1991 Pontiac Sunbird LE from North America - Comments

Serpentine belt snapped

belt tensioner also replaced

severe body rott under doors

alternator replaced

radiator replaced

catalatic converter replaced

muffler replaced

entire brake system replaced including

drums, disks, rotors and all hardware

ignition system, coil replaced

various dents, scratches, and nicks

timing belt.

Car has serious reliability issues.

Car is slower then most others on the road.

What's the problem? Everything you mentioned here is normal wear & tear due to age & mileage. The car is 11 years old. You said the car is slow, you should have bought the V6 model.

I had bought my Pontiac Sunbird 91 model (2.0) with 105000 KM 1 year ago. My first problem was the annoying sound of its front brake pads striking probably against the brake lining everytime I gently stepped on the brake.However, this problem disappeared recently or about a year after its constant usage.

My second problem was the leak in the radiator which caused the substitution of more water than anti freeze. Since I came from tropical country, I was not aware that there must be 50/50 mixture of water and anti freeze. When temperature

dropped to -20, the car did not start because the water was frozen causing slipping off of its timing belt. Repaired including replacement of O2 sensor- $ 800.00.

Barely two months thereafter, when temperature dropped anew to -20, this car failed to start again. This time the head gasket at 118,858 km, was replaced. The cost of repair was more than $ 500.00. Now I have a problem with a signal light flasher which just stays the lights on instead of blinking. I also suspect that a boll joint or a tie rod end damage exists.

Compared to my previous Toyota Corolla 1300 XL 97 with 97000 Km, (the appearance is similar to Toyota Corolla 97 model in Canada) this car runs surprisingly slower although the piston displacement of its engine (2.0 litre) is more powerful.

I can say that Toyota is more durable because the previous owner had replaced some of its parts and spent more on this car at less than 97,000 KM. This pontiac sunbird has the same speed of my other car before, which was the very old Toyota Corona 1978 model with 889,000 Km on it when sold.