In my opinion, the logo is too closely tied to the brand to be radically changed, however, I do believe that the brand has been so tarnished by past perception issues and lackluster quality of components, that the powers that be at GM need to strongly consider a slight modification to the familiar chevron badge in order to send a signal of the "new" attitude at Chevy.
Great post petrozero, I totally agree. New GM still looks way too much like old GM. Change the company name a bit. Change the company logo. Change the Chevy logo. DO SOMETHING! Don't just keep hyping the Volt with Volt Dancers! That is old GM/Chevy. They are not thinking innovatively enough.
GM has some pretty good newer vehicles, but my take is that a great CTS and Malibu and LaCrosse is not going to be enough - they still have reliability problems and still have tons of junk in the lineup.
Ford is smaller and more nimble and has been more willing to change things up. Ford is bringing many European cars to the US. They have SYNC in all their cars now and are moving to a virtual dash system. They have networking and hard drives and will have wifi in their cars (synch to itunes in the house...).
GM is over 6 months post-bankruptcy -
- Do they have a new slogan? No. - Do they have any new names for divisions or the company? No. - Have they changed any logos? No. - Is there a "new GM" message that is clear to the public -- that they have changed and they are now different? No. - Have they done anything radical since BK? Well, they changed a lot of management, and they killed Hummer/Saab/Saturn/Pontiac (which are good things to do).
Except for what a desparate company does (kill brands, change management), the new products and new marketing messages are not that significant. Not yet. How long should we wait? They have never been good at agility, but they need to get better. FAST.
Have they done anything radical since BK? Well, they changed a lot of management, and they killed Hummer/Saab/Saturn/Pontiac (which are good things to do).
Well Saturn yes but Hummer is still around waiting for a new home, Saab has a new owner still selling GM designed and sourced vehicles and I still believe that Pontiac will be back. They won't be going anywhere, it was just a ploy to make it look like they were doing something to validate the 50 billion in taxpayer money. There is nothing stopping Government Motors from getting back to where they were a year ago, minus Saturn.
"Nissan Frontier has the strongest roof and the Chevy Colorado the weakest.."
"The Institute noted that while the Colorado/Canyon has standard side-curtain airbags, it “lacks additional airbags designed to protect a driver’s torso. The Colorado’s poor structure, along with poor protection for the driver dummy’s chest and pelvis, contributed to its poor rating overall. Plus the dummy’s head came close to moving around the curtain airbags during the impact by the intruding barrier.”"
".....conflict of interest in its ownership of GM and how it is treating Toyota. "
Be that as it may (and all administrations will have that label as long as there is ownership), it was ILLEGAL for Toyota to sell defective autos, and that's just what they did.
Agreed, but how long does it take to desing a new vehicle? 18 months minimum? Just a guess but if its 18 months, with GM we'll see new designs in about eight years!
This is a major step in helping Chevy recover from the depths of junk over the past few decades. The 2011 Z-28 is a go.
So here are the details we have gathered so far: it will use a 6.2-liter V8, similar to that of the SS version but this one is supercharged. Concrete power numbers are not final yet, but this engine also powers the newest Cadillac CTS-V, where it makes 556 horsepower and 551 pound-feet of torque.
Keep in mind, however, that the Z28 will be almost 300 pounds lighter than the CTS-V, so expect 0 to 60 times under four seconds and a top speed of 193 mph (with the manual transmission). Speaking of gearboxes, the Z28 will most likely be offered only in a full-manual six-speed option (due to the higher cost of the automatic).
The appearance of the 2011 Z28 will not stray far from the pictures that GM released sometime ago. Compared to the current Camaro models, the Z28 will get updated 20-inch wheels that are gunmetal in color and resemble those seen often in Formula One and Rolex car series races.
The Z28 gets a different mesh grille with updated badges and a bigger hood scoop to accommodate the new blown engine. Other body enhancements include a restyled rear bumper cover and a taller lip spoiler.
Expect pricing of the Z28 to exceed current SS models by at least $8,000, but not to grow anywhere near Corvette money. GM would like to keep the Camaro Z28 as its original pony car for the average-income car lover. If the General keeps his word and GM builds this thing, we believe it will become a workhorse and a collectors item for Camaro lovers everywhere.
You see, I love cars not poor excuses to bend metal into rolling garbage cans. Now I will gain a little more respect for Chevy as a brand. I used to love it when it made this car:
You could not help yourself. That's automotive desire.
You see, I love cars not poor excuses to bend metal into rolling garbage cans. Now I will gain a little more respect for Chevy as a brand. I used to love it when it made this car:
The new Camaro is based off of the one you pictured in how it looks and drives(be that a good thing or bad, I don't know). It sure feels similar inside and drives in a straight line pretty quickly. Brakes, safety, and cornering are tons better, though, and it doesn't have an 8-track in the dash, so that's an improvement as well.
Loads less money than a Corvette and almost as quick. I think GM is doing fine. They just need more vehicles like this and less jellybean rental fodder.
agreed with you about the new camaro, I love the look of it; in a nut shell, I was a GM owner for almost 30 years, having buicks, chevy's, and pontiac but after my 04 Malibu I had finally had enough with GM and having to pour thousands of dollars in 4-5 year old cars to keep them running, right after the warranty expired mind you; I broke the cycle and went with Japanese and am happy with that decision
It took a lot for me to switch from GM to Japanese because I gave hope for so long things would improve with GM and I just got tired of waiting
Luckily though, I have been impressed to see the direction GM has taken since post bailout and bankruptcy and do believe as you do that they are on the right road to becoming a great car company again; models, such as the new Malibu, Camaro, Lacrosse, and CTS are excellent signs that GM has gotten the message
I still think it will be another 5-6 years before we see if GM has turned the page completely until we see if their long-term reliability improves; if at that point GM vehicles long term reliability improves I might be willing to try GM again but not before that point
I do agree, some vehicles, the Impala comes to mind, as a car that needs to be either reworked, similar to the new Malibu compared to the old, or get rid of it and start with a new large family sedan because the impala, to quote you, right now is "just jellybean rental fodder"
I do agree, that this thing with Toyota now should def help GM improve their sales and market share
I still think it will be another 5-6 years before we see if GM has turned the page completely until we see if their long-term reliability improves; if at that point GM vehicles long term reliability improves I might be willing to try GM again but not before that point
Right now GM and the auto industry as a whole are still doing pretty badly; there are a few exceptions such as Subaru, and Ford did well - but how much of that was due to C4C; selling Focus's w/o huge discounts. I hope you're right and GM is wildly successful and can back the $ they owe the government. But there will be a lot of political pressure especially as the next election nears, not to continue to put $$ into GM and Chrysler, if the private markets don't have enough faith to invest.
BTW - anyone hear when the "New GM" is going public with stock? Is the offering being delayed because the offering may not be well received?
As part of its plan to produce the Chevy Volt and other future electric vehicles, GM has opened new plants and facilities to produce its own electric-vehicle parts and batteries. Absent from these new facilities? The United Auto Workers union.
But many spokespeople for the UAW, and the workers themselves are upset with GM as they believed that the concessions given during the bankruptcy restructuring were made to ensure jobs like these would go to the UAW.
“We were told that all the concessions we made would make us competitive for new jobs,” said Gregg Shotwell, a retired worker for GM and Delphi. “What happened with these jobs?”
We were told that all the concessions we made would make us competitive for new jobs,”
Well Mr. Shotwell, you're getting the see the real world outside the UAW, where "competitive" means something like "you can fill out an application for that job with the rest of the people. If we think you're the best value for the job, we'll let you know".
“What happened with these jobs?”
Competitive bidding? Doesn't everyone do that when they themselves hire someone - like a contractor, a realtor, a lawyer, or an auto mechanic?
Well, what do you expect when GM's entire reason that they were failing to make a profit was due to the $3000 or so per car financial burden from the UAW's stranglehold on them?
They aren't some food stamp program, after all. They are a business that is out there to make a product and a profit. So of course if they have the option to do what any other business would do when hiring people(that is, chose and compete fairly based upon skills and price), they will take it.
On a side note, while I support unions in general, the fact is that collective power is one thing, but the UAW and a few other unions(screenwriter's comes to mind immediately) are effectively operating as if these companies are the government and this is some welfare program that they are magically entitled to. Everyone bags on Toyota and others for not using union labor, but the reality is, why should they not be able to hire anyone that they want in a free market? Especially now that there are so many qualified people who are looking for work right now that(like it or not) they can hire for bargain wages.
It's a bit harsh, but if $30K a year is what they'll offer you and it's what they need to pay to stay in business, well, it sure beats going out of business for them. Or starving and not making rent for the worker.
once again I have picked a location to live in where GM and Ford and Chevy pickups pretty much rule the roost. I live in a small town in rural SE Arizona. We are basically out in the middle of nowhere in the desert. Geronimo and Chief Cochise, the Chiricahua Apache's so feared by the white man round about 1865-1886, used to ride their horses all over the land we're living in here. Lots of people live outside of town and they need a pick-em-up truck or a SUV to navigate the ruts in their driveways and biways.
Someone like I that buys and drives an import is not the norm around here. Though there are many appliance Honda, Subaru and Toyota's in Cochise County, the majority drive Ford, GM and Dodge pick-em-up trucks and there are a lot of soccer Mom's in their large American SUV's around here, too.
But the prevailing attitude it seems at the Big 2 and a half is still a feeling that the American people will bail them out and continue buying their rigs. Ford seems to have the tightest grip of all and is really starting to respond by building buyable vehicles.
I am not that far off from one day test-driving one of the 81.5mpg (hyper-miled) Ford Fusion Hybrids. Test-driving, probably not buying. I am not well enough enamored with the Focus(duh) or the new Fiesta, even, to buy one of the new small-ish Ford's. They're gonna have to get a bit more creative.
Mitsubishi and Suzuki have them beat still, IMO. The new Kizashi small midsize sedan from Suzuki looks like a great new car and the i-MiEV all-electric from Mitsu as well as their proposed Lancer GTS Hybrid, as well as their concept larger than Outlander SUV they're naming the PX-MiEV(it's a gas-electric hybrid)have my rapt attention and interest for future purchase possibilities.
But the American people, especially in these rural areas my wife and I are picking to live in since 2003, seem to still like and want to support the domestic automakers. Big still works in working class America. Still a lot of people living in oakie areas that need big SUV's and pick-em-up trucks to get around in.
In other words, there are always so many drivers in this land that buy something to get them from point A to point B. They give up fun and design in order to get practicality. Because they have to have practicality? Or because they want practicality?
The decade of the 60's showed that the domestic makers could be creative and design rigs that not only got the transportation thing done but they managed to make them look good as well. The domestics need to design in some enthusiasm.
More enthusiasm. The UAW's still think they're needed and still think we'll buy domestic because we think that they deserve market share. Because why?
Because here's where it all started. Henry Ford's experiment gone awry. Entitlement personified.
They've got to make a profit and they don't have to over-hire to get it done. They should be selective and smart about who they hire. But bring on some creativity. The Asians are beating them at this function and although Fo-Mo-Co is showing the most promise they need even more new design flair.
There will always be hayseeds like the ones I live amongst here in rural America. But I think there's still a lot of us who do care about how our cars look. Like those of us who love the American cars of the 60's. What a thrilling automotive decade.
My 2005 Chevy Cobalt's power steering went out around the 45,000 mark. I found hundreds of other Cobalt drivers that have had the same problem and had to pay $900-$2500 to repair their car. GM is aware of this problem but has chosen to do nothing about it. The only thing we can do is get everyone out there to call the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and let them know of this issue in hopes of a future recall. Thanks for watching!
It only takes five minutes, so please call in!
Oh snap, smells like a coverup! Revit where are you!
I tell you with all the recalls coming out of GM, Ford, Toyota, and Honda we are all doomed!!! no car manufacture is safe! God help us all!!!
I think that all these recalls show that car transportation is no longer safe and that at this point in history we should have some new form of transportation that is safer than automobiles :P where are all the hover crafts and transporters??? :P
I just find it amusing that our good friend hasn't jumped on this one like he has with Toyota
1 million Cobalt models have been affected and GM has known about this problem since 2005 yet has been installing the same systems since. If that isn't a coverup I don't know what is and I guess neither does our good friend. :P
this is exactly why I broke the vicious GM cycle with my 04 Malibu and left GM after being with them for almost 30 years; right after the warranty ended, usually between 40-50k miles things like this would go on the car and I would have the vehicle towed to the dealership and have to spend 2-3k dollars to replace something on a 3 or 4 year old car which is absolutely ridiculous
and it wasn't like this happen to me only once, this happened consistently with each GM product I had and I had it with Chevys, Buicks, and Pontiacs!
on my 1990 Buick Skylark, when I got rid of it at 10 years old I was on my fifth alternator!! my 1994 Lumina was on its 4th alternator when I got rid of it
I lived in denial for years about GM and kept deluding myself that GM would change things would get better and they didn't; what did it in for me was on my 04 Malibu; BEFORE THE WARRANTY was over, the catalytic converter went and the power steering hose broke leaking fluid all over the engine compartment and I had to have the 2 year old car towed to the dealership from almost 30 miles away where I worked; but the kicker was, I go in the next day and they give me the run around that it was my fault and normal wear and tear and NOT covered by warranty, can you believe that!! I was going to get a lawyer involved but I just had enough, I spent the $3000 dollars to repair the crap that broke, kept the car for 1 more year and then sold it for a big loss, I just wanted to get out of GM!!
Other members of my extended family had similar problems with the Fords they had that I did with my GM cars and so I said enough with the American automakers!
I switched to Japanese cars since then and except for gas, tires, and oil I've been trouble free with two of my cars coming up on 6 years now!!
All this UA and braking stuff with Toyota is blown way out of proportion by revit and others like its something that has never been seen before with cars and if you check, every auto manufacturer has had trouble with UA or braking issues at some point in its history; there is a reason why accidents, which car accidents make up the majority of that category, is the fifth leading cause of death in the US every year! thats because cars are mechanical machines and assembled by humans which are far from perfect and thus things happen that cause certain cars to get into accidents; what the joke is, Toyota is certainly not the first automaker to cover things up and lie about problems with their vehicles; they learned how to do that from GM, Ford, and Chrysler;
you would think the way revit and others talk in almost shock that this could happen with a car company such as Toyota and then say its really bad because they build their reputation on quality; NEWS FLASH, every car manufacturer builds there reputation on quality and reliability so that argument falls flat on its face; he is a disgruntled Toyota owner just like you and I are disgruntled GM people so you have to take everything with a grain of salt and he is going to slant his view of Toyota in the negative because of his bad experience with his Toyota
Like I said my friend, you have to take what people say with a grain of salt; you and I talk about the hell we've gone through with GM but then you'll have someone come on here who has had 1 Ford or 1 GM product in the last 1 or 2 years that has had no problems with their vehicles and tell us we are crazy to say that GM or Ford has built bad products despite our own personal proof
Hey man, did you see that story I think revit or someone else posted over there about a thing that happened with a 1996 Camry with UA and a guy who went to prison over it; do you see how paranoid revit and others are getting; they are trying to go back and dig up stories and try to say that Camry's from 15 years ago, when Toyota was in their quality hey day I might add, are terrible cars now too!
"......you and I talk about the hell we've gone through with GM but then you'll have someone come on here who has had 1 Ford or 1 GM product in the last 1 or 2 years that has had no problems with their vehicles and tell us we are crazy to say that GM or Ford has built bad products despite our own personal proof "
There are plenty of us who have had SEVERAL GM products and not had the POS' you claim to have.
Even when we do have problems, as I did with my wife's '04 Rainier just last month, when with 60,000 miles on it we find the AWD not working because of a stripped out spline in the front differential, and facing a $2300 bill, a call to Buick customer service explaining the situation got that bill reduced to $850, the jobber's rate for the parts. GM picked up the rest of the cost of the parts, and all the labor.
BTW, a co-worker's '95 Camry had a problem with a sticking throttle. I belive a mechanic fixed it by blowing out the tube going to the throttle from the cruise control. IIRC it or something was clogged, and no, I don't believe it had anything to do with the SA problems of today. It was just something that happened to a 15 yr old car w/ 160,000 miles on it.
well they must have improved customer service response since bankruptcy because for the 30 years I had there products, I never got corporate GM to reduce anything on my bill
keep in mind too, a lot has changed with GM since I had my 04 Malibu; there has been a lot of change for the better; I still think they have a few years to prove their worth and reliability but things have improved - eliminating some divisions was a big thing for me because they had just too many different vehicles - now with fewer vehicles they can focus on that smaller group better
but your example with the Camry is my point exactly, at 160k miles you would expect stuff like that to start failing; my point is the stuff I dealt with on over eight GM vehicles I had at 30-50k miles was absolutely ridiculous and those things should not be happening till the car has over 100k miles on it and it never made it
kudos to you for having GM products with not too many troubles; hopefully that is a sign things are going in the right direction for GM finally; plus GM should benefit a little bit from the current problems going on at Toyota!
I just find it amusing that our good friend hasn't jumped on this one like he has with Toyota
Well, GM also makes enormous amounts of rubbish as well The CTS is about the only thing I'd actually recommend that they make. Well, the Camaro is nice, but it's really not usable as a normal vehicle. The rest of the stuff just gets obliterated, though, by the imports and especially the new TSX. At just over $30K, it's currently the #1 entry-level luxury sedan choice.
".......well they must have improved customer service response since bankruptcy because for the 30 years I had there products, I never got corporate GM to reduce anything on my bill"
In 1985, my father bought a '81 Park Av. with the diesel engine (what a beautiful car, I loved the crushed velour seats). It had 94,000 miles, and a rebuilt engine. I was driving it one sunday afternoon, and it snapped a wristpin (these things happen when a 16 yr old tries to drive it 45 miles an hour in first gear :surprise: , but I digress). The engine was out of warranty. My father called customer service, and they agreed to pick up the cost of the engine and labor.
your family must have been on GM's nice person list!!!
when I had to get my fourth and fifth alternator on my 1990 Skylark, I called GM customer service and told them, listen, I'm barely getting 2 years out of the alternators your putting on my car and every time it was like $800-1000 dollars to have a new alternator put on, and keep in mind, every time an alternator went I had to have the car towed to the dealership, which neither the dealership nor customer service ever helped me on, despite me begging to pick up at least half the towing bill!
I even consulted a lawyer that my Skylark could have been a :lemon: and at that time he said well the fix lasts for a decent period of time so you'd have a hell of time proving what they do does not work, it isn't worth your time and money to fight it
when I told GM customer service this the guy laughed and said sorry, we can't help you, your out of manufacturer warranty and the part lasted more than one year; that was the other joke, GM only guaranteed their replacement parts and labor for 1 year from date of service and it always lasted just longer than that period!
I got screwed over big time!! when I got rid of the car at 10 years old I was on the fifth alternator, that is absolutely ridiculous!!
".....I got screwed over big time!! when I got rid of the car at 10 years old I was on the fifth alternator, that is absolutely ridiculous!! "
$800-1000 sounds like an awful lot for an alternator. My '88 Regal had one go and it was $149 from a parts store. Also, I would argue that if it was burning one up every couple years, the alternator was the SYMPTOM of the problem, and not the cause.
Car & Driver did a long term test on a Trailblazer several yrs back. It went through 2 alternators in 22 thousand miles. Both were replaced under warranty, but they wondered if the problem may have been a bent bracket, and not the alternator, and wondered aloud as to why the dealer wouldn't look further into this. My Rainier has the same alternator as the Trailblazer, and has lasted all 6+ years w/o a problem.
Although mechanical failure does cause some crashes, the overwhelming majority of car crashes are due to driver error, including poor judgment, risk-taking, alcohol, distractions, falling asleep, and on and on.
It seems to me if that '96 Camry driver was convicted criminally for the crash that killed 2 people, the evidence must have been pretty convincing for the judge and jury that he was to blame and not the car.
I know thats my point, people like revit are trying to say that the Camry's going all the way back to the 1990s also had UA and braking problems which is ridiculous!
I have a newer GM car and customer service is not better! They do not speak my language and could not understand what I was saying! They are rude and speak over me! Not to mention I have taken my car to the dealer several times over silly issues!! And, 1 issue is not even fixed, as they are less than willing to put the work in. Luckily, its a lease, Not mine! So, unfortunately the new owner will inherit the issue. Not going to mention it though, not my problem. But, thinking I will tell them after I trade.
My next oil change, which will be soon, I am going to see about trading out!! Getting myself a German car or a Japanese.
So I did take a chance on GM, First GM and will be my last! For good! :lemon: Why contribute your money to a sickness.
My good friend was a service manager for a GMC/Buick/Pontiac dealer in NH and he had customer horror stories up the wazzho to tell. Stupid stuff like stationary windows on the Trailblazer clones that would pop out in the summertime because they used a low temp epoxy to hold them in. Or worn tie-rod and other suspension components because GM engineered them to be too short that they had no flex. Or leaking oil pans because the front axles were designed to pass through it! Who the heck does that? More majo stuff? whining rear axles, Intermediate Steering shafts (big coverup on that one, where is Revit!?!?!?) doors that would never shut right because the hinges were undersized, o2 sensors, total brake failures, Dexcool (better off urinating in the radiator than use that stuff). Name a model on the lot that they sold and there was some sort of ridiculous item or items that were prone to early failure.
The thing was that it was all about the customer attitude. See, we all have a dealer horror story or 2 ourselves on the sales end of things but on the service side of things it's the exact opposite. Some people will not back down from the smallest problem, especially rattles or creaks and such. It is these people who tie up hours and hours of a techs time when they could be off worrying about real problems.
It's become the case where we want absolute and utter perfection in our vehicles. Sure it is valid since a vehicle is the second largest purchase we make (might be beaten out by a few wedding rings in some occassions :P ) but even the slightest tick which might develop in the dead of winter is cause for alarm to a lot of people. And when that owner brings an irrational tirade of anger to my buddy or any other techs/ managers or whomever out there, alot of these guys will just cover up the problem and get the customer to move on. Oh sure, there is an instance where my buddy says he would give the service away or only charge for parts and no labor but that was because the customer becamse so irrational that it was to avoid a major blow out in the middle of the service dept.
But if a customer had a problem and was calm about it, explained it in a rational manner and wasn't looking to nitpick every little click, tick or noise, the shop would give that customer the utmost care. And they would be more likely to work with you (exclude labor costs, parts discounts, free warranty) because they know you are a loyal customer and not another person was so disappointed that it was obvious they were never going to buy another one of your products again.
I tell ya what. I don't think I could make it a week doing his job. Yikes.
Yes, isn't that the truth! The dealer can either take it on with a positive attitude or go in with it negatively. Same thing with the customer, it gets frustrating. It is hard to have a good attitude, when you want what you paid for, and its not working right. I treat them pretty well, but I draw the line at a service employee with an attitude, so I directly call the manager to report them. But, compliment them too if I had good service. My dealer was fairly positive, did help me out, but still sorta shrugged me off. At this point, I am not going to bring anymore issues up, as It could hurt my trade if I choose to get a car from them. It is too bad dealer have to take on the negativity of GM. The issue sometimes, is that we get to know our cars and if it doesn't feel right, then something isn't. Frankly, I work to hard to pay for something that isn't what should be expected. I draw the line at a faulty transmission, shouldn't have to live with that! And I have for the last 2 years!! Jerking and slipping. That is the issue with me, the bar was set higher on the Honda lease I had, then go to a GM car, my pride had to go down slightly. Expectations have to go down too. That is only given the situations given from the car and the dealer. Wait, I am not driving a Honda anymore...lol. So I have to remind myself that.
However, I am excited about the free oil changes for the year, it will get me to when I trade my car!! Love it! I like my car, but I do not love my car like my Honda!
I think it really comes down to the people at the specific dealership whether or not you'll have a good experience or not; I unfortunately, over the 8-9 GM models I had over a 30 year period, the two GM dealerships I used were really lousy toward me, shrugged any concerns or problems I had off and always told me everything was normal wear and tear on the car
Having to have a 2-4 year old car towed into the dealership several times because stuff in the engine broke is not normal wear and tear, and that is what they would tell me after I had the cars towed into the dealership!! Give me a break!!
The GM dealership couldn't even admit there was a problem and that maybe, just maybe, the cars were not built properly or poorly at the factory! I rather them be honest with me then make up a whole bunch of BS to lie and make it look like oh this is normal to happen with cars that are not that old or somehow my cars alternators and power steering pumps blowing on the highway was somehow my fault!
You should have seen me after my last GM, a 04 Malibu; the catalytic converter went on it, and yes it was classic Malibu, went at 38k miles and at the same time the power steering hose blew spilling fluid all over my engine compartment and the car was towed to the dealership; after I got there they fixed both things and I told them, listen, this car is only 3 years old, these things should not be going like this, and the service advisor said "oh, this isn't out of the ordinary" and I said well I'm out of warranty but not by much, can't GM cover some of this - the guy laughed and said, "well its normal wear and tear" "do you have an extended warranty?" (ie extended warranties don't cover anything if the dealership feels its normal wear and tear) and of course I told the guy no and he said "well then I'm sorry we can't help you, your bill comes to $2400 dollars"
when I heard the amount I went livid, I had finally lost my patience with GM; the GM actually had to come out of his office from the sales floor and calm me down and he was nice enough to take $400 off my bill, wasn't he nice, so I still only had to pay $2000 dollars to keep a 3 year old car running! I was going to get a lawyer involved but I didn't want to go through all that hell and legal fees so I kept the car 1 more year to get some of my money out of the repair work and sold the piece of crap! that was my bye bye GM moment!
Sorry to hear about your GM lemons. I've had good luck with em, alternator on a 10 year old truck.......$50 replaced it myself. Put almost 300K on that truck. There were a few other minor things, but with that kinda miles can't complain.
I dont like what GM is doing now, that's why my "new" (hey it was new a few years ago!) GM truck will likely be my last GM vehicle. Comes in handy when needed, it's paid for, and I have my non GM car I use as my daily driver.
who bought a new Aura last June. MSRP was close to $30K, but he got it for around $22K out the door. I'm kinda curious to see how it holds up for him. His previous car was an Audi A4 that he got something like 250,000 miles out of.
How much does a typical alternator cost these days, anyway? I think the last time I had one fail was back in 1995, on a '68 Dodge Dart. I had it replaced at K-mart for around $100-120, total. And then, once I really looked at it, was mad at myself because it looked like a 5-minute job that I could have done myself.
I'm sure modern alternators are more complex and expensive, but $800-$1000 just seems extreme, especially on a mainstream car like a Malibu. Heck, I've bought entire CARS for $800-1000...sometimes even less! :P I don't always recommend that though, because an $800-1000 car can sometimes cost much more than that to keep on the road...
Yeah, that does seem like an insane price for an alternator, though truth be told I haven't had to replace an alternator in I don't know how long. I have a few indications that the Celica might need one before long though so I'll keep you posted.
Cooter mentioned the Trailblazer at one point. That's the vehicle that drove my last American car brother over the edge. He joined the transmission of the month club with it. Had two fail in teh first 25K. Bailed for a major loss.
There are several GM vehicles that could tempt me back but naturally anything that said trailblazer on it would not be one of them...
2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
the only GM car, that might, and I say again, might temp me back one day is the CTS! I test drove one when I was looking at other luxury cars last year and not only does it have a great sporty exterior body style it was fun as hell to drive!!
bfdj84, Your written english seems great - maybe corresponding with the service reps via email/writing will be useful for you in the future. (Also which language is it that you hold the GM reps accountable for not speaking? Maybe someone here can help to translate?) Also if you identify the actual vehicle issues here, someone may have some helpful clues that will help you before your lease is up. Also which GM car do you have?
I'm sure modern alternators are more complex and expensive, but $800-$1000 just seems extreme
Most likely lots of labor involved. On a FWD drive car if the alternator is down low it could be a real mess to replace. If you can't get to it from underneath there is a good chance you are moving a lot of crap out of the way to get to it (idler pulleys, a/c compressor and lines :sick: )
exactly, that is why my alternator bills were so high, there was like 300-400 dollars in labor alone and one or two of them were located low in the engine and some other things had to be moved in order to get to the alternator; since it was done at a GM dealership; I'm not sure if I mis-spoke but my alternator troubles were not on my Malibu's, though they had other problems, it was on my two early Buicks, 1990 Skylark (5 alternators total :sick: ) and 1992 Century (4 alternators total :confuse: ), and my 1994 Chevy Lumina (3 alternators total )and which also had horrific brake/rotors/hub issues as well!
in hindsight, I was stupid to go to the dealerships, because I thought by paying the extra money and having it done right by the car professionals that the work and parts would be top notch and last, but I was sorely mistaken! as you can see though by my car history, I guess GM improved as time went on, hahahaha :P because as the newer model years came out I needed less and less alternators
plus I forgot to mention, those prices I quoted also include the 100-200 dollar towing fees to have the cars towed to the dealerships when the alternators clunked out!
The alternator on my 1988 Buick Park Avenue was on top and easy to replace. Now, the A/C compressor was buried and looked like it would be an immense pain to access.
I think everyone has some important part that is buried down in some ridiculous place.
My Hondas have buried oil filters. they likely are easy to get at up on a lift because it's not like they charge more than any other car but I've never actually seen the filter.
The Toyotas, OTOH, have the filer right up front where you couldn't miss it if you tried.
I don't remember where the Toyota alternator is but on the Hondas it's right up top.
2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
Comments
Great post petrozero, I totally agree. New GM still looks way too much like old GM. Change the company name a bit. Change the company logo. Change the Chevy logo. DO SOMETHING! Don't just keep hyping the Volt with Volt Dancers! That is old GM/Chevy. They are not thinking innovatively enough.
GM has some pretty good newer vehicles, but my take is that a great CTS and Malibu and LaCrosse is not going to be enough - they still have reliability problems and still have tons of junk in the lineup.
Ford is smaller and more nimble and has been more willing to change things up. Ford is bringing many European cars to the US. They have SYNC in all their cars now and are moving to a virtual dash system. They have networking and hard drives and will have wifi in their cars (synch to itunes in the house...).
GM is over 6 months post-bankruptcy -
- Do they have a new slogan? No.
- Do they have any new names for divisions or the company? No.
- Have they changed any logos? No.
- Is there a "new GM" message that is clear to the public -- that they have changed and they are now different? No.
- Have they done anything radical since BK? Well, they changed a lot of management, and they killed Hummer/Saab/Saturn/Pontiac (which are good things to do).
Except for what a desparate company does (kill brands, change management), the new products and new marketing messages are not that significant. Not yet. How long should we wait? They have never been good at agility, but they need to get better. FAST.
Well Saturn yes but Hummer is still around waiting for a new home, Saab has a new owner still selling GM designed and sourced vehicles and I still believe that Pontiac will be back. They won't be going anywhere, it was just a ploy to make it look like they were doing something to validate the 50 billion in taxpayer money. There is nothing stopping Government Motors from getting back to where they were a year ago, minus Saturn.
"Nissan Frontier has the strongest roof and the Chevy Colorado the weakest.."
"The Institute noted that while the Colorado/Canyon has standard side-curtain airbags, it “lacks additional airbags designed to protect a driver’s torso. The Colorado’s poor structure, along with poor protection for the driver dummy’s chest and pelvis, contributed to its poor rating overall. Plus the dummy’s head came close to moving around the curtain airbags during the impact by the intruding barrier.”"
Be that as it may (and all administrations will have that label as long as there is ownership), it was ILLEGAL for Toyota to sell defective autos, and that's just what they did.
So here are the details we have gathered so far: it will use a 6.2-liter V8, similar to that of the SS version but this one is supercharged. Concrete power numbers are not final yet, but this engine also powers the newest Cadillac CTS-V, where it makes 556 horsepower and 551 pound-feet of torque.
Keep in mind, however, that the Z28 will be almost 300 pounds lighter than the CTS-V, so expect 0 to 60 times under four seconds and a top speed of 193 mph (with the manual transmission). Speaking of gearboxes, the Z28 will most likely be offered only in a full-manual six-speed option (due to the higher cost of the automatic).
The appearance of the 2011 Z28 will not stray far from the pictures that GM released sometime ago. Compared to the current Camaro models, the Z28 will get updated 20-inch wheels that are gunmetal in color and resemble those seen often in Formula One and Rolex car series races.
The Z28 gets a different mesh grille with updated badges and a bigger hood scoop to accommodate the new blown engine. Other body enhancements include a restyled rear bumper cover and a taller lip spoiler.
Expect pricing of the Z28 to exceed current SS models by at least $8,000, but not to grow anywhere near Corvette money. GM would like to keep the Camaro Z28 as its original pony car for the average-income car lover. If the General keeps his word and GM builds this thing, we believe it will become a workhorse and a collectors item for Camaro lovers everywhere.
You see, I love cars not poor excuses to bend metal into rolling garbage cans. Now I will gain a little more respect for Chevy as a brand. I used to love it when it made this car:
You could not help yourself. That's automotive desire.
Regards,
OW
the Z has been on & off & on & off since then...
http://www.chevroletreports.com/blog/1035861_gm-confirms-the-2011-chevrolet-cama- ro-z28-is-a-go
You see, I love cars not poor excuses to bend metal into rolling garbage cans. Now I will gain a little more respect for Chevy as a brand. I used to love it when it made this car:
The new Camaro is based off of the one you pictured in how it looks and drives(be that a good thing or bad, I don't know). It sure feels similar inside and drives in a straight line pretty quickly. Brakes, safety, and cornering are tons better, though, and it doesn't have an 8-track in the dash, so that's an improvement as well.
Loads less money than a Corvette and almost as quick. I think GM is doing fine. They just need more vehicles like this and less jellybean rental fodder.
It took a lot for me to switch from GM to Japanese because I gave hope for so long things would improve with GM and I just got tired of waiting
Luckily though, I have been impressed to see the direction GM has taken since post bailout and bankruptcy and do believe as you do that they are on the right road to becoming a great car company again; models, such as the new Malibu, Camaro, Lacrosse, and CTS are excellent signs that GM has gotten the message
I still think it will be another 5-6 years before we see if GM has turned the page completely until we see if their long-term reliability improves; if at that point GM vehicles long term reliability improves I might be willing to try GM again but not before that point
I do agree, some vehicles, the Impala comes to mind, as a car that needs to be either reworked, similar to the new Malibu compared to the old, or get rid of it and start with a new large family sedan because the impala, to quote you, right now is "just jellybean rental fodder"
I do agree, that this thing with Toyota now should def help GM improve their sales and market share
Right now GM and the auto industry as a whole are still doing pretty badly; there are a few exceptions such as Subaru, and Ford did well - but how much of that was due to C4C; selling Focus's w/o huge discounts.
I hope you're right and GM is wildly successful and can back the $ they owe the government. But there will be a lot of political pressure especially as the next election nears, not to continue to put $$ into GM and Chrysler, if the private markets don't have enough faith to invest.
BTW - anyone hear when the "New GM" is going public with stock? Is the offering being delayed because the offering may not be well received?
As part of its plan to produce the Chevy Volt and other future electric vehicles, GM has opened new plants and facilities to produce its own electric-vehicle parts and batteries. Absent from these new facilities? The United Auto Workers union.
But many spokespeople for the UAW, and the workers themselves are upset with GM as they believed that the concessions given during the bankruptcy restructuring were made to ensure jobs like these would go to the UAW.
“We were told that all the concessions we made would make us competitive for new jobs,” said Gregg Shotwell, a retired worker for GM and Delphi. “What happened with these jobs?”
Well Mr. Shotwell, you're getting the see the real world outside the UAW, where "competitive" means something like "you can fill out an application for that job with the rest of the people. If we think you're the best value for the job, we'll let you know".
“What happened with these jobs?”
Competitive bidding? Doesn't everyone do that when they themselves hire someone - like a contractor, a realtor, a lawyer, or an auto mechanic?
They aren't some food stamp program, after all. They are a business that is out there to make a product and a profit. So of course if they have the option to do what any other business would do when hiring people(that is, chose and compete fairly based upon skills and price), they will take it.
On a side note, while I support unions in general, the fact is that collective power is one thing, but the UAW and a few other unions(screenwriter's comes to mind immediately) are effectively operating as if these companies are the government and this is some welfare program that they are magically entitled to. Everyone bags on Toyota and others for not using union labor, but the reality is, why should they not be able to hire anyone that they want in a free market? Especially now that there are so many qualified people who are looking for work right now that(like it or not) they can hire for bargain wages.
It's a bit harsh, but if $30K a year is what they'll offer you and it's what they need to pay to stay in business, well, it sure beats going out of business for them. Or starving and not making rent for the worker.
Someone like I that buys and drives an import is not the norm around here. Though there are many appliance Honda, Subaru and Toyota's in Cochise County, the majority drive Ford, GM and Dodge pick-em-up trucks and there are a lot of soccer Mom's in their large American SUV's around here, too.
But the prevailing attitude it seems at the Big 2 and a half is still a feeling that the American people will bail them out and continue buying their rigs. Ford seems to have the tightest grip of all and is really starting to respond by building buyable vehicles.
I am not that far off from one day test-driving one of the 81.5mpg (hyper-miled) Ford Fusion Hybrids. Test-driving, probably not buying. I am not well enough enamored with the Focus(duh) or the new Fiesta, even, to buy one of the new small-ish Ford's. They're gonna have to get a bit more creative.
Mitsubishi and Suzuki have them beat still, IMO. The new Kizashi small midsize sedan from Suzuki looks like a great new car and the i-MiEV all-electric from Mitsu as well as their proposed Lancer GTS Hybrid, as well as their concept larger than Outlander SUV they're naming the PX-MiEV(it's a gas-electric hybrid)have my rapt attention and interest for future purchase possibilities.
But the American people, especially in these rural areas my wife and I are picking to live in since 2003, seem to still like and want to support the domestic automakers. Big still works in working class America. Still a lot of people living in oakie areas that need big SUV's and pick-em-up trucks to get around in.
In other words, there are always so many drivers in this land that buy something to get them from point A to point B. They give up fun and design in order to get practicality. Because they have to have practicality? Or because they want practicality?
The decade of the 60's showed that the domestic makers could be creative and design rigs that not only got the transportation thing done but they managed to make them look good as well. The domestics need to design in some enthusiasm.
More enthusiasm. The UAW's still think they're needed and still think we'll buy domestic because we think that they deserve market share. Because why?
Because here's where it all started. Henry Ford's experiment gone awry. Entitlement personified.
They've got to make a profit and they don't have to over-hire to get it done. They should be selective and smart about who they hire. But bring on some creativity. The Asians are beating them at this function and although Fo-Mo-Co is showing the most promise they need even more new design flair.
There will always be hayseeds like the ones I live amongst here in rural America. But I think there's still a lot of us who do care about how our cars look. Like those of us who love the American cars of the 60's. What a thrilling automotive decade.
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
The preliminary review covers about 905,000 Cobalts in the model years from 2005 to 2009.
Wow, I thought it was only a couple of hundred thousand not close to a million... :surprise:
My 2005 Chevy Cobalt's power steering went out around the 45,000 mark. I found hundreds of other Cobalt drivers that have had the same problem and had to pay $900-$2500 to repair their car. GM is aware of this problem but has chosen to do nothing about it. The only thing we can do is get everyone out there to call the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and let them know of this issue in hopes of a future recall. Thanks for watching!
It only takes five minutes, so please call in!
Oh snap, smells like a coverup! Revit where are you!
I think that all these recalls show that car transportation is no longer safe and that at this point in history we should have some new form of transportation that is safer than automobiles :P where are all the hover crafts and transporters??? :P
Regards,
OW
1 million Cobalt models have been affected and GM has known about this problem since 2005 yet has been installing the same systems since. If that isn't a coverup I don't know what is and I guess neither does our good friend. :P
and it wasn't like this happen to me only once, this happened consistently with each GM product I had and I had it with Chevys, Buicks, and Pontiacs!
on my 1990 Buick Skylark, when I got rid of it at 10 years old I was on my fifth alternator!! my 1994 Lumina was on its 4th alternator when I got rid of it
I lived in denial for years about GM and kept deluding myself that GM would change things would get better and they didn't; what did it in for me was on my 04 Malibu; BEFORE THE WARRANTY was over, the catalytic converter went and the power steering hose broke leaking fluid all over the engine compartment and I had to have the 2 year old car towed to the dealership from almost 30 miles away where I worked; but the kicker was, I go in the next day and they give me the run around that it was my fault and normal wear and tear and NOT covered by warranty, can you believe that!! I was going to get a lawyer involved but I just had enough, I spent the $3000 dollars to repair the crap that broke, kept the car for 1 more year and then sold it for a big loss, I just wanted to get out of GM!!
Other members of my extended family had similar problems with the Fords they had that I did with my GM cars and so I said enough with the American automakers!
I switched to Japanese cars since then and except for gas, tires, and oil I've been trouble free with two of my cars coming up on 6 years now!!
All this UA and braking stuff with Toyota is blown way out of proportion by revit and others like its something that has never been seen before with cars and if you check, every auto manufacturer has had trouble with UA or braking issues at some point in its history; there is a reason why accidents, which car accidents make up the majority of that category, is the fifth leading cause of death in the US every year! thats because cars are mechanical machines and assembled by humans which are far from perfect and thus things happen that cause certain cars to get into accidents; what the joke is, Toyota is certainly not the first automaker to cover things up and lie about problems with their vehicles; they learned how to do that from GM, Ford, and Chrysler;
you would think the way revit and others talk in almost shock that this could happen with a car company such as Toyota and then say its really bad because they build their reputation on quality; NEWS FLASH, every car manufacturer builds there reputation on quality and reliability so that argument falls flat on its face; he is a disgruntled Toyota owner just like you and I are disgruntled GM people so you have to take everything with a grain of salt and he is going to slant his view of Toyota in the negative because of his bad experience with his Toyota
Hey man, did you see that story I think revit or someone else posted over there about a thing that happened with a 1996 Camry with UA and a guy who went to prison over it; do you see how paranoid revit and others are getting; they are trying to go back and dig up stories and try to say that Camry's from 15 years ago, when Toyota was in their quality hey day I might add, are terrible cars now too!
There are plenty of us who have had SEVERAL GM products and not had the POS' you claim to have.
Even when we do have problems, as I did with my wife's '04 Rainier just last month, when with 60,000 miles on it we find the AWD not working because of a stripped out spline in the front differential, and facing a $2300 bill, a call to Buick customer service explaining the situation got that bill reduced to $850, the jobber's rate for the parts. GM picked up the rest of the cost of the parts, and all the labor.
BTW, a co-worker's '95 Camry had a problem with a sticking throttle. I belive a mechanic fixed it by blowing out the tube going to the throttle from the cruise control. IIRC it or something was clogged, and no, I don't believe it had anything to do with the SA problems of today. It was just something that happened to a 15 yr old car w/ 160,000 miles on it.
keep in mind too, a lot has changed with GM since I had my 04 Malibu; there has been a lot of change for the better; I still think they have a few years to prove their worth and reliability but things have improved - eliminating some divisions was a big thing for me because they had just too many different vehicles - now with fewer vehicles they can focus on that smaller group better
but your example with the Camry is my point exactly, at 160k miles you would expect stuff like that to start failing; my point is the stuff I dealt with on over eight GM vehicles I had at 30-50k miles was absolutely ridiculous and those things should not be happening till the car has over 100k miles on it and it never made it
kudos to you for having GM products with not too many troubles; hopefully that is a sign things are going in the right direction for GM finally; plus GM should benefit a little bit from the current problems going on at Toyota!
Well, GM also makes enormous amounts of rubbish as well
In 1985, my father bought a '81 Park Av. with the diesel engine (what a beautiful car, I loved the crushed velour seats). It had 94,000 miles, and a rebuilt engine. I was driving it one sunday afternoon, and it snapped a wristpin (these things happen when a 16 yr old tries to drive it 45 miles an hour in first gear :surprise: , but I digress). The engine was out of warranty. My father called customer service, and they agreed to pick up the cost of the engine and labor.
when I had to get my fourth and fifth alternator on my 1990 Skylark, I called GM customer service and told them, listen, I'm barely getting 2 years out of the alternators your putting on my car and every time it was like $800-1000 dollars to have a new alternator put on, and keep in mind, every time an alternator went I had to have the car towed to the dealership, which neither the dealership nor customer service ever helped me on, despite me begging to pick up at least half the towing bill!
I even consulted a lawyer that my Skylark could have been a :lemon: and at that time he said well the fix lasts for a decent period of time so you'd have a hell of time proving what they do does not work, it isn't worth your time and money to fight it
when I told GM customer service this the guy laughed and said sorry, we can't help you, your out of manufacturer warranty and the part lasted more than one year; that was the other joke, GM only guaranteed their replacement parts and labor for 1 year from date of service and it always lasted just longer than that period!
I got screwed over big time!! when I got rid of the car at 10 years old I was on the fifth alternator, that is absolutely ridiculous!!
Reading the blogs, aren't some Honda CRV owners finding the same thing after dropping $3K to repair their black dot air conditioner systems?
$800-1000 sounds like an awful lot for an alternator. My '88 Regal had one go and it was $149 from a parts store. Also, I would argue that if it was burning one up every couple years, the alternator was the SYMPTOM of the problem, and not the cause.
Car & Driver did a long term test on a Trailblazer several yrs back. It went through 2 alternators in 22 thousand miles. Both were replaced under warranty, but they wondered if the problem may have been a bent bracket, and not the alternator, and wondered aloud as to why the dealer wouldn't look further into this. My Rainier has the same alternator as the Trailblazer, and has lasted all 6+ years w/o a problem.
It seems to me if that '96 Camry driver was convicted criminally for the crash that killed 2 people, the evidence must have been pretty convincing for the judge and jury that he was to blame and not the car.
My next oil change, which will be soon, I am going to see about trading out!!
Getting myself a German car or a Japanese.
So I did take a chance on GM, First GM and will be my last! For good! :lemon:
Why contribute your money to a sickness.
The thing was that it was all about the customer attitude. See, we all have a dealer horror story or 2 ourselves on the sales end of things but on the service side of things it's the exact opposite. Some people will not back down from the smallest problem, especially rattles or creaks and such. It is these people who tie up hours and hours of a techs time when they could be off worrying about real problems.
It's become the case where we want absolute and utter perfection in our vehicles. Sure it is valid since a vehicle is the second largest purchase we make (might be beaten out by a few wedding rings in some occassions :P ) but even the slightest tick which might develop in the dead of winter is cause for alarm to a lot of people. And when that owner brings an irrational tirade of anger to my buddy or any other techs/ managers or whomever out there, alot of these guys will just cover up the problem and get the customer to move on. Oh sure, there is an instance where my buddy says he would give the service away or only charge for parts and no labor but that was because the customer becamse so irrational that it was to avoid a major blow out in the middle of the service dept.
But if a customer had a problem and was calm about it, explained it in a rational manner and wasn't looking to nitpick every little click, tick or noise, the shop would give that customer the utmost care. And they would be more likely to work with you (exclude labor costs, parts discounts, free warranty) because they know you are a loyal customer and not another person was so disappointed that it was obvious they were never going to buy another one of your products again.
I tell ya what. I don't think I could make it a week doing his job. Yikes.
However, I am excited about the free oil changes for the year, it will get me to when I trade my car!! Love it! I like my car, but I do not love my car like my Honda!
Having to have a 2-4 year old car towed into the dealership several times because stuff in the engine broke is not normal wear and tear, and that is what they would tell me after I had the cars towed into the dealership!! Give me a break!!
The GM dealership couldn't even admit there was a problem and that maybe, just maybe, the cars were not built properly or poorly at the factory! I rather them be honest with me then make up a whole bunch of BS to lie and make it look like oh this is normal to happen with cars that are not that old or somehow my cars alternators and power steering pumps blowing on the highway was somehow my fault!
You should have seen me after my last GM, a 04 Malibu; the catalytic converter went on it, and yes it was classic Malibu, went at 38k miles and at the same time the power steering hose blew spilling fluid all over my engine compartment and the car was towed to the dealership; after I got there they fixed both things and I told them, listen, this car is only 3 years old, these things should not be going like this, and the service advisor said "oh, this isn't out of the ordinary" and I said well I'm out of warranty but not by much, can't GM cover some of this - the guy laughed and said, "well its normal wear and tear" "do you have an extended warranty?" (ie extended warranties don't cover anything if the dealership feels its normal wear and tear) and of course I told the guy no and he said "well then I'm sorry we can't help you, your bill comes to $2400 dollars"
when I heard the amount I went livid, I had finally lost my patience with GM; the GM actually had to come out of his office from the sales floor and calm me down and he was nice enough to take $400 off my bill, wasn't he nice, so I still only had to pay $2000 dollars to keep a 3 year old car running! I was going to get a lawyer involved but I didn't want to go through all that hell and legal fees so I kept the car 1 more year to get some of my money out of the repair work and sold the piece of crap! that was my bye bye GM moment!
I dont like what GM is doing now, that's why my "new" (hey it was new a few years ago!) GM truck will likely be my last GM vehicle. Comes in handy when needed, it's paid for, and I have my non GM car I use as my daily driver.
I'm sure modern alternators are more complex and expensive, but $800-$1000 just seems extreme, especially on a mainstream car like a Malibu. Heck, I've bought entire CARS for $800-1000...sometimes even less! :P I don't always recommend that though, because an $800-1000 car can sometimes cost much more than that to keep on the road...
Cooter mentioned the Trailblazer at one point. That's the vehicle that drove my last American car brother over the edge. He joined the transmission of the month club with it. Had two fail in teh first 25K. Bailed for a major loss.
There are several GM vehicles that could tempt me back but naturally anything that said trailblazer on it would not be one of them...
Your written english seems great - maybe corresponding with the service reps via email/writing will be useful for you in the future.
(Also which language is it that you hold the GM reps accountable for not speaking? Maybe someone here can help to translate?)
Also if you identify the actual vehicle issues here, someone may have some helpful clues that will help you before your lease is up. Also which GM car do you have?
Most likely lots of labor involved. On a FWD drive car if the alternator is down low it could be a real mess to replace. If you can't get to it from underneath there is a good chance you are moving a lot of crap out of the way to get to it (idler pulleys, a/c compressor and lines :sick: )
2025 Ram 1500 Laramie 4x4 / 2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Icon I6L Golf Cart
in hindsight, I was stupid to go to the dealerships, because I thought by paying the extra money and having it done right by the car professionals that the work and parts would be top notch and last, but I was sorely mistaken! as you can see though by my car history, I guess GM improved as time went on, hahahaha :P because as the newer model years came out I needed less and less alternators
plus I forgot to mention, those prices I quoted also include the 100-200 dollar towing fees to have the cars towed to the dealerships when the alternators clunked out!
My Hondas have buried oil filters. they likely are easy to get at up on a lift because it's not like they charge more than any other car but I've never actually seen the filter.
The Toyotas, OTOH, have the filer right up front where you couldn't miss it if you tried.
I don't remember where the Toyota alternator is but on the Hondas it's right up top.