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Interested in buying an '04+ Grand Prix

I

IanDMacDonald

New member
Howdy all-

Current ride is an '05 Mercury Sable LS Platinum, with the 3.0L Duratec DOHC engine. I get 20 mpg, which I was hoping to improve. Currently the car has 115k on the odometer, and was looking to get the Grand Prix as a replacement.

I was disappointed to see that the Grand Prix gets worse fuel mileage than my car, when my gf's LeSabre with the 3.8L shows 24mpg average.

Anywho, I am contemplating the purchase of a Grand Prix, 2004 and above. Anything I should be looking for? Every one I have come across seems to have an ABS light on, so I assume the GM hub issue is present on this car as-well, along with the intake issue? Any Grand Prix's I should stay away from? Budget is less than $4k. I see them on CL between $2500-$4k. Stay away from the GTP? The least amount of mileage is my aim. I like the GT2 trim level. If my insurance does not skyrocket, the GTP would be cool. Finding a GXP is not possible in that price range.

Thanks,

Mac
 


There is a common problems thread floating around here somewhere.

They have their basic flaws for sure, wheel bearings or wiring issues are the biggest reason for ABS lights. The transmission is "Strong" but has it's weak points and for most isn't a issue they see when they own the car. But you could buy one and have the problem, it's hard to say ya know.

04-05 still have the plastic intake gaskets, I bet most of them on the road have been replaced but there still can be many that haven't yet.

Fuel mileage is all about where you drive and how you drive. Figure 15-18 city and 27-30 on the freeway. If you only do freeway, you'll get mid to upper 20's for sure with a good running car but if you are more heavy in the city, you will stay in the 19-23 mpg range.

If it was me I'd find a nicer low mileage car from 06-08 for just a daily.
 
He's right. 06-08 base would be your best bet as far as the intake gaskets and everything go, but if you want a GT2 you'll have to go 04-05 and possibly deal with intake gasket issues.
 
I've driven/ridden in 6th and 7th gen GPs and 8th gen Impalas and N/A to N/A I'd say there wasn't any noticeable difference. Never driven an L67 Impala though, would be weird if there was a difference, unless of course you're comparing a 7th gen GP S/C to an 8th gen Impala S/C, then given then 20hp difference there might be some power difference. I'd take an 8th gen Impala over a 6th gen GP any day though because the Impala has a lot more "quality" interior, IMO.
 


lol, interior quality of the Regals and 8th gen Impalas in comparison to 6th gen GPs is just...., yeah. I'd never buy another 6th gen GP to DD.
 
As a proud owner of the 08, I had no issues, nor any problems ever, so, my feedback here is, well... GO FOR IT... Though, I feel it to be eating a bit too much gas these days even for the 6 CYL model I have, due to the high gas price. Though it went down a bit... But I still love the car, and it still runs beautifully as my first purchase when it was new....
 
Thanks for the reply. After sitting in a few of them, I actually really liked the drivers seat with the instrument gauges. However, the interior controls were just too cheap looking, and I've focused my attention on an '07 Impala LTZ with the 3.9L, or an '06 Lucerne with the Northstar V8. Thanks for the replies fellas. Best of luck to your awesome cars. I love their sporty look.
 
Both of those car's in general are decent but each motor has known issues's.

The 3.9's suffer from a rough idle problem at times and burn oil and leak oil. The northstar is a strong motor but just never overheat one because of head gasket problems and burning a little oil is known to happen. Tight engine bay kinda sucks aswell but the northstars get a really strong transmission.
 
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