Most common 1998 Pontiac Montana problems
Share of the 49 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
Pontiac Montana complaints by model year
Best Montana years: 1997, 2006, 2004. Years to avoid: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002. Compare all years →
1998 Pontiac Montana recalls (3)
Latches/locks/linkages › Doors › Latch
On certain minivans equipped with second-row bucket seats or captain's chairs and a power sliding door on the passenger side of the vehicle, a passenger using the interior handle to open the power sliding door could be injured.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the power sliding door interior handle on the passenger-side. If the vehicle is equipped with a power or manual sliding door on the driver-side, the interior handle will also be replaced for…
Latches/locks/linkages › Doors › Latch
Vehicle description: 1997-2001 Chevrolet venture, Pontiac montana/transport, and Oldsmobile silhouette Mini vans equipped with passenger side power sliding doors that were serviced in campaign 01013 (01v-067) from April to August 2001.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and, if required, install a new power sliding door unlatch actuator assembly. Owner notification began on October 22, 2001.
Latches/locks/linkages › Doors › Latch
Vehicle description: minivans equipped with passenger side power sliding doors. The door closes but May not be latched. If this happens, the power sliding door can open while the vehicle is in motion, particularly when the vehicle ascends a hill, makes a turn, or travels over a rough road surface.
Remedy: Dealers will install a new un-latch actuator assembly to the power sliding door. This recall has been continued under safety recall 01v-264.
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into 8 possible defects involving the 1998 Pontiac Montana:
Unexpected opening of sliding door
There is no summary currently available
Traction control
Power-sliding door
Subject vehicles are available with an optional power sliding door.the interior handle is oriented in the vertical position in the door panel and lines up at the elbow level when the occupant is seated in the 2nd-row outboard position.if the occupant holds the interior handle in the thumb up position during power-assisted opening, the arm/wrist can be push back with force against the 2nd-row bucket seat or captain's…
Shoulder harness clip
Air bag tear during deployment
Rear axle trailing arm failure
On November 18, 2002, odi opened a preliminary evaluation (pe02-086) to evaluate allegations of rear axle trailing arm failures in the subject vehicles (u-van) which included two reporting crashes.on April 9, 2003, odi upgraded pe02-086 to an engineering analysis (ea03-005) to continue its examination of the issue.
Safety belt assembly failure
Odi identified 59 reports with the alleged defect.odi was able to contact 44 of the 59 consumers in order to determine the specific cause of the latch problems.of the 44 owners contacted, odi determined that four failures were due to an out-of-tolerance latch plate, and that 23 failures were due to a displaced buckle housing cover.the remaining 17 failures had indeterminable causes.of the 59 reports, there were…
Air bag inflator
What 1998 Pontiac Montana owners say
Engine & cooling
On July 18, 2003 we took our 1998 Pontiac Montana (58,000 miles) to domaille Buick-Mazda-Mitsubishi in rochester, minnesota for a 3,000-mile oil change prior to leaving for our summer vacation. On that day the mechanic informed us about evidence of a lower intake manifold gasket leak and the need for immediate repair. GM has a vehicle owner satisfaction program initiated in response to the problems noted with their intake manifold gasket. GM redesigned the intake manifold gasket and replaced the gasket at no cost to the owners of 1999-2003 model cars. This repair was neither covered under the original warranty or the service bulletin issued to the dealer identifying the problem. GM has been unresponsive to my complaint. I believe that I should be reimbursed for the cost of this repair, which exceeded $800.00.
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 Pontiac Montana. The contact stated that the vehicle would intermittently stall when making turns or when decelerating. The contact took her vehicle to the dealer for a diagnostic test where she was advised that they could not diagnosis the failure without it occurring in their presence. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer five additional times but to no avail. The dealer was finally able to diagnose a transmission failure after six previous failed diagnostics. The transmission was replaced. The failure mileage was 100. The VIN was not available. Updated 07/03/14 ma
Body & structure
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 Pontiac Montana. The contact stated that the sliding doors could not be opened electronically, only manually. In addition, the gear shifter failed and could only be shifted into drive or reverse with force. The manufacturer was made aware of the failures. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 234,000 and the current mileage was 239,000.
Recall 01V264000; upon being a part of a recall consumer is still experiencing the same problem. Door continuously opens, and locks do not lock. Took vehicle back to the dealer. Problem has not been resolved. Please provide any further information.
Electrical system
I was driving down the street when I noticed smoke coming from underneath the hood of my vehicle. I pulled off of the road into a parking lot and ran inside a business to call for help. Within 2 minutes my vehicle was englufed in flames. I called 911. The vehicle is a total loss. We had just had the vehicle serviced and oil changed a month ago.
While driving along hwy 101 the overheat light turned on and the temperature gage jumped to over the limit. We pulled over and checked the vehicle, it was not hot. However, the gage would not return to normal, causing the vehicle the chug and have very little drive until 15 minutes down the road it kicked back into normal like a bat outta hell. This, along a mountainous fast moving highway with logging trucks on my tail; not a very safe situation. On this same trip, the passenger window would not go back up, @ 55mph and 40 degrees, it was not pleasant.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 1998 Pontiac Montana a good car?
Based on 49 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 1998 Montana rates better than average: 41% fewer complaints than a typical year of the Montana at the same age. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 1998 Pontiac Montana?
The engine & cooling — 15 complaints, 31% of all complaints for this model year, most often about cooling system. Next are the body & structure (5) and electrical system (5).
How many recalls does the 1998 Pontiac Montana have?
There are 3 recalls for the 1998 Pontiac Montana, the most recent from December 22, 2004 (latch). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the Pontiac Montana?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 1997, 2006 and 2004. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002. See the full Pontiac Montana years comparison.
At what mileage do 1998 Pontiac Montana problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 75,000 miles; 17% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.