2002 Pontiac Bonneville

Typical pattern

11.1% of complaints about the 2002 Pontiac Bonneville came in the first year, which is unremarkable for a 2002 vehicle — around the middle of the 230 model-years on record. The median complaint arrives at 4.0 yr in service. The most-reported system is steering (18 complaints), typically at 3.3 yr or about 21,205 miles.

Complaints: 108
Median age at failure: 4.0 yr
Median mileage: 49,352 n=67
Crash / fire / tow: 8.3% of reports
Safety recalls: 2

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

03V238000 2003-07-01

Fuel system, gasoline:storage:tank assembly

ON CERTAIN CADILLAC DEVILLE AND SEVILLE PASSENGER VEHICLES, FUNERAL COACHES, AND LIMOUSINES EQUIPPED WITH A V8 (4.6L) ENGINE, OLDSMOBILE AURORA PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A V8 (4.0L ) ENGINE, AND PONTIAC BONNEVILLE SSEI PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A SUPERCHARGED V6 (3.8L) ENGINE, THE FUEL TANK PRESSURE SENSORS ARE UNUSUALLY SUSCEPTIBLE TO MALFUNCTIONS. IF THE SENSOR MALFUNCTIONS, EXCESSIVE VACUUM CAN BE APPLIED DURING SELF-DIAGNOSTIC TESTING.

FUEL SYSTEM COMPONENTS CAN BE DAMAGED AND FUEL CAN LEAK FROM THE VEHICLE WHEN IT IS REFUELED. FUEL LEAKAGE IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE CAN RESULT IN A FIRE.

02V222000 2002-08-09

Air bags:frontal

CERTAIN PASSENGER, MINI VANS, AND SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES HAVE AN AIR BAG INFLATOR ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE THAT COULD FRACTURE AT A WELD DURING A DEPLOYMENT.

PIECES OF THE INFLATOR COULD STRIKE AND INJURE VEHICLE OCCUPANTS AND THE AIR BAG CUSHION WOULD NOT INFLATE FULLY, REDUCING THE CAPABILITY OF THE BAG TO PROTECT THE DRIVER.

In owners’ own words

Steering mileage not reported 4 mo in service

TILT STEERING WHEEL LOCKS WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING. DEALERSHIP IS AWARE OF PROBLEM. *AK

Steering 21,205 mi 2.6 yr in service

WHILE DRIVING CONSUMER HEARD A LOUD CLUNKING NOISE COMING FROM THE STEERING COLUMN. DEALERSHIP WAS NOTIFIED, BUT DID NOT RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. *AK

Steering 1,000 mi 3.2 yr in service

CLUNK SOUND COMING FROM THE TURNING OF THE STEERING WHEEL DURING COURSE OF DRIVING. *AK

Other Bonneville model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2002 Pontiac Bonneville

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

In owners’ own words

Other Bonneville model years

How to read this