21st Nov 2011, 11:54
Well once again, until a Toyota actually fails me I won't switch back to GM, which has repeatedly failed me. How you or anyone else can say they are a close second even is beyond me. Toyota's with recalls still rate higher, and in my experience are worlds better than GM. My Toyota was recalled too, but it didn't need anything changed out on it. So if it was one of the millions, but it didn't need anything, do you count it as defective?
You'll never sway me with opinions. I base my car buying on my own personal experiences. So far imports win... by a lot!! In fact it isn't even a contest anymore.
22nd Nov 2011, 18:47
Comparing 20-year-old GM cars to new ones is like comparing a 1941 Ford to a new one. No one owning a GM vehicle built after 2000 could possibly be having any problems with them. They are in warranty for 100,000 miles, and no one ever has to make use of that. I don't know where all these myths that GM is somehow unreliable come from. Certainly not from GM owners.
23rd Nov 2011, 08:43
11:54... What GM... Is there a model? I order my new GM cars and have a Vette with the LS motors. Totally bulletproof drivetrains. So our GMs have not failed me at all. I have had late model, high end imports, which have diminished in quality in our family. I could do a lot of praise pre 1995, but after that we had import engine and trans issues.
23rd Nov 2011, 13:43
I can't believe you asked "what GM" and "is there a model".
Everybody should know by now that 11:54 is the two Trailblazer individual.
23rd Nov 2011, 14:08
Well, in my experience, all the older GM cars I have owned were the more reliable ones. For example, I had 3 Grand Prixs, all at different times; '77, '84 and '98 model years. The '84 made it to 210,000 miles, the '77 was a weekend driver, but for the age it never gave me a problem. The '98 on the other hand gave me nickle and dime problems, and I got rid of it before 80,000 miles.
I also had a 93 DeVille that made 130,000 miles with no problems.
Even though I had one bad one, I would still consider buying GM again, but my current bulletproof Town Car would be hard for me to give up right now.
23rd Nov 2011, 15:02
Yeah... okay. One was a 2003 and the other was a 2004. Keep telling yourself that everyone that complains about GM is talking about cars from the 80's and 90's. GM still makes sub par vehicles, and I won't ever waste time or so much repair money on one ever again.
Of course now the next post will be about how I was duped into making unnecessary repairs. Save it. I know many mechanics, and I did research on every last issue I had down to the problem, parts costs, and everything was right on. Instead of putting $1,800 more into the vehicle I had already dumped over $1,500 into just to keep running, I put it down on my Toyota and never looked back. The Toyota still drives like brand new a year and a half later, and I am confident it will continue on for a long time. It really isn't an argument anymore to me. My experiences tell the only story I need to know. I don't really care what your experiences are with GM. Good for you that you've had luck with them. You are one of the very few people I have talked to that have had good experience with GM products. The money I wasted is reason enough for me to never go back. Like I have said before, I will surely post if I have any problems with any of my imports. I have threads for all of my vehicles on here. So far it just hasn't happened though.
Have a great holiday!
23rd Nov 2011, 15:20
My worst experiences were with Trailblazers. They have horrifically under-designed suspension components. We had virtually every failure common to these vehicles, as I found numerous cases of each of my problems with a quick search on the Internet. The stalling issue (which is very dangerous in traffic), the jet sound, which was not the fan clutch on ours, it was part of the tranny. I researched it and found two different issues... Of course ours was the more expensive.
We had the left turn signal failure.
I traded the second one with a completely shot front axle on it, and the tranny was failing too. You could smell the burning fluid every time you drove it. I was just glad to get it to the Toyota dealer and never look back.
I did also have an Olds Cutlass back in the 90's, and it too was a nightmare to own. I was into that car for almost $6K in repairs, and finally dumped it at 98K miles. The Trailblazers were traded at 36K miles and around 80K miles. It is impossible to get even to 100K miles, without some sort of major repairs, with anything GM in my experience. My vehicles were also well maintained with fluid flushes and changes on a regular basis, and I always used full synthetic oil in them.
Sorry to repeat this story, but people are always asking me so... and at least I can provide specific examples of failure, and not just media hype about what could be wrong with a vehicle.
As far as a Vette goes... well, they are in a different class. It is like the Dodge Viper. They are both specialty cars that are built to a much higher standard than the average car. The Vette has its own plant, so it isn't even attached to GM, other than in name. Plus for the price, it better be good!
I truly don't know why people get so angry and defensive of their car brands. You can say whatever you like about Toyota, and go on about sticking gas pedals and recalls, but until I actually have any issues, it won't make any difference to me. Mine is a non-defective vehicle that has been recalled, but has not needed anything changed. Don't listen to the media. They overstate everything, and have made the Toyota recalls headline news. Yes, Toyota has screwed up, but it isn't as widespread as the media says it is. ALL manufacturers have had recalls. It is a business that is heavily scrutinized, and has many many design details. That, coupled with mass production, just makes it that much easier to make mistakes. Toyota will get back on track soon enough. As far as I am concerned, they've never really gone too far off track. They keep me on the road in a trouble free vehicle that is costing me nothing extra to drive. What more could I ask for?
19th Nov 2011, 16:06
Let's face it, a manufacturer like Toyota that has just shy of 23 million recalls (more cars than some car makers have built in their entire history) doesn't have a good reputation for caring about quality. Things change, and Japanese car makers are no longer very careful in the building of their vehicles, regardless of where they are built. Car makers like Ford (which is the world's best at present) and GM (a close second) deserve the good sales and rave reviews they are experiencing.
A review of the "new" (it's really still very unsophisticated and dated) Honda CRV expressed very serious doubt that it could begin to compete with the vastly superior and far more up-to-date Ford Escape that will be introduced next year. Having seen the new Escape I tend to agree. Domestics are doing everything right, while Japan stays stuck in the 90's and has turned their backs on quality.