FaultScore

Yamaha Road Star vs Pontiac Firebird

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure Yamaha Road Star Pontiac Firebird
Complaints on file 326 802
Model years covered 1999–2009 1976–2002
Worst model year 2003 1995
Best model year 1999 2001
Crashes reported 7 86
Fires reported 1 53
Injuries reported 4 52
Deaths reported 1 5
Most complained-about part Transmission & Drivetrain Brakes
Share of complaints involving harm 4% 24.4%

Yamaha Road Star by year

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Fuel & Propulsion 17 5.2%
Body & Structure 10 3.1%
Suspension 8 2.5%
Wheels 3 0.9%
Electrical System 2 0.6%
Brakes 2 0.6%

Pontiac Firebird by year

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Brakes 148 18.5%
Seat Belts 68 8.5%
Airbags 45 5.6%
Steering 39 4.9%