NHTSA — Electrical System Problems

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
53,857 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2004 Pontiac Sunfire electrical problems

electrical problem

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2004 Pontiac Sunfire Owner Comments

problem #7

Sep 122014

Sunfire 4-cyl

  • 112,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Bought car used in 2013. Everything seemed to be okay until 9/12/14 when the theft system service light came on and I noticed the speedometer, rpms, and gas indicators were not reading - car began stalling like it was going to shut down. I was traveling about 50 to 55 mph on a busy street. After car is shut off for a time it starts up okay and runs until the same thing reoccurs after going about 20 miles or so - if car shuts down while moving it could cause a serious injury or death. I have read numerous complaints about this same thing on various websites. Apparently, the approximate cost to fix is $400 - I am on a limited income and cannot afford. Please help.

- Fenton, MO, USA

problem #6

Jan 152014

Sunfire 4-cyl

  • 102,000 miles
Vehicle does not always start right away. The vehicle has shut off multiple times while driving in town and on the highway.

- Sparta, WI, USA

problem #5

Apr 142014

Sunfire 4-cyl

  • 55,000 miles
Vehicle was driven and parked for the evening. In the morning went to start the vehicle and vehicle would not start. Multiple attempts were tried to start. New starter installed and still no success to start. Vehicle was towed to repair shop. After evaluation it was found the timing chains had broken and infringed on the cylinder heads. Vehicle requires replacement engine as per mechanic. Investigated other claims of the same incident happening and have found that the 2.2L ecotec engine has had several complaints over the last 5-7 years.

- Arcadia, OH, USA

problem #4

Jan 012011

Sunfire

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

When it is very hot or cold outside the speedometer and all of the needles in the instrument panel will stick at certain points or stop working completely, this occurs randomly and I can not see how fast I am going. This was part of a GM class settlement but my vehicle model was not included for a free repair or a recall of this part. I do not plan to get it fixed at a dealer because of the cost but I plan to ship the instrument cluster off and get the stepper motors in it repaired.

- Greenville, NC, USA

problem #3

Aug 102009

Sunfire

  • 35,000 miles
Electrical gauges on dash do not function correctly. Tach is pegged out, fuel gage not correct and speed is inaccurate.

- Friendswood, TX, USA

problem #2

Dec 022008

Sunfire

  • 60,000 miles
I own a 2004 Pontiac Sunfire and the headlights are extremely dim, making it very difficult to drive at night without using the "brights". after replacing headlight bulbs, the problem continued. I took it to a mechanic that told me this is a common problem with the Sunfire and it involved corrosion to the headlight wiring harness. I looked online to see if there was a manufacturer recall, which I did not find. While researching the problem I found that this problem is very common and there is much written about the problem in several auto forums, but GM has not addressed the issue with a recall. My daughter drives this vehicle and had complained to me about the problem which I did not acknowledge until she was following me at night and I saw that her headlights were extremely dim. This is a safety hazard and could cause accidents, why hasn't this problem been addressed. I see the dealers are charging approx. $600 to repair the wiring harness, which seems ridiculous, considering it is a manufacturing defect. Does there need to be deaths involved in order for this problem to be addressed?headlights

- Monroe, MI, USA

problem #1

Feb 172005

Sunfire 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 13,000 miles
I was driving my new 2004 Sunfire that was just purchased at the end of August, when I saw a flame come out from under the dash near my foot. I slammed on the brakes, through it in park and jumped from the vehicle. The vehicle was totaled!

- Omaha, NE, USA

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