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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.

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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

Steering complaints

11 reports
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8,500 miles · Jan 11, 2003
SteeringCrashInjury

MY DAUGHTER WAS ON HER WAY TO COLLEGE AND SHE WAS GOING AROUND A CURVE AND THE STEERING OF HER 2002 PONTIAC SUNFIRE LOCKED UP AND SHE COULD NOT STEER. DUE TO THIS SHE HIT A TELEPHONE POLE AND THE CAR WAS TURNED SIDEWAYS AND HIT A TREE THEN WENT OVER A EMBANKMENT. THE DAMAGE IS ALL TO THE REAR OF THE CAR. I HAVE CALLED PONTIAC…

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MY DAUGHTER WAS ON HER WAY TO COLLEGE AND SHE WAS GOING AROUND A CURVE AND THE STEERING OF HER 2002 PONTIAC SUNFIRE LOCKED UP AND SHE COULD NOT STEER. DUE TO THIS SHE HIT A TELEPHONE POLE AND THE CAR WAS TURNED SIDEWAYS AND HIT A TREE THEN WENT OVER A EMBANKMENT. THE DAMAGE IS ALL TO THE REAR OF THE CAR. I HAVE CALLED PONTIAC SEVERAL TIMES AND GOTTEN TRANSFERRED TO SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS AND NO ONE ENDS UP HELPING ME. I ALSO HAVE A TRIED MY INSURANCE COMPANY AND THEY JUST WANT TO FIX THE EXTERIOR AND NOT WORRY ABOUT THE PROBLEM. SHE IS HAVING A VERY HARD TIME DRIVING. SHE DOES NOT WANT TO GET BACK INTO THIS CAR AFTER IT'S FIXED. SHE FEELS IF IT'S FIXED ON THE OUTSIDE THAT DOESN'T MEAN THE PROBLEM IS SOLVED. I AM NOT HAVING ANY LUCK WITH ANY OF THE PEOPLE I HAVE CONTACTED. THERE ARE RECALLS FOR EARLY YEAR SUNFIRES BUT NOT 2002. IF THEY JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT THE PROBLEM IN EARLIER YEARS HOW DO THEY KNOW THAT THEY FIXED IT IN THIS MODEL YEAR. TS

NHTSA ODI #10000943

Official recalls

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 ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.