Recalls


CampaignManufacturerManufacturing dateType# of units affectedDate Owner notified MfgRecall Initiated byManufacturers of recalled vehicles/productsReport Recieved DateRecord Creation DateRegulation Part NumberFMVSS Number
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - DELIVERY
04V090000GENERAL MOTORS CORP.from 03/01/1997 to 08/31/1998V (Vehicle)91087306/30/2004ODIGENERAL MOTORS CORP.02/24/200403/01/2004
Defect SummaryOn certain passenger vehicles equipped with 3800 v6 (l36) engines and certain delphi fuel pressure regulators, the regulators have a much higher than usual rate of fuel leaks. a leak can allow fuel to enter the intake manifold through a vacuum line. if the engine does not start when cranked, the fuel from the leaking regulator and a mistimed spark can cause a backfire.
Consequence SummaryThe backfire can rupture the intake manifold. the rupture of the intake manifold can displace a fuel line, pulling an injector out of place, and causing a fuel leak and possible fire.
Corrective SummaryDealers will install new fuel pressure regulators with improved diaphragms. the recall will be conducted in phased mailings. phase 1 began on june 30, 2004, and phase 2 began on september 30, 2004. owners should contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, oldsmobile at 1-800-630-6537, or pontiac at 1-800-620-7668.
NotesGm recall no. 03054b.see campaign 03v-473 for additional units.customers can also contact the national highway traffic safety administration

Investigations


NHTSA IDManufacturerDate openDate closeSubjectRecall campaign
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
EA02030GENERAL MOTORS CORP.10/22/200203/09/2004ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES03V473000
 Ea02-030 is closed with gmea02-030 is closed with gm
EA02030GENERAL MOTORS CORP.10/22/200203/09/2004ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES04V090000
 Ea02-030 is closed with gmea02-030 is closed with gm
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - DELIVERY
EA02030GENERAL MOTORS CORP.10/22/200203/09/2004ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES03V473000
 Ea02-030 is closed with gmea02-030 is closed with gm
EA02030GENERAL MOTORS CORP.10/22/200203/09/2004ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES04V090000
 Ea02-030 is closed with gmea02-030 is closed with gm
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - DELIVERY - HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS
EA02030GENERAL MOTORS CORP.10/22/200203/09/2004ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES03V473000
 Ea02-030 is closed with gmea02-030 is closed with gm
EA02030GENERAL MOTORS CORP.10/22/200203/09/2004ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES04V090000
 Ea02-030 is closed with gmea02-030 is closed with gm

Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
10/01/20021
 Consumer's vehicle was included in recall 04v09000. he was told that the recall would be taken care off. consumer's vehicle blew up approximately two to three years ago. he received a recall letter days ago, and was told that the work should have been done 2 or 3 years ago. contacted pontiac, and was told that the plenum was the defective part on the vehicle. which had nothing to do with the fuel pressure regulator. however, his claim was denied. *ak
100000109/23/2002
 The engine exploded upon starting. the vehicle was towed to the dealer. the dealer told the consumer there was a recall on the park avenue which had the same engine as the bonneville, but there was no recall for the bonneville. please describe further. *jb
01/14/20021
 Consumer stated the upper manifold and gasket had to be replaced.*jb
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - CARBURETOR SYSTEM
11/27/2002
 Consumer states that while driving the vehicle and no warning the intake manifold blew causing the vehicle to be non drivable. dealer notified. ph
11/18/2002105/01/2098
 Intake manifold failures are a known problem at gm, and nothing is being done about it. my wife was driving home in rush hour traffic, at a speed of apx. 65 mph, on a four lane highway, in the center lane when the failure occurred. the intake manifold failure causes the engine to stop, and loss of steering and braking then occurres. as she proceeded to try to get the car off of the highway, several cars skidded to stop as the car slowly made it's way off of the highway. it had to be towed to the dealer for repair. i have been informed that general motors is aware of these intake manifolds failing, and that it is a known design defect. they see a lot of 3.8 engines with this problem, and are doing nothing about fixing it for the consumer. my repair cost me a little over a thousand dollars. a lot of times, the entire engine has to be replaced because it is damaged by the catastrophic events that take place when the intake manifolds fail. we are very lucky that she was able to get the car off of the highway, despite the fact that several cars locked up their brakes to avoid collision with this disabled vehicle. we purchased the car new, and maintain it more than is required by the manufacturer. this intake manifold defect should have been investigated a long time ago, as i have traced owners of these vehicles having this problem since 1996, and possibly before. if nothing is done, then surely deaths will occur due to the series of catastrophic events that will occur due to this defective intake manifold, including loss of engine power, steering and braking. dt
07/12/2002101/01/2099
 Engine would not run due to coolant in cylinder/s, cost to replace plastic intake manifold apx. $900.00 the term degrade as used by gm should be defective as by all experience, an intake manifold has no moving parts to wear and the car was equipped with coolant which does not need replacingg until 150,000 miles or five years. there is no maintenace that any owner can do to prevent this from happening. if it happens when in traffic and the engine stopped, there will be serious safety problem. gm does not want to take responsibility for a defect or design problem. *ak
07/12/20021
 Upper intake manifold is leaking coolant onto engine while driving. manufacturer was notified. *ak dealer replaced the upper intake manifold due to it being warped where it joined the throttle body. *slc
01/12/2001202/01/2099
 The plastic intake manifold has gotten a hole in it 2 times now. the first time was at 83000 miles and resulted in needing a new engine. the new engine had 16000 miles on it and after driving 19000 miles the same thing happened again causeing us to replace the manifold, head gaskets, bolts and starter. it has cost over 2000.00 for the same defective plastic peice. the garage said to get rid of the car because it is just going to keep happening and there is no way of telling ahead of time that it is going to happen. we just paid the car off and cant take on new payments so that is not possible. so someone needs to get gm to fix their defect so we don't have to keep going through this. we contacted the gm customer assistance center and they would not acknowledge a defect or problem. we called the dealership and they said they had received a bullitin on it and said what to check but would not help with the cost either. neither were any help at all. but they were sorry we were having difficulty what a big help.*ak
06/12/2002
 Antifreeze leaked from vehicle, dealer determined that plastic intake manifold melted, causing antifreeze to leak into engine. engine needed to be replaced.*ak
01/09/20011
 Intake manifold blew up and fire started in engine. claim number 40-2468-798. *yh
10/27/2001108/01/2000
 It would seem that an intake manifold leak so sudden & severe that it kills the engine at speed could potentially cause a person to loose control of the car. no advance warning, other than starting to run rough, then filling the engine so full of coolant that it killed the motor & locked it up, preventing the starter from cranking the engine over.*ak
09/23/2001101/04/1999
 While traveling at highway speeds engine check light came on, and temperature gauge went to high. consumer drove car to a near by mechanic, and they poured antifreeze into engine compartment to cool vehicle down. *ak consumer stated, while he started the engine, white smoke poured from the exhaust, towed the vehicle to the dealer, dealer replaced engine but while testing the engine, the same problem appeared, dealer aware of the service bulletin, the upper intake manifold was replaced, which caused the problem. *yd
05/14/2001106/01/1998
 Upper intake plentum failed, causing coolant to leak internally into the engine, this caused some cylinders to shut down and the car to run rough. when i contacted the dealer, i was informed that this was happening to this vehicle at various mileages. i was also told that part of this assembly was made of plastic rather than cast metal and this could be cause for failure due to exposure to high tempuratures. i was lucky that i was not far away from home when this engine failure occurred. *ak
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - DELIVERY
12/20/2007154000112/01/2007
 Tl*the contact owns a 1998 pontiac bonneville. when the engine was turned off, fluid leaked onto the ground from beneath the engine compartment. the vehicle was not inspected by a dealer or a mechanic. there were no warning indicators prior to the failure. the manufacturer stated that the vin was not included in nhtsa campaign id number 04v090000 (fuel system, gasoline:delivery). the failure mileage was 154,000 and current mileage was 154,735. updated
08/27/20043
 1998 pontiac bonneville poor production manifold/gaskets. customer states that the manifold/gaskets and dex. cool were in poor production on her vehicle. *kb the upper intake manifold needed to be replaced. the thermostat and gasket had coolant in them. the mass air flow sensor was bad. metal fragments were found in the oil which was coming from, the rod bearing that failed due to the vehicle over heating and coolant in the oil. the catalytic converter needed to be replaced because the vehicle was riding rough and the engine was shaking. the consumer stated there was a recall on the vehicle to prevent the manifold from cracking. after the recall was performed in july 2004, the manifold cracked one month later. the consumer stated ever since the recall was performed she has engine problems. the consumer stated when the upper intake manifold was replaced in august 2004 the lower manifold should have been replaced as well to prevent future damage, however since it was not replaced, stop leak pellets mixed with the dex-cool and the lower intake manifold leaked.
07/18/200547000210/05/1999
 Dt: contact states the intake manifold was leaking into cylinders, causing engine to lock, damaging starter and spark plugs. removed and replaced for the second time on 6-17-05 at a cost of $900.00: the upper intake manifold and gasket, replaced spark plugs due to a recall #04v09000 fuel system/ gasoline delivery. she was refunded money by pontiac. now she was requesting money back fot the second time. also, received an investigation# peo2050; concerning engine, but she has not received a recall letter . *ak
01/01/20041
 'recall campaign' concerning 19998 pontiac bonneville fuel pressure regulator. *bf the consumer had the fuel pressure regulator replaced prior to the recall being issued because the engine caught on fire. the consumer submitted the request for reimbursement, however he has not received anything from the manufacturer stating what the decision was. the consumer has since donated the vehicle. *jb
10/01/20035
 Consumer disappointed with reimbursement for 1998 pontiac bonneville. the fuel pressure regulator was replaced. *bf recall campaign: 04v090000. the recall is related to the fuel pressure regulator leak. the temperature gauge was fluctuating while the vehicle was being driven. the check engine light did not come on. the consumer turned the engine off and allowed it to cool off. the consumer restarted the vehicle and heard a loud back fire with a loud bang. the vehicle did not restart. the consumer smelled fuel shortly after. the vehicle was towed to a nearby dealer. the intake plenum and the intake plenum gasket needed to be replaced. the thermostat blew out again. the consumer stated that he feels that the failures are a result of the recall issue therefore the reimbursement check was not sufficient. the consumer stated that the brakes had a ticking noise. *tc
01/01/19011
 Intake manifold and fuel pressure regulator failure. *bf the recalled component failed prior to notification. the consuemr paid to have the vehicle repaired. after receiving the recall the consumer requested reimbursement but was only offered a partial refund. *nm
10/01/20041
 Intake manifold problems. *bf there was an egr passage through the intake manifold. over time, hot gases from the egr system passed burned a hole through the passage way walls into the surrounding water jacket. recall# 04v090000. *sc *jb
06/16/200348777010/20/1998
 1998 pontiac bonneville. explosion under hood. $900.00 damage. summer 2004 we received a recall notice. if already occurred, send bills for reimbursement. we received a check for only $82! general motors is at fault for a defective part. yet they only paid for the part, not the damage it caused.*jb
12/01/20032
 The consumer was not satisfied with the amount of the reimbursement he received from the manufacturer. *nm the consumer experienced problems with the vehicle starting prior to receiving the recall. the manufacturer stated they only reimbursed the consumer the amount that pertained to the recall. out of 834.60 for repairs the consumer received 97.92. recall#04v090000. *jb
07/07/2004980001
 Consumer heard a loud bang while driving on the highway. he proceeded off the highway, opened the hood of the vehicle, and fire started in the engine compartment, which engulfed into flames. within seconds consumer called the fire department, who indicated that the fire started near the engine block. the fire occurred due to the defect described in the fuel pressure regulator, recall 04v090000. but after the factory representative inspected the vehicle he claimed that the fire was not caused by the defect. a fire report was filed. *ak
06/22/2001634302
 Request for reimbursement for intake manifold that ruptured twice. *mr fuel leaked into the plastic intake manifold. *sc there was a recall regarding the issue. recall#04v090000. *jb
03/12/2003150002010/05/2000
 General motors recall program denial of payment for recall item repaired nd paid for at a general motors pontiac dealership. second recall notice recieved on my 1998 pontiac bonneville, nhtsa id# 04v090000, compontent is the fuel system, gasoline delivery. my 1998 bonneville was at the dealership many times and over a period of 2 years until the problem was resolved. rental vehicles, costly not-needed repairs were done in an effort to find the problem, down time, etc. payment from general motors requested providing all items requested, original receipts, signed forms and the reason given for the denial was that the vechicle identification number was not part of the recall. general motors mailed me the recall forms. my car did have the problem related to the recall.*ak
03/06/20022200010/05/2000
 1998 pontiac bonneville purchased with 214 miles on 10-05-2000 from powel watson motors in laredo, texas. the vehicle had problems from nov. 2000 to the repair date in 2002. a seperate dealership (tindall chev/pontiac in dilley, texas) was finally able to repair the problems with the fuel regulator. this recall item has be denied from pontiac. the dealership billed me $1,024.00 for repairs not including rental fees for the loaner car. i feel that pontiac should honor the reall and return my money to me due to the faulty delphi fuel pressure regulator.
09/01/200460789111/13/2003
 When driving at an undetermined speed, the check engine light appeared on the dashboard, then the vehicle stalled. consumer had the vehicle towed to the dealership and the mechanic determined that the fuel pressure failed. *ak the radiator cap was replaced. while in motion, about 2 miles at 30 mph, the check engine light had come on. the vehicle was returned to the mechanic. the next day the vehicle would not start. the dealer found that fuel leaked and ruptured the manifold. recall#04v090000. the consumer was told that the recall was not in reference to her vehicle. *sc *jb the consumer sent in a thank you note after recieving her recall notice. *tc
01/28/2004645002
 Repeated stalling in traffic. typically occurred approximately two minutes after start-up. during one cold start the engine miss-fired and back pressure popped off the brake vacuum line, causing loss of brakes. was diagnosed first time as mass air flow sensor. problem reoccurred, diagnosed as fuel pressure regulator. shortly after, flooding and sparkplug fouling occured due to damaged intake manifold leaking coolant into cylinders. while two of the components are the same as recall campain 04v090000, and gm recall 03054b, gm says this vin (1g2hx52k5wh211977) is not included. *ak
07/16/2002101/01/2098
 Fuel line broke, and started leaking ,could have started fire.*ak
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM
12/19/200349170708/07/2003
 Consumer bought the bonneville in august, since then it has been in repair shop 7 times. the first four times were for transmission failure. they replaced the pressure control valve and throttle body. the remaining visits were for 4 fuel injection system failures, injector coil failures melted 4 spark plug wires. also, water pump started leaking. *ak
11/29/2000311/01/2000
 Car would stall hard to start ground problem blamed for poor gas pressure to carb, also could of been problem that failed the starter, engine lite would go on then off, door locks would not work. problem was intermitten until the last time when the ground problem was found. major expense to me not happy it took this long to find problem. as of today car seems to be ok
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - STORAGE - TANK ASSEMBLY
02/07/200006/30/1998
 Fuel guage indicator level misreads the amount of fuel in the vehicle. dealer has inspected vehicle and corrected it, but, the problem still exists.
FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER
05/08/200475600103/03/2004
 Vehicle was operating under normal conditions, vehicle was purchased used. two blocks from my destination, the car was running rough, almost like it was sputtering. i parked the car in the hopes it would start,the backfire that i never heard, not only broke the nose off the starter, blew a hole in the intake manifold and filled the engine with antifreeze. luckily for me i had shut the car off before any major damage had been done to the engine. i had the car towed back to the dealer i had purchased the vehicle from. monday came and i then went to the dealer to have them fix this vehicle i had just purchased only 3 months prior, they looked at it and gave me a $700 estimate, knowing full well that this is a defect with the vehicle, but would not provide me with temporary transportation while waiting for the repars to be done. i asked that they put the old parts that had been replaced into the trunk for further investigation by me. have done research on this on the internet only to find this a more common problem with this vehicle than had been imagined. why must someone die before something is done about this defect with this vehicle???*ak
FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER - FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM
07/22/200461513205/31/2002
 Had tune-up and regulators changed (based on recall) on 7/19/04. then on 7/22/04 smoke emitting from exhaust and then car would not start. car towed and repaired (manifold cracked). on 7/26/04 car taken from shop, 2 hrs later car would not start again. this time claimed starter was the problem. consequences: over $1,500 in repairs.
FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER - STORAGE - TANK ASSEMBLY - PRESSURE RELIEF DEVICES
09/01/20041
 Consumer received nhtsa recall 04v090000 regarding fuel pressure regulator failure. after having the fuel pressure regulator replaced vehicle failed to start. also, while driving vehicle stalled. *ak