OK--so I just saw Oldsmobile has finally been hit in these GM recalls with both the Intrigue and Alero.

The 1997-2004 Malibu (which actually was called the "Classic" later on) is also included on this list, but nobody mentions the Cutlass.

I saw a 97-99 Cutlass today in a parking lot, and it got me thinking--is the Cutlibu included in these recalls? No publication seems to be including them.

 

Dunno, but I got a letter from them about the electric power steering on the 2005 Malibu. Basically said "We're telling you this so you can't sue us, but don't bother asking us to fix it either"

 

This would assume that I gave a $hit about those sorry excuses for an Oldsmobile...

 

No no Joe .. Don't hold back .. tell us how you really feel about them.

 

Joe, that's pretty strong, but I also never really liked them either. They did sell well though, along with the D88. Funny I don't see many on the road still, or in the boneyard.

 

This would assume that I gave a $hit about those sorry excuses for an Oldsmobile...

I call them GM mobiles

Don W

 

A lot of them got crushed for cash for clunkers.

 

Ladies & gentlemen, I give you proof of what the Chevy crowd has been trying to convince us of for years- "it's ALL GM".

And we see where that got them... poorly designed and built badge engineered products that the buying public soon saw thru.

Far as I'm concerned the last real Oldsmobiles were Quad-4 powered Achieva SCX, and even that's stretching it. Most would agree the last 307-powered RWD wagons were the last.

 

OK, so we've all **** on the cars .. now, does anyone have an answer to the original poster's question?

 

As they're identical between grille and taillights, don't see how they could avoid being in the recall.

You must remember it's been ten years and most of the media have forgotten the existence of Oldsmobile.

 

Similar scenario with the Ford Explorer & Firestone tire drama years ago.

For every 100 times the media told everyone the sky was falling with the Ford Explorer .....

How many times out of those 100 times was the Mercury Mountaineer mentioned ?.

 

I'm sure that if the Malibu of this era is included, so is the Cutlass.

What I find laughable is the concept of recalling a 1997 vehicle of any kind 17 years after it left the factory. If it was going to manifest any of the problems for which the recall was issued, it would have done it by now. If it was going to kill you, it would have done it by now.


Reminds me of a dishwasher recall we experienced some years ago. We got a notification in the mail that we should stop using our Kitchen-Aid or Maytag or whatever it was dishwasher because of a possible electrical problem that could cause a fire.

Fine.

Except this dishwasher had been in our house for years, and I had calculated that we had used it at least two-thousand times already. If it was going to cause a fire, it would have done it by now. How come I could use it just fine 2000 times, but I was putting my house and life in danger if I used it for the 2001th time?

We got a new one anyway because they sent a coupon for $50 off. But I still thought it was nonsense.

 

i took an 89 chevy in for a seat recall in 2005 and they fixed it

 

I didn't say they wouldn't fix it. I'm sure the law requires them to issue the recalll and do the repair.

My point was that, after so much time, did it really matter? In your case, if the seat in your car hadn't come loose or whatever was the problem after 16 years of driving the car, was it ever going to?

 

I would like to think that it should be part of the recall, being they were both out of the Oklahoma plant at that point in time 97-99 (cutlass)

Also the media only spits out what they are told, and with some fabrication at times to juice up the story! But case in point my new Impala (by reports) was part of the recall. Um NO! the fleet (rental/government) Impala AKA 2006-2014.

The Alero/Grand am have always had ignition/security issues once you get beyond the power train warranty miles. I have a 2004 Alero, and don't have but one house key and "alero fob'" hanging off the key. I doubt I will have an issue with 6200 miles on it. Hell my new car already has more than that.

Pat

 

Ah, the Chevy Cutlass, ha just saw one today. I don't see many of either the cutlass (actually any year for that manner) or the malibu.

Without opening a can of worms I wonder if GM is trying to compete with Toyota on who can have the most recalls. I had to.

 

I just heard that GM had extended the recall to all GM products produced from 1956 to present

 

Makes me sad to see how everybody bashes the newer Oldsmobiles, but yet you can't figure out why Oldsmobile was phased out.

Back in the early 90's Ford was going to make the first FWD Mustang. 250,000 people signed a petition saying the if Ford did this, they would no longer buy a Ford product. Thus the Ford Probe was born.

Ford may listen to their customers, but ther customers stand behind their products

 

Olds didn't help matters in the final years by producing cookie cutter cars. I owned a 1995 Olds Regency Elite. Really nice car but full of electrical and mechanical glitches I always found time to learn about and repair. In the end, the car failed from structural support (poor corrosion protection) The decision to axe Olds was corporate same as to axe Saturn and Pontiac. Nothing to do with customer support. It was about the bottom line and productivity. (hence the move to move a major share of GM production to China) GM and Chrysler have both struggled with maintaining brands within their structure and staying competitive. Now they've adopted the modified Henry Ford approach - You can have a Chev or a Chev, what color do you want it in? (yeah I know they have Buick, Caddy and GMC too, but they've lost a lot of brand identity cars that peeps loved) Also keep in mind that Ford was the only big auto manufacturer who didn't need Gov't bailout or assistance.

 

This may be 99% true, but it isn't 100% true.

Article in Forbes from August 2012.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/joannmul...-surprise-you/



Relevant passage:


"Yet there’s only one Detroit automaker still in hock to U.S. taxpayers and – guess what? – it’s not GM or Chrysler.

Ford Motor owes the government $5.9 billion it borrowed in June 2009, the same month GM filed for bankruptcy. By Sept. 15, Ford needs to start paying that money back. In a government filing, the carmaker said $577 million is due within the next year, and the full amount must be paid off by June 15, 2022.

The Obama Administration, dreaming of a million electric cars on the road by 2015, loaned Ford the money to help it pay for development of hybrids and EVs, and to retool its factories to produce smaller, cleaner vehicles. While not characterized as a “bailout” by any means, let’s be honest: Ford’s loan – received at a critical time when other sources of financing weren’t available to automakers or their suppliers – no doubt helped the carmaker survive the industry crisis and contributed to its strong market position today, especially after the Obama Administration finalized tougher fuel economy rules this week."


One can argue this different ways, but to my mind, if you're a private, for-profit company and you get a loan from the government, that's a bailout, period. If Ford needed money to build electric cars, why didn't it just get a line of credit or borrow money from a bank, just like any business does?

 

In 2001 the GM board sat down and said. "Which brand is more globally marketable?" and the answer was Saturn, even though Olds are badged Chevys and Saturns are badged Opels in other parts of the world.

So GM Decided to give Olds the axe, to pump money into a car company, which never made one penny in profit. That's great marketing right there. And since Olds was ended in 2004, quite a few Olds axers have been fired. Pontaic was axed because is was the deal with the goverment bail out

Also in November 2001, Olds was given the green light to start making the OSV cars, then in Decemeber 2001, they pulled all that and axed them