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North Providence, RI Car Consumer Discussions

Re: factory warranty [vwarren1]

by roadburner on Mon Nov 17 11:30:10 PST 2008

The early V8s had a 100K warranty due to problems with the Nikasil block; that's the last time I remember Munich providing a non-CPO warranty longer than 50K.

Re: Intermittent Starting Problems [tj27]

by kiawah on Mon May 19 18:32:45 PDT 2008

You have to figure out whether it is the ignition switch and circuitry to the starter, the starter itself, or the battery and heavy duty cables. Hang a fused test wire off of the starter into the car, so that you can measure the voltage of the ignition switch feed to the starter. It's the thinner wire to the primary side of the relay, on the starter motor. When this primary goes positive, the starter relay should engage, providing power to the starter motor. Wire this up, and wait till you have a no-start situation. Try to start the ignition switch, and measure the voltage on this wire. No (or low) voltage, you know the problem is 'upstream' coming from the ignition switch. If you have the correct voltage (13+volts), then you know the ignition circuitry is fine, and you need to look to the starter motor or battery/cables. Once you know the ignition switch and circuitry is good, hang your test wire on the secondary side of the relay on the starter, it will be the big thick wire. (Disconnect your battery before you wire up any of these test wires.) Now wait for a failure again, and measure the voltage on the secondary when it fails. If you have 13+ volts, then your starter relay or starter is bad, because it's getting the voltage but not turning over. If you don't have the correct voltage, then either the battery is bad, there is corrosion in the connector or up in the wire itself.

2005 Grand Prix SE - Loose Accerator and Power Steering at Highway Speeds

by prochie on Wed Nov 12 00:26:32 PST 2008

I have a 2005 Pontiac Grand Prix - Base Model (SE). I purchased the car used from RoyFoss in Toronto at 20,000KM. This is as stock as you get mostly because of this issue - no frills or add-on's or modifications. The vehicle will be running highways speed of 100 to 120Kph. Does not happen during urban driving. The drive must be long range or heavy traffic. Climate does not have any bearing. It occurs during winter and summer but more likely to happen in closer intervals in the summer. I played with running different accessories - didn't have any bearing. The only thing consistent is the speed and heavy driving (traffic is moderate and speed is consistent). Symptoms: I loose speedometer. I loose tack. I loose power steering I loose the accelerator (gas pedal) - I can not accelerate I can break (but you don't want too!) The engine is running and accelerating at the same speed during the time of crash (computer/ not car) I must throw the car into neutral Turn the engine off Restart the engine I won't have an issue for the rest of the 4 hour trip. It will likely occur within the first hour. I'm a service rep. that travels 100,000km or more each year. A lot of long range drives. I'll have this issue winter or summer maybe once or twice in a year. Dealer was unable to find an issue and rode me out of my warranty. I reported the issue three times and called GM's care number. I tired to get another dealer that seemed to have more competent mechanics. Ironically, one of my clients is GM, so I talk with a lot of garages. Nobody has seen this issue or has provided an reasonable answer to the problem. The most educated guess by most is a body control module - and obviously - replace every computer on the car. I'm going to hit 300,000 on the car next year. The body is in good shape and the engine still runs smoothly. No other major issues other than regular maint. and wear and tear. I don't see the value in dumping 1,000 or so on new computers. I won't let my wife drive the car (she's a new driver) and I won't sell the car - some kid will kill himself on the highway. I will not buy another GM car not because of the product but because of my experience working with their dealers. I should have been able to take the car to another GM dealer while it was under warranty but nobody would touch the vehicle because the complaint had been lodged with RoyFoss. I purchase my first North American vehicle with a warranty from a dealer because I expected issues. Had I known that GM warranty means nothing I would have purchased from a private lot I knew and trusted. My work requires me to purchase a vehicle basically every three years due to the KM's I drive - GM has lost a lot of business as a result. Too bad - nice car. If I find a solution I'll post it and consider having the engine retooled as an occasional car, otherwise, I'll have it crushed.

Re: Bailing out the Automakers [grbeck]

by gagrice on Mon Nov 10 07:31:02 PST 2008

There is nationalized health care available to retired union workers - Medicare. But the UAW doesn't want to require its retirees to rely solely on Medicare for health benefits. Why? Because the benefits provided by Medicare aren't nearly as generous as the benefits enjoyed under the current company plan. You have hit on a point I tried to make about a year ago. The UAW retirees need to go on Medicare with a little supplemental paid by the retiree. Our Union in AK being much wiser than the leaders of the UAW did just that 20 years ago. It did not take a rocket scientist to see the handwriting on the wall. I can guarantee a government run plan will not even come close to what the UAW members are currently receiving. Also note that VW, Mercedes and BMW have been rushing to set up production bases away from Germany. Many VWs sold in North America are imported from Mexico, not Germany, while Mercedes and BMW have set up plants in the U.S. to build products. I am sure it is to get away from the repressive taxation in Germany. My only German friend says the personal income tax is horrible. And the services do not compare to what most companies provide for their employees in the USA. Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Hyundai are building cars here and paying health care. It is probably not as gold plated as that offered to UAW workers. When the UAW takes over the health care you will see big cuts in the level of services provided.

Re: Bailing out the Automakers [Mr_Shiftright]

by grbeck on Mon Nov 10 07:05:50 PST 2008

Mr. Shiftright: UAW doesn't have a strangehold. Unions are weakest they have been in decades, maybe ever. The union is embedded in the companies that are in danger of going bust. I don't believe that is a coincidence. The union isn't completey responsible for the mess at GM and Ford (I hold Daimler responsible for the mess at Chrysler), but it isn't completely innocent, either. Unions may be weaker in the economy as a whole, but the one that concerns us - the UAW - is still strong at GM and Ford. The UAW is plagued by "Detroit think" as much as GM and Ford management. Mr. Shiftright: Besides, it was the US government that shoved healthcare onto corporations. Our own government is directly and totally responsible for the healthcare burden--there is no other culprit whatsoever. The government didn't require the companies to offer gold-plated health care benefits. Those benefits were negotiated by the company and the union. There is no federal or state law saying that those companies must offer lavish health care benefits to workers. There is nationalized health care available to retired union workers - Medicare. But the UAW doesn't want to require its retirees to rely solely on Medicare for health benefits. Why? Because the benefits provided by Medicare aren't nearly as generous as the benefits enjoyed under the current company plan. The UAW knows this - otherwise, it could simply agree to shift retired UAW members over to Medicare coverage, and save the automakers billions. The fact that it won't makes its call for nationalized healthcare disingenuous. Unless union leadership really believes that a full nationalized plan will be able to provide the level of coverage enjoyed by UAW members. Mr. Shiftright: In other countries that are doing very well making automobiles, the government takes care of the workers. Many of those companies based in other countries are doing well because of their North American sales. Note that even Toyota and Honda have been hit hard by the collapse of the U.S. market, and the head of Damiler said that his company faces a "crisis" because of the sales decline in both America and Europe. Daimler certainly didn't cover itself with glory by running Chrysler into the ground. It bought a healthy company and proceeded to drain it of its cash and leave it in ruins. Chrysler's current condition can be laid squarely at the feet of Daimler's (mis)management. Also note that VW, Mercedes and BMW have been rushing to set up production bases away from Germany. Many VWs sold in North America are imported from Mexico, not Germany, while Mercedes and BMW have set up plants in the U.S. to build products.

I'm sure glad I bought a reliable Mazda...

by roadburner on Fri Nov 07 09:30:29 PST 2008

As some of you know, I passed on a couple of really nice E46 BMWs(a 330i ZHP and an almost-new M3) in order to try something "different"- i.e. a new 2007 MS3. Well, the sled hasn't reached 27000 miles yet and I've already had to replace a blown LF strut as well as the turbocharger. If the parts had failed outside of the warranty period I'd be looking at @$2500 worth of repair costs. And for the record, I've never had to replace a strut before 100000 miles on any of the nine BMWs I've owned. So much for the supposedly knowledgeable claims concerning Mazda's stellar reliability and inexpensive operating costs that were made by some "experts" earlier in this topic... :surprise: So much for my thinking that the MS3 would make a durable and entertaining track toy... :mad: As for driving pleasure, I'm finding my 1995 318ti Club Sport to be a much more involving drive. Ditto for the 1975 2002 I just picked up on eBay. Most of the time the MS3 only sees duty as my work beater. Having said all that, my dealer(Kings Mazda, Cincinnati) has provided excellent service before and after the sale. Too bad the car itself didn't measure up.