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Here's the problem. I would like the same Alero I have, only new. After spending a few hours on gmbuypower.com going over dealer inventory and trying to custom build a order, I realized it was not possible. I would like 4 wheel disc brakes like I currently have. This is only available as an option package which includes performance tires and suspension. I have test driven performance tires and suspension and would pay extra not to get them. Also the EPA highway mileage was downgraded from 32 mpg (on my 2000) to 29 mpg on the 2003's. I am not sure why and if anything has changed here. I also have a tire pressure monitor which I think is a nice feature. It looks like it has been eliminated from all trim levels of the new Aleros. I would also like ABS which was standard in 2000 and now falls in to some option package.
Here GM has a guy like me willing to buy but has made it difficult with their new configurations.
Still amazes me what a great car the Alero is for the money. It's a shame next year will be it's last.
NEVER will you get the chance again.
The 4 wheel discs are only available on the GLS up here and they are standard.
Yet, the equipment didn't seem to be a deciding factor attracting customers. Look at its competitors that sell more and don't have half the equipment as the Alero. Then again, I and you alone wouldn't keep Olds afloat...
Unfortunately, most car buyers don't shop carefully, going straight to blue chips. If I'm asked, that's being dumb or what?
;^)
.You are right on the discs, more cars are going that way but the prices are also going up. New Accord prices certainly have risen.
I noticed a little 'lump/bump' in the steering when reversing into my garage at low speed. I took it to the dealer who told me the rack needed replacing. They did this under warranty and all was good. Now I have a VERY slight (2 0r 3 drips a night) leak under the car in the morning. so....Back to the dealer for another day, new Hose....back home again..looked this morning leak still there... they told me they steam cleaned underneath, test drove it, saw the small leak, replaced the hose and all is good...is this common to end up taking it back time after time or have I just got a bad dealer,hard to fix problem or being too fussy???
or should I really start getting annoyed with them?... trust me...I will make their life misery, but in the end I have to do all the chasing,argueing and wasting my time! BTW..we also had the window regulator replaced and the side mirror is about to be replaced as it rattles....is this wha tI get for buying a program car???
Even on that surface, our Michelin Arctic Alpins had good grip: I could pull out of the garage, come to a stop in the driveway, and the ABS wouldn't actuate. Similarly, backing up into the garage from the street was no problem - no low traction light coming on.
I'm not trying to slam the brakes or really hitting the gas when I'm backing into the driveway of course, but this is pretty darned impressive for a non-studded (they're not allowed in Ontario) tire. They seem to handle 2-3" of snow OK as well, although you can feel them "digging into" snow, and sometimes get a low-traction light on there. Still quite secure.
Now I'm just waiting for the dealer to call me to tell me my new side mirror is in and painted..
overall, I'm very pleased with "Alice" as my wife has named her!
thanks
jpelder : No one seems to ever review Oldsmobiles anymore. The Alero is one of the best cars for the money on the road but because part of a dead division, it gets zippo. More snow tonight here so more ABS and TC fun tomorrow morning.
I had mine fixed under warranty (99 olds GLS) 18 months ago. Now my warranty just expired and its going to cost 800 bucks to replace it again!!
I'm currently fighting GM on this one.
Any suggestions from anybody??
Thanks.
The car has been great. We have a GX with the 4 cyl Ecotec which I recommend as it will save you a few bucks. The 02 is the last year with 4 wheel discs and ABS standard so it's a good year to buy. We have had 1 issue so far, a fogged up head light. Other wise it's been completely problem free for the 9 months since we bought.
I thought you were getting an Intrigue?
I have an 02 GL 4 cyl with about 14K miles, no unscheduled visits so far, only oil changes.
It has been quite rattle free, and would have been a great commute car which was the reason for opting for the 4cyl., but now I have joined a carpool and have to drive only 1-2 times a week, but with 4 peeps. So have been using my Intrigue for this duty which is my wife's car.
Since she has been used to the Intrigue, she does not care for the Alero.
worth the extra dollars.......I think so also....see now if we had the option of getting it in the other GM cars like Impala, Regal, Grand Prix..........
really my 3800 *bashing* is just a point I'm trying to make about the fact that yes, the 3800 is a decent motor, but look, you may just like the values of the DOHC shortstar more. Why not offer this goodness to more folks in more of GM's cars? Why would anyone NOT want to put it in the GP, etc? Give people the choice to decide and let them drive it side by side and make their decision upon actually driving it....not just saying, 'the 3800 is fine, I don't need anything newer and neither do the rest of you'.
I'd bet others would think so to if they had the option of getting it. I'd bet that 70% or more of folks would opt for the Shortstar over the 3800 if given the choice.
Too bad the Shortstar was dropped. They could have continued production on it for some of GM's other cars.
To answer some of the questions regarding long start times, I use a synthetic blend oil and the start time is the same as when I first bought it at 19K. The car is approaching 60K and the lube shop I took it to accidently put standard oil in the engine. Boy, I could tell instantly that something wasn't right. After making them drain it and replacing it with Synthetic blend, it turned over beautifully. A couple extra bucks well worth spending.
Cheers
Expense is not an issue if all competitors have it standard or available as an option.
Competition churns out OHC competitors like clockwork that meet or exceed the GM competition for equal and less real, out the door prices.
Civic don't need a v6....too small. Cavalier don't have a v6 either.
people deserve the choice to have the option but GM doesn't give it to them and the loyalists are conned into thinking the choice would have no benefit to the consumer because they think everyone should like GM no matter what motor is under the hood. The other majority of the market doesn't agree. No choice, no sale. Only thing driving the sale is 'how much is my rebate?'
The Camry gets 30g not because of its content, but because people are stupid enough to pay that much for them. They get it because they can, not because they have to charge it. The extra refinement in the powertrain makes it seem worth so much more. But mostly its because of reliability legends.
Loyal GM fans like dindak even pop for the Alero and Intrigue with the OHC motors.......dindak has even said he chose the OHC mill in his Intrigue.
Bottom line is that the cost of the engine has to come from something else. The Duratech retails $1000 more than the OHV. Look inside a Taurus and it's easy to figure out where it came from. The same can be said about the Stratus (I had one until 6 months ago).
Just don't get me wrong, I do like the Shortstar (I'm leaving to check on an Intrigue '99 momentarily). However, I'd rather have an OHV V6 in a car loaded with amenities than an OHC V6 in a car without TC, ABS, leather, etc (sounds like a Japanese car, doesn't it?).
Bottom line is that I'm glad that there's no such thing as an I4 on a Grand Prix or Impala, unlike many of their competitors. On the other hand, I miss the parting of the Intrigue...
I think people prefer the feel of DOHC, why else would so many OHV equipped cars end up relegated to rental cars and not regular sales.
1000 bucks well spent and its still cheaper than the Impala. FULLY loaded Taurus for under 20 grand. The Taurus ain't too bad on the inside. It's nicer than the Alero, and most certainly the Regal, and Grand Prix, and Grand Am, and Century, and Malibu and (insert GM car here, need I go on). I'd bet some people spend more for loaded Grand Ams than Tauruses too which is a bigger tragedy.
"that's why a V6 Malibu or even a Impala / Grand Prix cost the same as a 4 cyl Accord"
some folks on this web site and in the auto journalism world have gone on record saying they prefer the tech 4 cylinder to the antiquated v6.
Go drive a 4 cylinder Altima, Camry, or Accord and then a Malibu or OHV Taurus and tell me which is preferred. i think you would be quite surprised at how many folks would opt for the 4 cylinder. That Altima 4 has get up and go and is quite a willing partner. its pretty smooth too and not noisy. I know the Accord and Camry 4's are quite good too. A coarse 6 is not always better than a good 4. Go drive an A4 or Passat, that 4 cylinder is pretty good too.
Hey vcjumper, is that true about the CTS? LOL! What's the deal are they gonna have the pushrod 3.4 as the base engine?!?! Or the 3800!?! ROTFLMAO.
As far as the 'the other 80%', those will always be those folks who only care about cupholders and how wide the seat is for their big butts. Thing is, if they drove the 2 side by side they would notice the difference and make a choice based upon it.
As far as Civics being the price of a Grand Am, I dunno about that. I can lease a new civic automatic right now with almost nothing down for 139 a month. I don't think the General could part with an Alero for 139 a month. I see ads for cheap Aleros right now but that is only because of these crazy Olds discounts and loyalty rebates. I would defintely rather spend my money on something like a Protege ES or P5 before I got an Alero.
I would totally buy a 4 cyl Accord over a V6 BUT, I'd take a 3.8L V6 (and hopefully the 3.5L in the 04 Bu) over a 4 cyl Accord anyday.
I've had a '99 Alero V6 and that old OHV smoked any 3-series BMW up to the 2.8l I6. I couldn't care less what the manufacturer's parrots, I mean, the "specialized" press says. They don't buy my cars, I do.
Yes, I miss the loss of wind of OHV designs on the highway, but it's a problem that the SC 3.8 doesn't have, yet it's still an OHV. Fine with me. Yet, the supercharged 3.8 is cheaper to make than the remarkable 3.5 DOHC.
What matters to me is the bottom line. Anything else is nothing but fetish...
;-)
show me the proof of this. Do you have internal GM documents to suggest this?
a 97 Regal is truly a heinous looking piece and the current one has an attractive exterior but the interior on the current one is criminally bad as well.
The Alero is way nicer on the inside than the Regal.