2003 Pontiac Bonneville Review
Fuel Economy
19 - 21 mpg
Summary
What Edmunds.com says
Pontiac bills the Bonneville as "Luxury with Attitude." That's an accurate description, given its basis on Cadillac's Seville platform and available 240-horse supercharged V6 engine. If traditional Pontiac styling twists your crank, and you want a large sedan packed with performance and features, the Bonneville is your kind of ride.
Pros
Loads of gee-whiz features, solid handling and drivetrain, excellent crash test scores, large trunk.
Cons
Average interior materials, overly complicated controls, poor resale value.
What's New for 2003
The Bonneville gets only minor changes for 2003. Base SE models now sport newly styled 16-inch steel wheels and a standard AM/FM/CD stereo, while all models can be upgraded with optional XM Satellite Radio. Previously standard side airbags are now optional on SE and SLE models.
Consumer Ratings & Reviews
2003 Bonneville with 160,000 miles
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 8 | Fun-to-Drive: | 7 | Build Quality: | 9 |
| Comfort: | 9 | Interior Design: | 10 | Reliability: | 9 |
| Fuel Economy: | 9 | Exterior Design: | 8 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Pontiac Bonneville SE 4dr Sedan (3.8L 6cyl 4A)
Review
I am 18 years old and this was my first car. I bought the car two years ago with 130,000 and it ran great. I still have the car and it's still going strong with 168,000 miles. The only thing i have had to do with it is scheduled maintenance (oil changes, balancing tires, etc). Fuel economy is great for a 6 cylinder. It has a very smooth ride, and i like the comfortable leather seats. It also rides quite well at 120 mph. One of the only things i do not like about this car is that it is quite heavy, and does not stop as quickly as many other cars I have driven.
Favorite Features
Suggested Improvements
The transmission will shift awkwardly once in a while, but if your not driving you don't notice. Also if you do maintenance yourself 3 of the spark plugs are hard to replace. The air filter is also annoying to get to. At one point I was burning oil, but i replaced the pcv valve and it stopped.
Hate my Bonneville
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 7 | Fun-to-Drive: | 7 | Build Quality: | 3 |
| Comfort: | 8 | Interior Design: | 8 | Reliability: | 2 |
| Fuel Economy: | 4 | Exterior Design: | 8 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Pontiac Bonneville SE 4dr Sedan (3.8L 6cyl 4A)
Review
Purchased used, after 2 years I started noticing some transmission slippage from 1st to 2nd.. Then came the the transmission not engaging 1st. I had the transmission replaced, it worked fine for about 5 months. Now it is doing the exact same thing. It also has an annoying steering grind. I would not recommend this car. I have also heard others complaining of transmission problems with this car.
Favorite Features
Suggested Improvements
Love my bonni
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 8 | Fun-to-Drive: | 10 | Build Quality: | 8 |
| Comfort: | 7 | Interior Design: | 9 | Reliability: | 10 |
| Fuel Economy: | 9 | Exterior Design: | 9 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Pontiac Bonneville SLE 4dr Sedan (3.8L 6cyl 4A)
Review
Purchased new. Had intermediate steering shaft replaced uhder warranty. Clicking returned at 45,000 miles. My local mechanic put oil in hole at top of steering shaft and now is fine and charged me nothing its abouy a 5 min. Job. Had problem with Goodyear 17 in tires. All have been replaced 2 times under tire warranty. Car is fun to drive handling great. Would buy another one if they still made them. Replaced brake rotors and pads. My only expence to date in over 6 yrs of driving this car. Have had no problems with broken nobs or interior plastic. Car still looks new inside and out. Great looks handling and economy. Buy American. This is my 2nd bonni love them
Favorite Features
leather seating styling handling and cost of ownership
Suggested Improvements
put michelen tires on 17 in.wheels not goodyear. use bnetter quality brake rotors
My 2003 Bonne
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 9 | Fun-to-Drive: | 8 | Build Quality: | 8 |
| Comfort: | 10 | Interior Design: | 8 | Reliability: | 8 |
| Fuel Economy: | 5 | Exterior Design: | 8 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Pontiac Bonneville SSEi 4dr Sedan (3.8L 6cyl S/C 4A)
Review
Overall I would rate this a good buy! It has performed better than expected. The only problem is something that just came up in the last 6 months which my dealer calls "knuckling," which is when you turn the wheel you experience a "grinding" sound. I am told that GM has no solution for this which is a great disappointment to me.
Favorite Features
Side view mirror on passenger side tilts to offer a great view of of the curb when backing up.
Suggested Improvements
See my comment above on the "knuckling" feature. Doesn't Pontiac/GM have a call back on this? If so, I never received one!
0 out 1 people found this review helpful
Great Pontiac Ride
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 8 | Fun-to-Drive: | 9 | Build Quality: | 10 |
| Comfort: | 8 | Interior Design: | 8 | Reliability: | 10 |
| Fuel Economy: | 8 | Exterior Design: | 9 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Pontiac Bonneville SSEi 4dr Sedan (3.8L 6cyl S/C 4A)
Review
This car is a pure joy to own. In 150,000 miles there have been no repairs other than regular maintenance and crash repairs. The fuel economy is very good, better than some of my friends with much smaller cars. Just a note, this is just another in a long line of nearly flawless GM cars that I have owned. Bravo!!
Favorite Features
Looks, performance, quality
Suggested Improvements
None. Keep up the good work!
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