Pontiac / Bonneville / 1996
1996 Pontiac Bonneville problems
Owners have filed 181 complaints about the 1996 Pontiac Bonneville with NHTSA. Engine and engine cooling accounts for 26.5% of them — the clear leader, ahead of air bags at 14.9%.
Complaints181
Crashes6
Fires11
Injuries15
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Engine and engine cooling 26.5% · 48
Air bags 14.9% · 27
Electrical system 11.6% · 21
Fuel system, gasoline 11.0% · 20
Structure 5.5% · 10
Power train 5.0% · 9
Service brakes, hydraulic 3.9% · 7
Steering 3.9% · 7
Severity
Of those complaints, 6 describe a crash, 11 describe a fire and 15 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 11 model years of the Pontiac Bonneville in this data, 1996 sits 6th by complaint volume. 1998 draws the most.
Filings have fallen off, 6 in the last three years against 13 in the three before. That is normal as a generation leaves the road.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 110,000 miles.
In owners' own words
While starting vehicle, it exploded and caught on fire. Had a recall done on jan 1998 for engine backfire, dealer contacted . *Ak original recall nhtsa campaign #96v116000. Kentucky basic fire incident report stated that fire possibly started around the injector area of the engine. Consumer states that gm would not accept responsibility for fire and that there was nothing they could do. Engine and engine cooling
1St the plenum was melted by the egr valve, which caused me to be stranded. When that was fixed, I began hearing a high pitched whine once the engine is heated up. We have replacedthe harmonic balancer power steering pump, water pump, all belts, checked the timimg chain, and everything else we could think might be causing it, but I still have the whine. Cause is unknown still. Engine and engine cooling · reported at 14,840 miles
Failure of intake manifold and gasket on my automobile. Allowed engine coolant to leak into the cylinders of the engine. Car: 1996 Pontiac Bonneville with 3.8L v-6 engine, using the dex-cool gm coolant. Repairs required a complete replacement of intake manifold and all engine gaskets. Repairs costs exceed $1400. Engine and engine cooling · reported at 106,000 miles
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…
Other Pontiac Bonneville years
1993 183 complaints · 26.2% service brakes, hydraulic 1994 123 complaints · 17.9% electrical system 1995 330 complaints · 17.3% engine and engine cooling 1997 188 complaints · 30.9% engine and engine cooling 1998 359 complaints · 58.8% engine and engine cooling 1999 176 complaints · 33.5% engine and engine cooling