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Comments
I got a new ignition switch put in ...Still does it I have spent over three grand in my tempermental Alero ....
It did it twice today.
I have been late for a family funeral along with other numerous events ....ten minutes in the ' on ' position and then the light stops blinking ......
i have talk to several others and there is a class action suit started against GM. :surprise:
I purchased this' lemon ' brand spanking new ...never had a problem BOOM 36,000 and its a nightmare please keep in touch if your serious and can I make a copy or do you want to e-mail me your feelings ? I will be copying all these complaints for a couple weeks .
If my Alero ever gets dirt buildup in the ignition switch and stops starting on the first turn of the key, I'll post it on this site. Your auto parts salesmen must think I'm pouring a quart of oil into the switch. The Alero ignition key has quite a number grooves going into a very sensitive switch. The key must be clean at all times.
Again I lived with this passlok security problem for 2 years plus and can only tell you my experience. Good Luck!!!!.........Ja
R.B. McM.
(Abilene, TX)
If anyone else has had good or bad results from this easy solution, I would appreciate hearing. (see message #187) Ja
No cylinoid replacement ...your mechenic prob is dumbfounded as all the ones I have dealt with.....I replaced a starter- and various other crap.....2700 dollars later and it only does it out of the blue .usually when I have pertenent appointments. I have contacted a GM exect and they give me the run around even as far as to say buy a new car I laugh every time I think about that conversation..
They are all greedy wh--s they got their $$.
So I tried yet another ' wonder if's '..............only the igniton key is on my key ring...no problems for a month ....ha and lifes goes on good luck with your :lemon:
Thanks,
So all together now 'Lets play the Alero game' sad thing is we all loose !
OK Soap box is now off. I don't want to get started ranting and raveing here.
For my two cents, I will never buy another GM product. If they weren't willing to address this well known starting issue and find some sensible half way solution - then I assume they wouldn't be trustworthy to solve bigger issues.
I traded the 02 alero in for a used taurus. The taurus has had no issues for the 15 months I've owned it.
Gm deserves no customer loyalty from our family (we drive 3 vehicles)
I am glad that this forum exists or we would never had known about the scope of this issue with the alero.
By the way GM, we loved that car and would have driven it probably till the wheels fell off. But because you wouldn't find a solution to this issue, we had to trade the alero off. Buy another car from you?
Fool me twice,.......shame on me
Let's not forget ..............they got their $$.............. so screw us
I have to glance at my manual thx ! ....
It's been established peeps ....
GM makes :lemon: 's !
A lot of other problems are now being blamed on the passlock security system.
I doubt if any class action litigation will be forthcoming, and there's never going to be a recall since it's not a safety related issue.
If it's truly a classic passlock problem, caused by the hall-effect sensor on the ignition switch, then the best solution is to change out the sensor or bypass it one of the ways that have been discussed here or in the Grand Am forum. If the problem is somewhere else, then those solutions won't help.
What should you look for ........................ah how about a no start at all......
Sometimes it will start ....and sometimes it wont start...
Bring a book and a few magazines .....................
No
what do I check ' first '
When it won't start 10 minutes on the on positon and wait till the light stops blinking ......
Then it will start.............. :lemon: :lemon: :lemon: :lemon: :lemon:
Welcome to the 'Alero Game my friend and sorry you too have become the proud owner of a GM LEMON !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I might have a solution to the starting problems. Notice, I said I MIGHT have an answer. On my 2000 Alero, it has electric door locks, power windows...yada yada yada. Here is something I have noticed. When I go to start the engine, I notice that the door lock solenoids energize as if it were unlocking the doors. Those of us who happen to have electric door locks will notice that the doors unlock automatically when the ignition key is turned off. I notice that if I put the transmission in Reverse or Drive to disable the Starter Motor relay and slowly turn the key to the "START" position, I hear the door lock solenoids energize and unlock the doors. Now, here is my thought, The ignition switch as most of us know is a multi-layer switch. On one part of the switch is the control voltage to tell the Engine Ignition module to send voltage to the spark plug coils. Now, if in the event of a bad contact, the control voltage will drop out but everything is still energized and the starter motor will still turn the engine but there is no control voltage to fire the engine. I will be investigating this farther and will let everyone know if my thought has any merit to it.
Daniel
Sounds like you dumped it ............SMART ! Ah the 'Alero' game gets more and more in depth.........
:lemon
We know GM makes LEMONS. When they designed the ALERO, they did not really think of people like all of us on this forum who are too broke to lease new cars every 4 to 5 years. Did you know, there is more electronic systems on the ALERO than there was on the APPOLLO 13 mission. FYI there are 4 different computers on board. 1 computer is the Body Control Module (BCM) . 2 is the Powertrain Control Module (PCM). 3 Sensing Diagnostic Module (SDM) 4. Electronic Brake Control Module (EBCM). All 4 of these computers must be in constant communication with each other over a RS232 serial cable. Knowing how small the wires are in these cables, it would not surprise me if some ALERO problems here on this forum are causes of that serial cable breaking down.
I hope this helps someone along the way.
Thanks for listening,
Daniel
I assume you have the service manual because you gave the code number and the description. Is that the original map sensor that was on the vehicle since 1999?
If it is replace it. Do you have a digital volt meter? If you do, then check to see if you are getting approximately 1 to 2 volts AC from the Crank Shaft Position Sensor. On the connector to the Ignition Control Module, check for that 1 to 2 volts AC on the Yellow (YEL) and Purple (PPL) wires of the connector. You will only see the voltage while the engine is being turned over. Also, make sure that you have 12 volts DC on the Pink (PNK) wire with reference to chassis ground. You should have 12 volts DC at all times on that wire while the key is in the RUN and START position. I hope this helps, keep me posted on how you make out with it.
Daniel
i sent a letter to 'click and clack ' a radio program where they talk live about peoples car problems and well I sent them this forum site with all our problems so heres hoping it will air soon and they will call me so I can voice this live on nationalo radio ....maybe a few more peeps with this GM :lemon: should e-mail them too ......just go to 'bing' and type in click and clack ............
Happy Holidays all of you Alero owners here's hoping Santa brings us all new car LOL like the commericial .yah right !
But instead, GM refused to investigate this problem so as to find a solution to the non starting issues.
What good is a car that you can't rely on to start.
Think about that fact.
The car just won't start for unfound reasons and it won't start at unpredictable and unpatterned occasions.
Who wants to own and keep a car with that kind of problem
AND GM DIDN'TCARE!!!
The only pay back is to not purchase GM products.
Why would you trust a company with no service performance from their brain trust.
Don't buy GM products again
I'm really getting frustrated at this car. So far, I'm 4 days into this and $350 tool rental from Autozone. The flooded gas has now evacuated - vehicle still not starting. Now I'm leaning towards these 4 things:
1) The MAP sensor: (although, not sure because I read up that this cannot stop the car from starting.
2) Gas: (Also not sure because, I dumped fuel in to the throttle body, didn't start - but maybe dumped too much and flooded the car )
3) Faulty fuel filter (My fuel pump kicks in fine and I can hear it each and every time - but although it kicks in, could the filter be blocking all gas from passing through - because I'm now not seeing fuel on spark plugs tips after tons of no-start cranking, or smelling fueI?)
4) Faulty fuel gauge (Not sure: here's the symptom: when turn the key on to start the car, the low-fuel warning light comes on for 1 second then disappear and the gauge goes up to over a quarter tank. Also, the tow guy added some fuel in the car and it did not start. Not sure how much he added.
So my overall question is. From reading the above and my previous post, does anyone out there think my issue is fuel or a bad Map sensor? The car acts as if it wants to start...
Or has it come down to the dreaded timing issue, ouch.. hope not!? As the car was dying on the freeway it gave symptoms of an out-of-gas vehicle.
One final note: The hose connecting the Map sensor to the throttle body was literally cut off - could that have caused the car to quit running and ultimately now stopping it from starting?
I'm resorting to thinking that my timing went off - which is NOT something I plan to tackle - or my ECU is fried. Either way, this is where I give up. Tomorrow I'll put the old spark plugs back as a last trial before I garbage the car (sometimes new gapping can cause no-start).
It saddens me because it's a pretty car.
Note: If anyone is going to provide any suggestion, please read my two previous posts. Because it'd be funny for you to come on and say something like: "Check your battery cables."
OK, thanks guys!
Don't give up yet. Let me take apart my ALERO and check something out over the weekend. If I can find what I am looking for, then I want you to try it and see if your car will start. Look for another response from me by Sunday evening.
Daniel
THIS IS BAD NEWS, BUT IN A WAY, GOOD NEWS, because I now know that I'm not that lousy when it comes to the fundamentals of getting a vehicle to start and, will now quit spending money.
Thanks for all of you guys' help!
OK, you hear clicking when trying to start. There are 3 possibilities that will cause that. 1. Weak battery, It will allow the lights come on as normal but it does not have enough capacity to handle the current draw required for the starter motor.
2. Corroded battery terminals, The corrosion will cause it to have a loose electrical connection. 3. Bad Starter motor, I don't have an exact price of what it will cost for the removal and replacement of the starter motor. You also mentioned that you smell Gas from time to time. I had the same problem with mine, I found out that the Fuel Regulator was leaking around one of it's O rings. If I recall correctly, the cost of the regulator was like $75.00. That is just for the part from the auto parts store. I do all my repairs myself so I can not say what these repairs will cost from a reputable repair shop. You asked "is it worth fixing" Here is my personal thoughts. Is it paid off? if so, then it would be cheaper than buying another car.
Here is a ball park figure, Say for instance, this is only hypothetical it cost ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS for the repairs and it starts everytime for 2 years. Would it be worth paying $500.00 a year for maintenance? I think it would be better than paying a few hundred dollars every month. Also do you like the car. I really enjoy driving my ALERO. If you like the car then keep it and fix it. That is just my humble opinion. Good Luck with it
Daniel