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2002 Pontiac Sunfire

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2002 Pontiac Sunfire do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 77.

Counts are not adjusted for sales, age, mileage exposure or reporting. A lower count does not establish that a car is problem-free.

About this comparison →

Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗ Model-level counts do not show whether a particular VIN is affected or repaired.

Inspection summary

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales, mileage exposure and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

59 reports with mileage · 23 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Electrical System. Review the 24 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 15 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

8 crash reports3 fire reports7 injury reports

Fuel System, Other complaints

1 reports
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86,000 miles · Nov 30, 2007
Electrical SystemFuel System, OtherFire

I HAVE HAD THE CAR SINCE AUGUST OF 2002, AND HAVE ONLY HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE REAR DEFROSTER. IT WOULD WORK WHEN IT WANTED TO. I WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS A FUSE, THAT WASN'T THE PROBLEM. I FIGURED THAT IT WAS A SHORT IN THE WIRING, BUT IT WASN'T COVERED BY THE WARRANTY, AND I DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO LET A MECHANIC GO PROBING AROUN…

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I HAVE HAD THE CAR SINCE AUGUST OF 2002, AND HAVE ONLY HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE REAR DEFROSTER. IT WOULD WORK WHEN IT WANTED TO. I WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS A FUSE, THAT WASN'T THE PROBLEM. I FIGURED THAT IT WAS A SHORT IN THE WIRING, BUT IT WASN'T COVERED BY THE WARRANTY, AND I DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO LET A MECHANIC GO PROBING AROUND MY CAR TO FIND OUT WHAT WAS WRONG. ON 11/28/07 WHILE I WAS DRIVING ONLY A FEW MILES, UPON STARTING THE CAR - SMOKE STARTED POURING OUT OF MY VENTS AND THE GAS GAUGE (WHICH THE TANK WAS FULL) STARTED DROPPING DOWN TO 'E'. TOOK CAR TO DEALERSHIP AND THEY SAY THAT THE TWO THINGS ARE UNRELATED. EXACT QUOTE FROM INVOICE ABOUT WHAT CAUSED THE SMOKE "BURNT SMELL ELECTRICAL, FOUND HARNESS TO REAR DEFOGGER ON LEFT LOWER KICK PANEL MELTED REPLACED CONNECTOR WITH BUTT CONNECTORS". I TOLD THE DEALERSHIP ABOUT THE GAS GAUGE AND THAT IT HAPPENED AT THE EXACT SAME TIME THAT THE SMOKE STARTED COMING OUT OF THE VENT, AND THE INVOICE ABOUT THAT SAYS "NEEDS SENDING UNIT IN TANK ORDERED PARTS 200 PARTS 240 LABOR". MAKING THE PRICE COME TO AROUND 440.00 TO FIX THE GAS GAUGE! I CALLED AROUND AND FOUND A MECHANIC THAT CHARGED ME $300.00, ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT THE SENDING UNIT WASN'T DEFECTIVE! WHEN THE HARNESS TO THE REAR DEFOGGER MELTED - IT MELTED OUT THE CLUSTER FOR THE FUEL GAUGE. I SPENT $300.00 FOR NOTHING, AND I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH I WILL HAVE TO PAY TO GET THE DASHBOARD CLUSTER FIXED. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10210434

Recall campaigns

0

No recalls in this snapshot.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

Defect investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.

An investigation is not a finding of a defect, and closure does not prove a vehicle is problem-free.