Introduction
Let us begin by saying that this is not your father's Oldsmobile. Fact of the matter is, this Olds doesn't resemble older models of the marque thanks to a distinct European exterior design. Under the skin, however, it's all Olds, exhibiting a punchy powertrain, comfy interior, wallowy suspension and questionable build quality.

Even though our tester finished in eighth place, that doesn't mean the Intrigue is a bad car. Considering what Olds has historically brought to the buying public (the Ninety-Eight, Eighty-Eight and Cutlass Ciera come to mind), this latest Oldsmobile is a breath of fresh air, leading us to believe there is still life in the GM division after all.

Background and Our Test Vehicle
The Intrigue was the toddler of our test fleet, being introduced in 1998 with its gunsights squarely fixed on the Accord and Maxima. The Intrigue has been a godsend to Oldsmobile, helping to redefine the brand's identity, which had become cloudy in the late '80s and early '90s.

Unlike its competition, our tester was fitted with the optional Precision Control System – Oldsmobile's fancy terminology for stability control – which worked wonders during a deluge from a thunderstorm. If the PCS system senses the vehicle beginning to skid or slide, the system will temporarily apply braking power to the wheel that is opposite the vehicle's yaw direction, nudging it back in the direction the driver intends to travel.

At its as-tested MSRP of $26,765, the Olds was beat out only by the Passat GLX for most-expensive honors and, given its price point, lack of features and shoddy workmanship, we can't believe how Oldsmobile thinks it can command such a high sticker for the Intrigue. So how does it stack up to the rest in the class? Honestly, it doesn't.

Exterior Design
European in nature, the Intrigue is as far from traditional Olds styling as you can get.
Out front, the Olds isn't intriguing, with an Aurora-inspired front fascia that looks more like a design afterthought, leaving little character, and an unfinished look. From the profile, you'd think the Intrigue was a Ford Contour rip-off with the arched roofline, sweeping C-pillar and lateral accent lines.

Fit and finish is not one of the Intrigue's strong points. While checking panel gaps, we were stunned to find that not a single panel matched another (the hood and trunk were off by at least one-eighth of an inch, leaving us to wonder if this was a hand-built car).

Interior Features, Controls, Materials and Designs
Our concerns about the car's build quality were reinforced by the interior, where we found rubber door seals that were separating, speaker grilles that were falling off and tweeter surrounds that felt as though they were tacked on with hot glue.

Other than these issues, the Intrigue's interior is light, airy and luxurious-looking, with supple leather and creative use of two-tone colorations that matched well from panel to panel. The soft-touch dash brought a bit of class, but we were left wondering why many of the plastic trim pieces looked like they had been rushed from the injection mold to the assembly line without detail finishing.

The driver and passenger will find dual bucket seats with great lumbar support, but they lack thigh and lateral support. For the long stints on the highway, the chairs perform admirably, providing you're under six feet in height. Taller drivers will be wishing for additional seat travel.

Controls are well-marked and easy to reach, but exhibit a cheap feel when manipulated, similar to what Chevrolet utilized in the 1980s. The dual-zone climate control is a joke, with the passenger only receiving a limited range of five to seven degrees temperature adjustment from the driver's initial setting. We also question why Oldsmobile elected to place the on/off switch for the cruise control on the dash like the imports (which is a criticism of imports in general), instead of on the wheel where the rest of the cruise control buttons are located.

In back, rear occupants will be begging to be extracted after 10 miles. The couch is overtly hard with too much rearward rake. Compounding discomfort is a severe lack of leg- and foot room, which makes the back seat suitable only for individuals with short legs. Dual cup holders and air vents help make the experience bearable.

Engine and Transmission
In typical GM style, the powerplant is one of the standout aspects of the Intrigue. The new 3.5-liter twin-cam V6 that replaces the venerable pushrod 3800 makes the Intrigue a joy to drive. With 215 horsepower, the Olds responds instantly to throttle input, creating a wide torque band that almost never seems to end. Engine vibration is minimal at idle and at highway speeds.

Jab at the throttle and the Intrigue springs to life, waiting for the new-for-2000 electronically controlled four-speed automatic transaxle to catch up. Once downshifting is complete, upshifts are clean and precise, changing gears right at redline. On hills, we'd recommend Intrigue owners manually downshift into a lower gear, rather than allow the tranny time to think, contemplate, then reflect on whether or not to select third or second gear. The resulting hesitation left our editors no choice but to vote the Intrigue's tranny to a last place finish.

Suspension, Ride and Handling
The Intrigue sunk to the bottom in the handling department, again taking last place in our evaluations. Wallowing, softness and lots of body roll were observed by all of our editors. While the suspension is decent on the open highway, hit an overpass expansion joint and the Intrigue takes a couple of undulation cycles to settle down. Might we suggest additional shock rebound valving?

If it were not for the optional stability control, some editors would think twice about taking this vehicle on super-twisty mountain roads. Lots of body roll was present – even during long sweeping corners, and you can feel the stability control kick in when cornering hard, which helped keep the Olds out of the guardrails.

Editors fell into a love/hate relationship with the standard Magnasteer speed-sensitive steering system. In the parking lot, we had no problem maneuvering the Intrigue with our pinky finger, but on the highway, the steering became dreadfully heavy at times. We were also surprised during cornering exercises that the system would increase or decrease sensitivity while accelerating through a corner – an unnerving feeling to say the least.

Conclusion
For the family looking to hit the highways, or those living where inclement weather makes traveling an adventure, the Intrigue is a decent car and will get you through the muck with little hassle. But once the kids hit the six-foot-tall-zone, you'll be looking for a vehicle with a larger back seat. And while Oldsmobile has made great strides within the past five years, the Intrigue still has to play catch up with Ford, Honda, and a number of others – especially in terms of performance handling.

Yep, this isn't your father's Oldsmobile, but at $26,765, we'd expect a whole lot more in the suspension, interior space and fit-and-finish departments. And while the Intrigue finished second in our '98 test, its only upgrades have been in powertrain, stability control and a minor face lift. On the other side of the coin, with the exception of the Accord, the competition in this round-up has all been significantly redesigned and/or re-engineered in the last two years, leaving the Olds to play catch up.

Editors' Comments
The Intrigue is not a bad car: indeed, to me it's far more satisfying than either the Impala or Saturn to drive. The Intrigue's primary problem is build quality. This cabin is embarrassingly assembled, and I don't even work for Oldsmobile. Pieces inside creak and groan, exhibit poor alignment, can be popped off with a single hand and display an unacceptable amount of casting "flash." The exterior is better executed, but far from tops in class. – Christian Wardlaw.

Oldsmobile has co-branded the Intrigue with the TV show, "The X-Files." Well, after driving the Intrigue, I think Mulder and Scully need to search for the missing brains of the Intrigue's engineers. The suspension is horrible and the Intrigue has as much personality as a bowl of peas. Am I Intrigued? Sure – I want to know who would buy this car. – Brent Romans.

Stereo Evaluation - 2000 Oldsmobile Intrigue