Faults:
Paint bubbled on both top corners of windshield before purchase. Mildly expensive repair, and not much of a do-it yourself repair.
Brakes replaced at 90000 miles. Regular wear and tear problem.
Emergency brake cable sticks, must be manually disengaged. Noticed at around 100000 miles. No repair made, will repair later.
Ignition module went out at around 106000 miles. Mildly expensive repair.
Spark plugs and cables replaced the same time as the ignition module.
Left rear speaker blew at around 106000, junkyard replacement sounds fine. Slight static yet. Easy, cheap repair.
Coolant tube sprouted a leak at 110000, pain to repair, but cheap and a good day off project for the average Joe.
Electrical system acting up at current mileage, 112000, possibly a ground fault at the firewall. Repair not investigated.
General Comments:
I have yet to hear many people argue that the Lumina is not a great car. This one has been through four accidents (three minor) and only has rear bumper damage to show for it.
My first accident in this car was going into a ditch on a gravel road. The car has no damage to show for it at all, with the exception of maybe a minor scratch or two.
The second accident involved icy conditions and having been cut off at a red light I ran into the rear end of a Cadillac. The Cadillac's rear bumper was trashed, and my car received no damage at all.
The third accident was being hit in the passenger side rear end at fairly low speeds, no damage sustained at all.
And the forth and final accident was a blind corner which I pulled out from. A Beretta going forty to fifty miles an hour slammed into my drivers side read end, which resulted in only the bumper and wheel well trim being damage with a few minor paint splinters to the rear quarter panel.
Every car will have problems with age, it's a simple fact. I have to say having seen friends and family with their cars, the Lumina beat them on repair cost bar none. The cost of Luminas is very reasonable, and as long as you are a smart consumer you'll have a car that will last.
8th Jul 2004, 17:55
I agree that air bags would not hurt. But if this car is so great in frontal crashes, why does it have only 2 stars in crash ratings?
Euro owner.