VehicleVerdict

1998 Pontiac Sunfire engine problems

The 1998 Pontiac Sunfire has 34 engine complaints filed with NHTSA — 23% of the year's total, and roughly flat versus the prior model year.

34

Engine complaints

23%

Share of year

0

Crash-involved

0

Related recalls

Engine complaints by year

Sunfire engine complaints by model year54 complaints1991: 1 complaints1995: 40 complaints1996: 54 complaints1997: 35 complaints1998: 34 complaints1999: 20 complaints2000: 27 complaints2001: 14 complaints2002: 12 complaints2003: 10 complaints2004: 7 complaints2005: 5 complaints
Sunfire engine complaints by model year. Red bars are years to avoid.

What owners report

WHEN STARTING OUT, VEHICLE STARTS BUT WHEN YOU PUSH THE ACCELERATOR IT STALLS, WHEN YOU TRY TO RESTART IT KEEPS TURNING, IT WON'T CATCH. IT HAS ALSO HESITATED WHILE DRIVING AT 30 MPH AND 60 MPH. IT HAS DONE THIS 15-20 TIMES AND BEEN TO THE DEALER AT LEAST 7 TIMES. THEY SAY THAT THERE IS NOTHING…

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Engine · March 18, 1998

Common questions

How many engine complaints does the 1998 Pontiac Sunfire have?

NHTSA has 34 complaints about the 1998 Pontiac Sunfire engine — 23% of all complaints filed for that model year.

Related

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.