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Comments
Not only did it start right up, the lights on the instrument panel quit coming on intermittently, the radio display stayed on all the time and the volume control started working correctly.
All of the electronic gizmos on cars these days are great when they are working, but they sure don't seem to tolerate voltage and current variation well!
Now I have to find out why the fan won't kick in all of the time, causing it to overheat... (I'm at 214K miles, by the way...)
If you do replace the PCM, you will need to take it somewhere to do a crank sensor relearn routine - on the 2003 3.4L engine anyway. By the way, my PCM does the same thing and the driver circuit for the idle motor seems to be the culprit - I'll know in a few days - as the PCM is getting replaced.
Jim
I do believe it would be much better just to sell it to the junkyard and use the money for a first payment on a 3 or 4 year old used car. Buy a add-on warranty for a year is also my suggestion, especially if you don't work on cars.
Thank you
I will never buy another Pontiac again!!!!!!!!!!!
I know this is a lot, but I am tired of having all of these problems at one time. Do you think it could be the fuel pump? or maybe I need a new gas cap? there is definitely something going on with the fuel system. HELP!!!????
My ABS and many other lights were ON in my 2003 Grand AM and the ABS reader said both front wheel speed sensors were bad. I also had one wheel bearing that was noisy after just 50K miles. The Grand Am wheel speed sensors are very cheap and water gets sucked-in and corrodes the wires and the bearings. When I tore apart the old ones it was obvious that water had gotten in. I replaced both front wheel bearings and used silicone RTV to seal out further water problems.
You should get the ABS fixed as soon as possible because an intermittent ABS can so some very dangerous things.
I assume by a wet trunk you mean wet with water, the trunk seal on my 2003 Grand Am was not installed correctly from the factory, but it was easily corrected.
The fuel pump for most new vehicles are pretty standard so I think the pump should be OK, but it sounds like the mechanic didn't re-install the float correctly to make the gas gauge read correctly. It's a big annoyance but also some work to correct. I'm in favor of only paying a mechanic half until you see if he did the right thing - can you tell I don't go to a mechanic very often...
The ABS and Traction lights are controlled by the ABS brake computer and the $100 readers at Auto-Zone and others will not see the codes. You need to go to a dealer or a better repair shop as the ABS readers cost many hundreds of dollars.
My ABS and many other lights were ON in my 2003 Grand AM and the ABS reader said both front wheel speed sensors were bad. I also had one wheel bearing that was noisy after just 50K miles. The Grand Am wheel speed sensors are very cheap and water gets sucked-in and corrodes the wires and the bearings. When I tore apart the old ones it was obvious that water had gotten in. I replaced both front wheel bearings and used silicone RTV to seal out further water problems.
You should get the ABS fixed as soon as possible because an intermittent ABS can so some very dangerous things - but so will an engine fire...
I would suggest to anyone, have your mechanic check with local salvage/junk yards, before committing to doing the work.
I will keep you posted on how this works out.
Also, the statement that the 2003 Grand Am has one of the most complicated engines ever built, either the 4 or the 6, is interesting. With either engine it's not even close.
Early this year it the Service Engine Soon (SES) came on and I took it to my local service station. P0300 was the code for which they replaced the ignition control module, ignition coil pack, and plugs. total bill $667.
The SES light was off for three days then came back on with a P0130 code. Went back to the service station and they want to replace the exhaust manifold and converter for $1039. I said no and brought the car back to my garage and parked it for a couple of months and sent my son off to school without his car while I thought this over.
I heard an autozone commerical for OBD II testing and took the car there which threw a P0130 code that related to the first O2 sensor in the exhaust stream. For $150 for the O2 and special tool I replaced that and after 10 miles the SES light went off. Hurray... four days later the SES light is glowing again.
All the above brings me to today... I took the car to Autozone again and now its throwing P0130 and P0141.
The SES light it making me crazy and I'd like to know if someone can make sense out of this for me. The car itself runs well and has 86K miles on it so it's not a high mileage car.
Drop a line if you have an idea of what this could be... I have put alot of $ into this car since owning it and am trying to stick with American made cars but it's times like this that makes it difficult. Your help would be appreciated
I have loved this car, taken great care of it and had it since 63,000 miles with no major issues.
Last week my "Service Engine" light came on. The next day my Fuel Pump went out. I had to have my car towed to the shop where they took off my fuel tank and replaced my fuel pump and filter.
When I got back into the car the "Trac Off" light was on along with the Service Engine light. It was diagnosed that the vacum hose had a leak in the EGR system and that there we re misfires (probably from trying to start the car after the pump went out).
Anyways he mechanic put these lights out and now today, 5 days later, all lights are back on. The Service Engine was first with no noticeable problems when driving then this morning I turned on my car and ABS, Service Vehicle, and Trac Off Lights were all on.
Does anyone have any ideas why this is happening? Could it be from towing or a wire coming loose from the repair??!? please help
The squirmy-ness may because of the tires having more tread, they could be under inflated, and the worst case would be that they were not installed or were not torqued correctly. Do take the car back to where you got the tires as soon as and as carefully as you can. Sometimes tire cords get damaged during installation and you may need to demand a new tire. Have them double check the installation and then you take them for a test ride before leaving to make sure your car drives as before.
I can also tell you from first hand experience that Grand AMs have poorly sealed wheel bearings. When water gets in, the wires for the ABS sensors fail and sometimes un-fail so the lights come and go. This is also a serious problem because your ABS will not work when the lights are ON. You need to go to a service garage with a "Brake System" scanner to determine which wheel or wheels are the problem. I just bought new front bearings for my 2003 GT for about $100 each and you may be able to get installation for $50 to $70.
And one last piece of advice that I have given to my three grown daughters - If you are a female, take a male friend with you. All of the professional mechanics that I know are sexist pigs - rude but true.
Ask a friend to keep the car at fast idle, and you may be able to hear the leak - it will "hiss" like a snake. Except for the fuel injection system, this engine is very similar to engines made for the last 40 years. I would suggest finding a mechanic familiar with gasoline powered cars (engines). An experience diesel mechanic may not know what vacuum is - diesels don't generate it.