2000 Pontiac Grand Am GT1 review from North America
"Great everyday driver... drive it hard!!"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
I was told the fuel pump would go out at around 70,000, and it did at 71,200.
My sunroof has a mind of it's own... open it and it eventually slooooowly goes back shut. I can play this game with it about 3 times, and then it refuses to open again. Rarely wants to open at all after sitting in hot parking lot at work.
On my second go around with the driver's side door actuator, door shims work nicely to hold up the window in the winter.
Passenger side front brakes had a noise; took to the dealer, they couldn't hear it. Soon after, a brake line blew apart and the rotor was tweaked. The dealer ate all the costs on this, since it was documented.
The ever prominent air intake gasket that fails and causes overheating issues. It's since been replaced, but the water pump went out within a week. The dealer ate the labor on that since it should have been caught when changing the gasket.
The cruise control works intermittently, and usually just kicks off while driving. I have attributed it to the constant "surge" in RPM's while driving, roughly 200 RPM which no dealer seems to see; I can see it on the gauge, they can't.
The high speed rated tires are a pain and have to be replaced more often than a normal tires; I'm guessing it's the softer compound.
General comments?
Overall I enjoy the car, drive it hard everyday, hammer the foot-feet, 50 miles to work and back home everyday, and keep her pegged at 85-ish. She never misses a tick, and handles a clover leaf like a slot car. Relatively comfortable to drive.
As for any repairs, yes I have been aggravated, especially with the intake gasket that GM knew about, but did nothing.
Will probably let my soon to be driving age daughters take it over for high school.
Good looking car, and believe one should drive it like ya stole it once in a while, if not often.
Previous car was an '86 Olds Calais with 86,000 on it when I got it; I paid $500 for. It lasted 11 years, and gee I had to put money into it. It was well worth the money, but she just finally got tired and wore out.
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| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Model year | 2000 |
| Year of manufacture | 2000 |
| First year of ownership | 2002 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2008 |
| Engine and transmission | 3.4 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 7 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 7 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 5 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 6 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 33000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 129890 miles |
| Previous car | Oldsmobile Calais |
| Date of Entry | 23rd January, 2008 |