1996 Pontiac Grand Am SE review from North America
"Great car, nice looking, get what you pay for"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
When I bought this car:
Needed alternator.
Needed radiator.
Never had a working a/c in spite of recharge.
Power locks pushed down into door and not working.
Engine light on.
Ever since:
Whistles when you accelerate.
Hesitates on hills.
Engine light still on in spite of being looked at.
240000 km (150000 miles) :
Dead. First gear of transmission gone (drove it in third gear), but alternator died today and is no longer worth fixing.
General comments?
Overall?
Got what I paid for. Quite happy.
When you're dealing with a high mileage, 'disposable', cheaply made car you expect small problems. Thankfully, all I got was small problems.
I bought her for $950 and put far less than $1000 into it overall in the two years I've owned it.
My other disposable car, my Ford Taurus, is a dead '99 with lower mileage than this car and it sucked repair money in the -thousands- every year. Lost a tire when the front suspension snapped, was a recall, but we were never told about it before or after by the dealer until we asked around. We STILL paid for the tires. Bad news. The Grand Am is a gem by comparison.
Recommended reviews
| A fun car not worth the pain of upkeep |
|
| Fun Car, but you better be mechanically inclined |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Model year | 1996 |
| Year of manufacture | 1995 |
| First year of ownership | 2004 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2006 |
| Engine and transmission | V6 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 6 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 5 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 5 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 180000 kilometres |
| Most recent distance | 240000 kilometres |
| Previous car | Ford Taurus |
| Date of Entry | 4th June, 2006 |