Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||||
| PIC-5351A | 10/11/2011 | 10042292 | Pontiac: certain vehicles are exhibiting inoperative blower motor, except on high setting or drl's inoperative or headlamps inoperative rather high or low beams and the rear window defogger is inoperative. *pe | 12/05/2011 | |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION - MODULE | |||||
| 990604037 | 09/01/1999 | 608390 | Subject on on-board diagnostic (obd) system improvements. *mjs | 11/26/1999 | |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING | |||||
| 57 | 07/01/2003 | 10016464 | Wire harness may be stretched, or the pcs may not be oriented in the same position, after installing a service replacement valve body assembly. gm tech link. *tt | 09/13/2005 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||
| 01/09/2010 | 163000 | ||
| Turned heater on and headlights went off. not repaired yet | |||
| 09/14/2003 | 26000 | 1 | |
| Reimbursement for taking care of the problem before the defect was conducted. 1998 pontiac grand prix. *tr | |||
| 03/02/2007 | 80000 | 1 | |
| My car burned up due to wires under hood. *tr | |||
| 11/16/2008 | 129000 | 1 | |
| Drove to the store and home, parked my car and walked inside. within 5 minutes neighbors reported my car was on fire. fire dept. came and put it out. everything under the hood is burnt. i took the vehicle to the dealer in april for a recall repair, but it still caught fire. i have receipts. *tr | |||
| 02/14/2007 | 135000 | 1 | |
| Tl* - the contact owns a 1998 pontiac grand prix. while backing the vehicle out of the driveway it became stuck in the snow. the contact left the vehicle, and 20 minutes later he heard a loud noise and saw flames coming from the engine. the contact stated he did not leave the vehicle running. the fire department came and extinguished the fire. the fire was contained to the engine compartment. the vehicle was destroyed. the failure and current mileage were 135,000. *ak updated 04/12/07. *jb | |||
| 09/08/2006 | 118000 | 1 | 04/20/2002 |
| Drove 15 minutes and parked the car and went inside the doctor's office. within 10 minutes after shutting my car off engine compartment burst into flames. fire near front top of the engine. fire department deemed an electrical fire. car is a total loss within 15 minutes. *nm | |||
| 06/24/2006 | 94339 | 1 | 06/22/1998 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while at a gas station the vehicle caught on fire without warning. the fire department extinguished the fire and determined the fire was confined to the engine area. a report was filed by the fire department. the vehicle was deemed totaled and towed to an independent repair shop where it remains. the manufacturer has been alerted. *ak | |||
| 09/01/2004 | 1 | 09/18/1998 | |
| An electrical issue caused the vehicle to catch on fire. *jb *nm | |||
| 03/04/2004 | 87000 | 06/15/1999 | |
| Engine failed suddenly on i-55 near chicago at rush hour.i was able to pull off and get the car towed 160 miles to champaign. we were told of an electrical circuit failure by the dealer, who has always been helpful. the car has been regularly maintained but the dealer said such problems just happen. this suggests a design flaw. if we had not been able to pull over there would have been a multiple car accident and probably several fatalities. a part that controls such critical functions should have a warning signal and a backup. i contacted gm and had an extended email exchange but they were quite unresponsive. | |||
| 03/30/2004 | 68500 | 1 | 03/05/1998 |
| Vehicle stalled and would not start without warning on rainy night. vehicle had to be towed away. problem diagnosed as cracked fuel pump resistor located on frame rail. part replaced with kit relocating resistor from frame to under hood. extensive labor charges involved. | |||
| 01/14/2004 | 90000 | 1 | |
| Within seconds of parking the vehicle, the engine compartment caught of fire. the dealership indicated it was due to a short in the electrical system. *jb | |||
| 07/01/2003 | 69244 | 30 | 02/01/2001 |
| When shutting the car off the key gets stuck in the ignition. when i put the car in park if i don't hear a click, i know the key is going to be stuck in the ignition. i have to back up and down the driveway and pop the steering wheel up and down several times and then the key will come out. and if it chooses to not come out no matter what i do it locks the whole car up and the remote keyless entry will not work and it drains the battery. also the driver side window switch has shorted out causing a slight shock. i have had to replace the alternator, and have had problems with the traction control light coming on for no reason. passenger side headlight lens popped out and made the bulb burst. very costly to have replaced. i have called 2 pontiac dealers about the ignition and all the tell me is that it's going to run me around $800.00 to have a new ignition installed. and another $600.00 to have the wiring repaired or replaced for the window switch. the alternator was $500.00. head lamp was $75.00. and i have had to have 3 complete brake jobs done on the car in 2 years. *ak | |||
| 12/30/2002 | 12000 | ||
| The 1998 grand prix gt was sitting in the driveway, the vehicle had not been driven for over 24 hours , a fire started in the dash of the car | |||
| 04/01/2002 | 1 | ||
| Consumer states that when turning on the air conditioner the headlights and other lights in the vehicle have gone out. nlm | |||
| 07/14/1998 | |||
| While driving coming off an exit at 15 mph vehicle burst into flames. fire department indicated problem was electrical. *ak | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - ALTERNATOR/GENERATOR/REGULATOR | |||
| 10/23/2000 | 03/01/1998 | ||
| When crosing hwy 278 engine failed due to alternator. the car gave no warning that anything was wrong leaving car stranded in middle of highway.i was unable to move car out of oncoming traffic as the key could not be removed from ignition. nowhere in ownwers manual did it say that i needed ignition key to unlock gear shift column to move into nuetral from park. i was only able to move car after we tried to jump start car where ti allowed me to remove key from ignition and insert key into slot to shift car into neutral. this was a very dangerous intersection at 5:00 pm and could have resulted in serious injury had a highwy patrol officer not been at the scene. i feel that this is a very unsafe defect in the car design that needs repaired. | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - BATTERY | |||
| 07/18/2003 | 82307 | 1 | 03/12/2002 |
| Battery blew-up and started small fire after i noticed the positive termanal leeking as i diconected the battery it blew acid all over the car and myself causing a small fire after replacing the factery ac delco battery the transmision slips when switching from 2nd gear to 3rd gear.*ak | |||
| 07/16/2003 | 4 | 08/06/2003 | |
| The delco battery is either faulty or not properly secured and prone to leaking. we have had four batteries go bad in five years in this vehicle.*ak | |||
| 02/15/2003 | 27500 | 0 | 08/26/1998 |
| Defective ac delco batteries installed in new vehicles leak acid from the positive terminal (known problem to dealer service department) posing a possible explosion hazard in a confined space (under hood). leaks contribute to gases under hood and over time build up of corrosion on the terminal leading to arcing. discovered this while inspecting vehicle during routine preventive maintenance. ac delco and gm is unwilling to take responsibility for this product. *nlm | |||
| 03/29/2003 | 77701 | 1 | 08/20/1998 |
| Original equipment battery leaked with positive terminal post falling out. *nlm | |||
| 08/01/2002 | 1 | 08/01/2097 | |
| Battery leaks acid from postive terminal. *ak | |||
| 9 | 07/02/1998 | ||
| A check for transmission fluid leak, bolts loose on pan tighten and top off, pan and/or gasket transaxle oil replaced. popping noice when braking now crunching noise. brake pedal bushing noisey, blower motor noisey. r&r or replace pedal and/or bushing, brake, motor and/or fan. vehicle will not start and battery is leaking, due to cracking, replace. pass headlamp fills with water, improperly sealed. | |||
| 11/22/2000 | 1 | ||
| Battery replaced. *mjs | |||
| 09/10/1999 | 1 | 07/02/1998 | |
| The ac delco battery was cracked, leaking and smoking causing the vehicle not to start, the battery leak also damaged the paint under the hood. nlm | |||
| 03/17/1998 | 8 | 10/01/1997 | |
| The engine still having problems, battery leaking acid, power windos broke, etc. | |||
| 07/20/2000 | 1 | 01/01/1998 | |
| Positive terminal attachment base on original delco battery failed, causing a large acid leak into the rh engine compartment. failure gave no warning and looks to be due to metal fatigue. after failure, electrical systems were unresponsive and car would. *ak | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - FUSES AND CIRCUIT BREAKERS | |||
| Headlight covers have fallen off vehicle twice, exposing wires, and resulting in an electrical short. dealer has replaced headlight twice. please provide additional information. *ak | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION | |||
| 06/01/2002 | 1 | 03/01/2098 | |
| When this switch fails it causes numerous seemingly unrelated system failures in the car, making diagnosis difficult and time-consuming. the drl system loses power so that the headlights will not functiona at all in the daytime as gm intended and will go out periodically at night without warning unless turned on manually with the headlight switch. the hvac system generally will not function due to this failure; although occasionally it will work with the fan on high speed. the electric rear window defogger will not function at all due to this failure. all of these safety-related systems pull their power from this poorly designed and inadequately sized component. upon disassembly of the failed part i noticed that the (6) contacts inside this switch are woefully undersized for the current that is passing through the switch. specifically, the drl contact and the hvac contact are burnt and blackened, thus shutting off power to those systems. i repaired this myself at a cost of approximately $70 for the part only. i have spoken to others that have paid in excess of $400 for the repair. i believe that this requires attention by both the nhtsa and general motors to correct this problem before someone who is not an electrical engineer has a serious crash due to no lights at an inopportune time.*ak | |||
| 02/25/2002 | 2 | 01/01/1998 | |
| Car had complete power failure after making a turn either right or left. had no lights, ignition or power steering or brakes. was able to put car in neutral and restart engine. *ak | |||
| 01/12/2001 | 1 | 07/02/1998 | |
| Spark plugs cracked causing the check engine light to illuminate and the engine to run roughly. nlm | |||
| While traveling at any speed vehicle would stall without any indication. dealer has been notified. please provide further information.*ak | |||
| 10/22/1998 | 1 | ||
| Vehicle experienced failure of the recall component prior to notification resulting in additional repairs, consumer is having trouble obtaining refund for recall repairs that needed to be completed prior to notification. (spark plug wires) *mjs | |||
| 10/07/1998 | 10/18/1997 | ||
| Intermittent problem of vehicle failing to start/stalling while driving and not restarting. after a failure, vehicle will not restart for at least 30 minutes. when it does restart, vehicle acts normally. | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION - MODULE | |||
| 07/01/2003 | 69244 | 30 | 02/01/2001 |
| When shutting the car off the key gets stuck in the ignition. when i put the car in park if i don't hear a click, i know the key is going to be stuck in the ignition. i have to back up and down the driveway and pop the steering wheel up and down several times and then the key will come out. and if it chooses to not come out no matter what i do it locks the whole car up and the remote keyless entry will not work and it drains the battery. also the driver side window switch has shorted out causing a slight shock. i have had to replace the alternator, and have had problems with the traction control light coming on for no reason. passenger side headlight lens popped out and made the bulb burst. very costly to have replaced. i have called 2 pontiac dealers about the ignition and all the tell me is that it's going to run me around $800.00 to have a new ignition installed. and another $600.00 to have the wiring repaired or replaced for the window switch. the alternator was $500.00. head lamp was $75.00. and i have had to have 3 complete brake jobs done on the car in 2 years. *ak | |||
| 12/01/1998 | 1 | 08/18/1998 | |
| Computer is not resetting properly when ignition is on and engine not running, consumer has to press accelerator three times in 5 seconds to engage resetting, oil light illuminates due to failure. mjs | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION - SWITCH | |||
| 05/23/2005 | 3 | ||
| I own a 1998 grand am. due to a recall notice, i had my car shipped to detroit for service, since i am i n the service, guarding an embassy out of the states. my mother, wanda griffin, 19347 revere, took my car on monday, may 23, 2005 to ray laethem pontiac, inc., 17677 mack in detroit, michigan for service per instructions on the recall notice. the car ran beautifully for two days, but on thursday, may 26, the car would not start. she was told by ray laethem she would be responsible for towing the car, and if the part is defective she would have to bear the cost. i feel this is very unfair because if the part is defective, she would not have been put in this disposition. i am writing for clarity of your policy and to see if she could be reimbursed for cost of towing, since we live a considerable distance from the company. | |||
| 11/01/2003 | 2 | 07/07/2001 | |
| Ignition key occasionally (sometimes for few minutes,sometimes for days) gets stuck in the ignition lock in a slightly turned position. i've had this problem since 2002. one repair shop suggested that there may be a problem with shifter - brake pedal - ignition lock, but decided not to touch it. *la | |||
| 10/15/2003 | 2 | 04/26/2001 | |
| There are occasions when turning off the vehicle that the ignition will not turn to the off position, making it impossible to remove the key. *la | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING | |||
| 02/10/2005 | 106000 | 1 | |
| While driving at 25 mph and upon turning into a residential street smoke starting coming from underneath the driver's seat. upon existing the vehicle, the driver's seat was engulfed in flames. the fire department was contacted and extinguished the fire. there was a large burnt hole, the size of a basket ball in the center of seat. the fire reached the rear driver's side seat. a gm investigator, after inspection, indicated that an umbrella caused the fire. the umbrella was on the floor in the rear of the vehicle at the time of the fire, but had not burned, melted or scoured marks on it. *ak the motor wiring in the electric seat was found to be the cause of the fire. *sc *jb | |||
| 12/30/2003 | 115000 | 0 | 04/05/2000 |
| My 1998 pontiac grand prix gtp was parked and the engine started on fire and melted the entire engine compartment to the ground. *ak | |||
| 16000 | 1 | ||
| The keys had to be turned in the ignition twice, to start the vehicle. also the a/c, radio, and defroster button malfunctioned. the dealership indicated the ignition wiring was lose.*jb | |||
| 10/12/2000 | 1 | 09/01/1997 | |
| Wiring problem; lost complete power to battery and then 3 window motors simultaneously. *ak | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING - FRONT UNDERHOOD | |||
| 04/02/2007 | 120000 | 1 | 09/09/1998 |
| Tl* the contact owns a 1998 pontiac grand prix. the contact parked the vehicle in his garage after driving 12 miles at 30 mph under normal driving conditions. 15 minutes later he smelled smoke and realized that the vehicle was on fire. the vehicle was inspected by the insurance company and the fire department, and both stated that the fire was caused by an electrical source from under the hood. there were no injuries. the current and failure mileage was 120,000. *ak | |||
| 02/14/2007 | 132727 | 1 | 09/22/2004 |
| I went to the store, drove about 40 feet and got stuck in snow. realized i was bottomed out in snow when i opened my door. i didn't try to get unstuck. i shut off engine and went into house. several minutes later, i heard a noise and looked out and saw flames shooting from under hood. i immediately called 911 and fire department was there within 5 minutes and truck was there within 10. they immediately asked me if the car was left running at the time the fire started. i said,no, i was inside at least 20 minutes before i heard this noise and looked out. the engine and front end of car is a complete loss. cracked windshield, melted lower left hand corner of windshield and front of instrument panel. their were no flames that reached the inside thru the firewall. unfortunately i am not insured and wife and i are disabled, the car being our only source of transportation. throughout the websites i researched, i saw several dozen people with the same circumstances as i had with their grand prix gtp's. fireman said cause was unknown, but looks like it may have been electrical or maybe fuel related. *jb | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING - INTERIOR/UNDER DASH | |||
| 02/07/1999 | 1 | 06/12/1998 | |
| While driving one of the circuit board breakers on the instrument panel started smoking and melted the wires down in the dashboard. dealer determined problem caused by faulty i/p cluster. *ak *ml | |||
| 09/09/1998 | 4 | ||
| While attempting to pass another vehicle at 70 mph, the vehicle does not have the ability to down shift out of overdrive. this is caused by a problem in the programming of the electronic module. the vehicle's engine will now completely shut down after pulling away from a stop sign. | |||
| 05/26/1998 | 3 | ||
| When driving below 45mph the engine will totally die. vehicle will jerk so hard that the consumer is thrown foward. the tackometer will register 0-rpm. engine will die when in reverse. vehicle has been in shop april 27th computer was reprogramed. problem occurred again on may 11th. consumer was denied service, and again on may 26th. dealer is ordering a cluster module. manufacturer states that this should work since the tackometer was not the problem. vehicle is at the dealership at this time. consumer is being told that they do not know what the problem is. ronaldson pontiac chevroletdealership--913-294-5375, payola, kansas. *ak | |||