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The Intrigue is a much better car than the low-tech GT w/SC3.8 eng.. The 3.5 baby Northstar in the Olds was never touched until 111k, receiving 6 new spark plugs-4 air filters over the ownership time and oil change every 3k-Pennzoil only. Same coolant and trans fliud, 1-ISS steering comp.,new rt frt hub @95k--no electrical glitches and the A/C was puffing cold air when needed w/o any complaints. Live in south Fla so A/C is a given. At approx. 70k I had Michelin Harmony tires installed and at tradein time they still had 30k miles left, all inflated to 34# cold. I went through 24 tires due to the Ocala Olds dealer inability to align the car properly, took it to the local Ocala Chevy dealer and $270 later it was solved. No tire wore out, just cupped. 70% of the mileage was spent on I-75 communting between Ocala and Venice.
Brakes were never touched until approx 65k, then it was an expensive mess, new rotors,pads, and more rotors. Cured the problem..
All 3 Intrigues were bought new-1998 GLS, which GM repurchased @ 26k miles, massive steering and brake problems. Cost me $600, turned around and bought a 1999 GLS w/3.5, fun car, brake issues, steering issues, minor engine issues, but it was driven hard--no regrets, did 75k miles with it. Had the SLP catback exhaust..
b4z and I go back a bit on motoring experiences. The Pontiac loves gas, is noisy,ill handling, but it is cheap transportation for the time being for I only drive about 400 miles a week---and has warranty left.. Loved the Intrigues!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HTH
Sounds like once you got the tire thing straightened out it was extremely reliable.
You might remember that I put Michelin Harmonys on my '01 Impala and the were great and wore well.
The '04 GTO lease was turned in 5/08/07 for a '06 GTO buy @ 0%.
The '04 SRX lease was turned in 7/30/07 for a '07 SRX lease.
By the way I am having a little bit of vibration with the Goodyear RSA's on the
'07 SRX, I think your Intrigue had Goodyear LSs?
The Intrigues were fun in retrospect and after owning a bunch they became predictable..Original equip tires were all Goodyears LSs, except the Intrigues equipped with the Prescision Control feature which allowed a top end of 125-130, and I believe they had RSA's..The Harmony tire proved to be excellent on the 2002 and probably will go the 70-80k miles. They had 50K when I traded for the 2006 GP-GT. The Harmonys .were balanced on the car using a strobe light, worked great. Air pressure was around 35# cold.
The Pontiac GP-GT is an oddball car, ain't no Intrigue, but it was a good buy $wise. Sure wouldn't buy one new.
My high mileage days are past, and I will get the Mustang GT this coming spring and keep the Pontiac for sane driving.
I live in Venice, Fl now, widowed recently, will be commuting by airline to Detroit end of this month to attend a sheriff's sale on real estate foreclosures...
Keep in touch....
We bought a house in Hendersonville. NC and it would be nice to be able to keep the mileage off the other cars w/ a semi beater..
But my Intrigue ownership was jinxed and don't know if that would be smart.
Sorry to here about your wife. You guys had a tough few years there.
Yes---life has changed, however it was time for it to happen. Thanks!!!
Back to cars, E-10 gas is in Fla, 10% enthanol-cut mileage 15% on the GP. Ran into this gas formuation 8 yrs ago in Mich with the 99 Intrigue and finally read the stickers on the pump-cheap gas then--now we get cheap gas at high pricing..Our elected officials sure have their heads in the sand or cornfield rather for the whole program actually increases oil useage for we will be using more to travel the same distance, with preformance gone bye-bye..We are in Global Cooling now, loved the Global Warming fiasco..
Plus a '06 328i 6 speed. I forgot to say her grandfather is 86 years old and plays tennis 3 days a week. I guess the other days he is cleaning cars. He is a car nut and likes manual transmissions, so he drives the BMW unless it is a long trip.
Anyway, I think that the '98 intrigue will be going to one of the more needy family members who need transportation. It will be a shame to see that car go to somebody who will trash it inside of 6 months.
This would be the perfect car for blasts up I-26 up to NC. Although we won't get it,
i would definitely have to do something about the road noise since it is a pre 2001 car and doesn't have the double wheelwell liners.
My '99 drove me crazy at 80 mph. Lots of road noise coming from the back.
HTH
Your grandfather has a great stable of cars and is really active---he is one of a kind..
My 98 Intrigue was OK, had the 3.8, but was still fun to drive..3 steering racks, 2 or 3 ISS, brakes replaced @ 3k and GM's repurchase @26k miles. Cost $600 to own the 98er. Going way back-1971SS-350 Camaro, company car, cost 3100 new, put a quick 90k miles and sold it for 2100, magic times--had it shipped to Arizona.
Couple weeks ago when I was refueling the thristy Pontiac, I saw one of rare 500 "Special Edition" Intrigues and it had less than 20k miles. Older original owner, gave him my card and if he sells it within the next six months to give me a call. Orig Fla car, garaged, Caddy dealer where I picked the GPGT was the selling and servicing dealer..
Ethanol is a complete farce..This country is headed back to the 17th century..Please buy a Hybrid for I need the gas!!!
Thanks
FYI 118k miles 99 3.5L GL
Thanks,
Chad
Just a side note, i noticed the engine getting pretty sluggish and asked the tech at the auto parts store what he thought the problem could be. He told me to try a bottle of engine flush before i change the oil. It's a red, water thin liquid you put in the oil fill right before an oil change. You let the engine run 5 minutes (idle) and change the oil like normal. Now it turns over and opens up like i just drove it off the lot brand new! It is supposed to drain the deposits and sludge that wouldn't normally drain during a regular oil change with out the engine flush.
My 2000 Intrigue with 155k miles was feeling sluggish a few months back. I finally changed the spark plugs and fuel filter, it felt like a new car. I tried the oil additive you mentioned and didn't see much of a difference. No harm but not something I would consider as solving any issues. I wold also check the throttle body for carbon build up.
Also check www.rockauto.com and www.gmpartsdirect.com for parts and prices.
That was my biggest complaint with the '99 Intrigue.
They got the ride/handling balance all wrong.
Mine would bash over every small bump and the dash and console would creak and rattle. Especially the area around the shifter. Drove me crazy.
I posted many times about it and we had an Olds engineer on here and I believe that either the '00s or the '01s had revised shocks.
My feeling was that the shocks had too much jounce. Which means they resisted being pushed up or down.
If you look at the intrigue suspension design, it had very soft springs(why the front end rises up like a boat under acceleration), and why the car has some body roll.
Huge swaybars(too help counteract the too soft springs) and stiff as hell shocks and struts.
So the Intrigue takes big dips in the road well but little things like expansion joints and manhole covers bash the car.
If you can find a '01 or '02 strut/shock part number or talk with your parts supplier to see if they improved upon the Olds design that may be the ticket.
i owned a '01 Impala LS after the Intrigue and while it didn't have the quick turn in and ulimate sportiness of the Intrigue it rode better and handled bumps better.
Perhaps you coult try for Impala parts or even Buick Regal parts.
The Regal and Intrigue had the same wheel base and the Impala had a stiffer body ring which helped the structure + the Imp had a slightly longer wheelbase.
I just looked thru some older posts and I think motorcity6 can verify that his '02 Intrigue had a softer suspension set up than his previous one.(i think it was a '99 also)
The Intrigue was supposed to be a European style sports sedan. Unfortunately GM still thought they could get away with big swaybars and cheap stiff shocks when the car was designed.
The intrigue/regal could have had stiffer body structures. If you open either of the two rear doors and look down at the door sill you will see a large weld where the the front portion of the passenger compartment outer ring is joined to the rear.
If you ever have the opportunity to look at the rear door sill of the same year Impala, there is no weld. The entire side body ring is one piece of stamped steel.
My Impala was slightly stiffer than the Inrtigue, the suspension slightly softer, but there were not squeaks or rattles like the Intrigue.
The Impala was classified as a large car the Intrigue/regal/grandprix mid sizers.
The Intrigue and regal hasd109" wheelbases, the Imp and GP 110". The Impala shared it's roof panel with the GP but everything else was different from the Wbodies. Another weak spot in the Wbodies is the cowl area, same with the Gbodies.
Except for the suspension miscue and the rattling front suspension the Intrigue was the best of the Wbodies from a design standpoint. The Imp the most usable.
The undercarriage of the Intrigues was much beefier than than its counterparts and compared to my current 06 GPGT, the Pontiac looks somewhat fragile. I suspect the GT has the same suspension components as the base model 3.8 nonsuper with 16" wheels. Pontiac goes for the glitz factor at times. Been there before with a 89 Pontiac 6000 SE which was a beautiful handling and tight suspended car which after 96k miles was still awesome and tight, bought a new 91 6000 SE and it was a slop bucket-loosey goosey bucket of bolts---Pontiac had deleted all the goodies.
One warning -the Intrigues are getting old and will have a host of problems due to age and mileage. My last Intrigue was driven 119k in Fla only avoiding the affects of snow, sluch, cold temps and chuckholes..My only problems were tires due to a sloppy Olds dealer inability to correct a bad factory installation of the struts which after 70k miles a Chevy dealer was the genius in curing the cupping tire problem.
Don't use Mobil engine oil supplied by GM dealers-the 3.5 devours it, switched to Pennzoil and could go the 3k w/o adding.
During the 119k miles on the 02, no 3.5 problems, no a/c problems, no electrical problems, however brakes were troublesome with the replacement rotors GM brand, suspect dealer was the culprit and the problem was cured with aftermarket rotors and lugs hand torgued to 100#. RH wheel bearing was a $500 deal, common defect to most Intrigues with high mileage.
b4z---Good Wbody analysis for us car buffs and I agree with most of your car talk, and I realize that my GPGT is too akin to an Impala to be really outstanding. The Pontiac was a great money deal and I will overlook its flaws. It does love gas and averages 20.70mpg on Shell Premium.--w/o ac running, sunroof weather in Fla.-Nov thru April. The Mustang GT is on the horizion..I dislike Ford dealers, somehow they lack the organizational skills of GM. Maybe it's my old age and my earlier encounters with FoMoCo in Detroit..Have a good day..b4z and all Intrigue fans
Thanks,
Chad
I truly wonder how Chevy could even consider this vehicle to be police car worthy.
Did you notice the '02 Intirgue was quieter on the highway than the '99?
Double rear wheel well liners made a big diff in the Imp, I'm sure it did the same in the Intrigue.
The Wbodys don't have great resale. You bought the Gp for a great price and will get your money's worth. They are an excellent value for a nid size car. Significantly better than the Taurus and the Dodge Intrepids of that era.
GM transmissions are waaaaay better than what Ford and Dodge were offering.
I still think you would like a '05 or later Caddy CTS w/ sport suspension.
Or maybe you could look into a used Acura TL?
I am starting to see in my area dead Intrigues in people's front yard's. A shame.
Still the best looking Wbody.
My 2000 GL is still going strong after a full 8 years on the road. The car is surprisingly rattle free but a few things will need attention in the coming months. I need new front brakes (the full replacement), an intermediate shaft lube (this will be my second) and new tires possibly later this year. The 3.5L is burning a little oil now, not bad tough.
I have been toying with trading her in as I always said I would keep it 8 years but after a trip to the Toronto auto show I saw very little that I liked. The new CTS is sweet but a bit more than I want to spend. The best I saw was actually the new Malibu (the Aura is also good). The LT2 and LTZ both felt almost luxurious inside, wow. The 3.6L would be a must. In terms of space, the cars have lots and the only noticable difference between the Bu and the Intrigue is the width, Malibu is a bit more narrow. Back seat room is very good, better than the bigger Impala.
The new Accord is a mess, inside and out. The Camry wasn't bad but I just can't bring myself to buy one. Altima is just not me and Nissan quality is questionable in my eyes. Focus is not bad but the V6 is a bit weak in 2008.
I saw the new G8 which was also looking good but my feeling is there will not be much supply and I will pay close to sticker for one of these unless I wait a couple of years. I wish they had just made this car in Oshawa and got rid of the Grand Prix.
I think I will hold on for now. I still enjoy the car and I will revisit the decision in the fall when they are trying to get rid of 2008s. The Intrigue has served me very well and I still can not say enough good things about it.
My profile says April 13, 2001, but edmunds required all of us to reregister at that time.
Bought my Intrigue March, 1999. So that will be 9 years next month.
I still look at every Intrigue I see on the road. Drives my wife crazy. "Look honey, there's a bronze mist '99 Intrigue, just like the one I had." Her, "OMG. It looks just like a Grand Prix" or, "that's a old person's car." She doe sit just to torture me, so I torture her by pointing ut every one I see. LOL.
I agree with you about the malibu/Astra those things are really narrrow. But they are very good and expensive looking.
I still look at every one I see too. Around here there seem to be a surprising bumber of them. I have to think GM Canada was more successful selling Intrigues on a per capita basis than was GM USA. Like Vanman, I really cannot justify ditching the Intrigue right now. It is running well with no issues at all.
BTW, my Intrigue has reached 100000mls. and I just had it shod. The venerable Yokohama Avid Touring aren't that a bargain anymore and given that the tire dealer didn't have them in stock, I went for a similarly rated Goodyear Comfortred, though for a tad more. In the first few miles they seem to carry over the Yokohama's virtues: quiet, yet pretty grippy for touring tires.
Other than that, the cubby near the driver's knee broke off, but the powertrain is still running smoothly (knock on wood).
The mileage is still excellent: above 23MPG commuting and up to 35MPG on the highway. Of course, it still demands a quart of oil every 1000mls or so (hooray for the oil level sensor).
I am ok with less width on the new Malibu / Aura, it will be more space in the garage. A new car is at least a year away now I think, we just bought a new Montana SV6 last week for my wife. I am taking it in this week for it's intermediate shaft lube, should make it feel like new.
Intrigues never struck me a "old people cars". Even my Honda loving co-worker admits it's a nice looking car.
Thing I will miss with almost any new car is trunk space. The Impala is the only car with comparable space to the Intrigue. CTS trunk is not that big.
My intrigue is 9 years old and I've had the shaft replace at 3yrs and 6yrs (since it was under an extended warranty)
Same feeling of a bad shaft is back. For those of you who just did the lube:
Did it work?
How much labor time was involved?
How long did it last?
Thanks!
Use white lithium grease. Move driver's seat all the way back so you can see under the dashboard. Follow the steering shaft to the firewall. There should be a "rubber sheath" covering the shaft. Pull it down as far as you can (it won't move far but enough to get the nozzle in there). Feel for a connector that connects the steering wheel shaft and the shaft going into the engine compartment (I am too big to fit under and had to us feel). Spray the grease on this connection. Take it for a ride to see how it feels. Repeat if necessary.
The can of grease I had came with a long straw attached that helped me to get plenty of grease on the connector.
Just yesterday, on the way to work, it got really bad. I lost a lot of power (35mph up-hill....eww) so I took it into my dad's shop so he could take a look at it. He's a good mechanic, but better with hydrolics and big diesels then he is with cars. We changed the oil, which still looked good (he was worried that low oil was causing a stuck lifter arm, or some such mechanical sounding thing).
When we started up the car after the oil change, he noticed the loud *plop* noise coming from the rear cylinders. He removed the spark plugs and the drive cover(?) (the cover over the twin cam shafts) and what we found was all but two of the rockers where shattered, and the cams were practically shredded. Lots of metal bits everywhere.
Now, the car has over 200k on it, and with the amount of driving I do (nearly 4 hours a weekday) I'm not surprised that something like this has happened. I bought it with 106k and it has been the best first-car anybody could ask for.
I'm wondering if anybody has ever heard of this before, and opinions on how to fix it going forward. I imagine that replacing the cams (and possibly the entire head) will be quite an expensive fix, and I can't imagine how hard it will be to find a running junkyard engine to salvage for parts. Has anybody done/heard of engine-swaps for a different engine on the Intrigue? The body and interior are still in excellent shape, but without a running engine I don't think I could get very much out of selling the car.
I bought a 00 back in December. I have had problems with the anti lock brakes pumping in dry conditions until the anti-lock light comes on on the IP. After the light comes on they work all right. My mechanic tried replacing the right front hub at a cost of over $300.00 but it didn't solve the problem. I got so sick and tired I finally pulled the fuse and disabled the system. Yes, I still have brakes but not anti lock. Anyone out there who has had similar problems? I'll check back in later.
Thanks
Dave
Thanks, Allen
Too be sure of oil useage, check every 1k miles, the engine needs oil for it is a 4-valve, alum blocked V-6., somewhat fragile and needy, however will perform nicely if proper care is given..
Continuing with your suspected blown head gaskets, that is typically not the problem. It has been well documented (and I have witnessed) that the intake manifold gaskets leak, eventually enough to fill a cylinder and lock up the engine. It's quite a job also. I replaced the composite intake plenum ($150) at the same time, cleaned the throttle body, replaced the thermostat, and the little plastic 90 degree tube out of the intake manifold on the front (pulley side) of the engine. The best way to clean the tube female ends is to buy a plumbing tube cleaner (under $2) and I recommend using permatex when you reinstall it - mine leaked the first time - after permatex - no more coolant leak. You will need an in/lbs torque wrench for the composite plenum. Once you replace them, the engine is rock solid.I have 153k on mine and it runs rock solid, burning no noticeable oil and no coolant loss.
Hope this info helps...
I did a 500 mile round trip Thursday in the wife's Tahoe and it cost $93 in gas with the mileage being 17.8mpg. Mileage was less than that until i slowed down to 70mph about 100 miles from home.
What trim is it? Has it been taken care of? Are there maintenance records?