Almost anything that could went wrong- did.
Brakes, serviced and largely replaced at under 10,000. At the time a daily driver, it did well to show up. Too many times it didn't.
At 17,000, post major service Fluids etc. checked, then after 70+ miles of expressway, rough running began just before toll plaza. Clouds of smoke etc while stopped. Tow required. Chevrolet dealer (out of town) replaced head gasket and did assorted other major repairs. Astronomical cost. No longer under warranty (on time, at least). Dealer claimed no "secret" warranty.
At 31,000 miles, head gasket blew again, giving off sufficient smoke to acquire ticket for excessive smoke (three weeks after service and inspection. (new local) Dealer estimate for engine and other repairs said to be essential exceed value of car. Says no special warranty, but after pressure, contacts Chevrolet Region which pays for most of Engine repair. Other"work" not considered needed on re-estimate.
Brake linings/pads replaced a second time by Chevrolet. Corroded exhaust system replaced before 28,000.
Engine begins to backfire. Dealer services. Muffler blown off a few weeks later.
Gear shift knob falls off. poor fit Time lost to replace.
Transmission begins to be troublesome in the 30s. Locks up completely estimate for replacement exceeds value of car.
Assorted corrosion problems although not driven is snow/salt.
Car scrapped under 40,000miles/8 years as not worth repairs.
I bought two of these 1972,both owned from new. The first was totaled--I wasn't around for it with less than10K miles. I liked it -- looked promising and a good deal. The second looked exactly the same color and all. It wasn't. Trouble from beginning.
At the time of this car (the second) GM had supposedly fixed its problems at Lordstown. They hadn't. Bad days were bad cars. Knew people who drove them trouble free. Mine was assembled on something akin to a soviet Monday drunken shift --or something similar. Soviet optical factories would assemble glass elements backwards. Inspectors would pass them on. Apparently that was Lordstown.
In its defense, it was a good driver. Unfortunately design flaws coupled with frequent assembly flaws and failure to acknowledge defects made it the most expensive car per mile that I've ever owned --includingmy MB SL.
GM was "old reliable" I thought, based in part on my 1957 2dr hardtop 283 inch,270 dual carb chevy. And I wanted something akin to my old early 60s VW.
My experience was so miserable I swore never to buy another GM product and -- 34 years later I've haven't -- and won't. Maybe a vette, but it's got good non GM (and non-American) comp.
I've had two Toyotas that easily and cheaply hit 200K, Merc diesel with nearly 300K and acuras thar make every day easy. My non-GM American trucks have by contrast troublesome. The Vega was my wakeupcall and if I buy another truck, it won't be Big 3.
Vega, take a bow. You were such a piece of junk you pushed mecompletely away from GM and to some degree the others of the Big 3, junk or not.
Now GM and Ford are paying the price.
OMG! Loved the story of your Vega! I would have loved to have seen your face when all of that was going on!! I love it! GREAT!! HA HA!!!
Nice story, but don't rate today's GM products on those from over 30 years ago.
Try to find ANY American-made car in the early 70's that wasn't built like garbage and I'd be impressed--GM wasn't the only offender.
GM and the other US names have made significant strides in quality since then.
I owned a 1972 Vega and put 167,000 miles on it with no repairs other than replacing the battery once, brakes twice, and belts and cooling system hoses at 100K. Best car I ever owned. Perhaps you did not properly maintain yours or otherwise abused it.
Well, I have to absolutely disagree in the strongest terms with the commenter who thinks that all American cars built in the early 1970's were garbage. I can at least personally vouch for the quality and longevity of several Dodge, Chrysler, and Plymouth cars from that era. The Barracuda, two Chargers, Monaco, and New Yorker that I own (ed) were/are great cars. Even the several Volarès I drove from the mid to late '70s were pretty good. Surely there are people with similar positive experiences to report about GM and Ford.
Some people need to wake up to the fact that American cars are far better than they were 34 years ago. Comparing, for instance, a 2006 Buick or Cadillac to a 1972 Vega would be ludicrous.
I also had a "72" Vega GT.. first new car I ever bought... looked good, but it was a piece of junk... engine went out at 30,000 miles... as did my dad's 72 Vega engine, but he got 40,000 miles...
I purchased a new 1972 Vega Kamback wagon. I owned it till it reached 75,000 miles and backed away from it to avoid flying parts. In that 75,000 miles, I ended up with (1) two valve grinds with knurled guides and gaskets, (2) a water pump replacement, (3) welded my own upper rear shock mounts cause the original rusted through (4) had to rebuild the trailing arms attachemt to the chassis after driving it across a RR crossing (5) Done EXTENSIVE body re-building, (6) replaced the 4-speed trans twice for locking up on me. All this when I gave it L. O. F. every 2,500 miles.
I would like to argue with previous comments that today's cars are a lot better then those of yesteryear. Chevrolet is on the brink of bankruptcy because they are building poor quality cars such as the: Malibu, Blazer, Venture, Cavalier, Aveo and cars that only have mediocre reliability such as the: Impala and Corsica (which is now defunct). Roughly 40% of their automotive line are complete lemons. Even with regular maintenance; These cars either have serious engine problems (i.e. blown gaskets, failed alternators) or have horrendous suspension systems and/or poor brake system parts. With the exception of the Vega (the Chevette succeeded the Vega/ the Chevette was bad too), Chevrolets back in the 70's and 80's were extremely reliable- (other than they would rust). They would not blow head gaskets at 50,000 miles, or require 3 sets of brake pads/ rotors by 40,000 miles. I would gladly trade my '99 Malibu for a Vega, or Chevette any day, and I'LL bet it will run better than my car with 51,000 miles!
I owned a '77 Vega Wagon and although it was prone to problems, it only left me on the side of the road once, and I had been told that it needed to be fixed. I sold it to a guy who put 40,000 trouble free miles on it after I worked the bugs out.
As for car quality, anyone who thinks that today's cars are junk and unreliable hasn't actually driven a new car in over a decade. My 1997 Grand Prix had far superior fit and finish to any car that I saw in the 70's and with almost double the power. While some of the plastics in new cars can be cheap still, there isn't any comparing the overall quality.
Why then is General Motors on the edge of bankruptcy if they are building quality cars? In the 70's and 80's they were building reliable quality cars and they had huge profits to show for it.
Touche`.
No car is perfect, but as a general rule Japanese cars are far superior to American cars in terms of quality and reliability.Why? I don't know, is it because American automakers are greedy and don't care about the customer, or because they don't want to pay the extra overhead costs for better parts? If you don't believe me, then look at the reviews on this site of any domestic car and compare those to Japanese models and you will have your answer. Plus, pick up an issue of Consumer Reports and take a look at model ratings and their reliability history. Your best answer will come from word of mouth from other car owners. Car performance is not especially important to me. What is important to me is dependability; it doesn't matter how much horsepower, or how many miles per gallon a car gets, if it is in the shop all the time it is completely worthless and a waste of money.
General Motors has learned from their mistakes:
It’s not fair to blame the autoworker for all the problems with General Motors. I worked at the Lordstown assembly plant from 1970-2000 and can tell you first hand that today’s autoworkers care about the product they put out. This was not the case in 1970-1977 when the Lordstown workers resisted the dehumanizing pace of the rapid assembly line. The resistance was direct, hostile and brutal. The young Lordstown workers were not fighting for money; they were fighting for human rights in the industrial workplace. No assembly plant had produced more than 65 units per hour before the Vega and now General Motors was experimenting with the effects of producing 100 plus units per hour. The pace was so great that available assembly line equipment built for lower speeds would break down. The corporation would replace the machinery, but had offered no consolation to the men who were asked to meet the same killing pace. With the maturing of the work force and a new commitment from management, the Lordstown complex has torn down the wall between union and management. Both sides recognize that we need to work together to produce a world class product. The future of the auto industry demands that! But by pooling their energy together, rather than fighting each other, it is possible for everyone to achieve their goals. From 1985-2000 the worker at Lordstown felt that the customer deserves the best product they can build. I was there!