1994 Pontiac Grand Am SE V6

Summary:

The most unreliable hunk of junk I've ever driven

Faults:

Radiator.

A/C knobs.

Tires.

Pads.

Rotors.

Leak in trunk.

Subframe.

Starter, 3 times.

Battery.

Muffler.

Catalytic converter.

Multiple fuses.

Horn.

Speedometer.

Gas gauge.

ABS light.

Power steering.

Tranny, possibly.

Exhaust clean fell off.

Air filter.

Basically every fluid in the car is leaking.

Gas leak.

Rear view mirror fell off 3 times.

Control arm & bushings.

Wheel bearings.

General Comments:

Even when everything works properly, not fun to drive. Takes turns like a large van. Unnecessarily long nose.

No RPM reader.

Can't move the right side window except manually. It is however pretty quiet; even without a muffler it doesn't sound too bad.

Accelerates okay when everything is working fine.

Do yourself a favor, never buy this car. I've been broken down more times than I can count in my year of ownership.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 6th June, 2016

7th Jun 2016, 12:37

Maybe you should buy a car that is newer than 21 years old next time.

And why do you need a "RPM reader" (or what everyone else calls a tachometer) on a car with an automatic transmission?

7th Jun 2016, 21:32

Air filters can be a real costly nuisance.

13th Jun 2016, 07:28

A car with sporty pretensions should have a tach at the very least.

Plus, the car only has 119k miles, old yes, but hardly ever used.

13th Jun 2016, 23:44

The car was still over two decades old. Cars deteriorate from age, and cars that sit for long periods of time do so even faster than cars that are driven regularly.

19th Jun 2016, 21:46

One of my high school classmates bought two 1975 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supremes, which at that time were 24 years old. One had 56,000 original miles, and the other had around 180,000 miles. The 180,000 mile car ran pretty good while the 56,000 mile car barely ran and had multiple issues, all caused from sitting outside unused for years at a time.

1994 Pontiac Grand Am GT 3.1L V6

Summary:

Strong runner and solid car, but has a few common malfunctions/downfalls

Faults:

I will start off by saying that car had several issues when I bought it.

Water leaked onto the driver side carpet and it was often wet. I discovered that the water was leaking through the air blower motor on the firewall, as the gasket seal had worn out. The previous owner tried hiding and/or remedying it with a piece of plastic and some black tape... so I inherited the problem. It was an easy fix by using sealant and covering the blower with some insulation tape, but it took forever to find the source of the leak.

Another problem I inherited was that both the power windows were not functioning, which I have found to be very common on this model.

The driver's door needed a new lifter, which was bent, and motor. The passenger side window just needed a new fuse.

Another issue was the rack and pinion steering system. One end had rusted which caused a leak of the power steering fluid. Eventually the end burst and the whole rack and pinion had to be replaced, which was a hell of a job to do, as it took two people 8 hours.

I also had to replace the heater core, which began leaking.

The car currently has a small coolant leak and I haven't been able to pinpoint its origin. I don't feel inclined to put time and money into it, as it just requires the coolant reservoir to be filled up every couple of weeks.

Other than that, the car has held up nicely for a car nearing 200,000 miles. Luckily my dad and I have auto knowledge and did all these repairs ourselves, which has saved us a lot of money. :)

General Comments:

Keep in mind that though I have only owned this car for 5,000 of the 186,000, I had inherited some of the earlier problems that developed.

Mechanically this car is as good a runner as I have seen. It is nearing 200,000 miles and is still running strong with no engine issues.

This is my first car, and have enjoyed it a lot. It offers reasonable power with the V6, and is bearable at as far as MPGs go, averaging about 22-23 MPGs, but my driving is almost exclusively city stop-and-go driving (not to mention I like to "get on it" every once in awhile!).

Handling is good, though I noticed the suspension is rather stiff, which can be pretty bumpy on the bad roads.

In the Wisconsin winters, it does good in the snow, as the FWD offers good traction.

The interior is acceptable, and the seats are relatively comfortable. I do agree that the cup holder is badly positioned, but I like the fold-out ones above the glove box. Cosmetically it's holding up great, with no rust to be seen.

Despite the few problems that I have encountered, the Grand Am is a solid car and strong runner, considering it is 15 years old and nearing 200K miles.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 19th August, 2009