AI DamagePontiac Parisienne: problems, complaints, bulletins
Summary for the Pontiac Parisienne across 2 model years: 15 owner complaints and 0 NHTSA service bulletins, plus repair videos. Pick a year for details.
Model years
What fails most often
- 1 Service brakes 73% of all complaints
- 2 Vehicle speed control 13% of all complaints
- 3 Powertrain 7% of all complaints
- 4 Steering 7% of all complaints
- 5 Visibility 7% of all complaints
- 6 Wheels 7% of all complaints
- Service brakes: 11 complaints (73% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Vehicle speed control: 2 complaints (13% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Powertrain: 1 complaints (7% of all).
- Steering: 1 complaints (7% of all).
- Visibility: 1 complaints (7% of all).
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 3.8 L · petrol · 6 cyl 1984
- 4.3 L · petrol · 6 cyl 1985–1986
- 5 L · petrol · 8 cyl 1984–1986
- 5.7 L · diesel · 8 cyl 1984–1985
- automatic, 3-speed 1984–1986
- automatic, 4-speed 1984–1986
Drive: RWD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 15 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service brakes | 11 | 1 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Powertrain | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Wheels | 1 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
The accelerator stuck and went to full throttle and the brakes could not stop the car. Please describe.
While driving vehicle's transmission caught on fire. The consumer stated the transmission was slipping, so she placed the vehicle in low gear which resulted in a fire that had spread throughout the vehicle.
In one incident, brakes failed completely at highway speed; by sheer luck I was able to avoid causing an accident. This brake system has been recalled, but gm refuses to work on my car because the vin number is not included in the recall.
While driving at 60 mph the cruise control slipped, causing vehicle to accelerate. Consumer took cruise control off and applied the brakes.
Brakes failed on several occasions, power master assembly replaced several times however brakes continue to fail.
Steering wheel locked up while attempting to make a turn, brakes applied; very low speed. Upon acceleration vehicle does not pick up speed there is a horrible smell of prestone in the vehicle, the windows fog up and it has pre ignition, the power steering fluid and oil disappears as quickly as consumer puts in.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
What to check before buying
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
- Vehicle speed control. Accelerator pedal, cruise control, throttle codes.
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
- Steering. Steering play, power assist, rack and tie rods after a wheel impact.
Other models of this make
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.