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the reason I was saying I want to keep the miles down I want to live in rural Texas, Montana, Wyoming, California or Oregon. And driving to work will probably be 1 1/2 or maybe little more.
After much debate, I ended up buying out my lease on a loaded '98 LS. I worked the Autoquote angle (see Woodybuick's advise)and paid $13.9k. Although slightly higher than where it could have been, the car only has 27k miles and never had a warranty issue. Naturally, one day after close and factory warranty expiration, the fuel level indicator has gone haywire. I guess after three years, components will start to go. The GM dealer stated that he could still get me into a bumper-to-bumper 2 yr./75K warranty for $1k. Is this a wise choice, vs. other warranties out there?
The dealer's sems to have you. However, I got an extended warranty thru DAC (Dealers Assurance Company). They had a good rating thru AM Best. I purchsed a 36mo/50,000 mile warranty for $490 with a $50 deductable. It came into use for over $800 worth of repairs. My car had 19,000 miles on it at the time of warranty purchase. I could have purchased 60,000/36mo for 740$ for cars with 25,000 to 30,000 miles on them; and 75000/36mo for $970 for cars with 30,001 to 36,000 miles. I am a relatively lo mileage driver, so the 50000 plan worked out well. I had absolutly no problems getting work covered. Their number is 1-800-282-8913. Sold the car by buy the GS. Had about 3000 miles left on the warranty. Good Luck
Reference your problem with your dash lights going on and off. My guess is that when this occurs, it's a cloudy day or you are driving in and out of deeply shaded areas. What might be happening is that the sun goes behind a dark cloud and the sensor that automatically turns on your headlights says "Hey, it's getting dark - I'm gonna turn the lights on." So when it does, the dash lights are now under the control of the rheostat on your headlight switch and if it was turned low from the last time you drove at night, you probably won't see the lights at all. Then when the sun pops back out, the sensor says "Goodness, it's light again - off with the headlights" and the dash lights return to the default for daytime operation.
Next time this happens, rotate your headlight switch clockwise and see if the dash doesn't brighten up.
Car is '98 GS and drivers window failed with no warning. I pulled panel and had power to the motor. Car has extended warranty and the dealer replaced the motor.
Just for fun..... I removed the GS emblems from the back light and replaced with GSX decal for '70 Buick..... these are available from YearOne, part # DB124, I used the small decal for the spoiler..... GS is in red and the X is white
(www.warrantydirect.com) Currently use Warranty Direct and they have paid for 2 claims on my old Ford for about $2000 so far. Paid $600 for warranty... a good decision right.
The problem may be the seals. I had this happen on my 98 Intrigue and under certain conditions, I had all of the windowns except for the driver's window to not roll down. All at different times. I first thought the motor had gone as you hear nothing, but tried it again the next day and it worked. The dealer replaced the seals under warranty and mentioned they had been a problem on early Intrigues. Not sure if the Regals use the same seals or not.
I just noticed, especially in the rear seats that the leather seating surfaces seem dried out, wrinkled, thin and about ready to crack. Has anyone had trouble with the leather seats?
Since our winter here has been one of the worst in along time, I just haven't had the opportunity to go over the car with a really finetooth comb. But the leather condition is apparent and of some concern. Once this weather "lifts" I intend to apply some leather conditioner to the seats. Any recommendations as to what conditioning/preserving product to use?
May the designer rot in Hell changing batteries ........ if you need to change the battery in your Regal, be prepared to spend some time on this job.
You must remove the brace. Remove the windshield washer resevour filler neck. Unhook and pull aside the relay box at the fender well. The relay box refuses to stay out of the way so I fabricated a fancy coat hanger hook to pull it out of the way. There are still other large cables that interfer. In total flustration, I was forced to almost stand the battery on end to get it out. This is at risk of spilling battery water.
Now reverse the process to put the new one in.............
I own a 99 Regal GSE and yes I too have experienced a leather seat problem. It is not the back seats, but the front seats mainly the passenger seat. I also have some wrinkling on the rear headrests. I have tried Lexol leather cleaner and their conditioner. The problem seems to get a little better but after a few days the seats seem to be drying out again. This problem really makes me not want leather in my next car, Regal or not. I live in NJ and my father has a 2000 LS and he has not experienced this problem at all.
Well, the dealership replaced my back window and the reception is fine. But, they had already sent my old radio back to GM so they put in another brand new one and guess what???? This CD player doesn't work either, so back to the dealer for another radio. Did you have your window replaced yet? Let me know how it works out. Good luck.
After reading some posts last fall, I purchased a leather care product called AutoGlym. It is the best product I've used on leather in 20 years, and it lasts. (And, no I don't work for, or own stock in the company) Made in England and recommended by Aston Martin and Jaguar. I'll look for the web site, but I know it was around $12 for an 11oz. bottle. I've treated the Regal twice and still have half of the bottle left. Found some info ....Distributed by Motorcar Valet, Inc. SLC, Utah 1-800-247-4596.
After visiting my local dealer on Monday, there is a new rear window on order for my '00 Bonneville. I had previously reported here having the radio interference problem whenever the rear defroster was engaged and sure enough, it was an interruption in the defroster grid that prevented the window from clearing properly and produced the radio interference.
I was paging through the March issue of Motor Trend when I came across a short article on GM's concept cars. There is a picture of a Black Regal GNX. It they build this car I will be one of the first buyers! 300HP!! The addition of a nice rear spoiler and other slight exterior changes really make this a good looking sports sedan. Would they use the same base supercharged 3800 series push rod engine? How do they gain the additional 60 horses? Can the drive train handle that much torque?
If I were single and didn't need the added traction of front wheel drive, I would want to own the original GNX rear wheel drive 2-door. Having a family and living in Colorado pushes me towards front wheel drive sedans.
Everything with Buick comes back to their marketing of the Regal. My 3 year old son could do a better job. They must separate it from the rest of the Buick line. I have a big disdain for the GM family sedans of the 1980s. Maybe it's because as a child and teenager I had the misfortune of riding in Chevy Caprices. The new Regal compared to an Old's Cutlass is like comparing night and day. but most 20 and 30 somethings would lump the two cars together. They don't know you can own a Regal with high HP, a sunroof, leather seats, and a 60W Amp. I sure never considered a Regal until I ran across one by accident on a dealers lot, while looking at SUVs.
I wouldn't care, but I don't want to see GM stop upgrading the car or discontinue it altogether because of poor sales. I see an auto as something more than a means to get from point A to B. Thats why I'll never own an Accord or similar car. Sorry this was so long, I will make future posts shorter.
Emjoyed your post and agree heartly! Let's not lose the GS due to GM's inability to market it correctly.
If you want to see an example of a car being marketed well, go over to the Linclon LS Edmunds Town Hall and read thru their posts. They are enjoying their cars to the max. They have Linclon's (Marketing and engineering guys)active invovlement in the site. When dealer problems come up, the Linclon guys will help out etc. It's an interesting board and a good example of a company actively promoting a good car. The same could be easily done with the GS! Especailly if Buick is interested in broading their appealing to include younger buyers. It would be fun to see and I think the GNX could be one of the keys to attract both "young and old alike":-)
300 hp at the engine is easily attainable in the current 3800 s/c engine. Check out Thrasher - they are getting over 300hp AT THE WHEELS in their project car.
Also, here's a story on the original Pontiac GPX with 300hp. The actual production model (GTP) had slightly less power, but was pretty much the same car.
The reason leather treatments don't last......... American cars use painted leather, the treatment must penetrate the paint. If you have a bad area, put it on thick and set it set overnight, repeat as needed. I have used maybe 12 different brands and they all work about the same. As an experiment, I treat my leather gloves... I mark each with the brand and date and wear and use them working in the yard. I can see no difference in flexibility, cracking, water penetration etc.... the only difference may be the speed that the treatment dries or evaporates and needs to be replaced. I have even tried one used on saddles called "Leather Theropy" it works very well on raw leather, but tends to leave an oily feel to painted leather seats.
Any one have good suggestions for the following: 1. buffing out surface scratches in the clear coat; 2. removing white road striping paint from clear coat?
Am I the oly one somewhat disappointed with the mpg of the Regal? I have 3,500 miles on a GS. With 60% highway driving, I'm averaging 19.5 MPG (calculated the old fashion way and not via the DIC; which typically shows 2 mpg better).
Granted that I live in SoCal, but with a minimumof 25 miles per highway drive (one way) going 50-65 MPH, I had expected at least 22-23 MPG. Buick dealer says nothing is wrong as long as no idiot lights appear.
I just have 1200 miles on the GS with about 75% of those miles, around town. I would estimate my MPG at 17. Not the greatest, but still enjoying the car.
I know this was talked about before, but the headlights on the Regal are not really that good. I was wondering if I could upgrade the headlights, and not do damage to the wiring harness and the assembly? And also be DOT compliant? I would appreciate any comments on this subject. Thanks
When I first started test driving the Regal GS's I drove a 98 and the headlights were lousy. I ended up buying a 97 GS and the light were much better. I think someone just adjusted them so they aimed up a little higher.
Be careful of one thing. Open your hood and check to see the white retainer clips are holding it in properly. These are designed to be a quick release mechanism so the owner can change the headlight without difficulty. Sometimes, the part breaks and causes things to get misaligned. Otherwise, check the leveling bubble on the headlight itself. I happen to know there is no difference between model years on the headlights so my guess would be that something mechanical is happening.
My wife and I are very happy with highlights of our Regal. We read complaints before buying (also concerning Grand Prix headlights), and had a positive surprise the very first evening.
We test-drove it through Eastern MA, on the winding mountain roads, and more than half of trip was after sunset, in thick darkness. We did not know the roads, were the first time here. So it was really important to have good headlights.
Mine Regal is 2000 model, GS trim, built date December 1999. But I think they are the same with all Regal. Probably, your headlights need to be adjusted.
I have a 22 mile commute that is about 60% highway and 40% city. It get about 370 miles between fill ups (15 gallons), which comes out to about 24.5 mpg. I have 17K on my GS now. I have noticed that cars get better highway mpgs at high altitude (I live 5000 ft above sea level). On a road trip last summer from Denver to Glenwood Springs i was getting close to 25 mpgs, and I frequently pushed it hard to pass people going up hill (the Eisenhower tunnel on I70 is over 11,000 above sea level).
I bought an LS on 1/23 and it has been averaging 21-22 mpg on regular gas. (I live 6 miles from work - main route to work has a speed limit of 45 - not exactly city center stop and go, but not open highway either. Throw in a little interstate driving on the weekends.) Tank before last, we filled up with premium and the mileage rose to 24.5 mpg. (Can't wait to take a long interstate trip and see what mileage she gets on the open road! At 70 mph, she just purrs along at 2000rpm and doesn't seem to break a sweat.))
Interestingly, the gas gauge moves very slowly during the first quarter tank and races towards "E" the rest of the way. When the gauge is at 1/2, it really should be somewhere around 1/4. Not really a problem, but a definite annoyance, although this is not the first car (Buick or otherwise) I've owned that does this. Anyone else notice the same thing?
Bralley: My gas gauge behaves the same way. Between 7/8 down to 1/8 a tank, the indicator acts as if there is a large leak in the tank. But when the low fuel light/chime appears, I have 3 gallons before I get out and push.
Frankk: I know Colorado all too well and your mileage sounds typical. Unless you're in Denver, city bumper-to-bumper traffic doesn't truly exist. Driving from one 'hick-like' (take no offense) town to the next (Boulder to Longmont to Berthoud to Loveland..and so on) can easily get you 24 MPG+ . Ahhh....how I enjoyed Colorado and its' people. Nice, friendly folks!!
I found a local buyer for the noisy, low-grip, cheapo General Ameri-Touring GT's that the dealer insisted on installing when we bought my wife's car. (I asked them to instead give me $200 instead of tires but there was the whole inspection/liability issue.) I have W-rated Dunlop SP Sport 5000 Symmetricals on the way from the Tire Rack. My folks were very happy with two sets of SP 4000's they had used on one of their vehicles so I figured the 5000's are probably OK. I can't wait to get some grippier, more quiet rubber on this car.
I have been a lurker in this forum for about a year or so and I have enjoyed reading about Amsoil, the Thrasher, Tolan, etc. Because of the repeated postings about reliability and general enjoyment of the Regal, I finally broke down and shelled out $16K for a 98 GS with 27K miles, black, loaded minus Onstar and heated seats. Prior to the purchase, I was excited about replacing the stock supercharger pulley with a smaller one, installing the Thrasher header exhaust and upgrading to 17" wheels, but I must say that after spending four days with the car, I have no desire for performance upgrades. This car is great! Smooth, quiet, extremely quick, stealthy (check out the Mercedes CLK forum and read about the awful things that happen to cars that really stand out) and overall, a joy to drive. So far there has been no dreaded dashboard rattle and I look forward to many miles of happy motoring. Today I brought it in for new tires, an alignment and unfortunately, a new right tie rod. Now I am experiencing the dreaded "wheel turned slightly left to drive straight" syndrome, which I do not remember having yesterday. Is it possible that I just spent good money on an alignment to acquire this dreaded syndrome?
We are looking for seat covers for our car. Both to save leather from the UV, and because my wife is afraid the leather seats will be hot in summer. Uncomfortable to drive with bare legs, in shorts or skirt.
We browsed Pep Boys the last Sunday. There is a lot of covers here, a whole aisle. Most of them costs about $25-$30 for pair, but my wife did not like them. Looks to be made from thin fabric, probably not durable. Some are pretentious.
We found good-looking gray seat covers, about $50 a pair for bucket front seats and $50 for rear seat. This is "universal" design, but custom covers, made from the same fabric, can be ordered for the front seats. Custom ones are made for specific make / model / year. Did not ask about the price.
Any experience with covers? Are they compatible with the heated seats? Are the Pep Boys covers durable? Who else is selling the covers?
In my 2000 GS, there is no noticeable difference which mode the transmission/engine is set out. In 'regular' mode, the car will act accordingly if your foot is 'heavier' and then usual. Driving under normal conditions in sport mode, I don't sense the upshifts to last any longer then usual.
I had a 1985 Cressida with a similar set-up. In that car, you can tell the difference which mode you're driving in. But I think with all the torque in the GS, it becomes a near-moot (sp?) point.
I haven't been to the Town Hall site in months- since they switched to this "improved" site because of all the problems and the slow download time even with T-1 and DSL. I see that at least that hasn't changed a bit!
Anyway, the lease of my "wonderful" 1999 Chrysler 300M is coming to an end soon- can't wait. I am most likely going to get a 2001 Regal GS. I had a 96 supercharged Riv that I loved and was going to get another one until some idiot in Detroit decided to eliminate it! I was just wondering if those of you who have a 2001 model are still happy with it. I was following this thread for a while early on, but like I said, got disgusted and left.
Did any of you consider the Pontiac GTP when shopping for a car? If so, why did you choose the Regal over the GTP. I find the GTP to be not as luxurious as the Regal.
Thanks for your help.
fastdriver
PS yurakm- Did you ever get that GMAC insurance thing straightened out?
In order to get my car in Black, I had to buy Leather seats.
I didn't really want Leather seats for the very reason that you mentioned.
Do you have "Costco" there?
They have some decent sheepskin seatcovers. They sell for $30.00 per seat here. There are 3 colors (sometimes two) dark gray, beige, and really light beige.
Something to be aware of is that since the drivers seat has the side airbag, you are going to have to cut a hole in the side of the seatcover, so that it can deploy if needed.
The owners manual specifically advises not to put covers over the seat for this reason.
The other option I guess would be trying to find "custom" seat covers ($$$$ cha-ching) that have the hole pre-cut etc.
Let us know what you end up doing. I'm pretty happy with the sheepskins.
Now the drivers seat itself is becoming another story. My 13 year old Peugeot has better comfort and support!
I think that the folks living in the Peoples Republic of Boulder would take offense as being referred to a "hick town". Most of the other towns would take pride in being labelled that way!
To those of you who posted on the headlight issue thanks, I will be checking those suggestions out this weekend. As for the question about the GTP? Yes I did test drive a couple of Grand Prix models, but the ride was a little too stiff for me. I was driving a truck at the time and the Regal GSE seemd to have the best ride cobined with decent handling. About the sport shift: I used it a couple of times but my gas mileage was not as good with it turned off. To me it is a gimmick.
The GTP's interior quality wasn't up to standards when compared to either the Intrigue or Regal. Specifically, the steering wheel controls, door lining and the 'feel' of the electric windows (I do think the GTP's seats are mre supportive).
The GTP also has a stiffer suspension then the GS - not by much but I could feel the difference. Also, there was more road noise when driving on the ame road as the GS. Bottom line for me was I wanted a car that was an understatement to what it can do. While a GTP screams out 'drive me, I'm fast', ...I like the 'stealthiness' of the GS.
Have had the GS since late November with no problems. Still enjoy the car very much! It's really a fun car to drive. As for the GTP----I just don't like Pontiac styling, therefore, won't even consider it.
Also, thanks for the input on the sports shift. Glad I am not missing anything.
Yes, GMAC confirmed that they received check for the cancelled the credit life insurance from the dealership. It took about 4 months to cancel, October 16 to February 21.
I reported the happy end of this story on this board February 22, posting #533.
Concerning GTP: no, I did not consider it seriously. According to specs, this is a good car, very similar to Regal. But I like much more the Regal appearance - or is it lack of appearance? :-).
Would I like attracting attention, for the same price Firebird TransAm is doing it much better than GP.
On the other hand, with GTP you can get head-up display, unavailable with Regal.
Concerning Internet connection to Edmunds: I have DSL at home, and probably multiple T-3 at work. Both are very fast with Edmunds and most of other sites. When under Windows, I am also using a free Internet accelerator, named Naviscope: http://www.naviscope.com/. It helps with speed, filters-out advertisments, provides technical information on connection, sometimes useful, and generally is relaible, except it is better to exit from the utility when installing ActiveX applications.
If your Internet provider is SNET (very probably, given you are using DSL in Connecticut), they have a substandard DSN server. The very first connection (after rebooting) to any site is very slow. The Naviscope utility shows, that they are losing time mostly on IP address resolution, i.e. translating the symbolic address like www.something.com into numerical IP address like 244.132.14.98. The subsequent connections are loading the IP from cache and are fast.
I do not know about Costco, but sheepskin covers are available at local Pep Boys. They looks good, and are made from a good material. As well as I remember, the covers cost about $70 for a pair. Probably, available for front seats only: do not remember seeing the sheep skins for rear seats.
But is the long warm fool good for summer? My wife thinks it would be way too hot.
As to the side air bag, my car probably does not have this. It was build early, in December 1999. According to specs the 2000 Regal GS have the bags, but I did not found them when looked. Have to check again, plus to reread the window sticker - and to ask mechanic to be sure.
The sheepskin seat covers from costco are for the front seats only. I've never seen sheepskins made for a back seat. Perhaps available custom, but I doubt it.
Too hot in summer???
Nope. My Regal is Black. In Poway (a suburb of San Diego California) it gets as hot as 100 degrees in the summer. While not as hot as say Phoenix AZ, 100 degrees in a Black car is plenty hot for me.
That's why I bought the sheepskins; yes, they might be a little warm, but the leather would be not a little warm, but flat out HOT!
As for the side airbag, hmmm... my car has a build date of 12/99. There's a plastic cover about 3" wide by 7" long on the edge of the seatback. It protrudes from the seat about a 1/2 inch and is identified as an airbag.
I do not use it: the car is fast enough for my tastes. Yet, when my wife or I pushed the button accidently couple of times, we did not feel any difference. Found it later only due to the "perf" indicator on instrument panel.
Though, it is nice to know it is available, just in case, "if and when we would need it".
I do not understand GM. The transaxle is controlled electronically, the performance mode is just another table or subroutine burned into chip. Once the program is already developed, there is no cost difference in production - except a small button. But any change in program needs at least testing, if not debugging, and testing is expensive.
Are they doing this to improve averages - gas consumption, or emission, or what?
Thank you so much! I will tell my wife about the sheepskin. And will look again for the side air bag tonight.
As to hot, this is not a logic, nor knowledge, just a chain of associations. The sheepskin coats are wide used in Russia, but mostly for the cold winter times. No much use before -15C (about 5F): the "plastic" synthetic coats are lighter and warm enough. But sheep coat is great when it is colder than -20C (-5F). Good not for a short walk to car / subway / bus, but for a good walk, a hour or longer.
So it was natural for us to consider them a "hot" thing, useful when it is cold, but not in summer.
Comments
Of course you could get a wife that really likes fast cars - then you'd need to have two.......
Next time this happens, rotate your headlight switch clockwise and see if the dash doesn't brighten up.
Just for fun..... I removed the GS emblems from the back light and replaced with GSX decal for '70 Buick..... these are available from YearOne, part # DB124, I used the small decal for the spoiler..... GS is in red and the X is white
On a 1998 Regal GS...
10 yr / 100,000 mile bumper to bumper $1250
48 months / 75,000 miles, $924
(www.warrantydirect.com) Currently use Warranty Direct and they have paid for 2 claims on my old Ford for about $2000 so far. Paid $600 for warranty... a good decision right.
Since our winter here has been one of the worst in along time, I just haven't had the opportunity to go over the car with a really finetooth comb. But the leather condition is apparent and of some concern. Once this weather "lifts" I intend to apply some leather conditioner to the seats. Any recommendations as to what conditioning/preserving product to use?
You must remove the brace. Remove the windshield washer resevour filler neck. Unhook and pull aside the relay box at the fender well. The relay box refuses to stay out of the way so I fabricated a fancy coat hanger hook to pull it out of the way. There are still other large cables that interfer. In total flustration, I was forced to almost stand the battery on end to get it out.
This is at risk of spilling battery water.
Now reverse the process to put the new one in.............
mainly the passenger seat. I also have some wrinkling on the rear headrests.
I have tried Lexol leather cleaner and their conditioner. The problem seems to get a little better but after a few days the seats seem to be drying out again. This problem really makes me not want leather in my next car, Regal or not. I live in NJ and my father has a 2000 LS and he has not experienced this problem at all.
Seems to be fairly common problem.
Ken
If I were single and didn't need the added traction of front wheel drive, I would want to own the original GNX rear wheel drive 2-door. Having a family and living in Colorado pushes me towards front wheel drive sedans.
Everything with Buick comes back to their marketing of the Regal. My 3 year old son could do a better job. They must separate it from the rest of the Buick line. I have a big disdain for the GM family sedans of the 1980s. Maybe it's because as a child and teenager I had the misfortune of riding in Chevy Caprices. The new Regal compared to an Old's Cutlass is like comparing night and day. but most 20 and 30 somethings would lump the two cars together. They don't know you can own a Regal with high HP, a sunroof, leather seats, and a 60W Amp. I sure never considered a Regal until I ran across one by accident on a dealers lot, while looking at SUVs.
I wouldn't care, but I don't want to see GM stop upgrading the car or discontinue it altogether because of poor sales. I see an auto as something more than a means to get from point A to B. Thats why I'll never own an Accord or similar car. Sorry this was so long, I will make future posts shorter.
If you want to see an example of a car being marketed well, go over to the Linclon LS Edmunds Town Hall and read thru their posts. They are enjoying their cars to the max. They have Linclon's (Marketing and engineering guys)active invovlement in the site. When dealer problems come up, the Linclon guys will help out etc. It's an interesting board and a good example of a company actively promoting a good car. The same could be easily done with the GS! Especailly if Buick is interested in broading their appealing to include younger buyers. It would be fun to see and I think the GNX could be one of the keys to attract both "young and old alike":-)
http://www.thrasher-ep.com/l67_htm/L67.shtm
Also, here's a story on the original Pontiac GPX with 300hp. The actual production model (GTP) had slightly less power, but was pretty much the same car.
http://admin.bellcharts.com/gtx/300gpx/300gpx.htm
As an experiment, I treat my leather gloves... I mark each with the brand and date and wear and use them working in the yard. I can see no difference in flexibility, cracking, water penetration etc.... the only difference may be the speed that the treatment dries or evaporates and needs to be replaced. I have even tried one used on saddles called "Leather Theropy" it works very well on raw leather, but tends to leave an oily feel to painted leather seats.
1. buffing out surface scratches in the clear coat;
2. removing white road striping paint from clear coat?
Granted that I live in SoCal, but with a minimumof 25 miles per highway drive (one way) going 50-65 MPH, I had expected at least 22-23 MPG. Buick dealer says nothing is wrong as long as no idiot lights appear.
the headlights on the Regal are not really that good. I was wondering if I could upgrade the headlights, and not do
damage to the wiring harness and the assembly? And also be DOT compliant? I would appreciate any comments on this subject. Thanks
We test-drove it through Eastern MA, on the winding mountain roads, and more than half of trip was after sunset, in thick darkness. We did not know the roads, were the first time here. So it was really important to have good headlights.
Mine Regal is 2000 model, GS trim, built date December 1999. But I think they are the same with all Regal. Probably, your headlights need to be adjusted.
Interestingly, the gas gauge moves very slowly during the first quarter tank and races towards "E" the rest of the way. When the gauge is at 1/2, it really should be somewhere around 1/4. Not really a problem, but a definite annoyance, although this is not the first car (Buick or otherwise) I've owned that does this. Anyone else notice the same thing?
Frankk: I know Colorado all too well and your mileage sounds typical. Unless you're in Denver, city bumper-to-bumper traffic doesn't truly exist. Driving from one 'hick-like' (take no offense) town to the next (Boulder to Longmont to Berthoud to Loveland..and so on) can easily get you 24 MPG+ . Ahhh....how I enjoyed Colorado and its' people. Nice, friendly folks!!
http://www.familycar.com/RoadTests/BuickRegalGS/
Every American car that I have owned has had a imprecise gas gauge. My 73 Vette's gauge reads differently depending on the grade of the road!
I guess that GM's Engineers have been stumped for years on how to make an accurate gas gauge!
A strange statement: There is no "Sport" mode on this transmission ...
Did GM drop the performance shift mode in 2001?
I believe, the mechanic who did the alignment for your car must fix the problem.
We browsed Pep Boys the last Sunday. There is a lot of covers here, a whole aisle. Most of them costs about $25-$30 for pair, but my wife did not like them. Looks to be made from thin fabric, probably not durable. Some are pretentious.
We found good-looking gray seat covers, about $50 a pair for bucket front seats and $50 for rear seat. This is "universal" design, but custom covers, made from the same fabric, can be ordered for the front seats. Custom ones are made for specific make / model / year. Did not ask about the price.
Any experience with covers? Are they compatible with the heated seats? Are the Pep Boys covers durable? Who else is selling the covers?
Any comments on the sports shift vs the std. 2001 model??
I had a 1985 Cressida with a similar set-up. In that car, you can tell the difference which mode you're driving in. But I think with all the torque in the GS, it becomes a near-moot (sp?) point.
Anyway, the lease of my "wonderful" 1999 Chrysler 300M is coming to an end soon- can't wait. I am most likely going to get a 2001 Regal GS. I had a 96 supercharged Riv that I loved and was going to get another one until some idiot in Detroit decided to eliminate it! I was just wondering if those of you who have a 2001 model are still happy with it. I was following this thread for a while early on, but like I said, got disgusted and left.
Did any of you consider the Pontiac GTP when shopping for a car? If so, why did you choose the Regal over the GTP. I find the GTP to be not as luxurious as the Regal.
Thanks for your help.
fastdriver
PS yurakm- Did you ever get that GMAC insurance thing straightened out?
Leather seats.
I didn't really want Leather seats for the very
reason that you mentioned.
Do you have "Costco" there?
They have some decent sheepskin seatcovers. They sell for $30.00 per seat
here. There are 3 colors (sometimes two) dark gray, beige, and really light beige.
Something to be aware of is that since the
drivers seat has the side airbag, you are going
to have to cut a hole in the side of the seatcover, so that it can deploy if needed.
The owners manual specifically advises not
to put covers over the seat for this reason.
The other option I guess would be trying to
find "custom" seat covers ($$$$ cha-ching)
that have the hole pre-cut etc.
Let us know what you end up doing.
I'm pretty happy with the sheepskins.
Now the drivers seat itself is becoming another story. My 13 year old Peugeot has
better comfort and support!
May have to have that looked at.
The GTP also has a stiffer suspension then the GS - not by much but I could feel the difference. Also, there was more road noise when driving on the ame road as the GS. Bottom line for me was I wanted a car that was an understatement to what it can do. While a GTP screams out 'drive me, I'm fast', ...I like the 'stealthiness' of the GS.
Also, thanks for the input on the sports shift. Glad I am not missing anything.
Pat
Host
Sedans and Women's Auto Center Message Boards
Yes, GMAC confirmed that they received check for the cancelled the credit life insurance from the dealership. It took about 4 months to cancel, October 16 to February 21.
I reported the happy end of this story on this board February 22, posting #533.
Concerning GTP: no, I did not consider it seriously. According to specs, this is a good car, very similar to Regal. But I like much more the Regal appearance - or is it lack of appearance? :-).
Would I like attracting attention, for the same price Firebird TransAm is doing it much better than GP.
On the other hand, with GTP you can get head-up display, unavailable with Regal.
Concerning Internet connection to Edmunds: I have DSL at home, and probably multiple T-3 at work. Both are very fast with Edmunds and most of other sites. When under Windows, I am also using a free Internet accelerator, named Naviscope: http://www.naviscope.com/. It helps with speed, filters-out advertisments, provides technical information on connection, sometimes useful, and generally is relaible, except it is better to exit from the utility when installing ActiveX applications.
If your Internet provider is SNET (very probably, given you are using DSL in Connecticut), they have a substandard DSN server. The very first connection (after rebooting) to any site is very slow. The Naviscope utility shows, that they are losing time mostly on IP address resolution, i.e. translating the symbolic address like www.something.com into numerical IP address like 244.132.14.98. The subsequent connections are loading the IP from cache and are fast.
I do not know about Costco, but sheepskin covers are available at local Pep Boys. They looks good, and are made from a good material. As well as I remember, the covers cost about $70 for a pair. Probably, available for front seats only: do not remember seeing the sheep skins for rear seats.
But is the long warm fool good for summer? My wife thinks it would be way too hot.
As to the side air bag, my car probably does not have this. It was build early, in December 1999. According to specs the 2000 Regal GS have the bags, but I did not found them when looked. Have to check again, plus to reread the window sticker - and to ask mechanic to be sure.
for the front seats only. I've never seen sheepskins made for a back seat.
Perhaps available custom, but I doubt it.
Too hot in summer???
Nope. My Regal is Black. In Poway (a suburb
of San Diego California) it gets as hot as 100 degrees in the summer. While not as hot as
say Phoenix AZ, 100 degrees in a Black car
is plenty hot for me.
That's why I bought the sheepskins; yes, they
might be a little warm, but the leather would
be not a little warm, but flat out HOT!
As for the side airbag, hmmm... my car has
a build date of 12/99. There's a plastic
cover about 3" wide by 7" long on the edge of
the seatback. It protrudes from the seat about
a 1/2 inch and is identified as an airbag.
Though, it is nice to know it is available, just in case, "if and when we would need it".
I do not understand GM. The transaxle is controlled electronically, the performance mode is just another table or subroutine burned into chip. Once the program is already developed, there is no cost difference in production - except a small button. But any change in program needs at least testing, if not debugging, and testing is expensive.
Are they doing this to improve averages - gas consumption, or emission, or what?
As to hot, this is not a logic, nor knowledge, just a chain of associations. The sheepskin coats are wide used in Russia, but mostly for the cold winter times. No much use before -15C (about 5F): the "plastic" synthetic coats are lighter and warm enough. But sheep coat is great when it is colder than -20C (-5F). Good not for a short walk to car / subway / bus, but for a good walk, a hour or longer.
So it was natural for us to consider them a "hot" thing, useful when it is cold, but not in summer.