Hellsmobile

[Brougham-Holiday]

Today I wanted to scream, our family was getting ready to go to a family function about 45 min away, ma and pa wanted to pick up the papers, and I was in the shower. I told ma and pa they could take my car (2001 Aurora) to pick up the papers since I was driving anyway. About 10 min after they left, I'm getting out of the shower to hear the windshield wipers are acting strange.

I quickly dress, go outside and check the car myself, when the wipers are in a intermittent setting they get stuck, when they are on low/hi they are fine except 1. they dont turn off when the lever is moved to the off position, when they do shut off with the car they automatically go up (as opposed to going to the off position under the hood).

This is just the latest in the car's sick games:

t needs new wheel bearings, brake pads and rotors.

The input turbine sensor went and cost $1544.84 to replace.

The intermediate steering shaft had to be replaced, and is squeaking again!

It took almost a year, but I found the trunk leak.

The climate control makes a periodic sound like a cd spinning at high speed in a cd player from the passenger side foot well.

It has developed a high speed shake on the highway that other Aurora owners on the Aurora forum have also had with no clear solution as to why it happens.

I have absolutely had it with this car, and I'm not going to spend another dime on it.

This week I'm going car shopping, hopefully a Buick or Pontiac is in my future.

Those who are in the market for Oldsmobile Auroras, I recommend something else.

[vonVeezelsnider]

I quickly dress, go outside and check the car myself, when the wipers are in a intermittent setting they get stuck, when they are on low/hi they are fine except 1. they dont turn off when the lever is moved to the off position, when they do shut off with the car they automatically go up (as opposed to going to the off position under the hood).

This is just the latest in the car's sick games:

t needs new wheel bearings, brake pads and rotors.

The intermediate steering shaft had to be replaced, and is squeaking again!

1) The wipers, had this problem with the Cavalier and it eventually corrected itself... Try removing the fuse, starting the car, turning the car off and putting the fuse back in.

2)I don't know about the bearings but the G-Cars are known to eat brakes (Pads and Rotors) this problem is not limited to the Aurora, but afflicts the Bonne, LeSabre, Park Ave etc as well.

3) The turbine sensor: Well I don't know, sometimes things like that just break

4) Intermediate Steering Shaft: Is a common problem on the G-Cars up to but not including the DTS and Lucerne and Epsilon Malibus and G6s with electric steering. I hear that you can solve the problem by slightly repositioning the ISS.

Edited December 1, 2008 by vonVeezelsnider

[daves87rs]

Sorry to hear about the car..

Does it have quite a few miles on it?

[Brougham-Holiday]

The car has 89,000mi, and according to Car Fax and Auto Check has no reported accidents/etc. This car is possessed by the devil, that is my scientific explanation for it.

"3) The turbine sensor: Well I don't know, sometimes things like that just break"

Oh things break, and are fixed with $1500 in repair bills, a bottle of aspirin, and a few swear words aimed at General Motors. My neighbor just had his entire transmission in his Dodge Ram rebuilt for $1800. What makes it worse is I got a deal, another member of the Aurora forum had the same sensor replaced at a transmission shop for $1600.+

[REDO1GPGT]

I have heard quite a few horror stories about 2nd gen Aurora's; it's a shame since they are such nice looking cars. There was a customer at work who bought one new back in 01 who recently traded it in on a brand new Camry. I asked why he traded it in and his reply was "the worst car I have ever owned, nickel and dimed me to death."

Edited December 1, 2008 by REDO1GPGT

[gmpartsgirl]

As big an Olds fanatic as I am, and the Aurora was a gorgeous car, but it was always a turd. It's a shame. Everybody in our shop wants to run when one pulls in. We have one lady who consistently brings hers in and drops $1500 at a time several times a year but she loves it so much she won't give it up. I don't know why they had such problems, what the hell happened. We don't see that many G-body Rivs. Could have been such a cool ride. They're expensive to work on because everything is stuffed in it.

[vonVeezelsnider]

As big an Olds fanatic as I am, and the Aurora was a gorgeous car, but it was always a turd. It's a shame. Everybody in our shop wants to run when one pulls in. We have one lady who consistently brings hers in and drops $1500 at a time several times a year but she loves it so much she won't give it up. I don't know why they had such problems, what the hell happened. We don't see that many G-body Rivs. Could have been such a cool ride. They're expensive to work on because everything is stuffed in it.

In your opinion did the K/G Body Devilles/DTSs (1997-Present) fare any better?

[Croc]

the windshield wipers are acting strange.

Sounds like the stalk needs to be replaced. Fairly common on G-bodies, especially around 90k.

It needs new wheel bearings, brake pads and rotors.

Wheel bearings only have a life of around 90-110k, no matter the car. I just had my front driver's bearing replaced at Pep Boys...$200 no problem.

The input turbine sensor went and cost $1544.84 to replace.

Sensor issues are unfortunately common for GM cars between 1995 and 2005.

The intermediate steering shaft had to be replaced, and is squeaking again!

I know I read on ACNA that it's a good idea to have the steering shaft lubed regularly (every year or two).

It took almost a year, but I found the trunk leak.

Where was yours? Around the decklid gasket? Seems to be the most common location...

The climate control makes a periodic sound like a cd spinning at high speed in a cd player from the passenger side foot well.

I've experienced this in mine, and it doesn't pose any harm to my knowledge. Usually blasting the air on high for a minute and then going back to auto clears it up, sometimes turning the car off and then back on fixes it, too. It's just a faint noise, though, so I don't worry about it.

It has developed a high speed shake on the highway that other Aurora owners on the Aurora forum have also had with no clear solution as to why it happens.

Not true. This has been solved on ACNA. Auroras are very sensitive to alignment and tire roundness. The slightest irregularity from specs can cause this. Here's the link for the solution thread: http://aurorah.proboards47.com/index.cgi?b...mp;thread=14558

Those who are in the market for Oldsmobile Auroras, I recommend something else.

Sorry to hear about your experience. From what I've heard, 2nd Gen Auroras have very inconsistent quality, unit by unit. Most of the common issues are related to a few components, and the most blatant ones usually have service bulletins relating to them, the secondary air system flaw being the most egregious exception. Also, it seems that there are a lot of little things owners should pay special attention to with regards to preventative maintenance, like the steering shaft, and keeping the throttle body lubed.

That said, I've been fairly lucky with mine, the main repair for me was the transmission PCS replacement, but that is a common issue with the transmission on all applications, not just the 3.5 Aurora.

When she runs well, she runs so wonderfully. Barring a sudden change for the worse in reliability, it will be very hard to part with my baby in a couple years.

[Croc]

In your opinion did the K/G Body Devilles/DTSs (1997-Present) fare any better?

Those didn't go to G until 2000. I know the 2000 Devilles had some initial issues, particularly cruise control switches, engine mounts, signal stalks, and sensors of many kinds.

[gmpartsgirl]

Yes, from my own experience at our shop, they weren't as big of a problem child. Excluding the Caterable, the Caddies have all been good. Thats why I never understood the problem with the Aurora, its just a baby caddy.

[Croc]

As big an Olds fanatic as I am, and the Aurora was a gorgeous car, but it was always a turd. It's a shame. Everybody in our shop wants to run when one pulls in. We have one lady who consistently brings hers in and drops $1500 at a time several times a year but she loves it so much she won't give it up. I don't know why they had such problems, what the hell happened. We don't see that many G-body Rivs. Could have been such a cool ride. They're expensive to work on because everything is stuffed in it.

The main thing I've heard is that because the Auroras were so unique in many ways, and not too many were built, they have a lot of little quirks in their design not shared by platform mates, as well as specialized components (unique engines), that make them daunting to service. Whereas Devilles, Sevilles, Bonnevilles, and LeSabres are much more common, mechanics are more familiar with them. I know some mechanics who are very familiar with the Auroras and diagnose things quickly, while others aren't and hate working on them for that reason. Whenever I take mine to my Cadillac dealership, I always try to provide as much info regarding TSBs, part numbers, likely problems, and other things that I've researched on ACNA to help them out as much as possible.

[gmpartsgirl]

I would agree completely. The Caddie techs probably don't mind them nearly as much. Our guys hate them. That said, all shops have cars they hate to work on. Our biggest is the Vette. We call them all El Diablo. And we tease the guys who have them sitting in their bays.

[Croc]

Yes, from my own experience at our shop, they weren't as big of a problem child. Excluding the Caterable, the Caddies have all been good. Thats why I never understood the problem with the Aurora, its just a baby caddy.

A baby Seville, with Bonnie bits, to be precise. I think a lot of it surrounds the unique bits, like the center stack and DIC. There are a lot of electrical issues that make it difficult to pinpoint and fix, and the interior was not designed to be easy to service AT ALL. I know a lot of issues are attributable to poor assembly, with loose wires being the main culprits. After many miles and potholes, a lot of them come loose in the dash, either due to very limited wire length in some cases, or sloppy securing on the assembly line. And then finding the right wire and taking apart the dash and center stack are total PITAs. I really think that the 2nd Gen Aurora wouldn't have as many problems had the union workers taken a little more pride in their work on the line (whether in actual assembly or quality checks), because so many issues are due to poor assembly quality.

Only a few of the most common issues are due to poor engineering, like the Secondairy Air System where any driving in water will cause the blower to intake water, not be able to drain it, leading to eventual seizure. GM has redesigned the part for subsequent applications, but no TSB or recall was ever issued for the Aurora, and it really should have been.

Regarding the Catera, my uncle was a Cadillac service technician for years, and from what he told me, the Catera was just difficult to service because language/standards between Opel in Germany, and standard GMNA service instructions were not interchangeable or even similar. One example I remember is that the service manual would refer to the "front right" or "front left" side of the car, and that in one country that was relative to the driver's viewpoint, while the other was relative to standing in front of the car and looking at it. Obviously that's a big difference. Also, the design of the Opel was just so different from GMNA cars at the time that there was quite a level of unfamiliarity involved. I have a feeling that if an Opel technician worked on Cateras, he/she would have very few issues with it. GM seemed to get the Catera issues largely fixed by 2000, though. I know many happy first-gen Catera owners, too, so I have a feeling that the level of Catera education/familiarity on the part of the service technicians plays a large part in the ownership experience.

Edited December 1, 2008 by Croc

[frogger]

Unfortunately my dad's 2002 Aurora ended up being a piece of $h! too, he unloaded it as soon as the warranty was up and he won't be buying GM again as that made of the last 3 he bought poor ownership experiences.

[daves87rs]

Holy ****

Here we are talking about Auroras. and there is a 00-01 outside right now on FIRE!!!

(from the engine bay)

Not sure why, but I will when things calm down....

[Croc]

That sucks. So few were made...

[vonVeezelsnider]

Holy ****

Here we are talking about Auroras. and there is a 00-01 outside right now on FIRE!!!

(from the engine bay)

Not sure why, but I will when things calm down....

LOL!

[ocnblu]

When a little thing called a freakin' HARMONIC BALANCER/CRANKSHAFT PULLEY flies off the front of the crappy Opel V6, (and GM wouldn't let us put engines in the cars, we had to rebuild them under warranty) and the driver's door check strap binds, breaking out a big ol' chunk of the door shell sheetmetal, necessitating replacement of the entire doorshell and its attendant paintwork (this happened several times on Cateras at my Maryland dealership), that's not a translation problem, that's a junk problem, AFAIK.

[Intrepidation]

When a little thing called a freakin' HARMONIC BALANCER/CRANKSHAFT PULLEY flies off the front of the crappy Opel V6, (and GM wouldn't let us put engines in the cars, we had to rebuild them under warranty) and the driver's door check strap binds, breaking out a big ol' chunk of the door shell sheetmetal, necessitating replacement of the entire doorshell and its attendant paintwork (this happened several times on Cateras at my Maryland dealership), that's not a translation problem, that's a junk problem, AFAIK.

Hah, I knew they were junk, I just couldn't remember why they were junk when Sixty8 and I were talking about them Saturday.

Anyway, that sucks about the Aurora, a shame to, they are such nice looking cars.

Edited December 1, 2008 by Dodgefan

[Brougham-Holiday]

Today the wipers are fine.... this is what the car does best....screw up and then when it goes to the shop or someone else drives it, the car decides to work as designed. Try it again in 20 min and the gremlins are back.

[Intrepidation]

My car had an issue were it would stall randomly but never throw a code. It took me months to fix it based only on info I found from forums where owners had similar problems and replacing the crankshaft sensor fixed it.

There's nothing worse than a problem you can't identify.

[Brougham-Holiday]

I'm working on finding a replacement for the Olds, I test drove a Buick today, tomorrow I'm going to see a Grand Prix. Only one thing is for sure, I'm not putting another dime into this car.

[Robert Hall]

Speaking from experience, that's the way it is with many cars when they get beyond a certain amount of miles..they become money pits. Better to trade before 75k miles, I've heard (which I probably should have done w/ my Jeep).

[vonVeezelsnider]

I'm working on finding a replacement for the Olds, I test drove a Buick today, tomorrow I'm going to see a Grand Prix. Only one thing is for sure, I'm not putting another dime into this car.

Do yourself a favor and check out a babied Series II 3.8L Olds 88, Regency, or 98 from 1995-1999.

[Brougham-Holiday]

Do yourself a favor and check out a babied Series II 3.8L Olds 88, Regency, or 98 from 1995-1999.

Im looking for something newer then that, 2003-2005 Impala/Grand Prix/Buick . I have driven many H-body Oldsmobiles, and I love them all, but even the newest ones are almost 10 years old.