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Pontiac GTO

1…7678808182

Comments

  • mparis1mparis1 Member Posts: 107
    fiirst problem---13000 miles ...trunk will not lock...latch lid loose...What should I do ? ...will not lock closed ??? :(
  • roadrunner70roadrunner70 Member Posts: 241
    perhaps the thunk is not in the trunk but in the right front suspension. there is a stb on this. i have a clunk (not a thunk) when i turn left into a drivewayu with a little bump. according to the tsb, it is either a part of hte spring touching the spring mount or a radious rod bushing. hope that helps. rr70
  • 1badgto1badgto Member Posts: 12
    I have been reading some other threads. There is mention of GM in the Driveway certificates for friends and family that can be used to purchase GM products at deeply discounted prices. Does anyone out there know anything about these GMID certificates? People seem to be hooking up with GM employees on line and having them send them to them in order to get the 1% over invoice price. Is this a scam or is it for real? If they are for real...when do they expire? Thanks for any info! I sure would like a new GTO or possibly another GM product!
  • hammen2hammen2 Member Posts: 1,284
    It is real and it is not a scam.

    The GM employee/retiree goes to the http://www.gmfamilyfirst.com website, and logs in. One of the menu options there is to assign a GMID certificate to someone. Each employee can give away 2 certificates per month, and the certificates are typically good for 6 months.

    There are two things that the GM employee needs in order to assign a GMID cert. The first is the Date of Birth of the intended purchaser of a vehicle. The second is the last 4 digits of this person's SSN. I can understand people's privacy concerns, but those are GM's rules.

    Once the GM employee enters this info, hits Submit, and confirms it and hits submit again, a 12-digit GMID number is assigned (XXX-YYYYYYYYY). This information is then emailed back to the prospect, who should print it out and bring it to their GM dealer.

    What is pricing like? Well, this is equivalent to supplier pricing - it is not the same as employee pricing (typically, supplier/GMID is 4.5% more than GMS (GM Employee)) pricing. One advantage to GMID is that it's typically compatible with many incentives (conquest, GM Card, etc.), unlike most GM employee/supplier deals.

    You can get pricing from the http://www.gmfamilyfirst.com website without having a login, by surfing there and then selecting "GMID Pricing" from the "Vehicle Shopping" pop-up menu.

    How do I know this? My mother-in-law is a GM employee and I typically give away her certificates each month. Oh yeah, one more thing: GM employees can get into big-time trouble if they ask you for anything (other than DOB/last 4 of SSN) in order to get you a certificate. There is no additional compensation from GM either.

    Hope this helps,

    --Robert
  • sputterguysputterguy Member Posts: 383
    I think I got the personality disorder under control but won't know for sure until I post.

    Yeah, I tried to save the world but damnit, Bush just won't listen to me. My advice is start filling sandbags.

    Anyway, just replaced the back tires today. They only had 16,000 on them. I wonder why they wore out sooner than the fronts. The fronts both had wear on the outer edges, and the right front had the worst wear. Got a 4 wheel alignment so I should be good to go.
  • sputterguysputterguy Member Posts: 383
    I just got new back tires and a 4 wheel alignment. While the car was up I looked for any strut leakage, bushing damage, or any kind of rubbing or other damage and everything looked ok. I don't think the noise is coming from the front but I'll keep my eye on it. You know, I just realized I didn't even check out the suspension in the rear. dang!
  • emd567emd567 Member Posts: 15
    Just had my 06' hit by a semi truck(tractor) at slow speed<5 mph. Support for the step on the tractor hit my left front tire, and shoved the car over 1'. Front fasica is torn in front of the wheel, and fender has some scrape marks. My main concern is the alginment of the front end. Steering wheel is off by 30 degrees, and while I drove the car home(it was parked when hit) and it seemed to drive normally, except for the steering wheel, I am concerned that the car is totalled, due to the subframe being bent.
    How is the supply of body parts? Am I in for a long wait before I get my Goat back- if it's repairable? I don't have the strut problem, as my car was built in Aug 05 as a 2006. Car has 9800 miles on it, and I dearly loved each and every mile..............
  • 1badgto1badgto Member Posts: 12
    Thanks for the information Robert. I am glad to hear that it is not a scam. I had heard about the last 4 digit SS# requirement and DOB requirement. That made me a little suspicious. I am happy to hear that it is legit. Now, I think that I will work on buying a new vehicle and look into getting a certificate. Thanks again!
  • roadrunner70roadrunner70 Member Posts: 241
    notify your insurance company. take the car to a reputable collision shop and have it carefully inspected. get the police report. the trucker's ins. co will pay for the repairs. the most important thing is the quality of the repair shop. be choosey. since payment is not an issue, make sure its done right. if it is, there will be no repercussions. make sure the trucker's ins co knows that the car is not driveable, (no doubt that your alighment is off) and you will be renting a car for as long as it takes to have the gto repaired. it will probably be a while so get a nice rental. rr70
  • lovegtolovegto Member Posts: 23
    I just drove my 05 impulse blue GTO from Pennsylvania to Yellowstone and Glacier Park Montana and back something over 5,000 miles. Although I had over 17,000 miles on the car prior to take off I had not noticed any uneven wear on the tires. By the time I got to Colorado I noticed the car would pull when the miles per hour was greater than 75 but run straight when below 75. Further the pull increased as the speed increased. To make a long story short both front tires began going bald on the inside and I had them replaced on the return trip. I have scheduled to get the car aligned now that I am home but I wonder does the GTO have any special alignment issues of which the mechanic should be aware? Another question is does speed affect the alignment?
    As an aside the car had no problem reaching 140 miles per hour. Although I had a radar detector in operation I did not encounter a single speed trap on the entire trip.
  • dickcdickc Member Posts: 11
    It's been mostly a problem for 2006 models, but could be for some 2005's depending on build date; a very well documented issue of the front struts and/or strut bushing failures leading to inside tire rub/destruction. Take it to the dealer and plead your case for a fix (new struts and/or strut bushings) and reimbursement on your vacation tire expenses to-date. You can peruse LS1 and LS2.coms for this issue as well as earlier threads here too.
  • eliaselias Member Posts: 2,209
    oh yeah, lovegto, this is definitely a problem for some 2005s, such as my "june 2005" GTO. and to answer specifically YES the GTO has specific alignment issues, especially with the 17" tires as opposed to 18s. regarding speed affecting the alignment, i doubt it, but i believe tires wear faster at higher speeds, >>75 for example.
    GM is well aware of the issue: the factory intentionally aligns with negative camber. this makes the handling rather amazing but is not great for long highway drives - result is exactly what you observed.
    it was a problem for my vehicle even though there was no "strut rub" on my car. your dealer can fix it but it requires replacement of some "consumable" bolts. it took the local dealer one week and about $200 labor cost to align my car. later GM HQ actually insisted to pay for this even though it was after the new-car/12k/12-month warranty. (15000 miles in my case - after a drive from MA to FL and back).
    in my case i don't think struts or strut bushings were replaced as they were reportedly not damaged. i did not ask GM to replace the tires - they were ok enough that proper alignment & rotation got them to 25000 miles - at that point i replaced them on my own dime and do not think that GM owes me for that. i understand that some folks have gotten GM to pay for tires too and that may be appropriate in your case.
  • lovegtolovegto Member Posts: 23
    Thanks for the information. Since I have over 23,000 miles on the car and don't particulary care for the Original Equipment tires, I do not intend to ask GM for any reimbursements. I intended to replace the tires in the Spring when I change the snow tires. Possibly to 18" wheels and tires, given the problems associated with the 17" tires I probably will consider it even more.
    Again, thanks for your help.
  • bklyn77bklyn77 Member Posts: 1
    Boy do I have some Pontiac stories..I picked up a 07 G6 GT Hardtop convertible 9/26. I test drove it with the top down (stupid move-but I live in Florida) and I was impressed. However, There was a huge gash on the drivers side window, so the dealer replaced it. 3 weeks, and 2 rental cars later, the damn window rattled so much, I wanted to pull out in front of a BUS!!!! I traded it in for an 06 GTO yesterday and I'm a lot happier. I didn't get a manual and it thanksgiving day so I'm wondering if anyone here knows if the Blaupoint radio can be intergrated with XM radio, or do I have to mount a cheesy display box in my car?? Any guidance would be grealy appreciated. Happy Holidays to all!
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    You can mount one in the ash tray. Check out some of the pontiac forums where they have detailed writeups on this proceedure.

    -mike
  • hos55hos55 Member Posts: 1
    I do not know a GM employee personally. Do you know how I could get a GMID certificate. Thanks for your help.
  • wotnotwotnot Member Posts: 3
    I'm in the market for a new car. I've read alot of reviews both from the automotive press and owners about the GTO, but I have always found these forums to be helpful. I'm looking at a 2006, brand new GTO, burnt orange with black leather interior.

    The salesman(who is being quite good so far) has quoted me a price of 29,117 for this car including the 18 inch wheels. He has also mentioned that his dealership is aware of the front strut issue and also that this particular vehicle was built in late June,06 and therefore shouln't have a problem with the struts.

    My questions are these;

    1. Is the price being quoted high or reaonable?
    2. Does his story about the struts make sense?
    3. If you had it all to do over again, would you still buy this car?

    Thanks everyone
  • eliaselias Member Posts: 2,209
    1. price looks good to me - looks like that's below invoice price - better price than i got on my 05 6-spd with "employee pricing" & 17s, not counting GM card.
    2. yes, as far as i know.
    3. YES. only caveat is that i thought 05 GTO was going to be a "sleeper" vehicle compared to a Corvette. It's not. If I were to remove the spoiler & put on a 2004 ventless hood, it might be more of a "sleeper" but I've dropped my plans to do that.
  • tripowergtotripowergto Member Posts: 83
    Haven't visited here in awhile but I'm glad to see the administraters restored this thread to active. I'm also in the market to trade my 04 GTO in on a 06. That's a decent price wotnot, but you can do slightly better if you really push. Good Luck!!
  • droptopscarletdroptopscarlet Member Posts: 8
    I just found a beautiful grey GTO marked down from nearly $34 to $27. Anyone pay less than this for one? What grade of gas does this monster take?
  • eliaselias Member Posts: 2,209
    $27k is what I paid in 05 after $3000 GM card rebate - so that price looks real good to me when it's without a GM card! The car runs fine on 87 octane but I see a ~10% mpg drop with 87 octane compared to 91+. So I only use 87 octane when the difference between 87 & 91+ is more than ~10%.
  • droptopscarletdroptopscarlet Member Posts: 8
    Thanks for all of the information. I forgot that I can also get a GM supplier discount from my firm. Don't know if it would make any difference or not.
  • cougar68cougar68 Member Posts: 3
    Curious as to what "real world" gas mileage, city, mixed, or highway (of special interest to me) you owners of automatic GTO's are getting. I guess there might be a difference in "real world" MPG between 2004 and later, due to the additional H.P., so knowing your model year might help. Thanks!
  • wotnotwotnot Member Posts: 3
    I just found a Impulse Blue auto with matching blue interior with 18's for 28,517. I don't know what to do..lol.

    I like em both!
  • cracoviancracovian Member Posts: 337
    My average for two years in 2004 with a stick is 14MPG (turning it in this Sat.)
  • eliaselias Member Posts: 2,209
    6-spd 05 - 27k miles - 20+ lifetime mpg since june 05. i use it mostly for highway driving, where it gets about 23 mpg.
    speaking of gas mileage, i guess we'll never know how the goats would do on the revised epa tests... if there had been an 07 goat, maybe it would have ended up with a gasguzzler tax on the 6spd too, and maybe the automatic gasguzzler tax would have gotten much larger! hmm, maybe there will be lots more cars with gasguzzler tax after the new EPA ratings are established ...
  • tripowergtotripowergto Member Posts: 83
    Last weekend I traveled from PA to NC and back over 1200 miles, mostly highway and averaged 26.7 MPG with my 23K 04 M6. Mixed rural driving nets around 20 MPG locally. AWESOME powerful car with great mileage and incredibly comfortable.
  • udhamudham Member Posts: 1
    Hi!

    Dealer offered me a 18" 6sp 2006 GTO for 27580 + tax,title, etc. Does it sound like a good deal. If it matters, I am in central NY, and I do own a non-gm vehicle, i.e. a toyota corolla. Orange w/ black interior.

    Thanks!
    -udham
  • roadrunner70roadrunner70 Member Posts: 241
    if a new car, sounds very reasonable. rr70
  • hammen2hammen2 Member Posts: 1,284
    FYI there is now a dealer bulletin on replacing the defective (from the factory) struts on vehicles still on their lots. It's predicated on the vehicle's VIN number. Defective struts were used in assembly from mid-January 2006 until May 5, 2006.

    BTW, whomever's dealer told them their GTO was built in "late June" was wrong, as the GTO ceased production in Australia on 6/07/06. What may be confusing to many is that the "build date" stored in the GMVIS (vehicle information system) is the date the spoiler is put on at the port in Benecia, CA (5-8 weeks after final assembly, i.e. after boat transport), not the actual production date in Australia. You can get an idea of the assembly date of your vehicle by looking at the build plate underhood, or the sticker on the driver's door - should have the month/year listed.
  • hammen2hammen2 Member Posts: 1,284
    I get between 18 and 21 mpg on my automatic 2004 GTO, with a tune. If I do more city driving, it's closer to the lower number. Highway, closer to the higher number. Use the AC and/or defrost much, lower. I've heard the LS2 is worse on mileage. The 6-speeds get appreciably better (21-25 mpg) Whomever got 14 mpg with a stick must have been stoplight racing and driving in the city the whole time.

    This car requires premium unleaded. Sure, you can run on lower octane, but the engine will pull timing, get worse gas mileage, and possibly knock. Why would someone buy a $30k vehicle and not spend the extra $105*/yr. to put the proper gas into it? Seems to me that's the definition of "penny-wise and dollar-foolish".

    *Assume 15k miles/yr and 20 mpg, that's 750 gallons of gas purchased per year.
    Multiply that by the 14 cent difference between premum and regular (here; may be different in your neck of the woods) and you're talking about $105/yr.
  • hammen2hammen2 Member Posts: 1,284
    The GM in the Driveway program was discontinued on 10/1/06. Since the certificates (which are tied to a potential purchaser's DOB and last 4 digits of SSN) are good for 6 months, the certificates will be done by 4/1/07.

    There is another comparable program available (offering supplier pricing for everyone), but I don't know the details... maybe look around http://www.gmfamilyfirst.com

    Anyone buying a new GTO should be able to get better pricing than supplier (like, invoice less incentives - some are even getting the holdback taken off as well).
  • ClairesClaires Member Posts: 1,222
    Hi, udham,

    You might also want to ask the folks in the GTO Prices Paid & Buying Experience discussion.

    MODERATOR

    Need help getting around? claires@edmunds.com - or send a private message by clicking on my name.

    Tell everyone about your buying experience: Write a Dealer Review

  • eliaselias Member Posts: 2,209
    hammen man, some folks prefer not to pay even an extra $405/year if it's for no benefit aside from placebo effect!. the delta between 87 & 91+ on the east coast is as much as 70 cents per gallon at some stations - nice that it is 14 cents in your area.
    87 octane is especially great for winter driving in chevy V8s that are optimized for 91+. in addition to a few thousand goat-87-miles, i've put tens of thousands of 87 octane miles on various Z28 V8s over decades of winters - including a fall track run: 14.1 sec / 101 mph quarter mile with 94 automatic Z28...
    i called 87 octane "poor man's traction control" for my 85, 89, 94, 96 Z28s. (my 00 Z had real traction control)
    with 05 goat and 87, no knock, no noticeable power drop. it's fully supported by GM. USAtoday had an article a year or three ago - author interviewed reps from all the major manufacturers including ferrari/porsche/benz - bottom line is NO WORRY with 87 in any USA model car! the worst that can happen is 'reduced performance'.
    obviously if the engine knocks that would be bad. never happens. i don't run 87 in warm weather though, too much *pinging* for me, and the power loss can be noticeable.
    maybe we can discuss the difference between pinging and knocking. from what i understand, the ECM on all gassers adjusts the timing to try to get the engine to ping just the tiniest bit - audible to knock sensor but not to human ear - for best efficiency!?
    well, maybe you think i've damaged my LS2 and previous Z28 V8 engines and would want to avoid buying a used car from me! (not to mention all the other reasons to avoid that).

    happy new year from the GTO witness protection program, everyone -
    (that program entails putting us over-ticketed GTO drivers into VW TDIs - apparently the 87 octane was not enough to slow me down.)
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    If you run 87 in a car tuned for 91 it will likely not ping or knock, because the ECU will dial back the timing. However, you'll likely get worse milage and poor performance.

    -mike
  • eliaselias Member Posts: 2,209
    ya, paisan. i've benchmarked the (at most) 10% mpg drop, and maybe the hp drops from 400 to a measly (poor?) 360. thankfully the price delta between 87 & 91 has dropped down to 20 cents per gallon at many gas stations - so it's been all 91+ for my gto recently. cheers!
  • joe131joe131 Member Posts: 998
    Why worse mileage?
    The motor will be making less horsepower so maybe it will also be using less fuel.
    Seems fair to me.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    It's tuned for a specific octane, in this case 91, by putting a lower octane in you are forcing the computer to move back the timing and therfore the engine is not operating in it's peak efficiency spot. Hence the lower milage.

    Best way to save gas is just by controlling the right foot :) Of course I never do that but I don't mind burning gas though.

    -mike
  • joe131joe131 Member Posts: 998
    But if you put in lower octane than that which would create maximum horsepower on premium, then the car is re-tuned for the lower octane, at least so far as ignition timing and presumably fuel/air delivery too.
    Do you think the valve timing would need to be changed too for top efficiency possible with the lower octane gas? And even if it does, these smart cars nowadays with continuously variable valve timing might also adjust that.
    Compression ratio? Is that a problem? I don't think so.
    Maybe if you don't press on the accelerator and brakes any harder with regular than premium you won't see any appreciable change in fuel economy? (But you won't get to your destination quite so quickly.)
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    But I don't think that these push-rod engines are variable valve timing? Compression could be an issue as well.

    I would think if you are not hard on the gas, and put 87 in you should be ok but when I get mine, I'll probably run 91 for the few pennies more it costs.

    -mike
  • tripowergtotripowergto Member Posts: 83
    Highway mileage on my just traded 04 did not vary whatsoever between 87 & 92/93 octane. Best MPG attained with 87 was 26.7 on a 1200 mile roadtrip. I never got any better then that even while running 93 octane.
  • joe131joe131 Member Posts: 998
    Wow! A 1200 mile gas mileage check. That is the kind of test that has some credibility.
    Anyone else keep careful records over a trip that long?
    (not relying on trip computer numbers)
    26.7 mpg is excellent mileage for a motor capable of 400 HP pulling a car the weight of the GTO.
    I get that same MPG in a similar weight car with less than half the horsepower at 75 mph on the interstate.
    What was your normal cruising speed?

    (oh wait, that is "only" 350 HP for a 2004, right? Haha. Your mileage sucks!)
  • monarofanmonarofan Member Posts: 30
    I live in DC and get stuck in traffic a lot in rush hour. That is when the fuel consumption suffers big time. I average about 17mpg. My worst is around 14mpg (road works = major jams and a lot of idling and 1st gear driving).

    Chris
  • eliaselias Member Posts: 2,209
    A 1200 mile trip, pffft! ;)
    I've done 1237 miles in one continuous daylight driving segment, although that was with a TDI from chicago->rocksprings wyoming not GTO.
    With 05 6-spd GTO (17" wheels) I've done boston->RTP->boston as well as boston->ftmyers->boston.
    MPG ends up being between 23 & 24 mpg. Usually on these long trips the mpg difference between 91+ & 87 octane is sometimes not noticeable at all. Other times it seems to be 9% or less.
    This week's autoweek has a photo of a test-mule Pontiac G8 and a Commodore SS. N I C E. Australia is awesome - I wish there was a road that went from Boston to there.
    G8 will be here in 2008 model year, including 6-spd trans and a monster V8, upper 300s for both torque & hp. I bet it will have cylinder-shutdown too. I wish GTO had that for those loooong highway cruises - for me there's no doubt that a long trip is way more comfy in GTO than in a TDI.
    btw, on GM or any vehicles with cylinder-shutdown, does it shutdown cylinders at idle too? thank you!
  • onyx70onyx70 Member Posts: 1
    The pontiac dealers are not telling the buyer about all the rebates,the dealers can discount to $5000 there as of 20 Jan 06 is $3000 in rebates,I have found this car priced from $24200-24788,the ones at $24200 were sold by the time I called...
  • triguy2triguy2 Member Posts: 1
    just got a charcoal 6m 18 inch wheels for 26,600, at wedekind pontic in schenectady new york.(1/26/07)it had 265 miles on it.had my choice.nice place. can't wait for roads to get clear.!
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I was looking at that one online. I'm looking for the cyclone grey w/17s 6MT Hopefully will find one the first week in march. in the NY/NJ/Upstate NY Area. Figuring on paying about $25k for it.

    -mike
  • eliaselias Member Posts: 2,209
    good luck, paisan. if you don't find a new 06 like that maybe you can find a used 05?
    personally i'm thinking of trading my GTO & XC90 SUV for one of the three new D-C diesel SUVs. driving a GTO on US public roads might just be too frustrating for me - all revved up with nowhere to drive fast... waaah!
  • mparis1mparis1 Member Posts: 107
    NHSTA investigaing all GTOs for exploding tires due to strut rubbing :lemon: :lemon: :lemon:
    www.gtoforum.com
    or
    www.newsnet5.com/news/11003693/details/html

    THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF
    ENGINEERING DEFECT
    P.S.where is robert ? we need him now? what should we due?
  • joe131joe131 Member Posts: 998
    Wow!
    All GTO models?
    Regardless of tire size?

    Guess they'll all get re-shod with those little tiny low-rider tires the mexicans like on their Chevys?
This discussion has been closed.

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