1993 Pontiac Sunbird Problems and Recalls (36 Complaints)

The most-reported problem on the 1993 Pontiac Sunbird is Brakes (17% of 36 owner reports). There are 3 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Brakes — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-09-07 36 complaints · 3 recalls

What problems show up on the 1993 Pontiac Sunbird?

6 of 36 filings named Brakes (17% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.

Second is Electrical (5 reports).

There are 3 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Brakes. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.

The 1992 has 30 reports on file; this year has 36. Older years collect more reports just by being on the road longer. If you need a fairer comparison, use the equal-time view.

What to check before you buy a 1993 Pontiac Sunbird

A useful visit to this page takes five minutes. YearTell does not score years and cannot see the vehicle in front of you.

  1. Look up the VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov. This year has 3 campaigns on file below.
  2. Brakes. Have a shop check pads, rotors, fluid and whether the pedal feels firm.
  3. Electrical. Have a shop scan for stored codes and check battery, charging and any warning lights that stay on.
  4. Seat belts. Check that every belt latches, retracts and that related recalls are closed.
  5. Skim a few owner reports below for Brakes. Look for the same symptom repeating.
  6. Take that list to a mechanic. Do not turn the complaint total into a score.

What owners reported

System named most often: Brakes 6 complaints · 16.7% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
  • Crashes 6
  • Fires 4
  • Injuries 5
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 1992 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Which systems owners named

Share of owner complaints filed against each vehicle system. These shares are not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold.

Which systems owners named Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES) appears in 6 of 36 owner complaints (16.7%) in this vehicle snapshot. Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES): 6 complaints, 16.7% of reports Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES) 2 crash reports 6 · 16.7% Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM): 5 complaints, 13.9% of reports Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) 4 fire reports 5 · 13.9% Seat belts (SEAT BELTS): 5 complaints, 13.9% of reports Seat belts (SEAT BELTS) 1 crash reports 5 · 13.9% Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL): 4 complaints, 11.1% of reports Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) 1 crash reports 4 · 11.1% Engine (ENGINE): 3 complaints, 8.3% of reports Engine (ENGINE) 3 · 8.3% Body / frame (STRUCTURE): 2 complaints, 5.6% of reports Body / frame (STRUCTURE) 2 · 5.6% Suspension (SUSPENSION): 2 complaints, 5.6% of reports Suspension (SUSPENSION) 2 · 5.6% Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY): 2 complaints, 5.6% of reports Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY) 2 · 5.6% Airbags (AIR BAGS): 1 complaints, 2.8% of reports Airbags (AIR BAGS) 1 crash reports 1 · 2.8% Unclassified NHTSA leftover: 31 complaints, 86.1% of reports Unclassified NHTSA leftover 5 crash reports 3 fire reports 31 · 86.1% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

“Unclassified NHTSA leftover” is not a car part. It is a filing bucket and always sits last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES) 6 16.7% 2 crashes · 0 fires
Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) 5 13.9% 0 crashes · 4 fires
Seat belts (SEAT BELTS) 5 13.9% 1 crashes · 0 fires
Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) 4 11.1% 1 crashes · 0 fires
Engine (ENGINE) 3 8.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Body / frame (STRUCTURE) 2 5.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Suspension (SUSPENSION) 2 5.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY) 2 5.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Airbags (AIR BAGS) 1 2.8% 1 crashes · 0 fires
Unclassified NHTSA leftover 31 86.1% 5 crashes · 3 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

When reports and recalls showed up

When owners filed reports, and when recall campaigns showed up.

When reports and recalls showed up Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 1995; the first recall shown was reported in Jul 1993. 1995-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 1995-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 1995-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 1996-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 1996-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 1998-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 1998-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1999-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 1999-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2000-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2001-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2001-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2003-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2004-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jul 1993 Apr 2009 Recall campaign 93V121000 ◆ Recall campaign 93V121000 Recall campaign 93V190000 ◆ Recall campaign 93V190000 Recall campaign 09E012000 ◆ Recall campaign 09E012000
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1995-Q1 Owner reports 5
1995-Q2 Owner reports 2
1995-Q3 Owner reports 2
1996-Q1 Owner reports 2
1996-Q2 Owner reports 1
1996-Q4 Owner reports 1
1997-Q2 Owner reports 1
1997-Q3 Owner reports 1
1997-Q4 Owner reports 2
1998-Q1 Owner reports 1
1998-Q2 Owner reports 1
1998-Q3 Owner reports 2
1998-Q4 Owner reports 2
1999-Q1 Owner reports 1
1999-Q2 Owner reports 2
1999-Q3 Owner reports 1
1999-Q4 Owner reports 1
2000-Q1 Owner reports 2
2001-Q2 Owner reports 1
2001-Q4 Owner reports 1
2002-Q3 Owner reports 1
2003-Q1 Owner reports 2
2004-Q1 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 93V121000
Recall campaign 1 93V190000
Recall campaign 1 09E012000
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-09-06 Open source record

Safety Recalls (3)

Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.

In short, these campaigns were filed about Brakes.

  1. Recall campaign 09E012000

    Safety recall 09E012000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    SABERSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 11, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SABERSPORT AT 1-909-598-7589.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Recall campaign 93V121000

    Brakes

    Report date
    Component:
    Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES)
    Consequence:
    THE IMPROPERLY MANUFACTURED BRAKE HOSES CAN CAUSEREDUCED BRAKE EFFECTIVENESS AND/OR UNEVEN BRAKING, WHICH COULD RESULT IN ANACCIDENT.
    Remedy:
    REPLACE THE RIGHT FRONT BRAKE HOSE ASSEMBLY ON CIERA AND CENTURY MODELS, AND BOTH REAR BRAKE HOSES ON CAVALIER AND SUNBIRD MODELS.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Recall campaign 93V190000

    Safety recall 93V190000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    IF THIS OCCURS, LOSS OF NORMAL THROTTLE CONTROL CAN RESULT, OR THE THROTTLE WILL NOT RETURN TO IDLE WHEN THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL IS RELEASED, CAUSING POSSIBLE LOSS OF CONTROL AND AN ACCIDENT.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE ACCELERATOR CONTROL ASSEMBLY.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

What owners actually wrote

Short excerpts from the public NHTSA file. Look for the same symptom repeating.

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-09-07
Safety incident filters
Showing 10 of 36 complaints · page 1 of 2
2004-01-15Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 10070865
CrashFireInjuryDeath
WATER LEAKS INSIDE CAR, RADIATOR LEAK, HEATER CORE, HEAD GASKET, THERMOSTAT, FREEZE OUT PLUGS, ENGINE WET WITH OIL, A/C CUTTING IN AND OUT, RUNS ROUGH WHEN A/C IS ON, SLOW PICK UP, DOOR LOCKS DON'T WORK, WINDOW WASHERS STOP BEFORE CYCLE IS DONE, BREAKS AND BREAK LINE BAD, WASHER FLUID RESERVOIR CRACKS TWICE NOW, OVER ALL REPAIRS TOTAL ABOUT $1600.00, AND WE HAVE TO REPLACE THE HEAD GASKET NEXT SO PLSU THIS AMOUNT, I HAVE BILLS KEPT OF ALL EXACT PAYMENTS OF PARTS AND LABOR
2003-03-17Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 10010573
CrashFireInjuryDeath
FRONT PASSENGER SEAT AND THE BACK OF THE SEAT SLIDE AND TIPS FORWARD WHENEVER STOPPING. *NLM
2003-02-13Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL)
NHTSA ODI 10007311
CrashFireInjuryDeath
THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED SUDDEN ACCELERATION, WHICH RESULTED IN AN ACCIDENT, DRIVER AND PASSENGER SUSTAINED INJURIES, CONSUMER BELIEVED INCIDENT WAS RELATED TO RECALL 93V190000, HOWEVER THE MANUFACTURER STATED THE TWO PROBLEMS WERE NOT RELATED.*JB
2002-08-20Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 8016716
CrashFireInjuryDeath
WHILE PARKED, THERE WAS A SHORT IN WIRING BEHIND THE GLOVE BOX AND A FIRE HAD STARTED. THE FIRE JUST BURNED THE WIRING AND SOME SMALL AREAS AROUND THE GLOVE BOX. *AK THE CONSUMER BELIEVES THAT THE RELAY SWITCH FOR THE AUTO LOCK SYSTEM WHICH IS LOCATED IN THE GLOVE BOX CAUSED THE FIRE. THE LOCK SYSTEM STARTED GIVING CONSUMER PROBLEMS A MONTH PRIOR TO FIRE, THEN STOPPED WORKING COMPLETELY ABOUT A WEEK AND A HALF BEFORE THE FIRE. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN THE GARAGE. THE CONSUMER HAD SEEN SMOKE COMING OUT OF THE VEHICLE. THE CONSUMER THEN PULLED THE GLOVE BOX OUT AND SAW THE WIRES ON FIRE. *SCC
2001-12-04Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 755254
CrashFireInjuryDeath
BRAKE PROBLEM ADDRESSED HERE IS A REPEATED, ERRATIC, SUDDEN LOSS OF SOME OR ALL BRAKE POWER IN THE CAR. MECHANICAL COMPONENTS HAVE BEEN REPLACED, PADS, ROTORS, ETC. BUT THE PROBLEM CONTINUES TO COME AND GO WITHOUT WARNING. RECALL WAS DENIED BY BOTH A PONTIAC DEALER AND THE CORPORATION.ATTEMPTS TO DETERMINE WHY MY VEHICLE WAS EXCLUDED FROM THE RECALL HAVE BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL..ATTEMPTS TO DETERMINE THE MANUFACTURER WERE DENIED...I NO LONGER CARE A GREAT DEAL ABOUT MY PERSONAL SATISFACTION, HOWEVER, THE DESCRIPTION OF THE PROBLEM IN NHTSA 93V-121 AND THE TROUBLES I'VE HAD ARE TOO SIMILAR TOO IGNORE SINCE THERE COULD BE ANY NUMBER OF SIMILARLY IGNORED VEHICLES ON THE ROAD...IF POSSIBLE, I'D LIKE TO FIND OUT WHY SOME CARS WERE LEFT OUT BEFORE I HAVE THE CAR FIXED...I CERTAINLY WON'T BE LETTING THE HOSES AND SUCH BE DISCARDED AFTER THE REPAIRS, BUT I WOULD LIKE SOME HELP COMPARING AND CONTRASTING THEM WITH THE ORIGINAL DISCREPANCIES...THANKS. *AK
2001-05-11Suspension (SUSPENSION)
NHTSA ODI 888022
CrashFireInjuryDeath
WHILE TRAVELING AT SPEEDS ABOVE 50 MPH THERE IS A VIBRATION IN STEERING WHEEL THAT CONSUMER FEELS IS A SAFETY ISSUE. HE HAS NOT TAKEN VEHICLE INTO A DEALERSHIP TO BE EXAMINED FOR A CAUSE OF THIS DEFECT. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION/ATTACHMENTS. *AK
2000-02-23Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 857413
CrashFireInjuryDeath
BRAKING SYSTEM MALFUNCTIONED, CAUSING EXTENDED STOPPING DISTANCE WHICH MAY RESULT IN A CRASH DUE TO DEFECTIVE BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER. OCCUPANT MUST PAY FOR REPAIRS. *AK *ML
2000-02-12Engine (ENGINE)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 718659
CrashFireInjuryDeath
MY CAR IS OVERHEATING, AND THERE ARE NO LEAKS. IT HAS A NEW THERMOSTAT, AND THE WATER PUMP IS FINE EVERYTHING SEEMS TO BE OK, BUT FOR SOME REASON IT IS STILL OVERHEATING *AK
1999-10-26Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 851697
CrashFireInjuryDeath
DRIVER'S SIDE AND PASSENGER'S SIDE FRONT SEAT BELTS DO NOT RETRACT PROPERLY. SOMETIMES WHEN PULLING THEM OUT, THEY WILL GET JAMMED, AND DO NOT REACH THE BUCKLE RECEIVER. DEALER HAS NOT SEEN VEHICLE. *AK
1999-07-21EXTERIOR LIGHTINGUnclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 842778
CrashFireInjuryDeath
THE TAILLIGHT SOCKETS MELTED WHEN IN USE. THE SOCKETS ARE MADE OF PLASTIC AS ARE THE OUTER MOST SOCKETS. *AK

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common problems on the 1993 Pontiac Sunbird?

Owners named Brakes most often — 6 of 36 reports (17%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.

Are there recalls for the 1993 Pontiac Sunbird?

NHTSA lists 3 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Brakes. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov; a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific vehicle.

What should I inspect before buying a 1993 Pontiac Sunbird?

Look up the VIN for open recalls. Have a shop check pads, rotors, fluid and whether the pedal feels firm. Then skim owner filings for the same symptom and take that list to a mechanic.

Does a high complaint count mean I should skip this year?

No. Counts are reports people chose to file and they are not adjusted for sales volume. YearTell does not publish scores or a list of years to skip. Inspect the vehicle.

EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Source: NHTSA ODI / recalls, snapshot 2026-09-07. YearTell is not a government agency.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources