Car Enthusiast Thread
- Thread starter Lets Gekiga In
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I will never own a Pontiac again after owning the pile of problems GTO and dealing with GMs shit customer service. Even GM fanboys over at LS1GTO.com admit GM has horrible service...
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Was your GTO a used one?
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If you consider 6200 miles and 6 months old then yes...I bought it used...you want a list of what was wrong with it when I traded it in after 3 years of ownership and only 12,xxx miles on the clock? Here you go:
-2 blown radiators, on 3d when I traded it in.
-Bad glove compartment door, had to get replacement
-Bad fuel cap, replaced
-Leaking rear main seal, this was the final straw when I traded it in.
-Exhaust leak, bought new cat-back, dealership said it was “supposed to sound that way”. When I removed the stock cat-back it had holes in the welds...
-Fuel rail line rub. Dealership fixed by tie wrapping back the main fuel line, line still had big gouge in it. Dealership claims it had been fixed.
-Busted passenger door lock. Got replaced but then passenger door did not open from outside. Had to get it fixed again this time replacing the entire passenger door assembly.
-HVAC “Flapper” locks up (no air flowing, just loud hiss) when you try to blow the HVAC out of the floor duct. Had tried 3 different dealerships on this one, none had fixed it. Never did work.
-Gauge cluster failure. From time to time the speedometer will start “wiggling” back and forth. Within a few minutes I will lose the tach followed by the gas and temp gauge. Never acts up for the dealership so they will do nothing about it. This was common problem with '04 models...that and the locking up steering column...thank God I never had that problem.
-Insane rumbling/shaking at speed. If I would take that car up to around 100 the thing would seem like it was going to fly apart. I had the tires checked and they were fine. As a matter of fact, it just developed one day; I had the car past 130 on those wheels/tires with no problem. To the day I sold it, it felt like someone was smashing the rear of the car repeatedly when going near 100.
-Bad alignment on rear passenger tire. Tire “toed” out. It was completely noticeable and the tire was even wearing unevenly (chewing up inside of tire, I can’t rotate due to one-direction tires). When brought to the dealerships attention, they claimed it was fine. A "buddy" I met online that lived near me had an '06 that had an insane jut on the back passenger tire...dealership never fixed his either.
-M6 problem with reverse. I tried and tried to get the dealership to look at this one. It was hard as hell to get the damn thing into reverse, many times it just ground like all hell was breaking loose and I would have to wait and try again. First off with the stock shifter, the dealership said they saw nothing wrong, later they would just blame it on the B&M shifter I installed.
-Broken seat track. Driver’s side chair would grind when adjusting so I had the track replaced. It was better after the replacement, but the seat never completely stopped grinding.
-Strut rub. Again the dealership played dumb even after I showed them the rub marks on the inside of the tire. I eventually went to 235’s in the front to fix it.
-Broken trim pieces that have had to be replaced along the way. The driver's side door light cover (white one on bottom of door) had been replaced 3 times...I don't slam the door or anything, it just kept breaking...
That thing was a pile of shit. Things like the radiator, leaking rear main seal, leaking exhaust, strut rub, wonky gauges and fuel line rub were super common problems. The time I was on the LS1GTO site, I saw it time and time again...many had problems with revers or, even worse, popping out of gear while driving in 6th gear...Thanks God I didn't have a LS2 GTO which had such bad oil consumption issues, Pontiac actually issued a letter to '05/06 owners telling them "not to take the engine over 3000RPM or damage may result." Many angry owners posted copies of that letter online...it was total garbage.
It goes on and on. The service was shit as well, I can't believe how I was treated like a second class citizen at their dealerships...it really sucked.
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My car keeps leaking water in when it rains. I can't figure out from where either, but I do love having to bail out puddles of water after storms. This should be a fun problem to solve.....
1980te72
New Challenger
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if it wasnt dark out, id post some pictures of my junkers up i got a 1980 toyota corolla and a 1986 toyota corolla sr5. fun cars to drive, the 80 runs circles around the 86 but there still fun. might add some photos of the works in progress tomorrow.
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I have been. I'm way more worried about the mold that is going to grow in the insulation.
Most people with strut rub got it fixed with an allignment. I was following this issue fairly closely for a while as I was looking into grabbing a 6 speed goat. They also had a strut leaking problem in 06.
About your tranny problem, t56s have issues going into gear on a lot of them. I've encountered it a few times on camaros. It's not something that should be normal, but with those, it kinda is. Supposedly the tr6060 is better in that reguard.
Oh, and an fyi. the gto wasn't a pontiac. It was a holden. Not like I'd be too crazy about owning either tho.
I know a couple people with g8s. So far so good on those...
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So, I took delivery of my srt8 with 7 miles on it today. Quite the little car. Not the best handling thing I've ever driven, but the torque is great. Not sure it was the best move trading my z in for it (the z is a fucking pleasure to drive in almost every way), but I've been wanting one of these since I first saw the concept years back and I had to get it out of my system.
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Whoops indeed...guess being rich doesn't mean he's also intelligent...
Taking the MS3 out today...I need to do it more often, I only have 1500 miles on it...I will have owned it a year Dec 18th...
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I have a company vehicle...that MS3 sits 98% of its life. I think we are going to "restructure" our cars next trade in. We have the '08 MS3 and a '06 Freestyle...I think we're going to trade both at the same time in 3 more years on a SHO (or whatever tickles my fancy) and a truck. Drive the SHO when its nice, truck when its not.
Paying $$ to have a car just sit is pretty silly anymore. I'd rather have a car we can both enjoy in the spring/summer/fall, my wife is not a huge fan of the MS3...
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New Top Gear is out.
Romania...here I come!
Romania...here I come!
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Anybody going to or went to a car show this year?
I'm speaking about this mainly because the annual car show here is coming up. Always an exciting time seeing new models and some cars that one doesn't necessarily see everyday (Bugatti Veyron, Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, etc.).
I'm speaking about this mainly because the annual car show here is coming up. Always an exciting time seeing new models and some cars that one doesn't necessarily see everyday (Bugatti Veyron, Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, etc.).
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You know the line in the Matrix where the kid says "then you will see it is not the spoon that bends, only yourself"...that line has really applied to my relationship with my Mazdaspeed.
I kind of feel like I myself have done the bending when it came to my relationship with the car. At first, I really didn't like the car much. I blamed it on the FWD platform, the turbo, the bla, bla, bla...The problem was I only know how to drive one car...V8, RWD, straight line performance, ram and jam.
The polar opposite from the MS3.
When I applied my driving skills to the car it simply didn't work. The car didn't react like I wanted it to and it pissed me off. I've never had a FWD performance car nor have I ever had a turbo either...we just didn't fit. Everything I tried to do in the car left me disappointed...I basically decided I didn't like the car and truth be told, I haven't driven it much.
A few months ago, I decided to give the MS3 one more try. This time I started over slowly. I needed to learn the clutch, the handling, the brakes and finally how to use the turbo to my advantage.
Slowly I've increased my speed and pushed the car harder and harder in terms of cornering/braking/etc. No straight line 0-06 1/4 mile bulshit...driving with finesse.
Well...I'm really beginning to appreciate what the MS3 offers. It really is a nice package. No, its about as far from American muscle as you can get but I really think I'm beginning to "get it"...slowly
Funny enough, I'm bending, the car is staying the same.
I kind of feel like I myself have done the bending when it came to my relationship with the car. At first, I really didn't like the car much. I blamed it on the FWD platform, the turbo, the bla, bla, bla...The problem was I only know how to drive one car...V8, RWD, straight line performance, ram and jam.
The polar opposite from the MS3.
When I applied my driving skills to the car it simply didn't work. The car didn't react like I wanted it to and it pissed me off. I've never had a FWD performance car nor have I ever had a turbo either...we just didn't fit. Everything I tried to do in the car left me disappointed...I basically decided I didn't like the car and truth be told, I haven't driven it much.
A few months ago, I decided to give the MS3 one more try. This time I started over slowly. I needed to learn the clutch, the handling, the brakes and finally how to use the turbo to my advantage.
Slowly I've increased my speed and pushed the car harder and harder in terms of cornering/braking/etc. No straight line 0-06 1/4 mile bulshit...driving with finesse.
Well...I'm really beginning to appreciate what the MS3 offers. It really is a nice package. No, its about as far from American muscle as you can get but I really think I'm beginning to "get it"...slowly
Funny enough, I'm bending, the car is staying the same.
darcotrigger
Zero's Tailor
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Glad you're enjoying the MS3, but it sounds like you would have been happier with a Mustang GT.
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There is a car comparison between the 2010 VW GTI and the 2010 Mazdaspeed 3 in Car and Driver recently.
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...ed_3_vs._2010_volkswagen_gti-comparison_tests
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I agree with much of what they say...the new MS3 is just not the same as mine. I was looking at a new MS3 at the dealership last week and finally had a chance to go through one, I was really disappointed.
The one thing I've always loved about many Mazda products is the simple design (excuse the new RX-8). My MS3 is clean, simple and effective both inside and out. The seating is aggressive, the interior is clan and nothing feels "cheap". The new MS3 is the polar opposite...gaudy exterior, cheap interior in the guise of good design and expensive materials. Gone is the simple gloss black panels, simple controls and beautiful Alcantara well bolstered seating...
Just look at the difference:
2008.5/9 seats:
2010 seats:
The nice Alcantara is gone and replaced with cloth and ugly stippling. It looks ok in a picture but in person, it look cheap. In a photo the stippling looks like a neat fade job but in person, the dot pattern is obvious and looses all effect. It also continues throughout the interior lining the door and dash trim...very ugly, very cheap. It is also obvious, as C&D pointed out that the actual seat is of lesser build quality. It is not as comfortable nor is it as supportive.
The interior (forgive the stock photo):
2008.5/9:
2010:
Again, in a photo the 2010 looks better but the cheap-o build materials make it shitty in person. Everything just seems cheap. And what's with the tiny nav? That thing sits some 2-2.5 feet from your face, it's tiny to read. I know it's a ton cheaper than the previous nav but who cars when you can't read it.
Finally is the exterior...I guess that is up to personal taste. personally, other than the hood intake, I hate it. That fucking smily face is just too much for me...as are the jutting rear taillights and the overall attempt to make the car "meaner" with harsher angles.
Mazda may have improved the mechanics a bit but the differences are too few to make me ever want to get into one. It is obvious that to make the 2010 the same price as the 2009 Mazda had to cut some corners. The build materials in the interior make it obvious where they did the trimming.
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/30/2011-ford-mustang-v6-la-2009-preview/
t would be reasonable to expect that Ford might pass over the Mustang and instead devote more attention to its other models since it's fresh off a comprehensive revamp for the 2010 model year. However, that's not what is shaping up in the House That Henry Built.
For 2011, the Blue Oval is introducing a new 3.7-liter V6 Mustang that should give it the firepower and refinement needed to take on Chevrolet's six-cylinder Camaro and Hyundai's upstart Genesis Coupe. But it isn't just the spanking all-aluminum powerplant and its 305 horsepower and 280 foot-pounds of torque that's making the scene for the forthcoming model year. In addition to the Cleveland-sourced mill, there are a pair of fresh gearboxes, a new V6 performance package, and a host of nip/tucks to the interior and elsewhere.
Now, we could grouse on behalf of 2010 MY 'Stang owners everywhere that these upgrades weren't part of last year's mid-life updo, but instead, we'll just be happy that these advancements are arriving at all.
Despite being smaller than the outgoing 4.0-liter V6, the dual-overhead cam 3.7-liter's horsepower and torque ratings represent massive improvements over the 2010 model (305 HP dismisses 210 HP and 280 lb-ft. plays 240 torques). In fact, that's more horsepower than the 4.6-liter V8 Mustang made just a few years ago. While the 305-horse figure only allows the Mustang to pip the crosstown Camaro by a single all-important stallion in the pony car bragging wars, Ford says the powertrain will be good for 30 miles-per-gallon on the highway when paired with its new six-speed automatic, also one notch better than the Chevy.
t would be reasonable to expect that Ford might pass over the Mustang and instead devote more attention to its other models since it's fresh off a comprehensive revamp for the 2010 model year. However, that's not what is shaping up in the House That Henry Built.
For 2011, the Blue Oval is introducing a new 3.7-liter V6 Mustang that should give it the firepower and refinement needed to take on Chevrolet's six-cylinder Camaro and Hyundai's upstart Genesis Coupe. But it isn't just the spanking all-aluminum powerplant and its 305 horsepower and 280 foot-pounds of torque that's making the scene for the forthcoming model year. In addition to the Cleveland-sourced mill, there are a pair of fresh gearboxes, a new V6 performance package, and a host of nip/tucks to the interior and elsewhere.
Now, we could grouse on behalf of 2010 MY 'Stang owners everywhere that these upgrades weren't part of last year's mid-life updo, but instead, we'll just be happy that these advancements are arriving at all.
Despite being smaller than the outgoing 4.0-liter V6, the dual-overhead cam 3.7-liter's horsepower and torque ratings represent massive improvements over the 2010 model (305 HP dismisses 210 HP and 280 lb-ft. plays 240 torques). In fact, that's more horsepower than the 4.6-liter V8 Mustang made just a few years ago. While the 305-horse figure only allows the Mustang to pip the crosstown Camaro by a single all-important stallion in the pony car bragging wars, Ford says the powertrain will be good for 30 miles-per-gallon on the highway when paired with its new six-speed automatic, also one notch better than the Chevy.