1995 pontiac bonneville my stsering wheel was making a clunking noise then when driving home I turned the corner going right my lower sub frame dropped out from rusted bolts and lost all control! No steering at all. Still shaking.can't believe theres a recall for headlights recall but no steering urecall .I called pontiac and registered a complaint . For now I have to pay for repairs but what if was my life and not money I lost.these cars should be recalled immediately. The police had to come and direct traffic around my car while I sat there shaking.
Pontiac Bonneville harsh shifting problems
59 of the 1,902 owner complaints about the Pontiac Bonneville describe harsh or hard shifting, most of them for the 2002 model year.
- owner complaints
- 59
- worst model year
- 2002
- typical repair cost reported
- $376
- typical mileage
- 37,600
Is there a fix? There are 4 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
Steering noise 22Power steering loss 4Grinding brakes 3Water leak 1Slipping 1Power windows 1Overheating 1
What owners say
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 pontiac bonneville. The contact stated that the steering wheel would intermittently exhibit a clunking sound. Additionally, the steering wheel would seize for a few moments before independently resuming normal function. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but the failure was unable to be duplicated. The manufacture was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 42,000. The current mileage was 72,550.
Steering wheel clunked & felt detached---car taken to gm dealership where it was found to have quote a "broken steering column." steering column part was replaced, part #26087952 column as 6,518. Cost was $1516.58. Car was delivered on 3/15/05 and has only 40,662 + miles.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 pontiac bonneville. The contact was driving 40 MPH when the steering wheel began making a clunking sound. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the steering shaft was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure and the vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 109,000.
2002 pontiac bonneville se 2 defects 1) "clunking" of steering shaft - has been replaced more than once 2) gas gauge stop working after 4 year (2006).
Steering shaft on my 2001 bonneville ssei making grinding and clunking noise. The sound is more noticeable at lower speeds below 20 MPH. I have head from other bonneville owners this is an ongoing expensive problem. The design of the steering shaft seems to be flawed.
2005 pontiac bonneville, clunking noise in steering. Per dealer, intermediate shaft is manufacturer known problem, while under warranty shaft was lubed, then replaced, then lubed again. Problem persists and is worse in cold weather. Steering becomes less than accurate providing improper road feedback and improper response to driver input. My concern is that shaft will fail or will cause other steering failure. This has been a persistent problem since ownership taken 4 sept 2004.
2003 pontiac bonneville ssei when turning the steering wheel, left or right from a stopping position a loud clunking noise appears. It is felt through the steering wheel and column. While driving the noise happens rarely. I have read numerous accounts of this but no recall as of yet. I am worried this is a safety concern while driving on the highways at high speeds especially. Is something loose and/or getting rubbed to cause damage and loss of steering in the future? Gm dealer defect?
When the rear window motor of 2001 bonneville fails, it causes the window to lower even though it is in the fully raised position. The window position was not being changed at the time. It was just a sudden clunk sound from the back seat and the window went down. This happened when driving at night in very heavy rain, on the interstate with infant in the rear seat. This may seem like a minor item, but if we had been in a north dakota snow storm, temp. Of 5 degrees and wind chills even worse.. The situation would have been life threatening. The window should be designed remain in it's selected position in the event of motor failure. The second rear window failed in the exact same manner about 4 months after the first..no baby on board this time.
At about 80,000 miles the steering column began making clunking noises when the steering wheel was turned regardless of which direction. The noise/vibration is continuous and very annoying.
Related recalls
Power train: automatic transmission
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles equipped with 4t65e automatic transmissions. These vehicles fail to conform to the requirements of fmvss no. 102, "transmission shift lever sequence." a retaining clip, which secures the manual valve to the linkage of the transmission detent lever, can become loose under a combination of possible driver shifting maneuvers and allow the link to become disconnected from the manual valve.
- Risk
- If the link disconnects, the driver's indicated prndl state may differ from the hydraulic state of the transmission. If the driver selects 'drive' and the transmission is actually in 'reverse', a vehicle crash could occur.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the manual valve/link assembly with a replacement manual valve/link kit, featuring a spring-type fastener.
Recall number 99V089000 · Recall details
Power train: automatic transmission: cooling unit and lines
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles manufactured from august 1991 through july 1995. The transmission oil cooler line can separate when the vehicle is operated in low temperatures in combination with high transmission loads.
- Risk
- Vehicle fires can occur due to the spillage of transmission fluid.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the transmission oil cooler lines.
Recall number 96V015000 · Recall details
Power train: automatic transmission
- What is wrong
- The console mounted shift lever may disengage from the shift control cable bracket causing loss of gear indicator reference and shift selector operation.
- Risk
- The driver can place the gear shifter in the parkposition without setting the parking brake and the transaxle may not actually bein park, resulting in unexpected vehicle movement if the vehicle is stopped on agrade. Also, the driver can place the gear selector in drive or reverse withoutturning the engine off and the transaxle may not be in the position indicated,causing the vehicle to move in the opposite direction. Both conditions canresult in a vehicle accident without prior warning.
- Remedy
- Install two transaxle shift control cable retaining clips.
Recall number 91V198000 · Recall details
Power train: automatic transmission
- What is wrong
- Transaxle shift control cable may disengage from shift control cable bracket, causing loss of gear indicator reference, and shift selector operation.
- Risk
- The disengaged cable could falsely indicate transmissiongear position, and the vehicle might be left in reverse or drive when the drivermoved the gear selector to park or the opposite direction. A vehicle left on anincline without parking brakes when the gear selector is placed in park couldmove. Either case results in unexpected vehicle movement without prior warningand could cause a vehicle accident.
- Remedy
- Install a transaxle shift control cable retaining clip on the shift control cable bracket on top of transaxle.
Recall number 91V131000 · Recall details
Questions about the Pontiac Bonneville harsh shifting
Which Pontiac Bonneville years have harsh or hard shifting problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2002 (16 complaints), 2000 (11 complaints) and 2001 (11 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix harsh or hard shifting on the Pontiac Bonneville?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $376 (median of 8 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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