Back in 2000 I looked at new cars and nearly bought a GLS, but the wife liked the Maxima better and they were giving a better deal on them, better resale, etc. But after living with the low-torque maxima motor, I started looking on sale sites for a GLS, curious to see what price I could get one for. Cut to the chase, found a cherry looking 2000 GLS limited edition that was one-owner and well maintained and talked the guy into accepting $6k for it. Has about 90k road miles on it.
He's out of state, so I have yet to get the car from him, that is being worked out. Anyway, any advice on things to look for would be appreciated. It passed inspection and he claims that everything is in working condition, newer tires, brakes.
I loved the shortstar motor during my test drive, but we just couldn't get the price down to = the Maxima on year end close out ($23 ish). Looking forward to driving it back to my home state.
Pictures I have seen of the Chinese LaCrosse seem to indicate a good possibility of our wishes. We shall see in 07/08 when I am in the market again.
The Aura may be ok if it's well spaced like the Malibu in side. I could live with a snick less space, the Aura looked bigger than the Malibu at the auto show. That said, it was only a prototype.
the next Malibu looks alot like the Aura... which would make sense since they will be built on the same platform. Everything I've read says the next new Malibu (2008 model year, I think) is as attractive as the current model is dull.
Traded the 'Trig today on a Grand Marquis. Owned the car 8 years and two months, had just 53819 miles on it, but the ISS was groaning again and there was a whine from under the hood - could have been the power steering pump or pulley. I was beginning to spend money on the car lately and was ready for a change. So I'm back in a V8 RWD car. If only GM would have offered anything decent and able to hold resale value, I would have shopped Buick or Pontiac, but.....
Good luck to everyone here and their Intrigues. Now to give away the DexCool and spare wheel parts in the garage.... Guess I'll look for a local Intrigue owner and give them to him!
Hello everyone, I'm the proud owner of a 2001 Intrigue GL with over 225,000 miles. Still looks excellent and drives flawless. I'm hoping to achieve 300,000 miles plus. The car is still amazingly strong at highway speeds.
I got my 00 GLS over the weekend. Fun car to drive, motor is a rocket, transmission works wonderfully, stereo rocks, comfortable. Going over car mechanically now and cleaning things up a bit.
Has anyone upgraded to 17" wheels and tires? How did that go for you? Wondering as it already rides pretty darn stiff.
Enjoy your new car. You were one of the original posters on this thread. I only kept my car for 27 months. The banging suspension about sent me over the edge. After buying an Impala in '01 I found that part of the suspension noise was coming from the calipers. Had the shim kit put in. Wish I had known about it with the Intrigue.
Is your Intirgue a PCS car? Those have the shorter axle ratio and really run. I could bark the tires on my '99 on the 3-1 downshift at 25-30 mph sometimes.
With only 100K kms on the dial, there is still a lot of driving left in my Intrigue. I don't see keeping it more than another 3 years though, I got to sell in the 10th year.
You are smarter than me. I buy too many cars. They say if you buy a new car and keep it for 10 years or a used car and keep it for 4 years you can retire 5 years sooner! That won't be me.
Yes, its got PCS. I had actually forgotten about the different final drive ratio, I think I remember hearing about it back in 2000 when I was looking at them. All I know is the damn thing really moves out.
What is a shim kit for the calipers? I guess I don't need it as the car drives great and brakes are great, just require a bit more pressure. If I get all the other stuff done around the house, maybe I'll put on those Gran Prix 12" rotors...
Ok, I'm not into bling-bling but the Max has 17" rims, I think the Intrigue would look cool and drive great with 17"'s, has anyone gone this route and is there any learnings on offset or width?
My 99 Intrigue 3.5 had started using 1 qt. of oil every 2,000 miles almost overnight, not long after achieving 100,000 on the clock, so I figured something like s stuck oil ring or two. Well, three weeks ago I picked up a can of Sea Foam treatment at PepBoys. Poured half a can into the brake booster vacuum line so it went directly into the intake manifold while idling. Smoked like crazy for 10 minutes or so. Ran it until no smoke and changed the oil. After 1,000 miles I just checked the oil level. Hasn't burned a drop! I'm a happy camper and big fan of Sea Foam treatment!
Well to be honest, with 2 kids in day care and my wife starting a business, it's partly lack of free cashflow that is hampering any thought of a new car in the near future.
That said, I try and keep cars a min of 8 years regardless.
I feel your pain. The 'trig is 6.5 years old, 45k miles, and I keep the miles off and keep it well detailed (easy in Vegas s opposed to Chicago previously). Have to, as I plan to keep 'her' for another 4 years or so. Got two kids in braces (13k!), single income family of 4 and the usual mortgage and all. Just one payment with the Saturn Vue. The trig is payed off, so that helps.
I gotta say, after seeing the new Aura shown in NY, and the Fusion and G6, I do not see anything out there that really turns my head like the trig still does. Looks, performance (3.5 shortstar), room, I doubt I'd replace it even if I had the money. -ketch (2000 Silver Mist GL SLP-typeR)
Hey, what is SLP-type R? Sounds like a hot-rod add-on. I'm all over that sort of thing. Tell me more.
Dirk
ps. My AC was leaking gas, they put dye in it and charged it. Must be a small leak as they couldn't find it, or its in the evaporator. Figures, domestics can't seem to go over 5-6 years w/o needing a evap core replaced, at least in our family that has been the case unless the car is hardly driven, then add a few years.
It's pretty amazing to consider that the Intrigue, introduced in '98, is still probably the best car in it's size class that GM has done. I find the Aura a huge disappointment -- it probably isn't as good as the '04/'05 next-gen Intrigue would have been. Consider that -- updated with styling cues from the last Aurora, the Shortstar tweaked for a bit more power, some bright accents inside and out, some improvements in NVH control -- it would blow any other GM offering in that class away, including the new Impala, LaCrosse, and Aura. What a shame.
The G6 and malibu are built on different platforms. The G6 is built on the malibu maxx which has a longer wheelbase. The maxx uses the extra length for cargo room, The G6 for interior room.
the G6 has everybit as much interior room, lengthwise as the intrigue. The G6 is only about one inch less in the width department.
The only thing that would hold me back on the Aura would be crazy GM pricing on the 3.6L models and the trunk size which is smaller. Hopefully GM will price the Aura fair.
The interior of the Aura is beautiful from what I see and the 6-speed auto is an "about time" for GM. I hope to see some better rim options though.
Actually, longitudinally, the G6 is as roomy as the Intrigue, but it's got about 3in less in hip and shoulder room and has a tad less head room. Its trunk is also 2 cu.ft. smaller (from here and here). So, it's in no way in the same league as the Intrigue.
Just thought I'd share with other Intrigue owners, as an FYI.
I had my 2002 Intrigue GL appraised at a major, national pre-owned car dealer. My car is a red GL, with the sun and sound package (Bose system, sunroof), pcs, spoiler, with 41,000 miles. Their offer was (ouch) $6500.
I was expected to get killed, so it wasn't a surprise. But at that price, frankly, there is little incentive for me to trade, at least until my warranty is out. How much more can it really depreciate in a year in a half? I'm somewhat convinced that this car is going to cost me big money when I'm out of warranty, based on all the works its needed in the past year, so if that's the case, I might trade.
it wasn't an appraisal but a offer for trade. YOu may have better luck selling it privately but it may take some time. Not sure what problems you are having but most of the issues are known and any independent mechanic can work on the vehicle. Not unless the the tranny goes, I would run it into the gorund.
It was a wholesale offer (not a trade--I wasn't buying anything, there at least).
I'm sure the issues are fixable...but how much is it going to cost? Something a power window unit failing, which has happened to be...that's going to be very expensive.
I've got a 99 Intrigue just passing the 100K mile marker and have run into my first problem that I can't seem to fix - the button on the shift lever (to take out of Park, etc) broke this past week. The plastic snapped.
Being a 7 year old car, I'd rather not take it to the dealer if I don't have to. I've done all of the work on it so far myself (mostly oil changes, and had to borrow a set of gauges to refill AC about 10K back), but I just can't seem to figure out how to remove the plastic from the steel to glue this back in.
Any ideas??
Frank
btw - I spent some time perusing this list - lots of good info in here.
One of my orange DRLs blew the other day and I popped into Part Source and got a new one. I opened up the hood and was surprise to see that not only was it easy to change the bulb, but I needed zero tools. Pop the clips, pull out the headlight assembly, open the rubber seal and twist out the bulb. This is the easiest bulb change ever for me, wonderful!
The plastic is held onto the shift lever with a little retaining clip that slips in and out of the FRONT side of the shift handle. I had pushed it in during my earlier playing thinking it was a lever that would allow me to remove the handle, but it occurred to be to try to pull it out.
And voila! So a little super glue and some shims to make sure it glued in straight, and my shifter is back together.
it may not be very expensive.. not unless you had it already diagnosed. i would post the problem in detail on the "problems and Solutions" forum and see if anyone can give you some insight.
I had pushed it in during my earlier playing thinking it was a lever that would allow me to remove the handle, but it occurred to be to try to pull it out.
But the last group of problems just aren't the kind of thing somebody like me is going to be able to fix. My power windows stopped working. My intake manifold broke apart and was leaking (air). My O2 sensor failed. And my car stalled while driving 60 mph (ignition related, says the dealer). How in the world can ANY of that be fixed by me with any sort of cost effectiveness?
Now, ISS, is a different story. But I swear to you--I had an entirely new unit (the 2nd) put on it under warranty, and literally not 200 miles lately it was right back to the same problem. I guess I could just keep lubing it, etc.
But my concern is not really that sort of thing, its that something else like I described in the first paragraph happens again, and I'm held hostage by an expensive repair. Its a risk in any car out of warranty, but given that sort of history (all within 5k miles, mind you), wouldn't you say the risk is higher?
The same thing happened to me, the windows would not roll down or up at all. I went exploring and pulled open the driver door window/mirror control panel and found out that the connector (sorry, don't know the proper terms) simply fell out of its socket. I thin it was from years of driving DC streets that slowly jiggled it out. I put it back and electrical taped it to be sure and the windows work fine now. Try it out.
I have a small screw driver (like for eye glasses and such) that I slid in just above the metal in that slot and gently worked it out. There is no adhesive or anything else holding that in place so it should come out pretty easily.
So today I removed the door panel to replace the window regulator. It wasn't as bad as I feared.
In the end, I was appalled at how the regulator broke off. The plastic insert that holds the ends of the cable gave away after years of service. Everything else was in perfect condition. The regulator is almost 100% metal and were the cables mounted on the metal, it would last perhaps longer than the car. :sick:
I am obviously a little late in joining this party, however, I am experiencing the same thing with a trouble code of 410. Needless to say, warranty has since expired and even though I am somewhat handy under the hood, I still prefer knowing what I am getting into first. How do I replace this secondary air pump anyways ?
My 2001 GLS with 43K miles (warranty just expired in Feb 2006) has repeatedly gotten the Service Engine Soon light on. The auto parts store read the computer on their actron reader and came up with the secondary Air Injection system showing a fault. My research has yielded that GM may not cover the repair/replacement under the emissions warranty. Has anyone else had this problem? I got the alternator replaced in Feb 2006 (flickering headlights) under orig 60-month warranty. I did notice tonite that when idling in the garage, the headlights were flickering a little. I did see in other posts relating an AIR pump with the flickering. Could the real problem be a secondary air injection pump issue that caused the flickering? I just need some info before taking on the dealer. Having the service bulletin for the alternator helped when i took it in. I bought the GLS last year after discovering that it has the most front-seat legroom of any sedan.
Hi all, I just bought a '99 GX with 97,000KM, 3.5L engine. Car runs great with plenty of power except for an engine noise. It sounds like a slightly muted tapping sound, sort of hard to describe, almost similar to the clatter a diesel makes. It is at regular intervals and consistent, and doesnt seem to get a lot louder with increased revs, but makes car sound more like a racecar when you gun it. I noticed sometimes when it starts cold the noise takes a few seconds to appear, and when i replaced the battery and let the computer relearn idle the noise was gone at first then reappeared as the computer adjusted the engine. I asked the dealer when i bought it if that was a trouble sign and they brushed it off as nothing, and when it was safetied the mechanics didnt come running to tell me it was about to explode, so I'm not sure what to think. Could it be deposit buildup? Something sticking? Car was driven by an elderly couple who probably never floored it. The sound is almost inaudible when listening closely to the belt side of the engine, but is pronounced when listening to the throttle body/intake side of the engine. At idle is is close to impossible to hear from the inside of the car.
2) After driving for awhile yesterday, I got back into my 1999 Intrigue(3.5L) 30 minutes later & it would not start(all the lights were bright)the red security light was flashing in the dashboard. I hooked up my portable battery to the car's battery & it started 15 minutes later & the security light de-illuminated. I don't think this was a battery issue but had something to do w\ the security system.
Also has anyone experienced flickering headlights with the Intrigue?
Can anyone help me out w\ these problems? Thanks. :surprise:
2) for your security problems i would check the ignition switch assembly. If it is not reading your key properly the car wont start by design.
3) Flickering headlight are from a crappy GM alternator design... some of the engine accessories draw large amounts of power and the alternator cant handle it at low speeds.. there is a revised alternator and an engine computer software update that staggers the load better
I'll have to take the car to the dealership for the A/C problem.
As far as the security problem, my Intrigue key looks like a normal key unlike the key my Cutlass had which had a chip built in. Does the Intrigue's ignition switch have a security device built in? Thanks.
according to the owner's manual yeah. I guess they've hidden the chip inside the plastic top on these ones, my previous oldsmobile also had a visible chip thing in it
Hi guys, its my first time posting. I've read alot on these forums but I just need to be sure of some things, if you guys could help me out.
I just bought a 1999 intrigue gsl a few weeks ago. Its in great condition....However, i have a slight clunkiness when I turn at slow speeds, and its now starting to squeel a bit when i turn. The car just feels a bit weak in the front steering column. Also I'm getting about 14 mpg city and part hwy. I know that, that sucks. I bought from the dealership and they said that they'll fix mechanical problems within the month. Ive brought it in a couple times and told them about my problems but they keep saying that they dont see anything wrong. Should I bring it in to another mechanic first to get the car diagnosed. I'm hoping that I didnt get jipped, I really want the car to run well. Can anyone please give me some advice, it would be greatly appreciated.
Comments
The Aura will be based on the same platform as the G6 and the Malibu, not Intrigue territory...
Back in 2000 I looked at new cars and nearly bought a GLS, but the wife liked the Maxima better and they were giving a better deal on them, better resale, etc. But after living with the low-torque maxima motor, I started looking on sale sites for a GLS, curious to see what price I could get one for. Cut to the chase, found a cherry looking 2000 GLS limited edition that was one-owner and well maintained and talked the guy into accepting $6k for it. Has about 90k road miles on it.
He's out of state, so I have yet to get the car from him, that is being worked out. Anyway, any advice on things to look for would be appreciated. It passed inspection and he claims that everything is in working condition, newer tires, brakes.
I loved the shortstar motor during my test drive, but we just couldn't get the price down to = the Maxima on year end close out ($23 ish). Looking forward to driving it back to my home state.
Dirk
The Aura may be ok if it's well spaced like the Malibu in side. I could live with a snick less space, the Aura looked bigger than the Malibu at the auto show. That said, it was only a prototype.
Good luck to everyone here and their Intrigues. Now to give away the DexCool and spare wheel parts in the garage.... Guess I'll look for a local Intrigue owner and give them to him!
Has anyone upgraded to 17" wheels and tires? How did that go for you? Wondering as it already rides pretty darn stiff.
This is a sleeper performance wise.
Dirk
who has 250,000 miles on his '98 Intrigue!
That is just amazing.
After reading his post I realized that the Inrigue came out over 8 years ago and it has been 5 years since I turned mine in.
You were one of the original posters on this thread.
I only kept my car for 27 months.
The banging suspension about sent me over the edge.
After buying an Impala in '01 I found that part of the suspension noise was coming from the calipers.
Had the shim kit put in. Wish I had known about it with the Intrigue.
Those have the shorter axle ratio and really run.
I could bark the tires on my '99 on the 3-1 downshift at 25-30 mph sometimes.
I buy too many cars.
They say if you buy a new car and keep it for 10 years or a used car and keep it for 4 years you can retire 5 years sooner!
That won't be me.
What is a shim kit for the calipers? I guess I don't need it as the car drives great and brakes are great, just require a bit more pressure. If I get all the other stuff done around the house, maybe I'll put on those Gran Prix 12" rotors...
Ok, I'm not into bling-bling but the Max has 17" rims, I think the Intrigue would look cool and drive great with 17"'s, has anyone gone this route and is there any learnings on offset or width?
Dirk
That said, I try and keep cars a min of 8 years regardless.
I gotta say, after seeing the new Aura shown in NY, and the Fusion and G6, I do not see anything out there that really turns my head like the trig still does. Looks, performance (3.5 shortstar), room, I doubt I'd replace it even if I had the money.
-ketch (2000 Silver Mist GL SLP-typeR)
Dirk
ps. My AC was leaking gas, they put dye in it and charged it. Must be a small leak as they couldn't find it, or its in the evaporator. Figures, domestics can't seem to go over 5-6 years w/o needing a evap core replaced, at least in our family that has been the case unless the car is hardly driven, then add a few years.
2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6
is built on the malibu maxx which has a longer wheelbase.
The maxx uses the extra length for cargo room, The G6 for
interior room.
the G6 has everybit as much interior room, lengthwise as
the intrigue. The G6 is only about one inch less in the
width department.
The interior of the Aura is beautiful from what I see and the 6-speed auto is an "about time" for GM. I hope to see some better rim options though.
I had my 2002 Intrigue GL appraised at a major, national pre-owned car dealer. My car is a red GL, with the sun and sound package (Bose system, sunroof), pcs, spoiler, with 41,000 miles. Their offer was (ouch) $6500.
I was expected to get killed, so it wasn't a surprise. But at that price, frankly, there is little incentive for me to trade, at least until my warranty is out. How much more can it really depreciate in a year in a half? I'm somewhat convinced that this car is going to cost me big money when I'm out of warranty, based on all the works its needed in the past year, so if that's the case, I might trade.
I'm sure the issues are fixable...but how much is it going to cost? Something a power window unit failing, which has happened to be...that's going to be very expensive.
Being a 7 year old car, I'd rather not take it to the dealer if I don't have to. I've done all of the work on it so far myself (mostly oil changes, and had to borrow a set of gauges to refill AC about 10K back), but I just can't seem to figure out how to remove the plastic from the steel to glue this back in.
Any ideas??
Frank
btw - I spent some time perusing this list - lots of good info in here.
The plastic is held onto the shift lever with a little retaining clip that slips in and out of the FRONT side of the shift handle. I had pushed it in during my earlier playing thinking it was a lever that would allow me to remove the handle, but it occurred to be to try to pull it out.
And voila! So a little super glue and some shims to make sure it glued in straight, and my shifter is back together.
How did you pull it out? What did you use?
TIA
But the last group of problems just aren't the kind of thing somebody like me is going to be able to fix. My power windows stopped working. My intake manifold broke apart and was leaking (air). My O2 sensor failed. And my car stalled while driving 60 mph (ignition related, says the dealer). How in the world can ANY of that be fixed by me with any sort of cost effectiveness?
Now, ISS, is a different story. But I swear to you--I had an entirely new unit (the 2nd) put on it under warranty, and literally not 200 miles lately it was right back to the same problem. I guess I could just keep lubing it, etc.
But my concern is not really that sort of thing, its that something else like I described in the first paragraph happens again, and I'm held hostage by an expensive repair. Its a risk in any car out of warranty, but given that sort of history (all within 5k miles, mind you), wouldn't you say the risk is higher?
The same thing happened to me, the windows would not roll down or up at all. I went exploring and pulled open the driver door window/mirror control panel and found out that the connector (sorry, don't know the proper terms) simply fell out of its socket. I thin it was from years of driving DC streets that slowly jiggled it out. I put it back and electrical taped it to be sure and the windows work fine now. Try it out.
TIA
1 - gentle but firm pressure starting from the bottom of the panel and work your way up one side then the other.
2 - pick a warm day or a day when the inside of your car got really warm. It will help keep the plastic clips from breaking off so you can reuse them.
3 - look for a couple of screws either in the arm rest or behind a little plate in the door latch. These hold the center of the door in place.
Of course - continuous removal and reassembly will cause them to wear out, but for a once or twice thing, these tricks should work.
Regards,
Frank
In the end, I was appalled at how the regulator broke off. The plastic insert that holds the ends of the cable gave away after years of service. Everything else was in perfect condition. The regulator is almost 100% metal and were the cables mounted on the metal, it would last perhaps longer than the car. :sick:
How do I replace this secondary air pump anyways ?
Thanks
I just bought a '99 GX with 97,000KM, 3.5L engine. Car runs great with plenty of power except for an engine noise. It sounds like a slightly muted tapping sound, sort of hard to describe, almost similar to the clatter a diesel makes. It is at regular intervals and consistent, and doesnt seem to get a lot louder with increased revs, but makes car sound more like a racecar when you gun it. I noticed sometimes when it starts cold the noise takes a few seconds to appear, and when i replaced the battery and let the computer relearn idle the noise was gone at first then reappeared as the computer adjusted the engine. I asked the dealer when i bought it if that was a trouble sign and they brushed it off as nothing, and when it was safetied the mechanics didnt come running to tell me it was about to explode, so I'm not sure what to think. Could it be deposit buildup? Something sticking? Car was driven by an elderly couple who probably never floored it. The sound is almost inaudible when listening closely to the belt side of the engine, but is pronounced when listening to the throttle body/intake side of the engine. At idle is is close to impossible to hear from the inside of the car.
2) After driving for awhile yesterday, I got back into my 1999 Intrigue(3.5L) 30 minutes later & it would not start(all the lights were bright)the red security light was flashing in the dashboard. I hooked up my portable battery to the car's battery & it started 15 minutes later & the security light de-illuminated. I don't think this was a battery issue but had something to do w\ the security system.
Also has anyone experienced flickering headlights with the Intrigue?
Can anyone help me out w\ these problems? Thanks. :surprise:
I posted this in the wrong forum, sorry folks...
2) for your security problems i would check the ignition switch assembly. If it is not reading your key properly the car wont start by design.
3) Flickering headlight are from a crappy GM alternator design... some of the engine accessories draw large amounts of power and the alternator cant handle it at low speeds.. there is a revised alternator and an engine computer software update that staggers the load better
As far as the security problem, my Intrigue key looks like a normal key unlike the key my Cutlass had which had a chip built in. Does the Intrigue's ignition switch have a security device built in? Thanks.
I just bought a 1999 intrigue gsl a few weeks ago. Its in great condition....However, i have a slight clunkiness when I turn at slow speeds, and its now starting to squeel a bit when i turn. The car just feels a bit weak in the front steering column. Also I'm getting about 14 mpg city and part hwy. I know that, that sucks. I bought from the dealership and they said that they'll fix mechanical problems within the month. Ive brought it in a couple times and told them about my problems but they keep saying that they dont see anything wrong. Should I bring it in to another mechanic first to get the car diagnosed. I'm hoping that I didnt get jipped, I really want the car to run well. Can anyone please give me some advice, it would be greatly appreciated.
Thanx!