2000 Pontiac Grand Prix

BY LETTER DATED MARCH 12, 2008, GENERAL MOTORS CORP. (GM) HAS NOTIFIED THE AGENCY THAT IT WILL CONDUCT A SAFETY RECALL (IDENTIFIED BY NHTSA RECALL NUMBER 08V-118) TO ADDRESS A DEFECT IN APPROXIMATELY 207,542 MODEL YEAR (MY) 1997-2003 BUICK REGAL GS AND PONTIAC GRAND PRIX GTP VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE L67 SUPERCHARGED VERSION OF GM'S 3800 SERIES II V6 ENGINE.THE RECALLED REGAL GS VEHICLES WERE BUILT FROM AUGUST 1996 TO JUNE 2003 AND THE GRAND PRIX GTP FROM MARCH 1996 THROUGH JANUARY 2003.ACCORDING TO GM, OIL MAY ESCAPE PAST THE VALVE COVER GASKET ON THE FRONT CYLINDER BANK (CYLINDERS 1-3-5) AND DEPOSIT ONTO HOT EXHAUST SYSTEM COMPONENTS.UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS, IT IS POSSIBLE FOR THIS OIL TO IGNITE A SMALL PILOT FLAME, WHICH MAY SPREAD TO THE ADJACENT PLASTIC SPARK PLUG WIRE CHANNEL, THE SPARK PLUG WIRES THEMSELVES, THE PLASTIC ENGINE COVER, AND OTHER UNDER HOOD COMPONENTS.REPORTS INDICATE THIS MOST OFTEN OCCURS ON HIGHER-MILEAGE VEHICLES SHORTLY AFTER THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN DRIVEN AND THEN PARKED.TYPICALLY, THE FIRE WAS DISCOVERED WITHIN 5 TO 15 MINUTES AFTER THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED.DURING THIS TIME WINDOW, UNDER HOOD TEMPERATURES MAY BECOME ELEVATED.SUCH ELEVATED TEMPERATURES COMBINED WITH A LACK OF AIRFLOW THROUGH THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT MAY PERMIT A SMALL PILOT FLAME TO PROPAGATE AND IGNITE OTHER FUEL SOURCES.TO CORRECT THE SAFETY DEFECT, GM WILL INSTALL AN IMPROVED DESIGN FRONT VALVE COVER GASKET AND SPARK PLUG WIRE RETAINER.THIS REMEDY WILL BE SUPPLIEDFREE OF CHARGE FOR ALL RECALLED VEHICLES.UNTIL SUFFICIENT PARTS BECOME AVAILABLE TO REPAIR ALL OF THE AFFECTED VEHICLES, GM STRONGLY RECOMMENDS THAT OWNERS OBSERVE THE FOLLOWING IMPORTANT PRECAUTIONS: (1) THEY STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT OWNERS DO NOT PARK THEIR VEHICLE IN A GARAGE, CARPORT, OR OTHER STRUCTURE; (2) IF OWNERS NOTICE A BURNING ODOR, THEY SHOULD HAVE THEIR DEALER INSPECT THE VEHICLE - THE DEALER WILL INSPECT THE VEHICLE WITHOUT CHARGE; AND (3) USE PREMIUM FUEL (91 OCTANE OR HIGHER) IN THE VEHICLE AS RECOMMENDED IN THE VEHICLE'S OWNER MANUAL.THE ACTION TAKEN BY GM IS SUFFICIENT TO RESOLVE THE ISSUES RAISED BY THIS INVESTIGATION.THE SUBJECT FIRE INCIDENT RATE ON THE C-, G-, AND H-PLATFORM SUBJECT VEHICLES IS LOW.THE AGENCY WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THIS ISSUE AND RESERVES THE RIGHT TO TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.SEE DOCUMENT FILE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING THIS RESUME.

ON JANUARY 29, 2007, THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) OPENED A PRELIMINARY EVALUATION TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGED NON-CRASH FIRES ORIGINATING IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT IN CERTAIN MODEL YEAR (MY) 1999-2002 PONTIAC GRAND PRIX GTP VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE ?L67? SUPERCHARGED VERSION OF THE GENERAL MOTORS (GM) 3800 SERIES II V6 ENGINE.TO DATE, ODI IS AWARE OF 121 NON-DUPLICATIVE COMPLAINTS ON THE SUBJECT VEHICLES THAT ALLEGE NON-CRASH RELATED FIRES ORIGINATING IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT WHILE DRIVING OR AFTER THE VEHICLE IS PARKED AND THE IGNITION SWITCHED OFF. WHILE NO SUBJECT COMPONENT HAS YET BEEN IDENTIFIED, ODI ANALYSIS OF AVAILABLE INFORMATION INDICATES THAT THE ALLEGED FIRE INCIDENT RATE AMONG THE SUBJECT VEHICLES IS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN GM PEER VEHICLES THAT USE THE NON-SUPERCHARGED ?L36? VERSION OF THE GM 3800 SERIES II V6 ENGINE.IN SOME CASES, THE FIRE INCIDENT RATE IS TWICE AS HIGH IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES AND UP TO AS MUCH AS AN ORDER OF MAGNITUDE GREATER THAN IN NON-SUPERCHARGED PEER VEHICLES.FOR INSTANCE, THE SUBJECT FIRE INCIDENT RATE FOR THE SUPERCHARGED MY 2000 PONTIAC GRAND PRIX GTP IS APPROXIMATELY 236 PER 100,000 VEHICLES PRODUCED (58 FIRES / 24,509 SUBJECT VEHICLES OR 0.236%) WHILE THE FIRE INCIDENT RATE FOR MY 2000 PONTIAC GRAND PRIX VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE NATURALLY ASPIRATED ?L36? ENGINE IS APPROXIMATELY 18 PER 100,000 VEHICLES PRODUCED (17 FIRES / 90,338 VEHICLES OR 0.018%). THE MANUFACTURER?S INVESTIGATION INTO ALLEGED ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES ON THE SUBJECT VEHICLES IS ONGOING.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION HAS BEEN UPGRADED TO AN ENGINEERING ANALYSIS (EA07-008) TO FURTHER STUDY THE FREQUENCY AND SCOPE OF THE ALLEGED DEFECT. BASED ON THE INFORMATION REVIEWED IN PE07-006, THE RANGE OF SUBJECT VEHICLES UNDER INVESTIGATION WILL BE EXPANDED TO INCLUDE ALL MY 1999-2002 BUICK PARK AVENUE, REGAL, AND RIVIERA, OLDSMOBILE LSS, AND PONTIAC BONNEVILLE AND GRAND PRIX VEHICLES THAT USE THE SAME OR SUBSTANTIALLY SIMILAR TRANSVERSE MOUNTED ?L67? ENGINE.

THE AGENCY'S ANALYSIS OF GM'S COMPLAINT AND WARRANTY DATA FOR THE SUBJECT VEHICLES, INCLUDING A COMPARISON WITH OTHER AGENCY AND MANUFACTURER DATA PERTAINING TO OTHER VEHICLE BRAKE LAMP INVESTIGATIONS, INDICATED A LOW FAILURE HISTORY FOR THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.THIS INVESTIGATION INCLUDED A REVIEW AND ANALYSIS OF DATA FOR RELEVANT BRAKE LAMP MALFUNCTIONS THAT REQUIRE REPLACEMENT OF THE MULTIFUNCTION SWITCH (MFS) MODULE.THE HAZARD WARNING SWITCH IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE MFS MODULE.OTHER COMPONENTS THAT AFFECT BRAKE LAMP ILLUMINATION SUCH AS WIRING, BULB SOCKETS, AND THE PLUNGER-TYPE BRAKE LAMP SWITCH, WERE NOT A PART OF THIS INVESTIGATION.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT TREND HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AND THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY RESERVES THE RIGHT TO TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.

EA02-030 IS CLOSED WITH GMEA02-030 IS CLOSED WITH GM?S ACTIONS IN 03V-473 AND 04V-090 RECALLING APPROXIMATELY 529,000 MY 1998-99 C- AND H-BODY VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH DEFECTIVE FUEL PRESSURE REGULATORS.THESE VEHICLES WERE EQUIPPED WITH PLASTIC INTAKE MANIFOLDS THAT ARE UNABLE TO CONTAIN PRESSURES THAT OCCUR IN SOME BACKFIRE EVENTS AND DEFECTIVE FUEL PRESSURE REGULATORS WITH LEAKING DIAPHRAGMS THAT CAN PROVIDE A SOURCE OF FUEL TO PRODUCE A COMBUSTIBLE AIR-FUEL MIXTURE IN THE MANIFOLD.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY ODI THAT NO SAFETY DEFECT EXISTS IN THE VEHICLES THAT ARE NOT INCLUDED IN GM?S RECALLS.ODI WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE INCIDENCE OF MANIFOLD RUPTURES AND RELATED FIRES IN OTHER MY 1995-2002 GM PASSENGER CARS EQUIPPED WITH THE SUBJECT INTAKE MANIFOLD.FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, SEE THE ATTACHED CLOSING REPORT.

The contact owns a 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix. The contact stated that the vehicle was towed to the dealer for service under NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V701000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however after the service the vehicle started but did not idle due to an air intake hose not reinstalled on the vehicle. The contact stated that the air intake hose needs to be replaced however, the repairs have not been completed. The contact stated that before taking the vehicle into service the manufacturer was made aware of an issue with the dealer due to his interaction with the service manager. He was worried that the dealer was not going to service his vehicle correctly. The contact did not have a case number available as he stated that he had contacted the manufacturer several times. The contact stated that the vehicle had no issues before the recall service. The approximate failure mileage was 159,000.

NHTSA ID

11578508

Incident

Dec 22, 2022

Mileage

159,000 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 PONTIAC GRAND PRIX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT AFTER DRIVING AND PARKING THE VEHICLE, FLAMES WERE PRESENT COMING FROM UNDER THE VEHICLE. THE FLAMES WERE EXTINGUISHED BY THE OWNER. NO INJURIES WERE REPORTED. NO FIRE REPORT WAS TAKEN REGARDING THE INCIDENT. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE LOCAL DEALER AND MANUFACTURER WERE NOT YET NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 200,000.

NHTSA ID

11373126

Incident

Nov 5, 2020

Mileage

200,000 mi

TRANSMISSION FAILURE AT 180K MILES. CAR WILL NOT SHIFT ON IT OWN I HAVE TO FORCE CAR INTO GEAR BY SPEEDING UP HEARING TRANSMISSION WHINE AND THEN LETTING OFF THE GAS PEDAL SO TRANSMISSION SHIFTS GEARS. THIS IS ON ALL ROAD CONDITIONS. SO MANY COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN MADE WHY HAS GM NOT ISSUED A RECALL ON THIS MATTER.

NHTSA ID

11340504

Incident

Jul 2, 2020

Mileage

180,000 mi

I TOOK MY PONTIAC GTP TO BURLINGAME PUTNAM IN CA BECAUSE I CHECKED ON HERE NHTSA IF I HAD A RECALL AND I DID WHICH WAS FIRE WALL COMPARTMENT RECALL SO WHEN I WENT TO THE DEALER AND HAD MY CAR SERVICED I PICKED IT UP AND ONCE I GOT HOME I NOTICED ONE VALVE COVER WAS REPLACED WHICH WAS ONLY ONE VALVE COVER FACING THE FRONT OF THE CAR! THE VALVE COVER FACING THE REAR TOWARDS THE FIRE WALL WAS STILL THE OLD VALVE COVER! AND IS STILL LEAKING OIL WHICH IM AFRAID MIGHT TAKE OUT MY ENGINE IF IT BLOWS THE HEAD GASKET COMPLETELY AND CAUSE A FIRE,CAN EVEN CAUSE A MAJOR ACCIDENT! PLEASE HELP. TECHNICIANS SHOULD DO A COMPLETE SERVICE NOT JUST HALF OF THE JOB AND BE LAZY TO NOT EVEN REPLACE THE REAR VALVE COVER THATS VERY IRRESPONSIBLE AND WHAT IF I HAD KIDS OR FAMILY WHEN THIS HAPPENS

NHTSA ID

11297091

Incident

Jan 2, 2020

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 PONTIAC GRAND PRIX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO START WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT CALLED MAUER BUICK GMC (1111 50TH ST, INVER GROVE HEIGHTS, MN 55077) AND A DIAGNOSTIC TEST WAS RECOMMENDED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 09V116000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 200,000. PARTS DISTRIBUTION DISCONNECT.

NHTSA ID

11242220

Incident

Jul 20, 2019

Mileage

200,000 mi

EXCESSIVE OIL LEAK FROM THE TOP OF THE ENGINE. VALVE COVER GASKETS AND INTAKE GASKETS LEAKING OIL DIRECTLY ON TO THE MANIFOLD I SMELL IT BURNING EVERY TIME I DRIVE IT AND THERE IS A VISABLE PUDDLE OF OIL ON THE TOP OF THE ENGINE

NHTSA ID

11133013

Incident

Oct 1, 2018

Mileage

223,209 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 PONTIAC GRAND PRIX. WHILE DRIVING UNKNOWN SPEEDS, THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL FAILED TO DEPRESS OR RELEASE WHEN THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE WAS HIGH. ADDITIONALLY, THE REVOLUTIONS PER MINUTE INCREASED AND THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE LOCAL DEALER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND REFERRED THE CONTACT TO NHTSA. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 150,000. *TT *TR

NHTSA ID

11105201

Incident

Jul 1, 2014

Mileage

150,000 mi

A WHILE BACK THERE WAS A RECALL ON THE PONTIAC GRAND PRIX YEARS 2000 - 2004 IF IM NOT MISTAKEN DUE TO OIL LEAK CAUSING AN ENGINE FIRE. I JUST BOUGHT THIS CAR FROM A PRIVATE OWNER AND WAS WONDERING IF THIS WAS THE PROBLEM. IT SEEMS THAT WHEN I PUT OIL IN IT IS DOES LEAK ON TO THE GROUND BUT WITH HOW MUCH OIL I PUT IT IN ALREADY DOESNT EXPLAIN WHERE THE REST OF IT WENT, ID SAY ABOUT 5 QUARTS IN A DAY. I JUST DONT WANT TO BE DRIVING AND SUDDENLY HAVE THE ENGINE CATCH FIRE IF THIS IS THE PROBLEM.

NHTSA ID

11076271

Incident

Feb 28, 2018

Mileage

150,000 mi

This Preliminary Information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8 starting/charging tester  and Vehicle Data Recorder tools, giving website address and step by step instructions to complete the update.

This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that the Heater-Vent-Air Conditioning blows warm air. Before calling General Motors Technical Assistance Center technician will need to have high and low pressures, outside temperature, humidity, and vent temperature.

This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that the Heater-Vent-Air Conditioning blows warm air. Before calling General Motors Technical Assistance Center technician will need to have high and low pressures, outside temperature, humidity, and vent temperature.

Vehicle Wide Programming (VWP) is a new process to update software on GM Vehicles. It provides the ability via a single selection within Techline Connect to first identify which modules need updating and then proceed to updating affected modules (with some exceptions). The updating of modules is completed in parallel instead of the technician needing to update one module at a time. This allows a more streamlined approach for dealers and customers.

This bulletin provides information for use on a Product Assistance Claim (PAC), which is formerly known as a Product Allegation Resolution (PAR) claim.

This service bulletin provides information for dealers/technicians on Service Programming System (SPS) Error Codes E4398, E4399, E4401, E4403, M4404, M4413, M6954, M6955, E4414, E4423, E4491, E4492, or E6961 and resolution information.