1990 Oldsmobile 98 3.8L from North America
Summary:
Comfy; comfy comfy! Would buy another GM!
Faults:
General maintenance things; brakes; oil changes RELIGIOUSLY at every 4k; tires; spark plugs; and the like...
Recently drained the fluid, and changed transmission filter. Transmission is acting weird; I'll explain more in a bit.
One small issue is all the electronics in the door make it very heavy. According to a guy here in town who took apart my door for a window switch (if I remember correctly, haha) said it took about a half hour to tear it apart.
General Comments:
Car is very comfy; I have comments about how many of my buddies I can have in there, and how comfy it is (and roomy!). I had read online that the transmissions in the 3.8L Olds' weren't too reliable, but mine has performed well, minus a few issues...
When passing, I can put the accelerator to the floor - it takes about 2-3 seconds to respond. Also, shifting from P to D, it takes 2 seconds to shift into gear (and I notice, if I have my door open, a slight clicking-sound. Any help here?)
Other than that; everything is OK, I THINK I hear a small ticking in the engine, but I'm unsure if that's engine noise and I"m being paranoid, or an issue.
200,000 miles, and I put around 30-40,000 on the car. The only times it left me stranded was once when the fuel-filter was clogged, and when I run outta gas (typical dumb teenager move). My car may very well be another GM, seeing I have two GM vehicles that have both gone over 200,000 without major repairs during at least MY ownership of the vehicle.
For the Do-It-Your-Selfers; you gotta be a skinny S.O.B to fit under this car! Doing my oil-changes I have to put either side of the car on jack-stands (driver and passenger side, behind the front wheels... I have front wheel drive).
Also, considering my engine is sideways, and I have front-wheel drive, the spark plugs on the back of the engine block are difficult to reach. Also, to reach the oil filter conveniently, I had to remove some plastic from the wheel well. Easy to do oil changes, spark wires and plugs aren't a big deal, would hate to do any tranny work considering I'd probably have to pull the engine!
But we shall see what happens, I have considered trading in to get a lower-mileage car, but don't have the money or patience to deal with that at this time. Got more important things to worry about -- like College.
GO Beavers, and happy motoring!
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know
Review Date: 10th January, 2010
11th Jan 2010, 01:04
Actually while it is true transmissions are the weakest link in most cars, the one in the Olds 98/Delta 88 (same as in the Buick Park Avenue/LeSabre and many other GMs of the era) was one of the best - anyway one of the best front-wheel drive transmissions.