1997 Pontiac Grand Prix Exterior Lighting Problems
Owners have filed 149 complaints with NHTSA about exterior lighting problems on the 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix, 18% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 74,000 miles. The words owners use most often: “fell off” (33% of reports).
- 149exterior lighting complaints
- 74,000median miles at failure
- 0mention a crash
- 0mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- $340typical repair cost reported by owners
- 36%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Fell off: mentioned in 49 of 149 complaints (33%)
- Headlight lens: mentioned in 32 of 149 complaints (21%)
How much does it cost to fix?
Owners who wrote down what they paid or were quoted put the typical exterior lighting repair on the 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix at $340, and half of them between $210 and $420.
Based on 11 NHTSA complaints about this problem alone that state a repair bill or quote (2000–2009), converted to 2026 dollars with the U.S. consumer price index. These are owners' own figures, not a quote: they include dealer quotes, and owners who file complaints often faced larger repairs, so they can run higher than typical shop prices. Prices vary by shop, region and warranty coverage. How we calculate this.
At what mileage do exterior lighting problems happen?
Based on 24 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 149 complaints, 2 a fire.
Pontiac Grand Prix exterior lighting complaints by model year
| Model year | Exterior Lighting complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 Grand Prix | 30 | 21% | 110,000 |
| 2007 Grand Prix | 92 | 42% | 100,000 |
| 2006 Grand Prix | 48 | 20% | 116,000 |
| 2005 Grand Prix | 3 | 2% | 117,350 |
| 2004 Grand Prix | 41 | 9% | 200 |
| 2003 Grand Prix | 8 | 8% | 35,816 |
| 2002 Grand Prix | 24 | 7% | 70,200 |
| 2001 Grand Prix | 18 | 6% | 92,625 |
| 2000 Grand Prix | 22 | 5% | 76,000 |
| 1999 Grand Prix | 8 | 2% | 78,900 |
| 1998 Grand Prix | 90 | 18% | 58,000 |
| 1997 Grand Prix | 149 | 18% | 74,000 |
| 1996 Grand Prix | 4 | 5% | — |
| 1995 Grand Prix | 18 | 11% | 130,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists exterior lighting for the 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
Tl* the contact owns a 1997 pontiac grand prix. While driving 35 mph, the exterior lighting on the front driver side caught fire from the inside. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 137,000.
At 4:06 pm on nov. 04,2013, my wife parked in a local walmart parking lot. She immediately noticed smoke coming from underneath the hood. Bystanders started yelling for her to exit the car. One bystander called the fire department, located 1.25 miles away. My wife exited the car called the fire…
Automatic headlights extinguish when heater fan switch selected to positions 2,3, or 4. *tr
Frequently asked questions
Do all 1997 Pontiac Grand Prixs have exterior lighting problems?
No. NHTSA has 149 owner complaints about exterior lighting for the 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix (18% of the 810 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix exterior lighting?
No recall currently lists exterior lighting for this vehicle.
At what mileage do exterior lighting problems start?
The median reported mileage is 74,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
How much does it cost to fix exterior lighting problems on the 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix?
Owners report a typical cost of $340 (half paid between $210 and $420), from 11 complaints that state a repair bill or quote, in 2026 dollars.
What do owners say about exterior lighting problems on the 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix?
The most frequent phrase is “fell off”, in 49 of 149 complaints, followed by “headlight lens” (32).
Other 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix problems
See all 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix problems or exterior lighting problems across all Grand Prix years.