"How reliable is the 1996 Pontiac Grand Am?"

"Based on 672 NHTSA complaints, the 1996 Pontiac Grand Am has a median complaint mileage of 103494 miles. The most common issue is Frontal."

"What are common problems with the 1996 Pontiac Grand Am?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1996 Pontiac Grand Am is Frontal, accounting for a significant portion of the 672 total complaints filed."

1996 Pontiac Grand Am: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 672 complaints

672

Total Complaints

103,494mi

Median Mileage

Frontal

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

69,000 25th Percentile

103,494 Median Mileage

140,800 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Frontal

Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip

Switch

Air Bags

Gasoline

Alternator/Generator/Regulator

Electrical System

Automatic Transmission

Ignition

Cooling System

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"WHILE THE CAR IS MOVING THERE IS A BOOMING NOISE MADE AS LONG AS THE CAR IS IN MOTION. TT"

"THE HEAD LIGHTS WILL NOT TURN OFF. TT"

"ABS: ONCE IN A WHILE, ANY SPEED, APPLYING BRAKES, REDUCES SPEED, VEHICLE KEEPS ROLLING; CAUSED ACCIDENT, ROLLED INTO ANOTHER MOVING VEHICLE. *AK"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

Frontal 63 complaints

25th: 95,720 mi Median: 122,000 mi 75th: 137,963 mi

Switch 36 complaints

Median: 107,350 mi

Air Bags 35 complaints

25th: 106,044 mi Median: 140,400 mi 75th: 176,000 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 72 NY: 72 PA: 63 OH: 53 IL: 39 MI: 36 NC: 34 FL: 27 MA: 21 TX: 20

Who Files Complaints?

32.9%

Original Owners

67.1%

Second+ Owners

Pontiac Grand Am — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1990	61	-	Engine	3
1991	102	-	Engine	11
1992	304	88,000	Engine	15
1993	290	100,000	Engine	11
1994	515	123,000	Engine	71
1995	587	101,000	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	78
1997	600	90,000	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	43
1998	236	80,000	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	16
1999	1317	70,000	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	99
2000	938	65,000	Electrical System	68
2001	759	70,000	Electrical System	30
2002	549	70,000	Electrical System	33
2003	436	68,000	Electrical System	40
2004	402	81,000	Electrical System	34
2005	143	85,627	Electrical System	21

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28