NHTSA — Electronic Stability Control Problems

2006 Pontiac G6 (Page 1 of 2)

CarComplaints.com Seal Of Avoid Like The Plague

CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2006 Pontiac G6 has major problems with two areas fairly critical to the act of driving... steering & safety.

The 2006 G6 has a major defect trend with electronic power-assisted steering failure. The power steering cuts out while driving, making it extremely difficult to steer. G6 owners typically report spending $600 - $1,200+ to fix the problem, replacing either the entire steering column or the power assist motor.

In March 2010, GM recalled 1.3 million vehicles for this exact problem "...after receiving 1,100 complaints of power steering failures." However the 2006 G6 wasn't included in that recall.

In July 2010, GM issued a "Special Coverage Adjustment" — TSB #10183 — covering "certain" (not all) 2005, 2006 & 2008 Pontiac G6's for this power steering issue, up to 10 years/100k miles. However a large number of 2006 G6 owners have reported they were not covered by this campaign, based on VIN#.

As of late 2013 the NHTSA had well over 700 steering complaints on file for the 2006 G6, with 21 crashes & 12 injuries. The NHTSA closed their initial investigation in 2007, having determined that losing your power steering going over 15-20 mph isn't a big deal & that most crashes occurred at slow speeds, so not a safety risk. Ridiculous? Yep, we think so too.

The 2006 G6 also has an expensive problem with "popping" or "clunking" noises when turning, & that issue extends to newer model years as well.

Factor in the 2006 Pontiac G6's poor side impact protection & you end up with a vehicle you should steer clear of.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
65,543 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2006 Pontiac G6 brakes problems

brakes problem

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2006 Pontiac G6 Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #31

May 232020

G6 6-cyl

  • 135,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Transmission isn't shifting, and shift cable came apart somewhere. Several cars just like mine have been recalled due to this same thing happening, but mine isn't"? car doesn't have even 135,000 miles. Electrical system is shorting out somewhere, and is draining my battery. Power steering is working against me or not working at all. This all happened around the same time... please help me get this figured out, I'm not the only one having this issue, it is definitely an issue with several thousand of these cars just like mine and mine doesn't fall under the recall notice??? tell me why not?"

- Tower Hill, IL, USA

problem #30

Jan 162020

G6

  • 100,000 miles
Steering very dangerously. This is a recall the dealer refuses to fix.

- Richmond, KY, USA

problem #29

Sep 012019

G6

  • miles
Steering locks and hard to turn and headlight dims while turns steering wheel

- Saint Paul, MN, USA

problem #28

Jan 012019

G6

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My cars electric system is completely went out. My heat and air conditioning system completely went out. Its extremely hard just to get my car out of park in my driveway. My keys get stuck in the ignition and its extremely frustrating because you can't leave your keys in the ignition, obviously you have to lock your door so no one will steal your car while your sleeping. And the most dangerous part or what's going on with my car is, when driving the brake medal is almost impossible to mash while driving even with two feet. And my morning commute to work requires me to be on the highway. I've had recall work done to my 2006 Pontiac G6 before due to my electric system failing and these are all of the same signs of the recall. And I wouldn't dare let my family ride in this car. Thank you

- Huntsville, AL, USA

problem #27

Oct 122019

G6

  • miles
For several months, the indicator lights in the vehicle have been randomly coming on for one ting or another. The air bag light comes on as well as the engine light. At one point, the gas gauge indicates that the tank in about empty when we have just filled the tank half of the way. Being senior citizens, it is difficult to get a diagnosis on the car without paying beyond your budget, or getting the repairs done. Also the power steering freezes up while driving sometimes.

- Detroit, MI, USA

problem #26

Apr 222019

G6

  • 155,000 miles
My 2006 Pontiac G6 has been giving my wife issues while she is driving. At random times, the power steering goes out, ABS sensor comes on, and the lights inside and outside the car start to dim. This has caused her to nearly have an accident and is unsafe for the road. I replaced the battery and the alternator because it seemed like a power issue, but there was more behind the issue. Whenever I called my GM dealer, they told me there was an extended warranty on the vehicle and they would replace the torque sensors in the power steering system if the vehicle was under 150,000 miles. Since I was never notified by GM of this extended warranty issue and had to call them directly to find out there was an issue, my vehicle has 155,000 miles on it and they will not fix it.

- North Vernon, IN, USA

problem #25

Feb 092019

G6

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My steering wheel is going crazy and sometime it just does work like my steering wheel locks almost had a real bad accident because of this unknown problem

- Highspire, PA, USA

problem #24

Sep 202018

G6

  • 209,000 miles
My G6 2006 3.9 gtp transmission wont move the car in first gear the transmisson showed no sign of going bad I have to put car in manual to drive it also traction control light pops on random times followed by a weird grinding noise.

- Cleveland, OH, USA

problem #23

Jul 062018

G6

  • 171,000 miles
Power steering goes out without warning. This happens randomly when driving. Most recent was driving home from New York on Friday and it went out. It comes back without warning as well. It is working fine now. Brake lights are on when driving and go off when the brakes are applied. This happens 95 percent of the time with them working the correct way getting less and less frequent.

- Ashtabula, OH, USA

problem #22

Apr 012018

G6

  • 100,000 miles
Power steering went out and I found out it has been fixed before under warranty before I bought it! and yes I was driving the car! also the shifter has issues!

- Cedar Rapids, IA, USA

problem #21

Jan 032018

G6

  • 122,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

ABS and traction control lights on dash came on during a routine drive, and remain on. Had mechanic inspect- concluded that both sensors working, malfunction due to no electricity being delivered. As a result, critical crash avoidance features (both anti-lock brake and traction control are critical) are disabled / failing. Repair would require tracing wire back to point of issue. Before having a private mechanic address, I learned of recall for this specific issue (NHTSA campaign number: 14V252000) effective Aug 18, 2014, whereby GM to address wiring harness with spacers and dielectrical lubricant. Contacted General Motors on this and told no open recall; told that it was already addressed by service at devan Chevrolet, wilton ct on Aug 13, 2015. I do acknowledge that I had the car at that dealer / service center on that date for another matter- I had no issues or symptoms with ABS and traction control while its possible that during that visit they actioned the remedy detailed in the recall, however, as there was no noted issue at that time, I am not sure they did anything that made a difference. Now that the symptoms are persistent, GM appears to declare no repair is required under the recall.

- Fairfield, CT, USA

problem #20

Nov 032017

G6

  • 16,700 miles
To whom it may concern: On November 03, 2017, my 2006 Pontiac G6 gtp, automobile was involved in an accident that flipped and crashed and causing serious injuries. The vehicle was going straight on the hwy and the car lost steering power and the car went to the right of the hwy. I was surprised to learn at that time there has been several recalls issued on this vehicle. Since purchasing this vehicle in 2013, I have only received one recall notice in 2015 and I took my Pontiac 06 G6 gtp to oaks GMC dealer to be fixed by GM, and I was not aware of any other recalls about the power steering until I found research through NHTSA after the accident, NHTSA recall identification number 15V064000,

- Anguilla, MS, USA

problem #19

Dec 022017

G6

  • 168,967 miles
Power steering went out and car became unstable causing my car to wobble and unsafe to drive couldn't get it repaired was told there was a recall on car and parts. Almost wreaked my car when power steering went out on the interstate and was almost hit by 18 wheeler had to call for someone to assist to get car home. Unable to drive safely.

- Memphis, TN, USA

problem #18

Oct 062017

G6

  • 150,000 miles
Driving on way home from work, whole trip nothing over 45 mph, the traction control off light came on and stayed on. Its the light with tc and a slash trough it. The light turns off when the car is in park or neutral but comes on when shifter is in reverse or drive. After the light came on I noticed extremely sluggish engine performance, extremely hard shifting all the way through 4th gear with bad slams coming from the transmission. After about 30 mins of driving with the light still on, the check engine light comes on and I can barely get going from a stop light. I parked it for the night to work on it the next day, and to my surprise the next morning the tc off light was gone and after about 10 mins of driving the check engine light goes out and the car runs and drives like normal. The next day it all happened over again with all the same issues and then the warning lights went out again and the car ran fine. Then for a third day it all happened again and now the engine seems to have no power, I might as well be pushing the car down the street. This happened in the middle of my drives on a normal no wet weather day. The dealership and a private garage tried reading the codes through the connector under my stearing wheel and no bodies reader can connect to the ECU. I checked all the fuses and relays and none are blown or damaged. I know the G6 had recalls for this issue a few years ago and my car wasn't included in this but it sounds like the same issue. I can get under the car and look for any melted wires or ground faults but I wouldnt know where to begin. Looking online there are thousands of people experiencing this same exact issue. Tc off light coming on and check engine light coming on with an expensive repair or no solution available. This is causing my vehicle to have little to no acceleration and really spotty shifting. It happens everyday at random times.

- North Potomac, MD, USA

problem #17

Mar 302017

G6

  • 197,000 miles
On approximately 13 different occasions over the last 2 months (while on a city street at 25mph, and while on a state highway with a speed limit of 65mph) all instrument panel gauges go crazy and suddenly dropped to zero. 'power steering' message and 'low fuel' light (had a full tank of gas) was shown on the radio message center, along with warning sounds, and 'error' was displayed in the odometer window. Gauges continued fluctuating repeatedly from normal and/or correct ranges, to zero, and continued sounding/showing warning sounds and error messages for approx 5-6 minutes. Then all gauges dropped to zero and stayed there, car engine was cutting in and out and radio stopped working. Pulled off the road, did not have a loss of power steering. Parked car, shut off, removed key, opened door and restarted car. Drove fine (no issues) for approximately 5 miles and then the same thing happened again, this time radio stayed on and engine did not cut out, guages returned to normal after about 2-3 minutes of intermittent fluctuating, error messages disappeared from message center without having to shut off car, but traction control light showed it was off and I could not turn back on - traction control worked after car was turned off and then restarted a short time later. Recall repair for power steering torque sensor was completed at a local dealership approximately 2 years ago, in 2015. Two mechanics in area could not find codes that were thrown but state that it is probably the part or a part pertaining to the recalled torque sensor, but could not confirm.

- Blair, NE, USA

problem #16

Sep 202016

G6

  • 99,880 miles
At 60,000 miles the power steering alert came on the dic and the steering was very hard. I turned the car off and back on and it reset. I didn't have any issues until recently. I replaced the whole steering column and everything to do with the suspension in this car costing me over $2500 dollars. The past month the wheel has been shaking badly and when driving the steering wheel will pull each way and have play and sometimes be stiff. This is a serious issue as I've almost caused myself to get in many accidents. This needs to be resolved by GM. I've taken it many times and my car VIN isn't under the recall. The car now just eclipsed over 100,000 miles and need to keep this car through the winter but I'm afraid with the winters we have in buffalo, I'm going to be seriously hurt. The cost to fix the jpower steering motor is over $1,000 and I'm not putting any more money into this car. Over the years I've had the car, I've put well over $6,000 into it. I'll never buy another GM product again. I called customer service (at GM) and the dealership and they are very rude and will do nothing about it.

- Cheektowaga, NY, USA

problem #15

Jul 192016

G6

  • 157,000 miles
Takata recall traction control light comes on randomly and check engine light comes on. When driving it shifts really hard if the tc light is on also while driving it trys to stall out. Also randomly all dash light will come on and gauges all go crazy and puts error on the dash where the odometer reading is and then car want start.

- Hudson, NC, USA

problem #14

Nov 192015

G6

  • 88,000 miles
During slippery road conditions, when I apply brakes, even at low speeds like 5mph, the traction control interferes with brakes and car does not allows me to apply brake. I feel this strong vibration in the brake pedal and can hear some mechanical noise. Its life threatening in winters to drive this car with family. Physically by brakes and rotors are in good condition. Seems like problem with traction control or ABS.

- Apple Valley, MN, USA

problem #13

Aug 312015

G6

  • miles
Having issues with the front lights. This evening I was driving down a back road and suddenly both low beam headlights went out simultaneously. I put on my high beams and 15 seconds later, both low beams came back on. This happened every few hundred feet for my entire drive home. There is definitely an electrical issue and as I'm looking online I see many others are also having lighting issues. If this is a frequent and known problem, GM should be responsible for fixing it. It was really scary having both headlights go out and I'm very thankful I did not crash! this car has been nothing but problems and recalls! as a long time GM customer, I'm extremely disappointed in this vehicle!

- Jeannette, PA, USA

problem #12

Aug 212006

G6

  • miles
Shortly after I purchased my 2006 Pontiac G6 (in 2006) it has been failing to start from time to time. The dealership stated that there is an electrical (shortage) problem that causes the car not to start and kills the battery. I have had to replaced the four(4) times. The car has totally died on me five (5) different times and had to be towed. The first and second times it died, it was between 25-40K miles ; therefore, still under warranty. The third time it was a little beyond 60K and the dealership would not honor the extended warranty, so I paid out of pocket. The fourth I replaced the battery again. The fifth after a few attempts the battery was recharged. Lost steering power while driving. The dic readout "check gas cap, " I would tighten the had cap, but still the engine light comes on. I have replaced the had cap the times. Lost power while driving. Car will not go above 40 mph. Transmission dipstick is missing.

- Silver Springs, FL, USA

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