I've owned 2 Grand Ams. The first was an '87 SE-V6 (monochrome white with the ground effects package), and the other was an '88 GT with the DOHC Quad-4 engine (again, ground effects and 'performance' package). Essentially the same body style (2-door coupe) on both.

Never had any problems with either car, they both had lots of power, very comfortable, got decent gas mileage, and most importantly, my wife liked her cars.

Now we have an '01 Grand Prix GT as her car (again, 2-door coupe, 3800 V6 non-supercharged) and it's gotta be one of the most comfortable cars I've ever driven/ridden in. For such a heavy car, it sticks in the corners very well, and has lots of power. It actually gets 33-35 mpg on the freeway as well, as indicated by our road trip last summer. I just wish her '96 Z-24 hadn't gotten totaled from a hail storm - I'd probably be driving it instead of my Honda.

My '95 Hatch is cool and all... and a decent little car for what it is: economy-minded basic transportation. I'll be honest though, I'd rather be driving my '97 Dodge Ram 4x4 for comfort and presence, the Grand Prix next because of comfort and economy, and finally my 1980 Jeep CJ-7 because it's by far the coolest vehicle I own. I only drive the Hatch because I have to - economy. It's a PITA to get in and out of (I'm 6'5"), has damn near zero acceleration until the engine's gotten past 2000 rpm, and frankly it scares the crap out of me thinking what kind of horrible death I will suffer if someone crashes into me.

But, when its running right, it's kinda fun to drive. And $20 every 2 weeks for gas is way the Hell better than $60.

 

very good point my friend had a prix just like the one u explaind and Itwas fast and it was quite comfy almost like a cheap luxury car, it had leather and such. But rice eater is right, they are a little sloppy and I see them as just another car. Its just not like a honda when you hear that beautiful sound and look around to catch a look before it races away. when I see a pontiac in traffic, its just another DD like everyone else

 

Exactly, there is nothing wrong with them, they will get you around and do it quite quickly if you push it. All I was saying is that i would never pick a Grand-am over a civic. I am a GM guy at heart and would never say a good thing or bad thing about them unless i knew it firsthand. My Civic is the first non-GM vehicle i have ever owned. and i've had 6 total vehicles in my short time here on earth. each of them were great except the cavalier and that was because of the oil-burning problem only. If you are gonna get a newer Grand-am and want a more economical car get the ones equipped with the Ecotec. My friends girlfriend (ex, now) drove one and i did a little work on it and than test drove it. it was pretty quick too, for a 4 banger in a big car.

 

I use to have a grand prix GT, and a Grand am, but the grand am never held up to well. As far as speed, for the price, you would get more out of the grand am, but as far as reliability, i would definitely say the civic.

 

Grand Ams handle and brake like crap, have zero comfort amenities, have generic design qualities, etc.. It's a purpose built car, thats supposed to get you from a-b, and they typically do that well.

 

Used to own a '88 Grand Am SE with the Quad 4 a ways back. Loved that car. Not much upper end but plenty of torque and handled relatively well.It vapor locked couple of times when my wife was driving it and since we'd just had a baby, we got rid of it for something a bit newer/reliable.

 

then for what I read , grand ams are cars that people do not mind to drive , however they are no something you would go to a forum or brag about it. Nice to knoe

 

The grand prix's are a step above the grand am. The car my wife drove before the civic was a 01 grand prix gtp. They come from the factory with an eaton m90 supercharger putting about 7 psi of boost. Not sure exactly how much. That car was a blast to drive. It had quite a bit of torque for a fwd car.For a couple hundred dollars you could put a smaller supercharger pullie and supporting mods and have a pretty quick car. I never took mine to the track so I cant post numbers. My biggest complaint about the car was that the damn cup holders were in the dumbest spot, between the console and the gear shifter. I like to rest my hand on the shifter. As for quality, I totaled mine before 75k so I dont know. The int was alot of plastic but so is my civic. Another con is with the supercharger, the car only drank 93.

 

How very odd - I've been saying the same things about Honda Civics for years... and pretty much feel the same way about my '95 Hatch. Doesn't mean I'm going to leave it alone, by any means. I still plan on punching out my stereo, making it as nice as I can within my budget, and keeping the thing clean though. Basic transportation doesn't have to be 'basic' at all.

At the end of the day, it's all about the owner. If you like your car, it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, and you'll find a way to make it better and make it 'more yours.' If not - it's basically transportation, and you could give two ***** less about it beyond it serving your needs. There's no right or wrong there.

I see every car as a blank canvas - there's all sorts of things that can be done to make them better. And I sometimes question some people's choices, but Hey - that's life and we're all different.

 

it's cuz they depreciate like crap