2002 Pontiac Grand Am

ON 9/1/08, I WAS DRIVING NORTH ON 275 FROM TAMPA, APPROXIMATELY 50 MILES, WHEN I HEARD A THUMPING NOISE AND PULLED IMMEDIATELY TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. UPON EXAMINATION, I FOUND THAT THE TREAD OF THE TIRE HAD PEELED OFF AND DID A LOT OF DAMAGE TO MY CAR, LEFT FRONT. CALLED AAA TO PUT ON THE SPARE ("DONUT") AND DROVE SLOWLY TO DUNEDIN, FLORIDA, FOR MY WORK WEEK. CALLED STATE FARM AND WAS ADVISED TO TAKE CARE TO GARAGE, COVERED UNDER COMPREHENSIVE COVERAGE, LESS $250 DEDUCTIBLE.. DUNEDIN GARAGE REPLACED FRONT LEFT FENDER AND REPAIRED DAMAGE TO FRONT BUMPER AND FRONT LEFT DOOR. HAD TO REPLACE TWO FRONT TIRES, WHICH I HAD TO PAY FOR. RENTAL CAR DURING ONE WEEK REPAIR WAS 80% PAID BY STATE FARM STATE FARM PICKED UP THE DAMAGED TIRE FROM DUNEDIN GARAGE. *TR

BOUGHT THE CAR IN 03 HAD 30000 MILES ON IT. RAN GREAT, LOVED THE POWER... THEN ABOUT 6 MONTHS LATER(36,000) IT STARTED.. FIRST WAS THE BRAKE PADS, REPLACED THOSE, FOUND OUT THAT THE PADS HAD BEEN INSTALLED INCORRECTLY, THUS WORE THE ROTORS. REPLACED THE ROTORS. HEARD THE CLICKING SOUND FROM UNDER THE DASH, TOOK CAR TO ELECTRICIAN, REPLACED THE RELAY.... 1 YEAR LATER, HEARD GRINDING FROM FRONT WHEELS, AGAIN.... FOUND OUT THE CALIPERS WERE STUCK AT FULL BRAKE, SO THE PADS, ROTORS AND CALIPERS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. HAD THE CAR STALL AS IF IT WERE OUT OF GAS.... COULD NOT RESTART, HAD TO LEAVE UNTIL MORNING(IT WAS 3:00 AM AT THE TIME), CAR RESTARTED JUST FINE IN MORNING, STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT WAS ALL ABOUT. NOW RADIO ANTENNA WENT OUT, CD PLAYER SKIPS LIKE I AM RUNNING OVER SPEED BUMPS ALL THE TIME. ALSO BACK SPEAKERS WENT OUT.. INVESTIGATED AND FOUND THAT THE METAL ON THE SPEAKERS WAS INSTALLED TOUCHING THE FRAME IN THE BACK WINDOW, CAUSING THEM TO SHORT OUT... NOW CAR IS SURGING AT NORMAL SPEEDS, SUSPECT BAD FUEL PUMP.. AND ONCE AGAIN THE LICKING IS BACK AGAIN. GM HAS PAID $0 FOR REPAIRS. THEY SAY IT IS NOT THEIR FAULT... FUNNY, I DID NOT INSTALL THESE THINGS AND THEY ARE APPARENTLY PROBLEMS THAT GM HAS BEEN HAVING. I LOVE(RATHER LOVED) GM. I HAVE ALWAYS KNOWN THEM TO BE RELIABLE AND STURDY. THIS CAR HAS TAUGHT ME OTHERWISE. I CAN NOW SEE THE DIRECTION THAT GM IS GOING AND I WILL NEVER BUY A GM VEHICLE AGAIN. IF ANYONE HAS ANY OTHER PROBLEMS WITH THEIR CARS THEY CAN NOT FIGURE OUT, LET ME KNOW. I HAVE BEEN THROUGH THIS CAR ABOUT A 100 TIMES AND KNOW WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR. HOPING GM WAKES UP AND MAKES QUALITY CARS AGAIN. *JB

I BOUGHT THIS CAR IN NOVEMBER 2003, IN APRIL OF 2004 I STARTED TO HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THE BRAKE MAKING NOISES. THE CAR WENT INTO THE SHOP AND THEY REPLACED THE DRIVER SIDE CALIPER AND REPLACED FRONT BRAKE PADS. IN JUNE OF 2004 THE CAR WENT BACK IN FOR THE SAME BRAKE NOISE THE SHOP RESURFACED MY ROTORS AND REPLACED A MISSING BRAKE CLIP. IN JULY THE CAR WENT BACK INTO THE SHOP FOR THE SAME BRAKE NOISE AGAIN, THE SHOP REPLACES THE BRAKE PADS AGAIN AND RESURFACED THE ROTORS AGAIN. IT IS NOW OCTOBER AND THE NOISE IS STILL THERE! IN JULY 2004 THE CAR WENT BACK INTO THE SHOP FOR A KNOCKING NOISE COMING FROM THE FRONT END. THE STRUT MOUNTS WERE REPLACED. AGAIN IN JULY THE CAR WENT BACK IN FOR THE SAME FRONT END NOISE. THE SHOP REPLACED THE STEERING RACK WHICH DID NOT FIX THE PROBLEM SO THEY PUT THE OLD ONE BACK IN. THEY THEN REPLACED THE RIGHT FRONT STRUT AND LOWER CONTROL ARM. THE NOISE WAS NOT FIXED. IN OCTOBER THEY REPLACED THE STABILIZER SHAFT ISOLATORS AND ALSO REPLACED THE TWO FRONT TIRES DUE TO A BULLETIN. ALSO IN OCTOBER THEY LUBED ALL FRONT END PARTS. WITH ALL THE PROBLEMS I DECIDED TO CALL TO CALL GM THEMSELVES, SADLY NOT MUCH HAS BEEN DONE THOUGH! *NM

GOODYEAR AND PONTIAC HAVE HAD ISSUES WITH TIRES THAT WERE INSTALLED ON THE GRAND AM GT SINCE 1999. THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE RAIN GROVE THAT CUASES THE TIRES TO SLOWLY BECOME DEFECTIVE BY CAUSING A RUBBING SITUATION. NO RECALL ISSUED AND WILL ONLY REPLACE TWO FRONT TIRES SINCE THE ISSUE STARTS THERE. WILL ONLY REPLACE OTHER TWO DEFECTIVE TIRES IF THEY GET ROTATED AND THIS HAPPENS UNDER WARRANTY.*AK

ISSUE CONCERNS TSB 02-03-10-003. THE VEHICLE IS 2002 PONTIAC GRAND AM GT WITH ALUMINUM ALLOY WHEELS AND 16 INCH EAGLE RSA TIRES. THE VEHICLE HAS 41,000 MILES AND IS NOT UNDER WARRANTY. PRIOR TO OCT. 3 2003 - A SCRUNCHING AND GRINDING NOISE IN THE FRONT PART OF THE VEHICLE THAT SOUNDS LIKE A WHEEL BEARING OR BRAKE ASSEMBLY WENT BAD. DECIDED THAT THE PROBLEM WAS BAD ENOUGH TO TAKE TO LOCAL DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP DETERMINED THAT CAUSE WAS COMBINATION OF THE STOCK ALUMINUM WHEEL AND THE STOCK GOODYEAR RSA TIRE DESCRIBED IN TSB 02-03-10-003 AND THAT THEY WERE UNABLE TO REPAIR THE PROBLEM WITHOUT REPLACING THE TIRES. THE DECISION WAS IF I WANTED THE PROBLEM FIXED, I HAVE TO PAY FOR 4 NEW TIRES. I BROUGHT 3 ISSUES TO THE ATTENTION OF THE DEALER: 1. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE BECAUSE ANY OTHER MECHANICAL FAILURES OF A SIMILAR SOUND WILL NOT BE HEARD OVER THE CURRENT SOUND AND THEREFORE BE LEFT UNCHECKED UNTIL A TIME WHEN THE PART COULD FAIL CATASTROPHICALLY. 2. IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE FOR THE REASON THAT UNDER PRESSURE OR HEAT DEVIATING FROM THE NORM AS A RESULT OF THE TIRE AND RIM RUBBING IN SUCH A WAY TO CAUSE THE SOUND. 3. IT WOULD BE VERY DIFFICULT TO RESELL A VEHICLE THAT WAS UNSAFE. FOR THESE THREE REASONS I REQUESTED THAT THE DEALERSHIP PAY FOR THE REPAIRS. THEY SAID THAT THEY DID NOT HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE THAT DECISION AND THAT I SHOULD CONTACT THE MANUFACTURER. OCT. 3 2003 I CONTACTED PONTIAC CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE AND SPOKE TO MERRILL HAMMOND CONCERNING THE PROBLEM. SHE SAID THAT PONTIACS POSITION IS THAT THE CAR IS OPERATING WITHIN NORMAL AND ACCEPTABLE PARAMETERS AND DID NOT HAVE TO PAY FOR THE REPAIR SINCE IT WAS NOT A SAFETY RECALL. TOLD THAT IF I HAD BROUGHT THE CAR IN UNDER WARRANTY, NEW TIRES WOULD HAVE BEEN PUT ON THE CAR BY THE MANUFACTURER. SHE SUGGESTED I CONTACT THE NHTSA IF I WAS UNHAPPY WITH THE SAFETY ISSUES CONCERNING TSB. I FEEL THE CAR IS UNSAFE AND THAT A RECALL SHOULD BE ISSUED FOR THE TIRE COMBINATION STATED IN THE TSB. *LA

2002 PONTIAC GRANDAM GT-1 HAS CONTINUOUS GRINDING, RUBBING, AND POPPING SOUNDS FROM THE FRONT STEERING. ALSO HAS UNCONTROLED POWER STEERING WHERE THE CAR COULD GO OFF THE ROAD. DEALERSHIPS CAN OR WILL NOT TRY TO FIND THESE SERIOUS DEFECTS, THEY SAY THAT IT IS THE TIRES THAT IS CAUSING THESE DEFECTS.THIS IS THE SECOND NEW GT-1 WITHIN THE PAST THREE YEARS WITH THE SAME DEFECTS THAT I HAVE OWNED.