywolf · April 2003

I have a 2000 GTP with 30k. Ran fine until one day I lost power and had to get towed. Mechanic found a blown fuel pump fuse. Couldn't find any issues so he replaced it and sent me on my way.

It blew a day later again. This time he replaced the fuel pump resistor, relay and installed the fuel pump resistor relocator kit. (original location was in the wheel well, too much water exposure).

It drove fine until a few days later the fuse blew again. He brought it in, checked all the wiring and couldn't find the issue. I mentioned could it be the fuel pump going bad? But he said no - it would be consistent.

Has anyone had this issue and if so, what did you do to resolve it?

Thanks
_Kevin_

Kirstie_H · February 2004

This discussion has been reactivated by request.
(my post just serves to keep it from auto-archiving tonight!)

kirstie_h
Roving Host & Future Vehicles Host

built4drvz · February 2004

Bill226: I am having the same problem with the tapping noise in my 45,000 mi 3.1 GP in cold weather until the engine gets warmed up. Do you still experience it or you got it fixed? Some suggest the lifter may be causing it due to lack of cold oil pressure and it will eventually go worse and the camshaft will need to be replaced. The noise is caused by the clearance of the moving parts. Does anyone know anything about this problem? Thanks.

commanders · March 2004

99 Grand Prix. 4 wheel disk brakes w/ABS. While doing rear brakes on daughters car due to pulsating brake pedal complaint, (new rotors/pads) found caliper slide bolts to be of two different designs. One necks down at tip of bolt and has a metal or plastic free-spinning "spacer" crimped on end. Other is constant diameter from threads to tip, but has 4-6 machined flats along entire length. (Never saw a caliper slide bolt anything other than perfectly round.) Both bolts overall length/diameter the same. Dealer parts computer indicates bolt with endpiece goes in top mounting ear, bolt with flats goes in bottom. Mechanics clueless!! Anyone know for sure?

alcan · March 2004

They're installed as shown in the parts computer.

naatz1 · March 2004

Ref earlier posts around #34-36 on 3.1L GPrix rough idling. Well have done 2 more things w/o any luck: One shop cleaned intake (said it was gummed with black stuff, seems strange since I regularly check air filter unless kickback of oil...I don't understand PCV). But that did not fix it. Went into another shop and they changed plugs which had only 5000 miles and tips were covered by crusty white compound, especially front plugs. That shop said it could be valve/rod guides and those need replacing and possibly entire valve job. In discussing it with my normal part time mechanic today, he suggested trying something easier and much cheaper than valve job: putting in new intake manifold gasket(s). So I plan to do that in next couple weeks and will update posting unless others have ideas first.

tateos · March 2004

I agree with the intake gasket idea.

Regarding the gummed up intake area (actually throttle plate area), it is a normal occurence. We haven't experienced it yet on our 2004 GTP, as it has only around 2K miles on it, but my 1997 Eldorado with Northstar engine got so bad that the throttle began sticking closed. That is to say that it would stick closed, but with enough pressure would suddenly open. It was a strange thing, as I never consciously noticed the sticking until one day I noticed I had gotten into the habit of repeatedly lightly tapping the gas pedal to open the throttle when starting off from a start. I think it took about 75-80K to get to that point, but now I clean the throttle plate area once a year now. Why not, it is easy and inexpensive, at least on the Caddy.

I used an old toothbrush and brake cleaner and a lot of rags. Be sure to open the throttle plate completely and clean the backside, too, as well as far in as possible. Clean around the throttle plate shaft pivot points also. Caution: Some cars have a special coating (Teflon?) in this area that is supposed to eliminate or reduce this problem, and are marked not to use carburetor cleaner, as it will remove the coating. My wife's previous car, a Topaz, had this warning but got gummed up anyway. I used brake cleaner, and it seemed to work OK, but I think there are special cleaners sold that will not damage throttle bodies with the special coating. I don't know if any GP engines have this coating, but it might be worth looking at before choosing a cleaner.

alcan · March 2004

Grand Prix throttle bodies don't use the coating, it's mostly a Ford thing. In any event, use only aerosol air intake cleaner (usually next to the carb cleaner on the auto store shelf) unless you want to risk contamination of the O2 sensors.

zr1_lt5 · March 2004

i need some help... i have a 98 grand prix gtp w/ the 3800 supercharged. it recently developed a rough idle and will stall on startup occasionally, when this happens i have to hold the gas to keep the car from stalling. it seems to be completely random as it will develop this problem after 2 hours or so of constant driving and other times after only 10 minutes. no matter when it happens it fixes itself when i reach about 10 mph. it also has lost a large amount of power and seems to lag substantially when accelerating. i was wondering if it could be the egr? or maybe the maf sensor? also where exactly is the egr located and how would i go about checking it for problems? 1 more quick question...i noticed that a line leading from the top of the supercharger to the front of the car is severed i think it is some kind of vacuum line as it is connected to the same housing as the brake booster line. any ideas what it is to or if it is serious? any help in these matters would be greatly appreciated

pdeedler · July 2004

I have a 1997 Grand Prix GT. It has developed a
whirring sound (coming from the front of the car)when driving. It becomes more pronounced as I gain speed. It gets a little louder if I turn to the left. I've checked the tires, that's not it.
Does anyone know what this could be?

fantascp · July 2004

Hi Al,

need your professional advice- when you can, please read the latest posts on the regular Grand Prix Board- regarding problems with the 04 Grand Prix Air conditioning not blowing cold - (bobinnj),Etc.

I posted a couple of times but i'm not a mechanic!
What do you think it might be?

Thanks,

Chuck.

Pontiac Grand Prix: Problems & Solutions

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Pontiac Grand Prix: Problems &amp; Solutions

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Pontiac Grand Prix: Problems & Solutions