1998 Pontiac Sunfire problems
Owners have filed 149 complaints with NHTSA about the 1998 Pontiac Sunfire. Engine is the most reported problem area, at 18% of complaints. Next are electrical system (14%) and brakes (10%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 149 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Engine 18% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 13 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 6 and 2
- Typical mileage
- 77,000 miles 40 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 | 2 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 1 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 8 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 11 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 4 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 6 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 4 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 3 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 1 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 40 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 77,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 13 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 6 injuries reported; 2 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1998 ranks 4th most-complained-about out of 11 model years of the Pontiac Sunfire with enough data (92 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 3 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.
She was involved in a accident where the lady hit her on the drivers side of the car. I have seen on TV where this car has a very bad side impact rating, and also on this website. The woman who hit her got two broken legs, the driver of the pontiac sunfire died. She suffered a broken brain stem, pelvis, arms, and femur.
While driving on a rural two lane road. Consumer lost control of vehicle and was hit broadside on drivers side door by another vehicle. None of the vehicles airbags deployed resulting in a fatality. Dealer has been contacted. Please describe further. Ts
Consumer called complaining about having problem with the vehicle seat back collapse. Dealer has been notified. Ts vehicle was rear-ended and seat backs were thrown forward then collapsed into recline position. Driver and passenger sustained injuries.
I took my sunfire to the dealership for the specified ignition switch recall and am now having problems with my starter. The starter I have is not even one year old - I am sure this has something to do with the recent recall work done at the dealership.
A clicking noise was coming from the steering column. The consumer took the vehicle to the dealer for repairs twice, and results indicated that the steering column needed to be greased, otherwise the consumer could lose steering while driving. The noise was the sound of metal on metal. GM was aware of the problem.