The Most Common G6 Problem

We've pulled together a list of the problems G6 owners.

  1. G6 Brake Lights Possessed

    For years Pontiac G6 owners have said their brake lights are possessed. As it turns out, they may be on to something.

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  2. What Are We Missing?

    We know there's more problems than this. Let us know which one you'd like to see us cover next.

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What G6 Owners Complain About

Sometimes it helps just to tally up the complaints and see where the biggest stacks are. Use this information to learn about troublespots or to run for the hills.

What Breaks

Years to Avoid

G6 Generations

Generations are groups of model years where few, if any, changes were made to the vehicle which means their model years tend to break in similar ways. The G6 has 1 generation available in North American markets.

  1. 1st Generation G6

    Years
    2005–2010
    Reliability
    27th of 27
    PainRank
    33.49
    Complaints
    1395
    Continue Front 3/4 view of a G6

G6 Key Numbers

  1. 1,395 complaints

    Running tally of owner grievances filed to CarComplaints.com.

  2. 1,057 service bulletins

    Documenting the process of troubleshooting common problems.

  3. 11 recall campaigns

    Time-sensitive, free repairs for widespread safety problems.

Recent G6 News

There's a lot of news out there, but not all of it matters. We try to boil down it to the most important bits about things that actually help you with your car problem. Interested in getting these stories in an email? Signup for free email alerts over at CarComplaints.com.

  1. It f

    els like any GM built in the last 10 years has been pulled back for some sort of repairs. That's especially true for certain Malibu, Malibu Maxx and Pontiac G6 cars that have now been recalled for the 2nd time this month.

    Less than two weeks ago, those vehicles were recalled for a faulty wiring harness that could cause the brake lights to go crazy. Now those same vehicles are being recalled again because the transmission shift cable can break. Once that happens your shifter could be lying to you. For example, you could put the car's shifter in park only to have it roll away because the transmission was really in neutral. Or you could put the car in reverse only to end up driving into a storefront because the transmission was actually in drive. It's like a grab bag of fun, without any of the fun.

    Here's the breakdown of the 1.1 million cars that are likely to, well ... break down. All the recalled vehicles have automatic transmissions:

    • 2004-2008 Chevrolet Malibu, manufactured between 05/16/03 and 10/05/07
    • 2004-2007 Malibu Maxx, manufactured between 06/25/03 and 04/05/07
    • 2005-2008 Pontiac G6, manufactured between 05/26/04 and 09/28/07

    If you're confused, concerned or just ticked off you can contact GM at 1-800-553-6000 and refer to recall #14152. GM will eventually notify owners, and GM dealers will replace the shift cable assembly and mounting bracket, free of charge.

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  2. Back

    in June, 2013, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened an investigation into the possessed brakes of the Pontiac G6. Basically, the brake lights would come on when they shouldn't and not work when they should. It was a mess -- not to mention pretty darn confusing to anyone following one of these cars down the road.

    NHTSA concluded that "increased resistance in the body control module connection was resulting in voltage fluctuations in the brake apply sensor circuit". Bottom line, the wiring was fubar and the problem was much wider-reaching than just the brake lights of the Pontiac G6. In fact, the cruise control, traction control, electronic stability control and basically any other kind of control could be messed up in millions of GM vehicles.

    Thankfully, GM is bringing in 2.4 million vehicles to address the faulty wiring harness. Maybe it has something to do with safety being at the heart of what they do now, but I'm guessing they're just [tired of being sued][20]. Either way, the recalled vehicles include:

    There is no schedule for when the recall will begin, but concerned owners can contact Chevy at 800-222-1020, Pontiac at 800-762-2737, or Saturn at 800-553-6000. GM's number for this recall is 13036. In the meantime, maybe you should brush up on your hand signals?

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