Has an inadvertent clicking noise. The same noise that you get when you use the turn signal. But it makes the noise whenever it feels like it. The dealer is either unable to hear it, or just unwilling to do anything about it.
I have always been a Pontiac man, but this car sucks. It rides rough, has a lot of road noise. Just very cheaply built. Not a good quality car by any means.
It has every option including the V6 and the moon roof. The car looks good, has plenty of power, and gets excellent gas mileage. This is the first Grand Am I have had, and it's also the last!
It's quick, gets excellent mileage, seems to be reliable, and looks good.
Lots of road noise, hard riding, very uncomfortable. And the clicking it makes is enough to drive anyone crazy!
GM's later vehicles are just cheaply built. If you're going to buy American, look at a Ford.
It should be remembered that this reviewers previous car was a Jaguar XJR. I think I'd be unhappy trading down to a Grand Am with 113000 miles too.
The road noise might be helped by some new quieter tires. The clicking noise sounds really annoying however.
Hmm, your complaints are 1) the clicking noise and 2) things you should have noticed on a pre-purchase test drive (hard ride, noise, comfort). Even if you discount the fact that the car was six years old and had 110K miles on it when you bought it, do you really think that justified the title of your review?
That is true, I still own my Jaguar. I think I have spoiled myself with large luxury vehicles. The looks of the Grand Am are deceiving. It's a great looking car and fully loaded. I just feel that after owning several GM vehicles over the years, GM has really dropped the ball with this one.
"Hmm, your complaints are 1) the clicking noise and 2) things you should have noticed on a pre-purchase test drive (hard ride, noise, comfort). Even if you discount the fact that the car was six years old and had 110K miles on it when you bought it, do you really think that justified the title of your review?"
As a car enthusiast and the proud owner of two GM and two Ford vehicles, I heartily agree with the comment above. I own a near-mint 2001 Grand AM SE-1 quad 4 and it is one of the best cars I've ever owned. To call the ride "harsh" boggles my mind. So does "Noisy" and "uncomfortable". My GA is smooth as silk, very quiet except under full throttle acceleration, and compared to my Mustang with heavy-duty suspension it rides like a cloud. I love the car and it has had nothing but a light bulb replaced in 9 years now.
As for test drives, I have ZERO sympathy with a person who buys a car without a proper test drive. "TEST" drive means just what the term implies. You TEST the various aspects of the car, such as acceleration, braking, cornering, interior ride comfort, noise, etc. To not do so relegates you to buying a car you may not know much about at all. When I test drive a car it is put through several flat-out, full-throttle take offs, several 60-0 panic braking tests, several high-speed cornering maneuvers and a freeway cruise at high speed. I want to KNOW the car's capabilities BEFORE I sign on the dotted line.
I have never once had a car salesman object to my putting a car through its paces, though one salesman did turn a bit green when my wife came around a freeway ramp in a full drift at 105mph in a V-8 Mustang some years back. He was clinging for dear life while my wife and I calmly discussed the advantages of various types of fuel injection systems. My wife and I are both former stunt drivers and love to put vehicles through their paces. I don't advocate just anyone driving like we do on a test drive, but pushing a car to its limits is just about mandatory to know what you're really getting.
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