The 1988 Pontiac Lemans has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 339,724 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 24 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the seat belts. Last updated July 5, 2026.
THE SAFETY BELT BUCKLE ASSEMBLIES MAY NOT LATCH OR MAY NOT RELEASE DUE TO THE FRACTURE OF THE RED RELEASE PUSH BUTTON.
THE BUCKLE MALFUNCTION WOULD PREVENT THE USE OF THESAFETY BELT SYSTEM, PLACING THE FRONT SEAT OCCUPANT IN INCREASED RISK OF INJURYIN THE EVENT OF A SUDDEN STOP OR ACCIDENT.
REPLACE OR REPAIR THE SAFETY BELT BUCKLES.
SEAT BELT BUCKLES MAY NOT PROPERLY LATCH ALLOWING THE LATCH PLATE TO BE REMOVED FROM THE BUCKLE WITHOUT PRESSING THE RELEASE BUTTON.
IN EVENT OF A SUDDEN STOP OR COLLISION, SEAT BELT COULDRELEASE, INCREASING THE RISK OF INJURY TO OCCUPANTS.
REPLACE SEAT BELT BUCKLES.
FUEL FILLER NECK MAY HAVE BEEN INCOMPLETELY WELDED, ALLOWING FUEL TO LEAK FROM THE NECK ASSEMBLY.
IN THE EVENT OF A COLLISION IMPACT, FUEL SPILLAGE INEXCESS OF AMOUNT ALLOWED BY FMVSS 301 COULD RESULT IN A FIRE.
REPLACE FUEL FILLER NECK ASSEMBLY.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“Fingers bent and twisted index and middle fingers are bent and twisted towards the baby fingers. Thunbs are bent outward away from hands. Hands are painful. Bending and twisting doesn't appear as badly as other drivers. Please view photo at http://photos.yahoo.com/miketomich this information is…”
“While driving front springs broke. There was no warning. One set broke while on cruise control. The other set broke while waiting at a stop light. Have not taken vehicle to dealer yet. *ak”
“Fuel filler neck leaked fuel due to improper welding prior to/after recall. Owner never received a recall notice (88v-094.000). *ak”
“The seat belt come out of buckle when consumer was in accident. Tt consumer states she was traveling about 45 mph and a deer ran out in front of her vehicle on impact and seat belt came open, and consumer and consumer went into console, was thorwn around in vehicle, damage was front left headlight…”
“Failure on the driver's side shoulder belt, the shoulder belt is locked in place. *ak”
“Seat belt failure, shoulder belt did not keep driver from hitting windshield. Tt”
“Transaxle failed, also transmission mounts failed three times, causing transmission to fail. Z*skd”
“Brake rotors failed, also defective calipers, causing premature wear on front pads.”
SUMMARY:THE COMPLAINTS REPORT LOW PEDAL AND FREQUENT REPAIR OF BRAKESSERVICE BULLETIN REPORTS MISADJUSTMENT MAY CAUSE INCREASED FRONT PAD WEAR.UNSATISIFACTORY STOPPING DISTANCE ALSO REPORTED IN COMPLAINTS.===
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Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1988 Pontiac Lemans as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.