2002 Pontiac Montana from North America

Summary:

Piece of crap; will never buy again

Faults:

Alignment, tie bars?, water pump, thermostat, A/C system leaks, shocks and struts, heater core went out, head gasket is blown now, windshield wiper bars and arms replaced, hole in the exhaust.

General Comments:

This thing is a money pit. We have had it for maybe a year, and if it is not one thing, it's another. Never again will I buy a van from GM. I just found out last night after yet another over heating spell, that the head gasket is blown. Luckily I have a friend who's a mechanic, but it's still money I don't have right now :(

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 9th January, 2011

10th Jan 2011, 10:17

Why do people continually go out and buy high mileage cars, and then come on here and bash them when they break?

Do you have a complete comprehensive service history on this vehicle prior to you owning it? Do you know who drove it, and what they did to it before you acquired it? When you get a vehicle that has over 100K miles on it, it isn't going to be perfect. Unless you know exactly how it was driven, and what has been done to it previously, then you have no basis to claim it is automatically the car manufacturer's fault in making a poor quality vehicle.

What if they changed the oil every 15K miles or whenever they got around to it? What if they never did any servicing to this vehicle like changing out the coolant every 2 years. There are many factors to consider. I am not saying the car is without fault, but many of the issues you have could be attributed to poor maintenance, and the type of driving it was subjected to.

11th Jan 2011, 18:03

I agree with the previous poster, it was 8 years old when you claim to have purchased it. Cars of today are high tech, and if not maintained properly, will have problems and potentially expensive repair bills. You should know the golden rule; after 5 years and the warranty's up, everything starts to let go, that's why I buy new during clearout events; you get a new car at a great price,and no repair bills for a while!!!

In reply to 10th Jan 2011, 10:17

22nd Jan 2015, 15:50

Very true comment.

2002 Pontiac Montana from North America

Summary:

Money Pit

Faults:

AC compressor defective at less than 100,000 kms (no warranty).

Drivers window binds while raising (service waxed the window for repair). It still binds.

No radio/clock display at about 2 years old (not a bulb replacement).

Constant brake lights and tail lights failure (melting base).

Oil pan gasket leaking (remove A frame to repair).

Intake gasket at 120,000 kms.

Transmission failure at 150,000 kms.

Head gasket at 160,000 kms.

Fuel gauge quit working at 4 years old.

On my 3rd starter.

Several small non-stop problems.

Motor now makes a very noisy clicking sound (going to the scrap yard).

General Comments:

If you have lots of money it is a nice van to drive when it's working.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 15th June, 2010

25th Dec 2010, 23:23

It sounds like we may have both owned the same Montana! This is why I will never own another GM product in my lifetime!

2002 Pontiac Montana 3.8 from North America

Summary:

Overall very happy with it!

Faults:

Front windshield wiper blades come loose & misalign. The heater & air conditioner don't work very well.

Rear window motor won't open & close all the time.

General Comments:

Very happy with the comfortable ride it provides.

Great camping vehicle!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 11th May, 2009

2002 Pontiac Montana AWD V6 from North America

Summary:

I sold my Nissan for this???

Faults:

What has not gone wrong with this car? Let's see..

Intake gasket blew, upper engine noise causing me to drop a "new" engine w/60,000 miles in to replace it.

Three of the 4 wheel bearings were shot.

Brakes all around.

Tailpipe fell off and needed fixed.

Trans lost OD and needed overhauled.

Rear end howels loudly when you turn sharp.

Driver's window gets stuck in the track sometimes.

Windshield wipers needed gear assy. replaced because they started "parking" up instead of down.

And last but far from least, the AC that worked fine when I bought it 6 months and all of 500 miles ago just quit blowing cold... nice!!!

General Comments:

WORST CAR I EVER BOUGHT!!! RUN, DON'T WALK AWAY FROM THE MONTANA IF YOU THINKING OF BUYING ONE!!!

I've owned many a cars, most with more than 200K miles, and this is by far the worst. I should have looked up the reviews before I bought it.

We were pretty set on a AWD minivan since we are moving to Alaska, so our options were kind of limited. I should have bought the Caravan, at least then I would only have to worry about possibly replacing the trans. instead of the whole car piece by piece.

The worst part is every time I take it in it's the same story... Intake gasket?? Don't worry they all go out due to the corrosive antifreeze GM uses. No over drive??? Don't feel bad, it happens to all these cars sometimes as early as 60K miles... I just fixed 3 this week.

GM engineers were too ignorant to harden the spline on the 4th gear clutch hub assy, so they just wear out. They should have been recalled...

Oh, the wipers won't go down?? Happens to them all, $200-$1000 to repair the WIPERS alone!!!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 25th April, 2009

25th Apr 2009, 08:58

You bought a car with 198,000 miles that you do not know the history of. I am not trying to be sarcastic, but what were you expecting?