I have always kept up with regular maintenance and kept this car in very good condition. After having it for about two years, the low coolant light came on one day out of the blue. I checked the level of the coolant and it was bone dry, so I refilled it and thought it would be fine. The next day the low coolant light came on once again. I told my dad, who refilled it once again. Then of course, the next day the light was on. We took it into the local repair shop in town and they said intake manifold gasket. We decided to replace the gasket, and get some other work done such as lifters replaced, spark plugs replaced, coils replaced and new belts, since they would have the engine open already. Finally got my car back after all the work was said and done. It cost $1200. The car seemed to be running good for the first day, and then the second day I had it back, the low coolant light came on once again. I couldn't believe it. I assumed that they had forgotten to tighten something or maybe didn't add enough coolant. I checked the coolant and it was pretty low, so I brought it back up to the shop and the mechanic said that since the new gasket had been put on, pressure had been built up in the engine and caused the head gasket to fail and it would need to be replaced also. Another $1600 and I am hoping this will be the end of the big car expenses for this Grand Am. I can't believe it was never a recall, seems like every Grand Am has had some sort of issue with the intake manifold gasket.

I keep up with my preventative maintenance on the vehicle and had just put in a fresh $34 Synthetic oil change a week before this happened. I turn my key to leave for school as I typically do and start my drive down the road. All of a sudden the vehicle shudders and my low coolant light comes on. I freak out instantly. Then a second light, my service engine soon light lights up if I recall correctly. I immediately turn around and drive the half a mile back to my home to safely park and hope it doesn’t explode.

Upon opening my hood I see a pretty coolant stripe across my white paint just as it did when my water pump failed. I assume the dreaded LIM Gasket failure though and start to cry thinking of the cost.

A few weeks later she is repaired and of course it was the $750 Gasket that I had suspected. GM and Pontiac had known of these engines having failures for a long time but had done absolutely nothing to stop them in the newer models that they released with the DEX-COOL coolant and the 3400 V6 engine. Malibu, Alero, Grand-AM, Montana, Venture and Silhouette owners everywhere have had this issue or will at some point If they keep the vehicle long enough. There is no excuse for this failure. I had FLUSHED the entire cooling system a year earlier and had a brand new water pump installed. It is unfair to me that GM knows and will not cover the repair although they know they caused this defect in every one of these vehicles with the type of gasket used. I WAS CAR-LESS FOR 3 WEEKS! All because of this stupid failure!!! THANKS FOR SELLING A FLAWED CAR GM…

I'm having to replace my Grand Am V6 head gasket. I have heard that this car has this common problem. Think there should be a recall since they have redesigned the gasket. Not good customer service. Is this what buying american has come too. I loved my pontiac. But, is it worth fixing? Deal stats they don't know of any problem with it (head gasket). You come on line you read the list of owners with the same situation. The deal service department will go as far as saying they have not heard of any problmes with the head gasket. Then you go to an auto parts store and they all seem to hear the same problem in the Pontia Gran Am over and over again. This world amazes me. Just fess up! You have a problem.

I went to a local Buick, Oldsmobile, Pontiac and GMC dealer near I-26 in Summerville SC to purchase a nice Ford van for work. My wife rode along to drive one vehicle home. While waiting in 2 hours for vehicle to be ready to leave, another salesman caught my wife looking at a 1999 Pontiac Grand Am and I had to buy it also. 3 years later it had failed intake gaskets and fixed under warranty(ha ha $565 shop fees not covered). Let it go and moved on. Yep, went to same dealer to buy another new truck in 04' and it happened again. Wife seen an overstock 2003 Grand Am GT reduced to sell. We have had ever since. It now has 67,00 miles and coolant reservoir full of oil and slight knocking at start-up. I have to try and fix myself due to lack of warranty and funds. Same dealer I have purchased 5 vehicles from says sorry, but no warranty $1570. I may have to put their name and BIG yellow lemons on as soon as I get it going again. I'll be back to let you know how it all turns out. Good Luck to all !!!

Since I was 16, I have always been a GM person. I would never even consider looking at any other make of vehicle. I was following my father's footsteps because all he ever drove was GM. I broke the tradition when I purchased a Ford Contour. This had to be the best car I have ever driven, but my wife stated due to its age, and what needed to be done to it, it would be cheaper to buy another vehicle. I went back to driving a GM, but having a brain fart, I ended up buying the biggest piece of crap you could think of. That piece of crap is the 2003 Grand AM GT. It is now a lawn ornament because I haven't decided whether I want to sink tons of money into a piece of crap. I should just wrap it up with toilet paper.

My advice to anyone who is considering buying a GM product, or who currently owns a GM product is either look at another brand, or get rid of your GM before it starts costing you thousands of dollars for repairs. There are class action law suits against GM for the problem that I am having, leaking coolant into the engine, but by the time these suits are settled, this car will be an antique. I wouldn't even sell this piece of junk to a wrecker. Just because I got stuck with a piece of crap, doesn't mean that anyone else should have to go through this aggrevation. I have never ever liked Chrysler, but I am so fed up with GM, that I would even consider buying one of their vehicles.

I have a 2003 Grand Am GT, bought it brand new off the lot, 3 miles on it. It had been running great until this January. Water pump went out and took the temperature gauge and serpintine belt with it. $575 to replace all three. 2 months later, (March) the blinkers were going off by themselves CONSTANTLY! Never stopped. This was another $583 fix. Here it is September and now my Intake Manifold Gasket has a major leak and is leaking antifreeze everywhere I go. This will take $579 to fix.

To top it all off, for the last 2 years, my passive alarm has been randomly shutting the gas off to my car so I have to sit wherever I am for 10 minutes with the key on waiting for the "security" light to stop blinking. Once it stops blinking, I turn the key off and then back on and the car will start.This little inconvenience I'm told is my KEY! and will cost $380 to fix.

So within 9 months, the repairs will have cost over $2000! Of course all of this has happened after the warranty has expired!

I understand that parts go out, but come on GM, all at once! My friends lovingly call grand ams and grand prix the "kleenex car", needs replacing often. I guess I will go back to driving Chevy or Honda!

I have had this car for about a month and a half. While at the dealership my father and I were checking out the car and noticed this leak, Motor oil has gotten into the coolant and has gummed it up. The problem is the lower intake manifold gasket. It can be a significant problem but I'm mechanically inclined and its not the first time I've replaced a gasket of any kind myself. The full kit, for upper and lower intake manifold gaskets, as well as the valve cover gaskets is what you'll need, and it runs you about $90 at autozone. Overall it seems to be a good car, just with a few important, but easy to fix problems.

Coolant fluid leaking, making car run hot,took in for inspection, it was stated that the water pump is leaking,and intake gasket.Called place where puchased car at since it is under warranty for engine for first 6,000 miles, or 6 months whichever occurs first. It was stated that that problem is not covered because the warranty is for internal components of the engine,and that the intake gasket,and water pump is external. the casr value is not that great to be bearing that high expense for the repair. But it is a car that I purchased for my daughter who is away at college,and it concerns me about the severity of the problems as far as her being safe in the vehicle.

Purchased new, first problem was a replacement of the rear rotors at 30,000 miles because they had rusted so bad and were grooved beyond turning. Another 5000 miles and the front rotors needed replaced. In both cases the brake pads were ok. The car also has a problem with the extra wide tires that are standard for the car to start cupping well before the stated mileage is up on the tires. I have switched tire manufacture twice and still have the same problem. Because of the wheels I am told that I must buy these very expensive tires.

Just this month the car completely shut off and had to be towed. the problem was the fuel pump, another costly repair. While my car was in the shop for this problem my mechanic noticed coolant on the engine block indicating a manifold leak. He told me that this was a common problem with GMs 3100 and 3400 engines. Waiting for word from my dealer, I am assuming that it will be a waste of time. I am now 68 and have had GM autos all my life, rest assured that this is the last one. Has anyone had any success with GM fixing the manifold problem.

Purchased 2003 Grand Am with a 3.4 L in March of 2007 with 54,000 miles on it, bought an extended warranty. Little did I know when I bought it, it did not cover gaskets and seals, hello, that is what goes out first, what a waste of 1000 bucks. I notice around 65,000 miles my low oil light would come on when it hadn't even been close to the 3000 miles. Then my low coolant light would come on, I called Pontiac today and they said there is no recall on them, yet I see there was a class action lawsuit for this problem in Canada. I am very frustrated with this car, I have owned a 1986 GA and a 1996 GA, these cars were way better cars, my 03 now has 96,000 on it, haven't replaced anything on it yet, scared to find out how much it will cost.

The 2003 Pontiac Grand Am is a terrible car. I purchased this car with 13,000 miles in late 2003. I need a reliable car with great gas mileage due to my career (I am in sales). Every year there is some major problem that costs thousands to be fixed. I can't afford a new car with all the related expenses so I keep fixing this one. The cooling system problem began when I was making a trip up to the mountains earlier this year and by the time I reached the mountains, my car was steaming and spouting coolant and steam everywhere. I pulled over to a parking lot, left the car overnight, and had my significant other pick me up. Went back to check on the car the next morning, added antifreeze (the crappy DexCool) and drove the car back home with no problems. I stopped long enough to change clothes to go to work and went outside to find a puddle of antifreeze under the car. No going to work that day! Didn't have the funds to fix the car so I let it sit for over two months. Finally took it to a reliable mechanic that we have used for several years and he had to replace the head gasket, replaced all of the hoses, water pump...everything involving the cooling system due to the age and mileage on the car. $2,300 later I was assured that the problem was fixed. Overheated the next day in traffic. Took the car back and after another $550 (he replaced the plastic coolant container as he said it had melted and deformed so the cap wouldn't fit on properly) and there was some other issue (just can't remember everything that is wrong with this car) so we are now up to $2,800. I went to my car to go to work today and it wouldn't start! Guess what, the fuel pump has gone out - another $800!!! I am done with this car, Pontiac can take this POS and dump it for scrap metal. Just to think that I was going to buy a newer car (Honda or Toyota) and donate this to a shelter for unwed mothers. No way would I consider this option now. I couldn't live with myself if a young mother and her infant child were stranded due to the unreliability of this vehicle. My significant other has a Honda DelSol with 260K miles and is still running like a charm. How much has it put into it for emergency repairs? $0 - all preventive maintenance has been performed on his Honda which has kept it running in superb condition. GM thanks for taking our entire tax refund this year. You not only get the bailout money but our hard earned dollars too!

I'm glad I came across this problem, and relegated it as soon as possible. Coolant was mixing in with my oil and building up...In another month or so I may not have had a engine anymore. It started yesterday morning with a small knocking sound which happened on each revolution. Also, the low Coolant light was on. The knocking noise went away this morning, but the mechanics said I still had a major problem here with this. If you have similar problems do not hesitate to get this fixed..you may spend $900 now or replace your entire engine if you don't get this resolved ASAP.

Hope this helps!