1999 Oldsmobile Alero GX review from North America
"Bad breaks and window problems seem common in these cars"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
The Alero's brakes went bad at 12,000 miles. Rotors had to be replaced by the dealer under the car's warranty. The brakes were then extremely hard to press, and were never fixed correctly. I had to have the rotors replaces again 10,000 miles later. Until I traded the car in, I had to buy new brake pads every 10,000 to 12,000 miles as a result of the faulty break system.
I did not have power windows, but early on the manual window handle started making a very loud scraping noise when I would roll down the window.
Gas mileage was not as efficient as I'd expect from a 4 cylinder.
General comments?
The Alero had excellent pick up. In fact, those who rode with me wanted to bet that it was a 6 cylinder and said that I didn't know what I was talking about when I said it was a 4 cylinder.
The car clung to the road and rode very well around corners and curves.
I was extremely impressed with the way the Alero handled the road, but very dissatisfied with the brake system in particular.
Recommended reviews
| Cheap in more ways than one |
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| If you can get past the problems, Alero has potential: MUCH better than the Achieva it replaced! |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | No |
| Year of manufacture | 1999 |
| First year of ownership | 1999 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2002 |
| Engine and transmission | 4 cylinder Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 6 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 8 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 2 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 174 miles |
| Most recent distance | 50100 miles |
| Previous car | Toyota Corolla |
| Date of Entry | 17th May, 2002 |