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What happened to guys driving guy cars and girls driving girl cars? ughhh
Sean
Now a year later, instead of driving a VW I have an Alero. I have that Alero because it was a great value: I got a 1 year old car with only 24K miles on it with a V6 engine, pw, pdl, cruise, automatic, power seats -- pretty much everything I was looking for an more. I got it all for less than 10K. Once again, so many people told me that it was a girl car...so what! I drive a much nicer car than all of those people and its been much more reliable than all of their cars. I enjoy my car not because of what it looks like to other people, but because of what it looks like to me: a great looking and running car at a great value.
On a side note, when I purchased my car, I got a ton of crap from my aunt who HATES American cars. About two weeks ago my uncle bought her a 1999 Jaguar XK8. Today, its sitting in the shop because it wouldn't start. I couldn't help but laugh...
Jeremy
Jeremy
By the way, PLEASE start using punctuation better. It's really hard to follow what you are saying when there are no periods in your entire post. Thanks.
Another thing: who are you to say that any certain type of car is a "cheesy" or "girl car"??? Until you pay my car payment, insurance premium and my maintenance bills, I'll keep driving what I want.
Jeremy
Last week I purchased a 2004 Alero GL2 with 15,000 miles for slightly over $10,000. It was time to get rid of the 1996 Corsica. The old bucket of bolts started making odd and expensive sounding noises from the front end.
I have two questions/concerns about my car. First, has GM finally solved the leaking intake manifold problem on the 3.1/3.4 V6 engines? Second, did GM beef up the brakes in the '03 and '04 Aleros? I had read that premature brake wear was common on the '99-'02 models.
Any information the good people on this board have would be helpful.
Let's move on.
Mikey -- good luck with the purchase of you SECOND Alero. There are some great deals out there just like CorsicaChevy pointed out. You have to go with a 3.4L engine -- I love mine, but I guess I'm partial :-)
Sean3: You still haven't figured out how to properly used punctuation. Please do us a favor: go to the Bonneville forum. Thanks buddy.
Jeremy
Thanks for the welcome. Its nice to have a car that actually has a forum devoted to it - unlike the Corsica.
My car is loaded and did come with four wheel disks. My concern is with the front disks given the bad experience some people had with '99-'-02 models. I really easy on brakes so hopefully I won't have any problems.
My Alero is silver, which wasn't my first choice but a perfectly practical color given that I live in "salt country" (Wisconsin). The color choices were quite limited in the last year of production, however the limited edition "Oldsmobile 500" deep root beer color (or whatever that is) was absolutely beautiful.
I don't have much to add given that I don't take delivery of the car until Thursday.
All pads and rotors were OEM, GM/Goodwrench, replaced at dealership. The service adviser told that GM changed the pads material.
So I would not expect brake problems with your new Alero.
Anyway, have fun with your car. Let us know how you like it once you take delivery. Don't worry too much about your brakes. You should be okay.
Jeremy
I have read lots of horror stories of 3400 engine intake gasket failures, but mostly from minivan and Impala owners. Do the Alero 3400's suffer the same Dex-Cool related problems as the other marques?
The dashboard pictures I have seen show wrinkling and creasing. Do they ever get to a point where the dash lifts all the way up like a 90's Kia Sephia, blocking my view of the road?
I don't mind changing disc brake pads and rotors. I take it these rotors are the same as the Malibu. Are updated parts available so I can get more use out of each brake job?
Finally, I have heard of fuel pump failures, but is there any documentation to prove it's a part failure and not just people running them low on gas all the time and burning the pump out?
The new GM brake pads serve much, much longer.
I had a 98 Malibu, with the same front rotors. The set of pads had to be replaced after 23k miles, the second served 22k miles (90% worn out and replaced during 45k mile service). When I checked brakes 25k miles later (at 70k miles) at dealership, I was told that 60% of pads were still left.
Given the Alero have 75k miles on odometer, most probably it have the new brake pads already.
2. Coolant leak.
GM re-designed the intake manifold gasket recently. New material. Hard to say, if the gasket was already replaced on the Alero, and even if it is really much better than the older gaskets.
The intake gasket leak starts slow, and takes about 3 years or 35k miles to manifest. It makes sense to pressure test the coolant system before buying the car. The test costs only $20 to $30, and it will reveal any small leak. If it is present, it makes sense to adjust the price, or to purchase another car.
By the way, the leak is not related to the orange Dex-Cool liquid. The engine and the intake manifold are made from different metals, steel and aluminum, with different coefficients of thermal expansion. The old gasket did not compensate well enough for the difference.
3. Fuel pump failure: I believe it does not happen often, and is mostly related to driving with low gas. The pump needs gas for cooling. However, with used car you cannot know how it was used or abused.
4. I do not know about Alero dash.
Anyone else have experience with the dashboard problems? I don't care how the car looks for $4700, I'll buy a cover or tape it down, I just don't want it lifting up so high that I can't see over it.
I'll check a GM dealer to see if the intake gaskets have already been replaced and also to see which part they used. The car is at a VW dealer, maybe I can get them to do the pressure test there, since all they need to do is attach a pump to the radiator cap, I would think it'd be a universal tool.
BTW, if you do not service car at dealership, you can buy even better pads on-line, for example at www.tirerack.com.
Jeremy
Ours is a 2000 GLS, and we've had the brake pads replaced once. We've also had to have both front wheel bearings replaced, and the plastic knob on the gear-shift handle has broken off twice (the first time, it was replaced under warranty). And my husband replaced the blower motor resistor on the fan. That's pretty much the extent of all our repairs.
Also, my husband wonders if you kept your foot on the gas pedal during the spinning of your tire, or if you removed it immediately. As he puts it, traction control can only override so much; it also serves as a warning to the driver to decelerate in slippery conditions.
Here's an Edmunds.com article on Traction Control:
http://www.edmunds.com/ownership/safety/articles/46352/article.ht- - - - ml
Jeremy
JeReMy
Yesterday was my first experience with my new Alero in the snow (10 inches - more on that later). I was surprised hour much wheel spin is allowed prior to system engagement. That's fine with me as there is nothing wrong with a little wheel slippage. When the system does engage it works beautifully.
As for the snow handling characteristics of this car, the old adage "if you can't something nice don't say anything at all" comes to mind. I suppose those 225/50/16 don't help, but my old Corsica feels like an Audi All-Road in comparison.
Jeremy
I does anyone else have this model at around 80,000 miles? I was just wondering how their breaks are doing now? I had my breaks replaced early on and I keep asking the mechanic how they are doing when I take the car in for oil changes. (I think I had work done one other time, but they were covered under the first sets warranty.)
The windshield has crack twice from little pebbles, yet I left it the second time with a little dent and it never spidered more.
I have never had a leak in the car.
The over head light did have a rattle for awhile and it did pop out. It's getting fixed now.
It there anything else I should watch for? 2,528 messages is a lot to read through...
As for the windshield is concerned, I would say that's pretty average. I have noticed that GM stock windshields are pretty rugged and any deep chips seem to resist cracking further. I have many surface chips at 44K miles and I'm pretty confident that she'll hold up for the long run. I am doing more highway driving to and from home now that I am in school, so I'm pretty sure that I'll be seeing more chips, but hopefully not (knock on wood).
As for any other issues, you may be seeing a bad wheel bearing or two, the alternator go, or the intake manifold gasket go, which are all pretty common on Alero's. Just make sure you take care of here and you should only encounter a few issues if any.
Jeremy
" Jan 2001- Read through the posts, it confirmed that the new 2001 ALERO GL4 sedan was a good price ($200 over invoice of 18,500)> While the dealer financing guy walked away, I managed to peek at the invoice and see the dealer hold back price was 17600 from the manufacturer. So with the $1000 rebate added, I feel I got a decent price close to manufacturer price.
I think the real cost of these vehicles are not fully realized. If you read the consumer reports (www.consumerreports.org) from consumers union, the reliability of the Alero vehicles are high. Alero places right under the Honda ratings. With high reliability, there are much lower repair costs. So the 5 year 60,000 warranty is a good deal for GM and owners. This reliability factor confirmed my decision to go with the Alero.
Reading over the owner satisfaction here and other places, I chose the 2001 since any bugs were probably worked out on the 99-00 versions.
My package was the GL4 with 4 cylinder and leather interior. agree with the review with Consumer reports on the 99 model in whole, although an updated review on 2001 would have been nice.
My comments: The 4 cylinder seems to have enough power since 80% of my driving is California highway. Acceleration is sufficient for a pass while climbing hills is average. Try not to pass on a steep incline hill and you'll be fine. It would have been nice to have a V6 but for only 20 up more, I don't see the difference being critical. The 4 cylinder has some noise but I prefer the noise in combination with the tachometer to measure the transmission shifts and engine load. The steering is just a touch lacking, but it is probably my shifting over to the new car at this point
Enjoy the purchase. I feel these cars represent a good value in today's market until the gas-battery hybrids are in full force in a few years ( 60-70 mpg should be the next step in fuel efficiency)
Good luck, I think the Edmunds.com web site is a solid source on information. Use it to your advantage and let someone else get stuck with the dealer high margins, not you! "
Feb 2005:
I have 56,000 miles, Are there any recall or last
fixes before my 60k warranty expires? I did get the turn signal recall and a free set of brakes at 20,000. Durn this was a GREAT buy! Only one front end alignment required other than oil changes. Disppointed the tires went at 48,000 but that was related to the alignment issue. Now I have to decide if the 16 year old will be the driver to the local school. perhaps another used Alero is in order!
All that said, I am still satisified with my 2000 GL 6 cylinder. I had some of the usual problems (brake rotors, blower motor resistor, 4way switch recall) but overall the car is solid. I did have to add coolant a few times over the last couple of months with no sign of leaking, so it sounds like I will be dealing with the famous intake manifold gasket failure soon.
Thanks,
Mike
Thanks,
Mike
Beware of another prob with RS-A's. After they wear a bit (in my case 40K miles), you may hear a groaning noise at low speeds from the front end. This is from the "ribs" that are a cosmetic feature of the RS-A located right near the tire bead. The ribs rub against your wheel and cause the noise. Drove me nuts. Olds dealer said it is a recognized problem. Got new tires and it went away.
My recommendation, use up what you have left on the RS-A's and get BFG T/A's. They'll transform your car. Quieter, better ride, better traction, are made by Michelin (best quality tire co. period), and are less expensive to boot!!!!!
I had the same minor problems as you state, but coolant seems fine. I was was going to take it in at 59,000 and see if there were any other manufacturer "freebies" before the warranty expired. A few in between rough starts indicates the gasket manifold is on the horizon. ( Covered by warranty?).
Sure they would list these cars to avoid simply from the resale value being so poor and support dwindling. But for a small sized car for what I use it, it meets the point A to point B requirement in fine shape
On another note my dissappearing coolant is starting to show up as a intake manifold gasket. I can see coolant on the right top of the engine. Dealer gave me a quote of $800 to $1000 and said GM was offering no assistance. I still have to call GM to see if I can get anything. An independent mechanic gave me an estimate of $600. I will most likely use him.
Since these tires aren't known for longevity I won't have to live with them for much longer (about 15,000 more miles). The BFG recommendation sounds good. Kelly-Springfield also makes a tire with decent lugging that should perform well in the snow.