2008 Pontiac Solstice problems
NHTSA has received 189 complaints about the 2008 Pontiac Solstice, and 52% of them involve air bags. Next are brakes (20%) and electrical system (8%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 189 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 52% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 8 and 0
- Injuries and deaths
- 8 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 28,000 miles 132 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 47 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 39 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 23 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 19 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 1 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 2 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 132 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 28,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 39,000 miles (64 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 8 complaints mention a crash; 8 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2008 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 4 model years of the Pontiac Solstice with enough data (80 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 4 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
I purchased my 2008 pontiac solstice on september 29, 2009. I didn't have a problem until I started it up and began to pull out of the nearby mall parking lot and as I went to press the brake, it made a low grinding noise, almost like the ABS was locking up except the light wasn't on, and I was merely cruising, not even on the gas pedal. I rear ended the person in front of me - not bad, just knocking off my pontiac emblem on the hood, and denting it in slightly. The very next day, the same incident occurred.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 pontiac solstice. The contact stated that while traveling approximately 10 MPH, another vehicle crashed head on into the contact. Upon impact, the air bags failed to deploy. The driver of the other vehicle sustained unknown injuries. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 9,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 pontiac solstice. While driving 3-5 MPH, the contact heard a grinding noise when the brake pedal was depressed. He had to shift into neutral in order to stop the vehicle. The dealer stated that there was a service bulletin for the failure, in which the manufacturer recommends not to repair the vehicle. As of november 20, 2007, the dealer had not repaired the vehicle. The failure mileage was 20 and current mileage was 550.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 pontiac solstice. The contact stated that the passenger side air bag indicator failed to illuminate when the passenger seat was occupied. The contact called the dealer and was informed that the part was on backorder. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 17v061000 (air bags). The part needed for the repair was not available.