Pontiac Sunfire grinding brakes problems

Filed Sep 3, 2014 · Airbags, Electrical · 180,000 miles · MI

Every time I let my car sit for 2 hours or more, I start it up and the belt on the tensioner squeak for 15 seconds. Also the battery light comes on and the rim fluctuate between 1,000 and 2,000. When I drive it the battery light will continue to stay on but every time the air bag light turns on and I'm accelerating the engine will not shift, the rpms will rev up to red line if pushed that far, eventually the light for airbag and battery will shut off and it will shift. Sometimes when I hit the gas pedal while this is doing this at night, my dashboard as well as radio lights will shut off until rpms go down to 2,000.

Filed Mar 22, 2009 · Brakes · 160,000 miles · CA

February 2007 had vehicle serviced and was told rear calipers needed replacement. Work was completed totaling $875. Within a week, the brakes locked, causing the vehicle to skid and failure to stop. Nearly hit a pedestrian in cross walk at 20 MPH. Returned to service, was told adjustments needed to the ABS brakes system. Service completed. 4 weeks later the vehicles brake system locked up and a grinding noise occurred. Returned for service, pads replaced, brakes adjusted per the mechanic. 3 months have passed now and now the ABS brake light illuminates periodically and now within three months of replacement of the brake pads and adjustments to the ABS system, I again notice the vehicle veering right when applying the brakes and the rear brakes tend to lock at speeds of 20 to 35 MPH with a light scrapping and/or grinding noise again. The mechanic informed me they have completed and repaired the brakes to the vehicle specifications and cannot service ore repair it any further. After further research, it appears several others have had the same problem or incident occur, unfortunately resulting in a crash. I am requesting a further investigation to be completed on the gm ABS systems for this vehicle. Brakes should not have to be repaired or replaced 3 times in a two year time span. There is definitely something wrong with the assembly or design of this ABS system. I have replaced the rotors, brake pads, calipers on this vehicle totaling nearly $2,000. I must commute to work on two major freeways in los angeles, which if an ABS failure occurs, could result in a crash with severe or fatal injuries to myself and/or passengers in the vehicle.

Filed Sep 5, 2008 · Body, Electrical · 1,000 miles · IN

The 2003 pontiac sunfire is an inferior car. Mine currently has approx 57,000 miles on the odometer. The day after I purchased it brand new, it would not start. The dealer came out and replaced the battery. The car had white paint overspray on it. The dealer repainted it. The sunroof malfunctioned and the dealer fixed it. The turn signals kept going out & it was fixed due to the recall. The dash had to be taken out due to the fact that the air was not coming out of the vents properly. The power window driver's side failed completely around 38,000 miles & passenger intermittently would not work. This was fixed at my expense. The car has been in the shop for brake problems numerous times. I had the dealer check them several times while still under warranty and they finally replaced them at their cost because they said it should not be necessary given the mileage on the car. I've had brakes replaced two other times at my expense and they are still squeaking and creaking very loudly and I'm told the brake pads are "cracked" but that it won't hurt anything. Now, the new problem is, the radio quit playing for 15 minutes after the car is turned off and you're in it. When I come to a complete stop, my dome light and map lights come on and stay on until I let off the brake and accelerate. Also, the horn no longer honks when I lock the car with the remote. I've had it up to here with this car but cannot afford to get rid of it since I just paid it off in july 2008. I will never buy another pontiac!

Filed May 2, 2007 · Electrical, Engine · 24,147 miles · FL

Date: 5/2/07 sunfire 2005 was purchased brand new in 9/05 investment purpose in a new car for safety, reliability, gas mileage, non-repair and price of vehicle. At 26,000 miles, $900 of repairs were placed on the car in upgrades to keep the vehicle running, to-date, counting 10 failures, first date of failure requiring car repair 12/27/06. (not including vehicle maintenance) repairs demand at a minimum 3hrs of time at each repair visit. Repairs on vehicle demand just a few more hundred dollars in cash payments and cost of a car rental while vehicle is down. Incidences of failure on vehicle remain unresolved due to pontiac's denial and refusal to fix the vehicle. Supportive documents will show price gouging, harassment and a defective vehicle. The following failures have occurred on the gmc/pontiac sunfire 05 vehicle: trunk latch failure, no crank - battery failure, all four tires failed warped, cracked, frayed apart, brake pad failure. Following are failures occurring on the vehicle left unresolved: brakes squeak, maneuvering in turning vehicle makes noise, vehicle bounces/rocks forward when parking and stopping, vehicle bounces/rocks backward at stop. These failures are just a few and counting.

Filed Mar 18, 2007 · Electrical, Engine · IN

My headlights do not stay on. They turn off when I use my turn signal, or if I hit a bump. The hi-beams and drl's are fine, it's just the regular headlights. Also my engine shows that it is overheating on my temp. Guage, but does not act like it. When the A/C is turned on, it returns to a normal level. Another thing is my airconditioning line has a hole in it from another hose rubbing up against it. I think it's either my steering hose or radiator hose. When I turn left my car makes an awful grinding noise.

Filed May 19, 2005 · 11,000 miles · CA

Since I bought the car, the odometer blinks and scrambles at various times, and when it is working the mileage is correct. Also, whenever I turn on my hazard lights, my anti-lock brake system light comes on and will stay on until the car has been off for awhile. Lastly, the vehicle has always made a grinding noise when I turn left, or accelerate uphill and I have had 3 motor mounts replaced and taken it to 3 dealers and 2 auto shops and nobody can seem to find a problem!

Filed Aug 14, 2004 · Brakes · NJ

The brakes on my 2003 sunfire have been serviced 4 times. The first time they were grinding and I was tol dnothing was wrong. Then 3,000 miles later I was back in the shop and the breaks were ground. That worked for a little while but no sooner was I back in the shop and the breaks were completely changed. Well its been less then 4,000 miles since that was done and the breaks are starting to grind again.

Filed May 27, 2004 · GA

My incident is not a failure, but a constant problem. Since I bought the car used in december of '03, there has been major hesitation when idle or accelerating. In february of '04 my fuel pump died, leading me to assume this was the problem. I purchased a new fuel pump and installed it. I just had to replace my fuel pump again because I was beginning to hear a high-pitched squeal from the pump and the hesitation had worstened (may '04). These problems are still there, leading friends to believe that this is a head/head gasket problem instead of a direct fuel system problem. My car has already stalled in traffic due to this on 4 different occasions (all within less than a week since the fuel pump repairs). I am now not able to use my car for more than small round trips out of fear of my car stalling and leaving me stranded.

Filed May 22, 2004 · Body, Electrical · OH

Unsure of the day in april of 2002 the car was purchased. I don't know the exact date the problems began. The problems are with the heating/air conditioning system, brakes, all seat belts, windows, roof leaks, electrical system and radio. The electrical system shorted out, had to be repaired. Problems continued with the heating/air system so I took it in again. It still wasn't repaired properly. One vent over the radio does not blow the air out effectively like the vent next to it. When the heating/air conditioning system is turned off the air continues to blow air out the floor vents that increases with acceleration.the car doesn't cool properly unless the recirculating air is on. The window of the cd player/radio became too hot to touch.I was told this was normal and nothing was wrong with the radio. Since this time,1/2 of the window display is faded.the electrical windows do not work properly. The passenger has problems similar to the driver window but it doesn't occur continuously as in the driver's window.in order to roll the window up, the operator has to wait for at least 5 minutes, depress the button,the window will roll up less than 1/2 an inch. This process continues until the window is up. It seems as though the motor is overheating , has to cool down in order to operate properly again. The seat belts have been fixed once but now the shoulder harness on all seat belts do not lock into place. The brakes grind and squeek at times. The roof leaks where the rear window meets the roof. When going up a hill the car has difficulty at 20 - 30 miles an hour. The dealership stated I should have spent more money for a car, and not bought a cheap one. I have been to two dealerships without any luck. I also have contacted the pontiac customer assistance service center and they refuse to assist me in locating a dealership with the proper staffing, all they will provide is a list of dealerships. I feel as though this is a safety problem for investigation.

Filed Mar 3, 2004 · Steering · 34,579 miles · FL

Vehicle made a grinding noise when turning. Dealer determined that rack and pinion had to be replaced. *ak the vehicle also lost power steering when making right turns. Initially the dealer said the problem was with the rack and pinion. The consumer contacted the manufacturer three times. The manufacture wanted the dealer to recheck the vehicle at which time the dealer changed their mind and said that the tie rod was the problem. The consumer believes they changed their minds to get out of performing the recall for free.