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Pontiac Montana

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What is this discussion about? Pontiac Trans Sport, Pontiac Montana, Van

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#141 of 1454 gator by gator Oct 29, 1998 (4:08 pm)
I have 1000 miles on my 99 so far and so far so good. No defects or problems have reared their heads and a few neat features have been discovered. The headlights are automatic, the interior lights all come on when you remove the key for ease of egress and gathering all your stuff without having to open the door first, the interior lights fade out when all the doors are closed, and after 10 minutes or so the interior lights shut themselves off if a door is left ajar to save the battery. I am also pleased with the range of the 25 gallon gas tank(even around town). Recently removed all the rear seats and loaded the thing with lumber and plywood to finish a deck and it swallowed everything with aplomb (I have the extended version which I highly recommend). I also recommend getting the eight seat configuration, you can always take one out to make an aisle. Power slider continues to be a crowd-pleaser. All in all still extremely pleased with the van. We'll see how it goes as the miles start to rack up.
#142 of 1454 Happy by scottbusey Oct 29, 1998 (6:03 pm)
To VentureMan: I don't really know if a Chevy dealer will service a Montana, but considering that most everything except some trim pieces are the same on the Venture, I think it's worth a try. Also, you should look at the maintenance schedule, because it's greatly reduced via a number of improvenments. My 98 Trans Sport Montana is great! Enjoy!
#143 of 1454 VentureMan by VentureMan Oct 30, 1998 (6:28 pm)
Safty IS important. But lets keep it in perspective. The chances of a minivan driver getting into a real bad accident is next to zero; for injury rates, see href="http://www.carsafety.org/ictl7.htm" For death rates, see href="http://www.carsafety.org/ddr7.htm". There are so many features and considerations that each of us must consider before making a significant purchase ( close to $30k after taxes). To eliminate a choice simply on the basis of one crash test --that is least likely to happen to a minivan driver-- is paranoid. And the injuries from a frontal crash will only pertain to adults (children should not ride in the front seat). All Volvo owners I have met are safty paranoid. They are willing to settle for a smaller and more expensive (and in my opinion, ugly) vehicle with great safty engineered into them. But death rates for Volvos are not any better the the GM minivans                         href="http://www.carsafety.org/ddr2.htm". So Volvo is one of the most safe cars on the road and yet its injury and deaths are no better than minivans. Buy a minvan because it meets your needs and likes, and not because of false hysteria. Best of luck, VentureMan
#144 of 1454 BBergie by BBergie Oct 31, 1998 (12:02 am)
I bought a 1997 Pontiac Transport Montana new last October. In the year we have put 28000 miles on it. The tires are billed as self sealing. We got a nail in one. Took it to the dealer to have it patched. Less than a week later, we took it back to have it patched. After three weeks of trying to get it patched, it developed a bulge then burst. The nail was no where near the 1/4 inch spike they advertise. The computer does not seem to be very accurate for gas mileage. We have gassed up many times, expected 23 miles per gallon or better because the computer said we got that over all, but got closer to 20 miles per gallon. The vehicle seems to have problems with cross winds. When you drive along a road that has a rut running even with the direction of travel it has problems. Over all gas consumption is 20 MPG. Mostly pleasant to drive. Breaks started sqeeking about 10,000 miles, a sales man told us 12000 is standard mileage before brake pads need to be replaced but we have about 1/2 break pad usage.
#145 of 1454 BBergie by VentureMan Oct 31, 1998 (1:02 am)
Thanks for the good after purchase report on the Pontiac Montana. How is the interior and such holding up? Are the self sealing tires the only big problem you have? There are products you can put on brake pads to reduce squealing. Ask a good mechanic at a service station. Is the gas mileage related to going greater than 55 MPH? I noticed that I get the best highway mileage at 55 MPH and it goes down as I speed up. In Calif, people travel at 65 to 75 MPH all the time. Please report further is there is more to report. Best of luck, VentureMan
#146 of 1454 montodvia by montodvia Nov 02, 1998 (5:08 am)
VentureMan: The dealer explained that the tape is a special weatherstripping placed over the seams that are formed during assembly. They are supposed to protect the seams from the elements. Sounds good,but looks 2nd class. Nonetheless, delivery day approaches and at this point it will take more than some tape to turn me against the Montana. I've done more comparative shopping for this vehicle then any other car I've ever purchased, so I'm only looking forward to it. Someone just told me about something called the Montana Thunder, has anyone ever heard of it?
#147 of 1454 Happy by scottbusey Nov 02, 1998 (2:18 pm)
To mommyflyer: I've see some Trans Sport SEs available at '98 closeout prices around $20k. If you can find these deals where you live, and can add GM incentives on top, you might be wise to consider a new SE. The power door is great, but we had to have ours adjusted after about 7 months. Fortunately the dealer service was first-rate, and it was a positive experience. TO: BBergie We get about 28 MPG at 55-60, and about 26 MPG at 65-70. The powerplant is very effecient but a mini van punches a big hole in the atmosphere; I've run in traffic (trucks) at 75 MPH and got 34MPG with the traffic moving the air for me. Enjoy!
#148 of 1454 montodvia by VentureMan Nov 03, 1998 (12:59 am)
I heard the Montana Thunder is a model to come out in 2000. Thats all I know. VentureMan
#149 of 1454 VentureMan by VentureMan Nov 03, 1998 (7:08 pm)
GM is offering free installation (well, almost free) of its OnStar navigation system until Dec 31, 1999 for the GM minivans. This normally cost $1300 to have installed. You will have to have a Cell phone service and subscribe to OnStar for one year at $270/year. Not a bad price for the extra piece of mind. If your air bags deploy, the OnStar system will automatically notify GM, and GM will send an emergency vehicle to your location (it knows where you are via satellite). Or if you car is stolen, GM can locate your vehicle and disengage the fuel supply (I believe this is part of the security package). Or, if you lock your keys in the car, they can unlock it via satellite. No waiting for a tow truck. Get lost in the back country and not know were you are? The navigation system will tell you. Doesn't sound bad for $270. Best of luck, VentureMan
#150 of 1454 2345 by 2345 Nov 04, 1998 (6:15 am)
The Montana Thunder is a concept car that GM showed off a year or two ago. It is a totally different van than the Montana. It was extremely cool looking and had some really great features. I can't remember what all the features were, but check out this think to check out the Thunder. I would be extremely surprised if it was in showrooms in 2000. I heard it was very poplular. http://www.auto.com/98autoshow/photos/

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