2001 Pontiac Grand Am SE1 from North America - Comments

Major Problems: Lower Intake Manifold Gasket went at 75000.

Moderate Problems: Cracked coil pack at 60000. Power steering pump gave out at 80000; O2 sensor was faulty at 77000.

Minor Annoyances: Way too many. Faulty blinkers, anywhere from very rapid to none at all. Traction control light repeatedly going on and off during normal driving conditions. Stereo volume controls that don't actually adjust the volume; or worse get louder when you are trying to turn it down. Sub-par power window knobs, every single one is broken on one side of the knob if not both. Two broken coolant reservoir caps. It feels like there are more, but this is all that comes to mind.

There is good interior room for a car this size, and the 3.4L performed well for a car made in 2001. However, the seemingly never-ending issues since 60000 miles, has convinced me to never buy another GM product.

I own a 2001 Grand Am.

First of all, the broken coolant reservoir caps (also an incredibly minor problem) probably caused engine overheating which would not have done any harm if the car had not been allowed to overheat by continuing to drive it with low coolant. The overheating most likely caused the gasket failure and oxygen sensor failure. NOT the car's fault. Stopping before it overheated would have saved a lot of trouble and money. My best friend totally FRIED the engine in his sports car because a VERY MINOR leak in his coolant recovery hose caused the car to overheat and he drove it until the engine was totally ruined. The bill: $7000.00 (incidentally, it was a JAPANESE car).

The traction control light is SUPPOSED to come on when you accelerate quickly and lose traction. Mine comes on if I really get on it and smoke the tires.

The radio on nearly all GM cars have what is called SVC or "speed volume control. It is SUPPOSED To turn the volume up as you accelerate. Just turn the feature OFF and you won't have the problem!!

The power window control knobs are REALLY baffling!! They are little plastic flanges that stick up. How on Earth can you break them on "one side"?? I've examined the ones on my Grand Am and you'd have to exert an AWFUL LOT of pressure to break those things off, or hit them with a hammer.

I've love my Grand Am and have not had one single problem with mine.

Actually the power window buttons aren't too hard to break. It just requires a large hammer or twisting them with vice grips.

My responses follow.

Keep in mine I am not an ASE certified mechanic, but I would like to think I know a little bit about automobiles. Perhaps the wording was not specific enough in my original posting.

The reservoir caps was a minor problem, hence the reason I listed it under minor annoyances. The caps did not crack in the middle, or along the threads, both cracked between the cap and the section that actually thread into the reservoir. Internal pressure was never lost, until the caps broke in my hand as I tried to remove them. The caps were immediately replaced, the system was then bled, and pressure was restored. The car was driven 0 miles with cracked caps.

The lower internal manifold gasket failure was NOT a result of acracked reservoir cap, and not as you phrased the cars fault. It IS a known and largely discussed engineering fault of either GM or the company GM contracted to manufacture them. It is not solely a Grand Am issue, but a common issue in 3.1L and 3.4L GM engines available in many other vehicles. Goggle "3.4L LIM gaskets" and see how many hits you find. I never stated it overheated, so I'm not sure why you assumed it did. There are many other symptoms of LIM gasket failures, when you Google for it, you will find them. Incidentally, I spent 12 hours, changed the LIM gasket myself, and saved myself $1000 in labor costs. I don't get the O2 sensor logic so I am moving past that.

You said, “The traction control light is SUPPOSED to come on when you accelerate quickly and lose traction. Mine comes on if I really get on it and smoke the tires."

I said, "Traction control light repeatedly going on and off during normal driving conditions"

NORMAL driving condition, not hard acceleration, not ice, not rain, not fast turns. Straight line constant speed driving. I doubt I needed to reword my original posting. I understand the purpose of traction control. As an update, this problem has not arisen in a year.

I said, ”Stereo volume controls that don't actually adjust the volume; or worse get louder when you are trying to turn it down."

You said, "The radio on nearly all GM cars have what is called SVC or "speed volume control. It is SUPPOSED To turn the volume up as you accelerate. Just turn the feature OFF and you won't have the problem!!"

Again, I understand SVC and it's purpose. I will believe I choose bad wording. How about this? I can sit with the engine off and just listen to the radio, and if I turn the volume knob clockwise it will sometimes get softer, and if I turn the knob counter-clockwise, it will shoot up to full volume. This problem still exists.

One of you said, "They are little plastic flanges that stick up. How on Earth can you break them on "one side"?? " The other said, "Actually the power window buttons aren't too hard to break. It just requires a large hammer or twisting them with vice grips". I apologize for honestly not being descriptive enough. Where the power window "flanges" are mounted into the power window switch, they are connected by about 1mm wide plastics clasps that clamp onto 2mm diameter mounts. Either side of the clasps on the "flanges" of multiple windows have snapped. I hope that that clarifies.

I said, "Faulty blinkers, anywhere from very rapid to none at all." This was fixed under recall.

Thanks for the comments.

Don, t strain yourself. ignore him.