"How reliable is the 1996 Pontiac Sunfire?"

"Based on 320 NHTSA complaints, the 1996 Pontiac Sunfire has a median complaint mileage of 136050 miles. The most common issue is ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE."

"What are common problems with the 1996 Pontiac Sunfire?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1996 Pontiac Sunfire is ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE, accounting for a significant portion of the 320 total complaints filed."

1996 Pontiac Sunfire: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 320 complaints

320

Total Complaints

136,050mi

Median Mileage

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

90,374 25th Percentile

136,050 Median Mileage

159,925 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP

AIR BAGS

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"STEERING WHEEL FAILED. TT"

"WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE PULLS TO THE EXTREME RIGHT, SIX ATTEMPTED FIXES. *AK"

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

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