1993 Pontiac Grand Am SE review from North America

The entire time I have had this car I have street raced it, until I moved.

I purchased the car in 1998 for $4000 at an auction, I planned to spend near $8000, so I had extra money to put in to this car. During the first two years I spiced it up, even though the work I did it didn't really need. I rebuilt the engine, making modifications too long to list, but to give you an idea some of the things I did were: tweak the cam, replace the head with a more performance head, tweaked the valves and REPLACED THE COMPUTER, a major problem with GM. Because I had heard of frequent issues with certain parts I replaced the bearings (all 4), suspension, brakes, brake pads, brake calipers, and installed a more powerful alternater/batery setup for the stereo.

Then in 2000 it happened, an oil spot in the driveway. It turns out we over torqued the valve cover/crank case bolts causing a pressure/heat related problem. From December 2000 until October 2002 the car leaked about a quart every 1000 miles or so, the less it was turned on and off the less oil it would seep out of the top of the engine.

I am in the army and I was away from my baby for a while and decided to really open her up going south on I-95 in Georgia. I don't know how fast I was going the new computer removed the governor and the speedometer stops at 120 mph, but any way the car developed a vibrating in the rear of the car. The next day I had two flat rear tires that looked like, I don't know the semi tires you see on interstates, but wrapped arround my rims all warped with the cords sticking out. I don't know if that vibration caused three of the bolts to break from the valve cover/crank case or if it was the strain on the engine, but some cars got sprinkled with oil because it had none... at all.

So now it sits in South Carolina at the in laws, mostly because my wife thinks I'll kill myself in it, and I live now in New Mexico. But this Christmas it's on Savanna, I've saved up the money needed to repair it, and I'm getting my baby back.

One last thing NOW THIS IS DRIVING EXCITEMENT was the perfect catch phrase for Pontiac. they so need to go back. and I wouldn't just buy another car from this manufacturer I did buy a new 2002 Grand am for my wife and she loves it... I only like it...it's an automatic for crying out loud, come on now.

Like it love it can't wait to get back to it.