2007 Grand Prix? Thoughts?

[Stick in Mud]

I'm not much of a "car guy"....so buying a car is a bit intimidating/frustrating/exhausting. So here I am, looking for some advice.

I'm looking at buying a 2007 Grand Prix with 50K miles on it. Cost is about 10,500. To my very very untrained eye, everything seems to be fine, but I'm curious if there's anything I should take a closer look at. I don't know anyone who's a mechanic, either. From what I've read online, it seems fairly reliable (the engine's a 3800), but for some reason I trust anonymous forum posts here and not on car websites.

[brian6715]

I had an '04 (basically the same car) and absolutely loved it. I put 20k on it in 10 months and then sold it because it was losing value way too fast with me (I bought a '99 chevy prism to replace it, oh yeaaaa huge upgrade )

The car had the best combination of comfort and performance I have ever been in. We took it to Colorado and it was awesome for LONG distance driving (we only stopped for gas, never really got sore). Say what you want about Nissan, toyota, honda... those cars can't even compare to the comfort of a Grand Prix.

Mine had 80k when I bought it and it shifted hard from 1st to 2nd, and kind of hard from 2nd to 3rd. It only did this when it was hot. We had a tranny guy look at it and he said there really is nothing we could do until it went bad on us. We put 20k on it and it never got worse, and the car is still on the road today. I will be buying another one as soon as I don't have to commute 100+ miles every day.

We got an average of 26-27 on the highway, with the best being 29.

[PierBridge]

The word Pontiac normally makes me cringe ...... but that is a very good car for sure. Amazingly quick with great mileage!

[Jeremy airjer W]

Just make sure its not the california emissions 3.8 liter. They had an air pump and a switching valve that can give you issues.

The 3.8 liter is the better option for motors. They do have issues with the coolant elbows and intake plenums but you should be quite a few miles from having to worry about that.

The other things that are common on these are broken sway bars, wheel bearings, ABS wiring/sensors, and depending on what lower control arms you have lower control arm bushings. We see quite a few with check engine lights for stuck open t-stats and Evap issues as well.

Other than that they are pretty good reliable cars. Keep on top of the things that go wrong and it should treat you well!

[Capt. H (Ret.)]

The last Gran Prix I had was ok. Traded it at about 90K and the dash was lit up like a Christmas Tree. The most irritating thing about the car was my baseball cap would touch the ceiling when I was driveing it.

[Stick in Mud]

Thanks for all the input, guys.....I'm not that tall, Capt. H, so I don't have to worry about that.

[jwhjr]

Other than that they are pretty good reliable cars. Keep on top of the things that go wrong and it should treat you well!

Wow, that's almost an "endorsement" for a GM vehicle I had to read it twice and make sure it was airjer posting... All in fun of course

[Jeremy airjer W]

That wasn't me. It was Captain Obvious!

[reinhard1]

i still have an 1998 grand prix gtp with the 3800 super charged engine. it has 260,000 miles on it. other than normal car repairs it has served me fine. it still has its original exhaust system which now needs to be replaced. never had a engine or trany problem. good luck.