Overview & Reviews

Second-generation airbags are newly standard, and option groups are simplified.

• Sporty style for pocket change. Decent performance with manual transmission.

• Aged chassis. Uncomfortable seats. Chintzy interior plastic.

User Reviews:

Showing 1 through 10 of 58.00

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  A Maintenance Nightmare - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By Speedracer1021 - October 12 - 2:20 am

  Bought this car after wrecking my 97 Civic. Have only had car for a few months and it has put me down 3 times. Already replaced broken motor mount that caused car to "growl" when accelerating, bad alternator that drained battery and left me stranded in the middle of nowhere, temp sensor and thermostat because car kept overheating, front shocks b/c car started squeaking and bouncing over even the smallest bumps, keyless remote, front brake rotors and brake pads. Right now I am having numerous electrical problems with the car. I really like the car, but I have to get rid of it because I cant afford the maintenance. Wouldnt recommend buying one unless you have the money to maintain it.

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  My Favorite Car! - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By calmann - April 18 - 10:20 am

  Tough car! I have always taken care of it and it has done the same for me! Bought it with 57k on it and it now has 135k. For the money, the best car Ive owned! Ive spent 400 bucks on it besides reg maintenance. Been back and forth between coasts and would still trust it to go right now! Windows are slow, has a water leak in the interior. Has never been in a garage since I have owned it. I still beatrun it to work and dont ever have a problem! I would buy another in a minute. I have had people ask me to sell it more than a few times!IE. A note on my window after being in a store! Not selling! Gonna keep her till she drops!

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  Still Blows Me Away - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By joser94 - January 19 - 12:08 am

  I have owned this car for a little over a year now after getting it pretty cheap and I love it and hope to have it for years to come. First few months were okay but did a few weird things that required some work to be done to it but no problem because I do just about all of it myself. It growled when accelerating from a stop but surprisingly fun to drive and extremely cozy in the fall and winter! I got 3 months/2000 miles out of it and the engine bearings went bad, guessing the previous owner didnt keep the oil changed. Since then all has been well with it. I have replaced the brake pads and rotors, drums and shoes, mounts and alternator but it makes up for that wit its power!

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  True love until 103,000 miles - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By noram - April 30 - 8:16 am

  Bought new, this has been a wonderful vehicle until now. Other than brakes and a water pump there was no repair work done until 84k when the intake manifold had a coolant leak requiring a new gasket. Last week this same problem was detected at 103k. After paying my $1000+ bill I decided to start thinking about a new car. Not a Pontiac. Ive seen this same issue on elsewhere for this same vehicle, same engine for as many as 3 times on a vehicle. Poor engine design? whatever the problem is people have tried to get Pontiac to make good on it to no avail. Class action suits were mentioned. And American car companies are wondering why people dont buy American? I really want to but I cant

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  NOT An Improvement - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By augidog - January 19 - 2:00 am

  After having good luck with a previous Grand Am we bought another. The car is economical and reasonably dependable. Had more troubles with this one than the previous one. Breaks went bad quickly and had to replace everything even though we caught the wear before the pads were gone. Come on GM get it together. Radio went bad twice. Problems with sensors on the ABS and the engine at times would start to accelerate and just keep on accelerating. Turn it off and then on and everythings fine.

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  Best Eight Years Ever and Still Running Strong - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By jake0886 - January 15 - 2:15 am

  Ive owned my 1998 Grand Am SE 3.1L since 2003 and am still driving it today, for an amazing 8 years! I have all installed options as well. Best of all, Ive had zero issues with it. Considering this was my first car during high school, thats quite a feat. Originally it had 48K miles and was a salvage title that cost me $2800 + $700 in parts to rebuild. It survived my pizza delivery days in high school, college days and 8 years later...Im still driving it as it just wont die like many friends and family predict it would. Currently still running with zero issues at 178K. Best $3500 investment ever! I absolutely love this car and would gladly a new Pontiac if they still existed!

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  Couldnt ask for better so far - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By yomama4 - August 1 - 6:36 pm

  Owned this car for 10 years now, bought it brand new, and it still runs awesome, going to give it to my neice for her first car. Only real problems I noticed over the years were the brakes wear easy, the radio volume changes sometimes...weird, and the ac clutch rattles like crazy. overall good though.

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  Engines bearings go bad - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By animalpals2 - February 15 - 4:36 pm

  after 100,000 miles the engines main bearings go bad. they are very quick cars though. im a female and even dodge trucks cant keep up with me , hehehe overall its been very reliable to me i take care of the maintenance on the engine and the bearings still went. its the only downfall in grand ams either the bearings go or the timing belt.

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  My Granny Am - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By Kayla M - September 27 - 2:13 am

  Since getting my Grand Am in 2004, it has been an overall great ride. Although it may not look sporty or "cool", its reliability is pretty good. Thus far the fuel pump, and shifter are the only real problems I have had. In winter, it is pretty amazing, especially since I live in the country and do lots of highway driving. The car is fairly fuel efficient as well.

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  Mecanically sound GrandAm - 1998 Pontiac Grand AM
  By Allen59 - August 26 - 10:00 am

  My wife drives this car daily... It gets about 27 MPG regardless of how you drive it in the city (I have a heavy foot) Interstate is 32 MPG And it has excellent pickup at all speeds (3.1 V-6) After over 3 and a half years we have put 50,000 miles on it and have never experienced a mecanical problem. This car handling is exceptional in turns with the Firestone 720s Very reliable car.