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Comments
As far as the intake manifold gasket goes, it went at 5 years, 55,000 miles on my 2000. They all fail at different times but they all do fail. I am surprised you made it to 80,000. I called Oldsmobile Customer Satisfaction (yes they are still there) and they sent me a check for 1/2 of the $1000 repair bill. This amount varies. GM dealer must diagnose problem before they can help. If you still have a genuine Oldsmobile in your area and you have been having your car serviced there, the rep at the satisfaction line will negotiate with the dealer and may even cover 100% of the repair, according to the rep I dealt with. I had mine done at a Pontiac dealer so the satisfaction rep said 50% was it. Local guy only wanted $600 for the intake gasket repair, so the savings is not really that great with the 50% refund when the dealer charges $1000.
- Jeremy
I posted a msg concerning my fuel gauge jumping around and the majority or responces mentioned that it was probably my fuel sensor. Sounds good to me but here is a new thing wrong.
The other day I was sitting in my Alero and opened my door and the lights started to blink, the cabin light, milage gauge, radio light, and hazards all started to blink on and off. It lasted about 20 seconds then stopped. then it has continues to happen everytime i open the door.
Question for you guys is, Whats going on? Is it expensive to fix? Also before I replace to fuel sensor for the original problem is it possible that the fuel sensor may be acting up for the same reason all the lights are blinking on and off?
Could really use you help.
I really appreciate you all.
Thank you
Wes
Anyway, one time I had a weird issue with my car where the red 'BRAKE' light and the red seat belt light stayed on even after I shut my car off. I had pulled up on the brake and released my seat belt before I shut the car off, then when I came back to my car about an hour later, both of lights were still on...pretty screwy. It's never happened since then, but I have heard of other people having similar issues to yours and mine, but no fix yet.
Jeremy
Jeremy
We're planning to keep the car for several years (I've kept past cars to around 220,000km, so at least another 4 years) so it's probably a worthwhile. We'll never know for sure, maybe it was a waste of 500 bucks. But when I consider the cost of an engine or transmission rebuild and/or payments on a newer car... This is one of the last few years of Oldsmobile production, so I might actually want to keep this car for even longer than that.
Rick D.
Brockville, ON, Canada
Actually, you have to look pretty far and wide to find cars that actually get 32-34mpg (U.S. gallons) highway or better, and few are as responsive - steering, braking, acceleration, handling.
Rick D.
Could anyone please tell me how to access the Fuel Sending Unit, thanks for all you help
If you're going to tackle this yourself you will want to have as empty a gas tank as possible as this would be very heavy and unwieldy when even partially full. You'd want to look at this job carefully to be sure you can SAFELY support the weight of the gas tank while you're underneath the car unfastening the straps. You'll definitely want somebody else there "spotting" you.
It would probably be worthwhile to have a shop manual of some kind so you can see the photos of the steps and module disassembly. There's some diagnostic information (i.e. which leads to measure using an ohmeter while moving the float up and down) for the fuel level sensor too.
Good luck,
Rick D.
Thx
Rick D.
1. At the front of each front seat, remove the two bolts securing the seat tracks to the floor. The plastic covers around the ends of the seat tracks can stay in place. Note: The main airbag module is beneath the carpeting under the right front seat. Refer to the Warning above and disable the airbag system before removing the passenger front seat.
2. Tilt the seat up and toward the instrument panel, unplug any electrical connectors underneath and remove the seat. The front plastic track covers can remain in place while the seat track tabs are lifted out of the slots in the floor.
3. If you want to replace the seat adjuster assembly, or you need to remove the adjuster to remove or replace the carpet, unbolt the adjuster from the seat assembly.
4. Installation is the reverse of removal. Be sure to tighten all bolts securely.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Having said that, we own a 2000 Alero GLS, and overall we have been very pleased with it. We've encountered few of the reliability issues other folks have reported. As for getting around in snow, we live in southeastern Ontario, and with the traction control, our Alero handles quite well on snow and in slippery conditions. In the winter, just to err on the side of caution, we switch our BF Goodrich Touring T/A SR4s (which came with the car) with Michelin Arctic Alpins.
Here's an article that gives an overview of the Alero and also addresses reliability issues: 1999-2003 Oldsmobile Alero Full Review
On the plus side the Alero has good working traction control as standard equipment and as long as you get a good set of winter tires you will have no trouble in snow. I have a 2000 6 cyl. with 56,000 miles and did have all the problems above but still consider this to be a great car.
As you read through the posts you will see there were many others with strut/suspension problems, electrical problems, interior vinyl cracking problems, etc. You can also go over to the GrandAm forum, which is the same car only with the Pontiac name on it.
I am happy with my Alero and I know there are some others here who are also pleased. But when I read the problems many others are having I think it is a more problem prone car and you would be taking a risk with it. Get the Cobalt if you can.
Jeremy
And also would intrigue rims/tires fit on a 2000 alero?
Thanks for your time
i only can find six
My husband has done some minor repairs and maintenance to our 2000 Alero, but most of the time we take it to the service centre. We had a Corsica before our Alero, and we have found that there have been more costly repairs with this car (for example, both front wheel bearings and the fuel level sensor have had to be replaced) than with the Corsica. However, we do enjoy our Alero and haven't found the reliability issues to be excessive; they just occur more frequently than they did with our Corsica (which, to be fair, had very few problems, beyond regular maintenance, until the last year we had it). The Haynes Repair Manual is good to have on hand for any do-it-yourself repairs.
the recent problem is that when the car is warmed up, turned off, then turned back on anywhere from 15 min to an hour or so later, it shudders and the "check engine" light comes on and flashes. took it to the same dealership twice where they hooked up the diagnostics machine and saw it missing firing at 2 different cylinders each time. so, we have misfiring at 4 out of 6 cylinders. other than that they could not offer much. took it to a mechanic nearby and he thought the injectors may need replacing.
from a cost stand point and mechanical issues. could it be my spark plug wires and therefore i should just replace those? then try injectors if it doesn't work? any info is greatly appreciated.
Does anyone think that sounds like a decent deal? I'd like to be able to take the car down to Virgina from here in PA in October for vacation instead of renting like I did this summer for our Boston trip. And I want to make sure it's reliable. It's almost at 60,000 miles, so I'm hoping that some of the issues reported here have already come and gone and been replaced with better parts.
One other thing, the standard CD players on the 2000, are they CD-R/RW compatible or would I have to look into getting a newer Pioneer installed?
Thanks
If the engine stalls and the SECURITY light flashes, wait until the light stops flashing before trying to restart the engine. Remember to release the key from START as soon as the engine starts.
If the engine is running and the SECURITY light comes on, you will be able to restart the engine if you turn the engine off. However, your Passlock system is not working properly and must be serviced by your dealer. Your vehicle is not protected by Passlock at this time. You may also want to check the fuse. See your dealer for service.
Here is some info on his car:
110k miles
Automatic transmission
4 cylinder (no turbo or special stuff)
front wheel drive (if it matters)
He says that when he is going down the interstate, about 70 mph, his car starts shaking bad and the RPM go up and down, like something is blocked, like the tranny is trying to shift. When he stuck it in Nuetral at 70 mph, the shaking stops...and starts back up as soon as he put it back in gear.
Any thoughts of what this could be? (He just had his tranny flushed, but the shaking was present before that.) Thanks for all comments and suggestions!
:lemon:
I'm surprised at the dealer's comment, I assume this was not from an experienced mechanic, as a grinding noise is common symptom and if it is louder when you turn the wheel one way than another it would be a "classic" front wheel bearing symptom. Especially if this is a new sound or has become worse with time. With our car it got considerably louder over just 200 miles of driving.
I would assume this would be covered under the extended warranty's powertrain section. It would be worthwhile going to a garage that will honor the extended warranty (I'm not sure if it's an indepedent warranty or a GM one that you have), give them the symptoms and see what they say. They pretty much have to do a test drive to diagnose this, I think.