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Past Problems: What have you had to deal with in the past?
1988 Ford Escort:
Bad clutch
Bad price (not really a fixable item)
Had this one for only three months
1987 Chevy Camaro:
Engine (V8) had a cracked block and was replaced
Transmission needed replacing
Radiator blew up
Drum brakes cracked
Carburetor quit functioning
Two alternators quit working due to heat damage
Steering wheel fell off
Distributor and cap burned
1997 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am:
Popup headlight gear stripped
Blinker bulb blew
Water pump failed at 52000 miles
Bad clutch
Bad price (not really a fixable item)
Had this one for only three months
1987 Chevy Camaro:
Engine (V8) had a cracked block and was replaced
Transmission needed replacing
Radiator blew up
Drum brakes cracked
Carburetor quit functioning
Two alternators quit working due to heat damage
Steering wheel fell off
Distributor and cap burned
1997 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am:
Popup headlight gear stripped
Blinker bulb blew
Water pump failed at 52000 miles
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Rusting when I bought it at 26,000 miles
tranny
3 exhausts
radiator blew up
2 batteries
tie-rods
interior could be taken apart by a 2 year old
sold by 85K
93 Probe GT
#146? ever built... Bought it with 10K on the odo
front wheel bearings
Sold at 120K
97 Explorer Spt 5-spd
Bought brand new
Locking hubs only partially locked so there would be a thud when taking a corner with 4 WHL DR engaged
Steering would knock when taking a left turn
Sold with 26K (Do not recommend this vehicle to anyone)
98 Accord 5-spd
Front rotors turned 3 times
85K smiles
2K CR-V
20K smiles
at 76k miles:
-rear main seal leak
-valve seals leak (this happened way before 76k, but it got progressively worse)
-fuel injectors departed this earth.
Didn't get mad, just traded for a Honda! :-)
1993 Chevy Cavalier:
-Inexplicable and unlocateable coolant leak
-driver's seat recline mechanism failed, leaving it flopped against the back seat
-trunk lock cylinder came out with the key when opening trunk
-horn button fell in my lap while driving
-dome light fell off ceiling
-cannot stay aligned
-ABS doesn't
-gets about 13 mpg
I keep this car simply because it's paid for and my commute is ridiculously short. (I ride my bike in the summer.)
'82 Buick Skylark(front wheel drive)
Power windows didn't work- busted wires in the door boot.
Busted Tail light- Bought a pair from a '81
Brakes full re-do all 4 corners
Replaced starter
Ran on 2 of the 4 Cyls.- Tune Up
Driver window fell forward-missing clip to old in rear track.
Tranny-Lock up converter wouldn't unlock, stalled at every light/stop sign.
Windshield leaked- Rusted out sheetmetal around windshield.
Leaked oil like crazy-to many leaks to find them all
Scrapped It - $50
'80 Olds Cutlass 4 door (rear wheel drive)
Radiator-clogged needed to be replaced
Ignition Module went bad
Bumper fell off
sold- $500
'83 Buick Le Sabre (Rear Wheel Drive)
Completely rebuilt front end steering
Replaced rear springs and shocks
2 radiators- both leaked
Brakes-front pads and calipers
Ignition Module went bad
Malfunctioning carb caused valves in head to get "burned"
Got side swiped and totaled out by insurance company. $2000
'82 Dodge Van-Cargo
Front end rebuild-all steering parts exe gear box, springs
Rebuilt rear springs
Shocks-all 4
3 starters
Rebuilt carb every 1.5 years
2 water pumps
1 fan clutch
6 altranators
3 radiators- 1 blew up, other 2 leaked
Replaced rear end spider gears
Brakes-replaces all components rotors,drums,pads shoes,calipers,wheel cyls, rear hardware
U-Joints 2 times
3 exhausts
2 exhaust manifolds
Engine developed rod knock- replaced with a junkyard motor
Replaced all doors
Sold-$600
'92 Dodge Van-8 Passenger
Brakes-all 4 corners
Complete front end rebuild including steering gear and connector knuckle
Replaced front springs
Rebuilt rear springs
Shocks-all 4
Radiator-leaked
Water pump failed pump twice
Fan clutch twice
Bad Alt- killed battery too
Rebuilt tranny 3 times
Rebuilt rear end
Ignition Coil
Radiator 2 times
Replaced 4 fuel injectors
Replaced fan switch 3 times
1 exhaust system-y-pipe back including cat conv and muffler
Still own-too much money in to it,gonna drive it into the ground!
Speaking of burgers, I'm noticing a lot of domestic cars. As if that would be a suprise. For some odd reason I just can't stop buying Ford and GM products. Maybe it's all that glue that smells oh so good...
Fuse Box (Happened about a month out of warranty)
Fuxe Box
Fuse Box (Yes, the fuse box burned out 3 times - never blew a fuse though. When it fails, fuel pump doesn't work)
CV joints
Overheating (Resulting in blown head gasket)
Alternator
Rapid, Uneven tire wear
A/C vents didn't hold position when cold - replaced several times under warranty, didn't help.
A/C Relay failed
Non-existant customer service from VW of America.
Never owned a VW since, and never will. (Unless given to me, then it will be sold quickly:) )
VWs now have 10 year powertrain warranties, so the company either believes in the product or is going to go bankrupt.
Had an oil leak on my wife's then new, '97 S-10. It was the oil cooler connectors at the radiator. Truck only had 300 miles on it, I found it doing the oil change. Dealer replaced the connectors and in the process kinked one of the lines. 9 months later, new oil leak due to the kinked line, that I told the dealer about when I saw it after the first repair. Leaked a quart every 10 miles. Dealer said they will order the parts and call us when they come in so an appointment could be scheduled. If you can believe that one. When I told them I wanted to leave it, he wouldn't give me a rental car. I then told them I will drive it until the thing locked up and tell the warranty company they said it was ok to drive, costing the dealership a boat load of money and him a job. It left a 3 foot round puddle of oil in the service bay for crying out loud, sure it was ok to drive. After they gave me the rental I got home and called the warranty co. and told them of the up coming repair bill the dealer will be sending and why it happened, they denied the claim and the dealer had to foot the whole bill, rental and all. This and a couple of other family members having bad dealings with this dealer I tried a different one.
This was another problem with my wife's truck. Mind you at a different dealer. The ABS light would come on for no reason, just sitting at a light, hit a bump whatever. The ABS didn't work at all. On ice and snow it locked up all the brakes, no noise, no pedal pulsing nothing but sliding. Took it in and had to pay a $25 brake check/adjustment. Naturally they found nothing wrong and sent us on our way. I got sick of the light coming on and off like a -mas tree light, and decided to check it out for my self. I found the problem, took all of 10 minutes! A loose ground wire for the ABS motor/pump was the culprit. Took the truck back and showed them what was causing the problem, they said that was the ground for the headlights and has nothing to do with the problem. So I got the service manager to sit in the truck while I moved the wire and sure enough the light flickered and blinked, just like I said. He had a tech tighten the ground and told me that we still had to pay for the inspection and adjustment, because they adjusted the rear brakes!! My wife and I back into the driveway so the brakes always are adjusted, I just got hosed for the B.S. Last time for them.
I have found a really good Chevy dealer and the service is great, no problems, fixed right the first time. Wish we had found them first!! If she had a GMC we would have taken it to my dealer, where I have never had any problems with service, only been in for the free oil change. Have a friend that bought there and has had work done on his older truck with no problems or complaints.
Nick29-This board is titled "What problems have you had in the past." So you will get bickering, and complaining. It is a good place to vent and to see that you are not the only one who has had problems, big or small. My experience is also proof that it is not just old cars that have problems, new ones do too. If you can't fix it yourself then you are at the mercy of your local "Goober" to fix it right so you don't get stranded. It is also a place to proclaim "victory" and recommend how to fix it or the place that can to others. It will also offer possible solutions to problems that people have and can't find anyone to fix it right, so they can do it themselves. Not everyone can afford to go out and buy a new car when theirs gets old and has lots of miles racked up on it. So problems will occur and can be solved with the help of others, if that individual can't afford to take it in to a garage to have the work done. In my past experience I have done 90% of the work myself, not because I couldn't afford to take it in to have it done, but because I enjoy doing the work, and I know it is done right the first time.
Nick29: Check out the 97 Firebird, 93 Probe, 97 Explorer, 98 Accord, 93 C1500, 93 Cavalier, and the 92 Van which were posted before your comment. If my calculations are correct, and they are, those are all within the last decade. Funny how 1992/93 seems to come up quite a bit...
Mr. Shiftright: VW does have a problem...giving a 10 year powertrain warranty to Americans like myself is like giving a handgrenade to a 3-year-old.
jgmilberg: Exactly
To those who ever have this problem: I had a problem with the Firebird where every time I pressed the brake pedal, the left rear caliper would "Creak". It was hard to hear unless I was parked next to a curb or wall with the window down. It would only happen when the brake system had power (when the engine was running) and the parking brake was disengaged (down). It took two dealerships and four days for someone to finally figure out what was wrong...the brake pads. All I needed was new brake pads on the rear. Not a single site online had this as a possible cause.
You're right about that! I guess I should have paid closer attention to VW's ad slogan at the time. - "It's not a car, it's a Volkswagen" Apparently, a car is for transportation, and a VW is not.
"VWs now have 10 year powertrain warranties, so the company either believes in the product or is going to go bankrupt. "
Well, they believe in the powertrain, but not in the rest of the car beyond 2years/24K miles. looking at the Consumer Reports ratings, and the complaints here, there are still a significant amount of electrical problems - and that won't be covered under the 10/100 powertrain warranty. (Which is only good for the first owner, BTW. If sold, the warranty changes to 5/50. So much for using the 10/100 warranty as a selling point to increase resale value)
Nick29: In case it wasn't clear from my message, the '80 Rabbit was a NEW car when I bought it in 1980. I'm not complaining about some 20-year old POS I got used. It was a NEW POS.
My complaint is not that it was a lemon, it's that VW didn't care about customer service and do something about it. There were no lemon laws back then, unfortunately.
Don't know what part of my post got the "exactly" but thanks.
Oh, and the "exactly" was in response to your response to nick29. (Let's see how many times I can use "response" in a sentence.)