2004 Pontiac Grand Prix buying guide

A data-driven checklist for buying a used 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix, built from 454 owner complaints, 7 recall campaigns, 510 service bulletins and federal safety records — not opinions.

Know before you buy

7 recall campaigns affect this model year. Check each one and confirm the repairs were done — recall work is free at any authorized dealer.
Main problem areas: electrical system (107), engine (98), steering (64), engine and engine cooling (41), exterior lighting (41).
Symptoms owners describe: stalling (42), vibration / shaking (19), clunking / rattling (16), hesitation / surging (14), electrical failures (11), steering problems (10). Test-drive with these in mind.
Reported incident mileage: among 297 complaints with a usable odometer reading, half were filed between 29,000 and 132,000 miles (median 75,927). This describes when owners reported problems — it does not predict when a particular vehicle will develop one.
1 federal investigations have named this model year — read what they cover.
Fuel economy: 19–21 MPG combined (EPA; engines: 3.8L 6-cyl).

When problems get reported

Reported incident mileage among 297 complaints with usable odometer readings.

under 20k		57
20–40k		37
40–60k		30
60–80k		28
80–100k		26
100–150k		55
150k+		64

Before you hand over money

Run the VIN through our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact build.
Check open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls — a recall that was never fixed is a free repair you can claim.
Get a pre-purchase inspection focused on the problem areas listed above.

This guide is generated from official NHTSA, EPA and FARS records. Complaints are unverified owner reports and raw counts are not adjusted for sales volume.