2002 Pontiac Grand Am: fire, smoke or burning smell

Filed May 20, 2009 · Electrical · 115,000 miles · CA

At times when I am driving my 2002 pontiac grand am I will see smoke coming from my steering wheel, I think it has something to do with the clicking sound I hear that won't stop.

Filed Apr 24, 2009 · Electrical · IL

At times when I am driving my 2002 pontiac grand am I will see smoke coming from my steering wheel, I think it has something to do with the clicking sound I hear that won't stop.

Filed May 21, 2008 · Electrical · 84,300 miles · OK

I have a 2002 pontiac grand am. The problem started 4 months ago. When I put on the turn signal smoke will start coming from under the plastic cover behind the steering wheel. I pop up the cover and observed that the smoke is coming from inside a sealed mechanism that is behind the steering wheel. It started doing it more often and as soon as the blinker goes off the smoke will stop. I called a pontiac dealer and was told that they had no information or recalls for this issue but that they will check it for $39.95 I am afraid that the car might just catch on fire one of these days. Can you provide me with some guidance who to call? The date below is the last time it happens. But like I said before, it started occurring more often.

Filed Dec 20, 2007 · Electrical · TN · fire

I bought my 2002 grandam when it was a year old with 22,000 miles on it, I'm the second owner. I had problems within a few months. Smoke came from the steering column and there was a clicking noise in the dash. Then the blinkers didn't work right...would only work randomly...took it to the place where I bought it and they replaced the turn signal arm...still having trouble to this day with the blinkers. A few months ago the car wouldn't start...it was turning over but it wouldn't actually start. Repair shop replaced fuel pump, didn't solve the problem but the car ran for a few weeks and then it wouldn't start again. Repair shop said the passcode security/ignition sensor had to be replaced. They did it, and it worked for about 3 months and the other day the car wouldn't start, same thing as the first time. I called the local pontiac dealership and all I said when the mechanic answered was "I have a 2002 grandam and it won't start" without hesitation or any other information he asked me "was the security light on?" I said "yes! How did you know that?" he said it's a very common problem w/ these cars and the only thing to do is have the passcode sensor replaced but there's no guarantee that it won't happen again because they have no way of bypassing the security/passcode system. Well, I told him I already did that a few months ago, so he said a temporary fix for right now is to put the key in the ignition and turn it to acc, wait 10-15 minutes and it should start, but this is temporary. Well, it did work and has for the last few days but I know it will happen again and I'm worried that I'll get stranded or left helpless someday. It's ridiculous to have to deal with this problem and keep putting money into a problem that there's no solution to. I loved this car when I first got it and now I hate it and will never buy another pontiac again. I'm so disappointed.

Filed May 16, 2005 · Electrical · 53,000 miles · WI · fire

As I was driving my pontiac grand am (2002) the engine out of the blue started on fire as I was driving. It was the first time in the day using my car and I drove about three miles at 30 MPH to a shopping plaza. As I was looking for a parking place at 5-10 MPH a man ran up to my car and told me to get out of the car because it was on fire. The fire appeared to start in the back of the engine. I parked the car and it was on fire about 15 min until fire trucks came. The car was very well maintained and in very good condition. There was a defect in the car to make it start on fire out of the blue. Gm will not take responsiblity for this and I am out of 14,000. This incident put me and my 14 month old sons life in danger. Please look into this issue.