[joegoat]

I purchased a '05 GTO 11 months ago and from day 1 have had problems. At 1500 miles I had it in for it's first service and asked them to check a noise I heard from the rear end. No satisfaction. They deglazed rotors to no avail. At 5000 miles same noise, they resurfaced rotors...no bueno. At 5700 miles they told me it was normal brake noise..HA!!HA!!! Finally took it to my own mechanic and opened a file with Pontiac. My mechanic diagnosed it in 45minutes. Pinion gear going out. Pontiac told me to take it to another dealer, which I did, and they agreed it needed to be rebuilt. I told them I wanted a new differential AND new rotors. At about the same time they came out with a TSB telling the dealers not to rebuild but to replace the differentials on all GTO's that have pinion gear problems. 26 days out of service for this problem and 4 times in the shop and the problem will finally be fixed this Monday when a new shipment of dana rear differentials comes in from Australia. Too many times in the shop for me and I'm now trying to get GM to buy the car back from me with the help of a lawyer and the "lemon law" here in CA. Anyone else having the same problem? The wait for 30 days for the new differential to come in tells me they have a MAJOR problem with these.

 

[GTOJon]

I'm not a lemon law expert nor do I live in CA. However, with a lemon law I thought that to be classified as such, the same problem would have to occur on multiple occasions after being "fixed" on multiple occasions as well. It sounds like they just misdiagnosed your problem and you should be good to go after that rear is replaced. I can understand your frustration and all and I would be upset too, but I can't see myself getting rid of the car for one problem and I'm not sure GM would buy it back just for that one problem. The only thing that I could see is because of all the trouble the dealer has given you by not finding the real problem after all of those appointments could lead to something like an increased warranty or at the extreme, a buy back. Just my .02

 

[joegoat]

I think what the law is in CA. is that they have an ample chance to repair the problem, and after giving them 4 and soon to be 5 chances, that it would fall into the "lemon" category. I'll keep you posted...should know in the next 2 weeks what the response is by GM. They have 30 days to respond to the letter sent by my lawyer.

 

[fergyflyer]

I have heard of several people having problems with the differential. Now that it's fixed why would you want to get rid of the car? IMO it seems like their is another issue here beside the rear end. What is the root issue that makes you want GM to buy this car back?

 

[Xcommuter]

I know the pain of the diff whine , I have waited a total of 5 months for delivery of two new pumpkins. As I'm on my third (counting the original as one) LSD and the whine is gone now. All my new cars have had warranty problems , just in this case we have a limited edition and parts come from OZ , but each time the dealer has fixed it to my satisfaction. I too have thought of pushing for some lemon/buy-back scenario , but then I think of what new car I like for $30k and I can't find one other than a GTO . But I have a GTO - so I need to get this whine issue behind me so I can enjoy my Goat for many years to come...

Follow the break-in of max 55mph for 500 miles , then change the fluid and if that doesn't keep the whine away , get Pontiac to replace it again , then save up for a Kaaz LSD and replace the Dana and move on to the engine compartment or the suspension... (unless you don't have the Mod bug yet).

If you don't like your GTO because of the amount of service it requires , just browse some of the other Forums and they have some stories that make our rearend whine's seam small (even Honda has major transmission problems). Hang in , let your warranty work...

 

[J.E.T.]

Personally I'd keep the car once it's fixed. This car, despite being more than anything else out there today has some "short comings". I've replaced all the brakes with Baers, all the suspension with Pedders, exhaust with Corsa, stereo with $8k worth of gear, new F1 tires and next week a Maggie completes the mods, for now anyway. This is a very heavy, powerful vehicle that just needs a little help to be all that it can be. Finest car I've owned in over 40 years of buyin' them.

JET

 

[NT91]

Wouldn't all 05's have the same problem of the pinion gear going out, if they all
have the same differential in the 05's?

 

[joegoat]

The car is going back to the shop today for a new differential. Since GM has announced the end to production of the GTO this summer, it makes me wonder even more about WHY? They say it has something to do with air bag laws and redesign of the dash area to meet the new law. I say B.S. They are having major problems with these cars and are trying to minimize their losses. I love the performance of the car, but feel like they cut too many corners in production trying to keep the cost down, which has not attracted too many buyers. I don't want to have to spend thousands of dollars to upgrade suspension, engine, stereo, etc. I feel like I'm stuck and hope they go for the buyback I'm pushing for.

 

[bemeyer]

The car is going back to the shop today for a new differential. Since GM has announced the end to production of the GTO this summer, it makes me wonder even more about WHY? They say it has something to do with air bag laws and redesign of the dash area to meet the new law. I say B.S. They are having major problems with these cars and are trying to minimize their losses. I love the performance of the car, but feel like they cut too many corners in production trying to keep the cost down, which has not attracted too many buyers. I don't want to have to spend thousands of dollars to upgrade suspension, engine, stereo, etc. I feel like I'm stuck and hope they go for the buyback I'm pushing for.

I disagree. They're ending production because the platform on which the GTO is built is going extinct. I've been browsing this forum quite often for a year now and this is the first differential problem I've heard about with these cars. Quirky electrical problems??...now those I've had myself and have seen other reports about. Drivetrain-wise these cars seem pretty darned bullet-proof, except the heavy drag racers who break other rearend (non pumpkin) parts.

I agree with fergy, get to the root of this isolated problem and give the car a chance. If not then sell her off. Good luck!

 

[Ironmancan]

The car is going back to the shop today for a new differential. Since GM has announced the end to production of the GTO this summer, it makes me wonder even more about WHY? They say it has something to do with air bag laws and redesign of the dash area to meet the new law. I say B.S. They are having major problems with these cars and are trying to minimize their losses. I love the performance of the car, but feel like they cut too many corners in production trying to keep the cost down, which has not attracted too many buyers. I don't want to have to spend thousands of dollars to upgrade suspension, engine, stereo, etc. I feel like I'm stuck and hope they go for the buyback I'm pushing for.

Sorry to hear about your problems. GTO was supposed to be a three year run from the go. Do a search hear and at the LS1 GTO site and you can verify yourself. Alot of us are very happy with our cars sorry to hear your not. Good luck:cheers

 

[Jeffs386]

The car is going back to the shop today for a new differential. Since GM has announced the end to production of the GTO this summer, it makes me wonder even more about WHY? They say it has something to do with air bag laws and redesign of the dash area to meet the new law. I say B.S. They are having major problems with these cars and are trying to minimize their losses. I love the performance of the car, but feel like they cut too many corners in production trying to keep the cost down, which has not attracted too many buyers. I don't want to have to spend thousands of dollars to upgrade suspension, engine, stereo, etc. I feel like I'm stuck and hope they go for the buyback I'm pushing for.

first of all the car was only intended to be a 3 year run in the first place,the idiots who are acting like its a complete suprise that its now ending are just plain ignorant,I knew in 04 that the car would either end or be redesigned after 06
Second.....most of us have had zero mechanical problems, I suggest you get rid of the GTO and buy a Mustang then you will have a real reason to bitch about quality issues

 

[Ironmancan]

:agree

 

[GTOtbird]

Looks like your spell checker is also a lemon.

Corrected spelling is: disappointed

 

[rushhour]

The car is going back to the shop today for a new differential. Since GM has announced the end to production of the GTO this summer, it makes me wonder even more about WHY? They say it has something to do with air bag laws and redesign of the dash area to meet the new law. I say B.S. They are having major problems with these cars and are trying to minimize their losses. I love the performance of the car, but feel like they cut too many corners in production trying to keep the cost down, which has not attracted too many buyers. I don't want to have to spend thousands of dollars to upgrade suspension, engine, stereo, etc. I feel like I'm stuck and hope they go for the buyback I'm pushing for.

There are numerous people with differential problems in the Goats. Biggest problem is the HP/TQ these cars put out. The suspensions should have been upgraded. I don't think - the Aussies had as much horepower running through their car (HSV excepted) until GM started throwing the higher output engines in ours - so this may be why the suspensions are starting to show problems versus theirs.

There is also a lot of talk on other boards that the rear on a lot of cars came off the line - misaligned - so this may be a contributor. If you start seeing unusual wear in your rear tires - this may be the cause. On my car the rear tires are wearing evenly - but I had one of the first cars off the line - so they may have spent a little more time on it to make sure the early ones got good press. (Don't ask me about the paint though - that sucks).

Now, while the above is a PITA - it is no where as bad as the Caddy CTS-V's are facing. Go to one of thier boards and try & count how many of them have had rears replaced by GM. Ours must be a helluve a lot stronger.

The car is being discontinued due to the new laws taking effect this year. A few rears maybe costly - but not enough to can the car over.

 

[joegoat]

The dealer replaced the pumpkin, and by the time I got it home it was making a louder noise than when I first took it in. Their remedy (after 5 more days in the shop) was that this rear end was also defective and it would be another 30 day wait for a new one. It now is very evident to me (via service advisor and my own experiences) that they positively DO have a problem with these.
I'm still waiting for a response from Pontiac on the buyback. California may have more protection for the consumer under the lemon law than other states do...I've had my car out of service now for over 35 days in less than a year. If they refuse to buy the car back, I will probably sue them in civil court. The max I can sue for is three time the amount of damages, or about $120,000 including attorney's fees. Then my dilemma is what to buy. I've always bought GM, but have lost faith in the quality of their product.

 

[cat1055man]

The dealer replaced the pumpkin, and by the time I got it home it was making a louder noise than when I first took it in. Their remedy (after 5 more days in the shop) was that this rear end was also defective and it would be another 30 day wait for a new one. It now is very evident to me (via service advisor and my own experiences) that they positively DO have a problem with these.
I'm still waiting for a response from Pontiac on the buyback. California may have more protection for the consumer under the lemon law than other states do...I've had my car out of service now for over 35 days in less than a year. If they refuse to buy the car back, I will probably sue them in civil court. The max I can sue for is three time the amount of damages, or about $120,000 including attorney's fees. Then my dilemma is what to buy. I've always bought GM, but have lost faith in the quality of their product.

At this point it sounds like even if they put a good differential in your car your car you are not going to be happy because of the painful experiance you have had so far. The litigation experiance might serve to extend the pain well into the future. Hope they get your car fixed so you can drive it and enjoy it ...these GTO's are great machines, really enjoyable to drive! I had to get a differential replaced and the new unit now has 5K on it and doing fine. I wish you good luck :cheers