11th Feb 2007, 14:12

I'm both relieved and annoyed to find almost all of the comments here are on-point with the problems I've been having. I'm relieved to find out the salesman friend of the family isn't dishonest, and annoyed to find that GM won't take care of these obviously widespread issues.

My 2001 GL1 model suffers from:

1. Shattered plastic clips that hold the drivers side window onto the regulator assembly.

2. Cosmetic damage from normal usage (radio and other buttons labels "rubbed off"

3. Blower does not work below level 2.

4. Pass-Lock system engaging for no reason, requiring a ten minute reset. (I ran into a fellow Alero owner in a parking lot with her hood open, and her trouble was solved by the same reset sequence. The dealer told her it was the fuel pump, but we got the car going before the wrecker arrived.)

5. The fuel pump went at around 100K miles (I'm not sure if this is abnormal though.) Another thing: My local dealership quoted 1200+ for the repair - my father picked up the fuel pump from an *another* Oldsmobile dealer for under 300 bucks, and we installed it in three hours with a few beer breaks. Think about it - even at $100 per hour in labor charges, there is *no way* that job costs $1200.

6. Brake squeals less than three months after having pads and rotors replaced.

Additionally, my cruise control quit working unless the button is held down. I wedged a gum wrapper between the button and surrounding trim to keep the button in since I use the CC everyday - most of my 116K of mileage is all highway.

However, I will say that the dashboard has not suffered any shrinkage - but the drivers side right-hand "wing" of the seat has become collapsed and deformed after less than a year.

The biggest disappointment? I actually gave up my 10 year old Nissan *in perfect condition* to "Buy American".

21st Feb 2007, 17:49

I have an 2000 Olds Alero and for the most part it has been a pretty good car. I have 145K miles on it the only major problem I have had is that the fuel pump has failed twice.

I have had the normal maintenance on it and the service team haven't noticed anything abnormal during those services.

Like some have stated above, I have noticed that the turn signal blinks rapidly and the workaround is to press the hazards for a few seconds and it will correct the rapid blinkers (lol). The service team stated that they could replace the module for it, but it not a big deal for the price they quoted. If it ever fails, I will buy that module not big deal for now.

The one thing that I have noticed that I concerns me is that the service engine soon keeps coming on every 300 miles or so. The service team told me to get a new gas cap so, I purchased that from Auto-zone, but that still didn't fix the issue. I plan to take in again to see if the service team can find anything, but the last two times, they didn't and just disconnected the battery for 3 ~ 4 hours to reset the light.

Has anyone had this problem with service engine soon light and the service team couldn't determine the issue as well?

23rd Feb 2007, 19:02

I've had most of the problems mentioned above. I replace brakes and rotors every few months. The fan would not blow below two then finally would only blow on high. That was actually a cheap fix. The cruise control does not work unless the button is held in. The trac light comes on at times. I have had transmission problems also. The RPM's routinely go up to around 4K for no reason. The rear window defroster doesn't work. The passenger side window makes a noise when going up or down. The air conditioner quit, a leak up near the dash. It's about a 2.00 part, but will be over 1000 to fix it. I called GM and complained when I had transmission problems, but they wouldn't help although they promised to send me a coupon for a free oil change, which I have yet to receive. I will probably never own another GM because of this car, but if I do it the reason will be due solely to the service I have received at my GM dealer. They have been great - - of course I'm a consistent customer.

19th Mar 2007, 07:03

I have a 2001 Alero. My problem is the drivers side window. It only works when it is cold out. This works out good in the winter as I live in Minnesota. Once it gets above 30 I can no longer get the window up or down. Has anyone run across this issue? Email me at dwc_76020@yahoo.com.

19th Mar 2007, 22:21

Ah...I see people with the same issues I have with the Alero. I have a 2001 Alero and I'm now on my 2nd window fix. First was the drivers and now the passenger's front need fixed. It cost my $224 the first time, I'm expecting the same the 2nd time around. Very Frustrating!!!

I had a 1979 Delta 88 with electric windows and those worked fine until I got rid of it in 2000 and a 1983 Delta 88 which worked until 2001.

The passenger's airbag cover is popping off, but the most frustrating problem I have now is the hazard/turn signal switch problem. Anyone know how to remove/replace the switch? I saw someone creating a hook-like screwdriver tool.

1st Apr 2007, 00:47

My 2000 Alero has left me stranded at work a few times when the security light came on and it wouldn't start. After going through this a few times, I found that I could start it after waiting 10-15 minutes, but still do not know how I can get this problem resolved. I also have the window problem. Right now my driver's side window does not work at all (I've had it repaired 4 times) and my passengers side window only goes down about 3 inches. My gas gauge does not work. My air conditioner broke last year. My rear defroster stopped working a month ago. The car itself has a strong motor, but all the other things mentioned above make me question GM's quality commitments. If everyone is having the same problems, why are they not recalling faulty equipment?

1st Jul 2007, 14:37

I have a 2003 2 door Alero that is a very good car, but both window motor/regulators have broken again for the second time a piece! Both were covered under warranty the first time. We were surprised when the passenger side window went down again. We have been getting along without it being an operational window for nearly 4 months and now to top it all off, yesterday the driver's side window broke to keep it's brother company.

It's either an unintentional or intentional design flaw. One or the other... It is not my job to figure out which one it is, but it is one of the two. Everyone who is on this website knows it is no coincidence. I didn't have time to read all the replies initiating a GM company recall if one been issued, but I doubt that seroiusly!. I actually think the car is well engineered and one of the best sub-compact cars Oldsmobile has EVER put out. But, the day we test drove the car the fuel filter went out (25K). Those things happen and it turned out to be a good buy for us. But having to deal with the broken windows of your car two times PER window for weeks on end while commuting 50 miles each way to work with no ventilation, way to get fast food, or drive-up prescrips etc. seems harsh to me.

GM is "sweeping it under the carpet" with this addressing the problem.

If anybody has any information regarding how to initiate this recall, please post it so we can join together and make an appeal to GM. it would be greatly appreciated.

Travis from WA.