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Pontiac Grand Am Repair Questions and Answers

Question:  1994 Pontiac Grand Am mileage: 120,000. Hello Gentlemen, For the past few months I have had occasional starting cutting-off problems. When I turn the ignition switch to start, sometimes the panel lights will not come on. I continue to turn the switch off and on (anywhere from a couple of turns to a couple of hours) until the panel/dash lights do come on. Once the lights come on, it starts and runs like a charm. At times, even while I am driving, for no apparent reason, I will hear the automatic door locks unlock and the engine will suddenly just die. Once or twice while traveling at highway speeds the doors would re-lock and the engine re-start as it coasted, before I could react an it would be just fine. I find this very annoying, not to mention dangerous.  As always, when ever I have taken the car into the dealer, it works perfectly fine. I hope that I have provided enough info so that you may narrow down what the source of the problem can me. Thanks. 

Answer:   If we could run a test on your car when your problem occurs, we would probably find a faulty ignition switch.  The next thing we would check would be a bad connection in the wiring, especially the main power wire...could also be a faulty ground.    

Question:  1999 Pontiac Grand Am mileage: 105,000  The other day I started the car and noticed the dash instruments do not work: speedometer, tach, gas, temp... nor does the power windows, or the heater fan.  I checked all of the fuses, and they are ok.  I cannot find anything that has all of those functions in common, do you have any suggestions as to what it could be? 

Answer:   The common function you are looking for is the body control module.    

Question: 1995 Pontiac Grand Am Quad 4  mileage: 138,000. It started acting up about 2 weeks ago. Total loss of power. I talked to my brother (who worked as a mechanic for several years). He came and looked at the car. He found that #1 cylinder wasn’t getting fire. His first suggestion was to replace the ignition coil. We did that with no difference. He had disconnected the injector, no difference. We switched the spark plug boots, again no difference. He then suggested that we get some injector cleaner. Did that, no difference. But the car did run. Just very rough because it was only running on 3 cylinders. The other day, the car just stopped. Quit! Again my brother came and looked at the car. He is stumped. We have replaced the fuel filter, crankshaft sensor, spark plugs. We have checked before the car quit running the compression and it was fine. It’s getting fuel, getting fire except at #1 cylinder but will not run. Turns over fine. Tries to start but won't. Also when we have this last trouble, before it stopped running, it did backfire. And while trying to get it to start, it has backfired too. Any suggestions?

Answer: You are close to the cause of your problem. It is not the ignition coil but the ignition coil housing.

Question: 1994 Pontiac Grand AM  mileage: 100,000. This is my dad’s car. I have searched your Q & A section, but didn’t find this problem listed there. My dad has had it in the shop, but they couldn’t locate the problem. When the car sits overnight, and the outside temperature drops below 32 degrees, the car will crank, but will not start. After the temperature starts to warm up, the car will start, and will start, and run, fine the rest of the day. Next day, if the temperature is cold, same problem. What he has tried; jump starting the car (worked one time), replaced fuel filter. He said what worked the most and best (but doesn’t work now) is he would take off the breather top, and tap on the sensor behind the injector (throttle body). If the overnight temp is fairly warm, the car will start fine. The Battery, starter and solenoid, plugs and wires are all new (replaced within the last 6 months). My dad is retired and on a fixed income, and can't afford to keep putting it in the shop, or replacing parts. Any help you can offer would really be welcomed. Thank you

Answer: Sounds like you may have a faulty fuel injector, coolant sensor or oxygen sensor.

Question: 1992 Pontiac Grand Am 2.3 Quad 4. I have been a mechanic for 20 odd years, but this problem has me stumped. I have replaced the power steering pump and the car still has no power steering and the pump smokes up when the car is running. Is there a filter somewhere that might need replacing? Should I go ahead and replace the rack and pinion?

Answer: It appears you may have a stuck valve in the rack assembly. Replacing the rack should solve your problem. There is no filter in the factory installed system.

Question: 1995 Pontiac Grand Am  mileage: 110,000. What might cause the check engine light to come on when you are driving at highway speed and then let off the gas? You can drive for varying distances but the first time you let off the gas the CEL comes on. If you decelerate (close the throttle) very slowly you can keep the light from coming on. I want to try to check the codes but the printout on the connector under the steering wheel doesn't match other diagrams I've seen. As you look at it from the drivers seat, it has 2 rows of six pins. There is one pin in the top right of the connector and two pins in the lower right of the connector. The connector alignment tab is on the top. This would equate to pins A, K, & L from other diagrams I've seen.

Answer: On pre-1995 cars you could jump between two of the pins and read the codes that were stored in the computer. 1995 and newer cars require the use of the OBDII scanner to retrieve the codes.

Question: 1994 Pontiac Grand Am Mileage: 58,000. My mechanic is a professional auto tech and he has had my car for 2 weeks now. He has checked all sensors, the computer, the ignition coils, the catalytic converter, and can't figure out what is wrong. The car starts but misses and only goes to about 10-12 mph with backfiring and a burning smell. I believe it is the ignition coils because two of the spark plugs are not firing; any insight would be appreciated.

Answer: It is possible that you have a faulty coil but we have found the coil housing is usually the culprit in the circumstances you described.

Question: 1993 Pontiac Grand Am Quad 4. How do you remove the alternator? We've removed two bolts & the serpentine belt, but it remains un-budge able. Clearly there's another bolt - but where? We've searched high and low, including useless groping by hand, to no avail. The repair manual we bought simply says "remove retainer bolts" which is like saying: to get to New York, get in car and drive. Help! Otherwise, we'll have to use the A-10 Warthog and just blast away....

Answer:  We would look at the replacement alternator to see where the bolt holes are to give you an idea on where to look on the one you are removing.

Question: 2000 Pontiac Grand Am  mileage: 56,500. I got the oil changed at about 3,000 or 4,000 miles. I don't recall exactly. The first oil change is supposed to be sooner than the others I understood. Now my car is at 56,500 miles and I have an idiot light on my dash that blinks oil change all the time. I know that isn't a big deal. The annoying part is... whenever I start the car and get a few blocks down the road, I hear this ding ding ding! I'm ready to start clipping wires with my nail clippers. Seriously, I used to be a designer for one of the big three; I'm not that stupid (the nail clippers!). Have you heard anything about this most annoying feature?

Answer: The computer in most late model GM cars keeps records of when service is due by lighting the oil change light. The records are based on driving habits. The frequency of service depends on how many short trips are taken verses long trips. Once the car is serviced, turn the key on (do not start), depress the gas pedal to the floor three times and the computer will be reset.

Question: 1989 Pontiac Grand Am 2.5  mileage: 86,000. Getting pop with flame through throttle body with quick throttle response from idle. Slow throttle response-runs o.k. Above idle a quick throttle response is o.k. Car is a 5 speed and is dangerous in traffic getting going from stop. Changed fuel filter, plugs, wires, fuel pressure regulator, air cleaner, PVC valve. All with no improvement. Checked fuel pressure--12 lbs. changed crank sensor, had coil pack tested--o.k. also there's no trouble codes. I GIVE UP! Bill.

Answer: Try replacing the coil housing as they have a tendency to short out under load.

Question: 1993 Pontiac Grand AM  mileage: 95,000. I have a 1993 Pontiac Grand AM, when I push on the brakes, the rear brakes (ABS) lock up. I inspected the brake pads and shoes along with the drum and rotors - all are fine. I suspect the proportioner valves in the master cylinder. Am I on the right track or is their something else I need to be looking into? Thank yo

Answer: Replace the rear brake shoes, return springs, and check the size of the drums. If oversized, replace them.

Question: 1987 Pontiac Grand Am  mileage: 188,000. Problems on an '87 Pontiac Grand Am 2.5 liter manual 5-speed transmission, with a transaxle-mounted electronic SPEED SENSOR. The speed sensor stopped working months ago, and I have since replaced it AND the ECM. It's still not working. As a test, I attached the VSS harness to the OLD sensor, and rotated it with a drill. The speedometer worked, so I know it's not the VSS itself or its related electronics. As I probe the VSS port with a finger, I find no gear to spin the sensor, at least that I can recognize. I feel one gear that has severely slanted teeth off to the side of the port, but it would spin in a direction along the length of the shaft. It seems that there should be a gear between it and the VSS shaft. Here's the curious thing.... a week or so ago (before replacing the VSS and ECM), the speedometer briefly kicked in. Is it possible that I dislodged a gear from its seat while removing the old VSS, and it fell into the transaxle housing?

Answer: Remove the part of the transmission housing that the sensor plugs in to. You probably have a broken gear or it has slipped on the shaft.

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