Did you recently take on (or consider) a loan of 84 months or longer on a car purchase?
A reporter would like to speak with you about your experience; please reach out to PR@Edmunds.com by 7/22 for details.
Options

Pontiac Grand Am Electrical/Lighting Problems

124

Comments

  • bronk08bronk08 Member Posts: 5
    I puchased the car in minnesota it is originally from Iowa. Please let me know if that helps. I am at a stand still as of right now. thanks again
  • bronk08bronk08 Member Posts: 5
    I was wondering if that had worked or not. I have been witing to hear. :confuse:
  • nessa43nessa43 Member Posts: 3
    I have changed a 10amp fuse in the drivers side fuse panel which has fixed all the problems except when i apply the brakes. I will be changing the relays over the weekend. Sorry I work two jobs and my time is very limited. Hope this helps. Will post my results when I change the relays.
  • bronk08bronk08 Member Posts: 5
  • lowrunnerlowrunner Member Posts: 2
    ok ! what i have is a 1996 pontiac grand am 2.4L dual overhead cam,electronic ignition. (IDI) "Intergrated Direct Ignition". System
    its running very rough,getting bad gas milage. when i get off the freeway and come to a stop it stumbles and then picks back up. it does it at a stop light also,lacking power.

    i hooked up my "OBD2" code reader, and it gave a reading of "P301" #1 cylinder Missfire Detected

    #1) Replaced Plugs & Boots and coil housing

    #2) i placed a ohm meter between #1 & #4 on the coil tower and it read 5.0 ohms the same between 2 & 3 and no reading between coil and cover Plate

    #3) switched coils around to see if it was the coils. still shows #1 Missfire

    #4) i checked my ignition module by connecting a test light (at the module) between bat. pos. terminal to the coil(Terminal A) and terminal B or C . when cranking engine light blinks. according to the book tt that should eliminate the module from being bad. but to check for open or shorted circuit in the coil wiring harness. i didnt do that. how do i do that? and where do i do that?

    #4) put a ohm meter to no.1 injector, the reading was within specs described in book.

    #5) i Disconected the electrical connector to the (IAC) "idle air control valve"started engine and pulled off each injector connector to the injector and there was a noticable difference in idle change


    i didnt have a spark tester light so i couldnt test that
    from what i described you have any advise or instructions besides "take it to the shop"

    thank you
  • lowrunnerlowrunner Member Posts: 2
  • egryeyesegryeyes Member Posts: 6
    I also have 2 out of 4 cylinders shot, wish I could help, I was told my engine has to be taken apart. If I can find anything out, I will let u know.
  • scott301scott301 Member Posts: 1
    I too am having this same problem, Has anyone found a fix for this?
  • ttubandottubando Member Posts: 1
    after signaling a turn yesterday my turnsignal flicked off, but as it did the chime started going double time. it kept going untill i turned my car off. i turned my car back on and it started again. it will resume regular chiming when i signal a turn but will then resume the annoying chime when the turn signal flicks off. the fast chime doesnt make any lights flash though. also it will slow or go off momemtarily they resume whenever it pleases. i have had to have my computer replaced twice for corrosion and am wondering if it is the beginning of the same problem returned. (the first time my door chime was sounding when my car was off and thus constantly ran down the battery and the second time my car just plain wouldnt start.)

    if it has to go to the shop again, this will be the 3rd time in the 6 months i've had it.
  • 01grandamowner01grandamowner Member Posts: 2
    I am having trouble finding an answer to my problem. I own a '01 grand am, and sometimes I find that I can start and drive my car at all times fine, but sometimes the a/c, intrument panel (the milage, gas guages ,etc), window controls and radio don't work.
    Everything lights up fine, they just don't work.
    Just about everytime, I have to hit the top of the radio panel a few times to "jar" into working, however a few times this doesn't work.
    I have called auto repair places and unless it is doing it at the specific time that you have it tested, they said it will show up as nothing wrong. I have taken to auto zone with no luck.
    Is anyone else having this problem and is there anything that can be done?
    I have to drive 2 hours when I pick up my kids from their dad's soon and I can't drive with the windows up and no working a/c in the summer with them in the car.
  • burdawgburdawg Member Posts: 1,524
    Most likely the ignition switch is bad. The secondary contacts that power the accessories are wearing out or are worn out. If you have a lot of weight on your key that doesn't help either, it causes the switch to wear abnormally. That would be the first place I would look.
  • 01grandamowner01grandamowner Member Posts: 2
  • fbirdfbird Member Posts: 1
    When i'm driving the car and come to a stop the interior lights come on as soon as I start moving they go off. When I park the interior lights stay on for a long time until they finally go off. Usually after someone knocks at my door to tell me the lights are on in my car.
  • heledirheledir Member Posts: 1
    I own a 96 grand am sedan and it has a lot of small problems. Both the driver and passenger side front floors are always soaked with water and I can't figure out where it's coming in, occasionaly the rear passenger floor will be wet as well. The power lock buttons don't work at all on any of the doors, but when I turn the car off all the doors unlock so the motors must be still be good. The driver side front window refuses to work sometimes and other times works fine, the biggest problem is that the driver's side front door doesn't seem to be sitting right and the door will often jam and has to be pulled/pushed open. When it doesn't jam completly it makes a god awful scraping noise and is gouging the body of the car adjacent to the front of the door. The door can be muscled back into a correct position but after a couple of weeks it's right back where it was. The floors and the door are what I'm most concerned about but I'd also like to fix the other problems as well. Any help is greatly appreciated.
  • ventovento Member Posts: 3
    Hello Heledir:

    Refarding the wet floor, ask your mechanic to lo clean the Drain hole for the
    Air Conditioning. It could be located in the firewall, behind the engine.
    Also check the Heater Core.

    Good luck.
  • counterpartscounterparts Member Posts: 2
    The windshield wash light on my dashboard will not turn off. (99 Pontiac Grand Am 3.4L) No matter how much wash i have in the tank. I was wondering if i can pull of fuse or disconnect something to get the light off. I do not need it and it gets annoying to look at. Any help would be much appreciated. Thank You
  • burdawgburdawg Member Posts: 1,524
    The float may be stuck. Have you tried tapping on the resevoir to see if it goes off? When the resevoir is full you should see the top of the float up in the filler neck. You could also disconnect the connector on the resevoir, I'm not sure if you would have to connect a jumper across the connector to get the light off, depends on how the switch works in the resevoir.
  • hook2hook2 Member Posts: 6
    either it's rusted from ground,if so spray with w-d 40 or electric connection spray, or cut the ground wire good luck
  • counterpartscounterparts Member Posts: 2
    I just got the car... I tried tapping on it to see if the float would come up. From what I can see it looks like the float might not be in there. Im not to sure where the connector is. Is it on the bottom side of the tank? Thanks again for your help
  • xxjiveturkeyxxjiveturkey Member Posts: 2
    I have the same exact problem with my grand am. I was wondering if you have gotten it fixed and if so what the problem was and how you went about doing it.

    Thanks
  • xxjiveturkeyxxjiveturkey Member Posts: 2
    My tail lights, parking lights, and dashboard lights aren't working. Headlights work fine, and break lights work as well. Changed all the fuses and still a no go. Any suggestions?
  • bevdbevd Member Posts: 3
    blinkers work on and off some days its as long as 2 days without signals.and they come and off , the passenger window won't go up and down, and the heater blows cool air when its on max. is it the switch in the column or is it electrical i have no light where the radio is and no clock

    Bev
  • bevdbevd Member Posts: 3
    my blinkers are on and off some days they are off for the full day then all of a sudden at a light or driving they start, my window won't go up or down and the heater blows cool air on max, the clock is out and the lights on the radio are out too

    is is the swirch in the column or is it electical

    help Bev
  • eescobareescobar Member Posts: 2
  • eescobareescobar Member Posts: 2
    Intermitent: I can not manually turn the parking lights ON, It has the same effect about not turning manually off the auto-on headlamps. since when it works properly the manually parking lights in ON turn the Auto headlamps to OFF (at night). The Auto Mode at night turns everything ON (headlamps and parking lights) with no problem.
    In the owners manual there are not any relay related to parking lights. I do not know if it is switch lever related or relay related. 2001 Pontiac GAm GT
  • hobbiesthobbiest Member Posts: 3
    Manual Transmission / Intermittently (more than I would like) I start the car and runs great however I have no instrument lights / no radio / no heater blower / no headlights when on auto and the speedometer needle doesnt peg right then go back to rest. Many times this fault will last less than a minute but have had go longer to where I will start driving and then starts working. If I manually turn on the head lights and take off auto they do come on. When does start working you hear the warning chime and the dashboad needles peg right like normal and go back to rest and the radio and blower motor etc all return to normal operation.
  • burdawgburdawg Member Posts: 1,524
    Sounds like a bad ignition switch to me. Do you have a lot of weight hanging on the key?
  • hobbiesthobbiest Member Posts: 3
    just a few keys, i have tried wiggling key around to see if could make come back on and never any success. Has anyone ever had the BCM Body Control Module cause trouble like this. / tks for your reply burdawg
  • my65vettemy65vette Member Posts: 3
    I have the same problem with my 95! Did you figure it out?
  • my65vettemy65vette Member Posts: 3
    Headlights work, fuse looks find but my dash and tail lights are not working. Please advise!
  • my65vettemy65vette Member Posts: 3
    Figured it out. We needed to replace the multi-function siwtch that has the headlikghts, cruise control, hazard lites etc. Autozone part number SW859 for $79.99 did the trick. We needed to pull the steering wheel of to get it in place. To do that you need to dienable the airbag by disconnected the battery, pulling the airbag fuses, and waiting 10 minutes before you putt the airbag off the front of the steering wheel.
  • hobbiesthobbiest Member Posts: 3
    Thank You, I will try turning the headlamp switch and flexing and see if makes the problem clear up when doing. I do know what you mean about the air bags. I have the Haynes Manual for my car and it gives you the cautions and instructions for disabling before servicing...Thanks again.
  • Drew3355Drew3355 Member Posts: 2
  • Drew3355Drew3355 Member Posts: 2
    Hi! I have a pontiac grand am se 2004! Ive been having issues with my security light coming on! Yup I do the 10 minute thing when it comes on and doesn't start! I also have a stereo that has no lights, it works but you can't see what station your on at all..I was told by a few people that it was the Ignition,then I was told it was that I needed a new stereo! Now I was told that it could be the battery... So any suggestions or help would be great! Sometimes my security light doesn't come on for weeks but last week it came on everyday and I had to wait the 10 minutes for it to start again! With winter here I don't wanna be trapped somewhere in the cold! I also don't want to buy something for my car if its not what is needed! Thankyou!
  • spsatherspsather Member Posts: 1
    I am having problems with my driver door window, it no longer goes down. I have replaced the main switch in the door, which of course did not fix the problem. I would like to know if anyone know's of other places the problem could be, i thought of removing the panel on the door to check out window motor to see if it is still working. Thanks all
  • nglwlchnglwlch Member Posts: 2
    Hi . . . can anyone help? The dashboard lights in my car to not turn on. All the fuses are working. Is this easy to fix?
  • gmarvelous7gmarvelous7 Member Posts: 5
    Yes, Barb, I have the same problem (am currently working on it). Why in the world did GM put that stupid screw behind the steering wheel when they know it's not easily accessible?! And what is it with heater cores and combination switches messing up at around the same time on Grand Ams? I finally got the steering column panels off, got the connectors unplugged, and thought I had all the screws out until I discovered that evil one behind the steering wheel, so what size allen wrench did you use to get that one? Most manuals say you have to take the steering wheel off in order to change the combo switch, but that is so stupid to go through all that trouble for one screw!! And I just do not want to pay anyone for putting a part on a car that I can do myself (heck all you do is plug in the three connectors then screw the switch in). The types of screws are star screws and I bought a T-25 x 4 star screwdriver that works fine, but can anyone tell me what I can use to get that last screw off WITHOUT having to take my steering wheel off? I'd appreciate any help because though I don't live far from my job, I'm worried about getting in trouble driving with my lights off (I've already been spotted by the police a few times). Thanks guys.
  • gmarvelous7gmarvelous7 Member Posts: 5
    Hi. You seem to be pretty knowledgeable and I noticed you responded to the same problem I am having that someone else had--a bad combination switch. Also, I notice that you have been on this forum recently which is another reason I am asking for your help. I have my steering wheel panels off, all screws out and connectors unplugged, but the one thing keeping me from removing the old switch completely is that annoying star screw at the bottom. I can't reach it due to the steering wheel, I don't want to have to go through the trouble of taking the wheel off (not that I have the tools or money for THAT anyway) and I definitely do not want to pay someone for something I can do myself. So can you please tell me what tool I need to get that last screw out (I have a T 25x4 star screwdriver, but can't use it for that last screw because of the steering wheel). Thanks for any and all your help.
  • burdawgburdawg Member Posts: 1,524
    I only had to replace the combination switch on the 95 we used to have, not on a later model if that's what your talking about. What part of the steering wheel is in the way?
  • gmarvelous7gmarvelous7 Member Posts: 5
    I have a 95 Grand Am SE and it's the lower half of the steering wheel.
  • nglwlchnglwlch Member Posts: 2
    hi. . .could you help me? Have you had any experience with the dashboard lights going out? I'm new to this site. . .and from what I can gather, the steering wheel has to be take off, is this right?

    thanks
  • nick2006matrixnick2006matrix Member Posts: 42
    Check out this link for instructions on removing the combination switch:

    http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/showthread.php?t=50126
  • burdawgburdawg Member Posts: 1,524
    Can you be more specific? I don't recall having any problems with clearance on the lower part of the wheel when I changed the switch.
  • gmarvelous7gmarvelous7 Member Posts: 5
    I said in my first post to you that there was a screw at the bottom of the combo switch that is difficult to remove because of the steering wheel being in the way. If you did not have this problem then don't worry about it and I appreciate your help.
  • hook2hook2 Member Posts: 6
    to whom it may help, I had the same isue one time with my GM. if you have ajustable steering wheel you'e got to move it up or down to get at the screw and be flexible with your hands and body,you can do it it just takes time and patience,good luck. hook 2
  • lizlivingstonlizlivingston Member Posts: 1
    I have a 1994 pontiac grand am. The other day when I turned my hazzards on, I noticed that they were not working. along with the hazzards the turn signals do not work at all either. they do not even light up. everything else is working fine. Please help!!
  • burdawgburdawg Member Posts: 1,524
    Probably the combination switch. It's been discussed here many, many times.
  • dcheiteldcheitel Member Posts: 11
    I have a 2002 Pontiac Grand AM. I lost my remote and am either wanting to

    A) get a new remote

    or

    B) change to another system that will also do remote start etc.

    My question is, where is the keyless entry module located, so I can remove it if I go another route.

    Also, If I want to get a replacement remote, can programming be done by me or require speciate equipment.

    I appreicate your responses.

    Thanks
  • gt96gt96 Member Posts: 2
    The hazard lights will not turn off - they are not blinking, just on- when I turn off the engine. I have 96 pontiac grandam GT. thanks for any help on this
  • lawman68lawman68 Member Posts: 6
    OK. This is apparently unique in this discussion. My outside lights come while the car is just sitting in the driveway or a parking lot. :confuse: My battery is now dead. I thought it might be something might be pressing the keyless entry kicking off the lights so I took the keys out of my pocket. They still came on. The car has the "Auto" lights "feature". Sometimes I can manually turn the lights on and back to auto and they will turn off immediately. Most of the time I just have let the car sit. Come back some time later and they will be off. Any help is greatly appreciated.
Sign In or Register to comment.

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles