2001 Oldsmobile Alero GLS Coupe review from North America

10,000 miles

Dealer replaced warped rotors - warranty

18,000 miles

Turn signal went out - dealer warrantied

Dealer resurfaced warped rotors - warranty

26,000 miles

Noticed an oil leak, dealer replaced lower intake gaskets under warranty.

35,000 miles

Replaced brakes with Powerslot Rotors and Ceramic Pads, and this was the last time the brakes were touched - OEM's were just that bad, I guess.

42,000 miles

Turn signal again, dealer fixed under warranty

48,000 miles

Transmission electrical connections fell apart, transmission was replaced due to internal damages caused by wiring failure - under warranty

56,000 miles

Intake gasket again!!! - Dealer warranty.

Initially I liked my Alero very much. It was a GLS Coupe, and you didn't see many of them on the road.

The Monsoon (sorry, Olds called it the "Dynamic Bass Boost Option" back then) rocked, and I had a spirited car that returned a solid 23-25 MPG mixed driving.

I was fortunate that I kept my old S10 around, as it served as my loaner car each time I had to take it to the dealership. Under the GM warranty, they had to take it for a day to assess if a loaner was needed. So, effectively, I'd get a loaner at the end of the day and by that time, I just said forget it, I'll drive my truck to work.

I ended up trading the Alero in a few miles after it was out of it's 5 year/60,000 mile warranty. I was able to get more on the trade in than I was expecting, and decided to get rid of the car before I started to get burned by it.

I'm now a happy owner of an '04 Accord Coupe EX-L, which has been flawless and better in every way. It's a shame, because 5 years ago when I graduated college, you would have never seen me in an import. My, how things have changed. :P.