1995 Oldsmobile Aurora 4.0 V8 from North America

Summary:

The Olds Aurora is an expensive-to-fix, problematic near luxury car

Faults:

The fuel pump went at 128,000 miles.

Car slammed into reverse on occasion.

Rear shocks went at 138,000 miles causing the car to swerve unexpectedly at times.

Driver's side inner tie rod was replaced at 135,000 lies.

There was a decrease in power around 130,000, like it was running on 7 cylinders; it's probably the computer as described in the other reviews.

Flywheel broke at 142,000 miles, now it's someone else's problem.

General Comments:

When I first bought the car, I was impressed by its ride, handling, fuel economy (about 23 mpg), and looks.

However, after spending over $600 (the pump alone was over $400), to replace the fuel pump, I was quickly turned from my love of the car.

I then spent $400 on having brake pads and 2 rotors installed, $300 on replacing an inner tie rod, and returned the pair of $300 rear shocks which were a dealer item only and had the wrong fitting for the air suspension tube.

After the flywheel broke, I reviewed the service manual and found that the trans-axle must be removed to replace the flywheel, because the flywheel is bowl shaped and there is no way to reach the bolts connecting it to the crankshaft.

I priced a flywheel for the car at $210 and estimated about 10 hours of labor at $100 per hour for an estimate of about $1200; that's when I decided to make it someone else's problem.

I donated the disabled thing.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 17th March, 2004

26th Aug 2004, 08:00

There is a recall on the 1996-1997 Auroras for the leaking fuel line - see the NHTSA web site - www.safercar.gov/Vehicle+Owners. It's recall campaign ID #04V110000.

I have a 1995 with the exact recall problem that GM refuses to pay to fix. The 1995 year was originally included in the draft recall, and then magically excluded once the final version of the recall was issued to dealers.

Call GM at 1-800-630-6537 to inquire and to register a complaint. Also call the NHTSA to complain if GM offers no relief - 1-888-327-4236.

GM needs to take responsibility for these problems, and not leave owners holding the bag for a defective product that is potentially a flaming fireball on wheels!

5th Jul 2006, 10:24

I owned a 95 olds aurora right up until last week. I bought mine about 2 years ago.

All the comments that you see on here that say it's a great near-luxury, but expensive to maintain car, is right on the money.

The aurora drives beautifully and is comfortable. I found that the features of this car compare to most beamers where features are concerned e.g. memory seats, air seats, computer diagnostic, etc.

It's quick and sporty - fun to drive - very smooth.

The bad part - water pump went out and the tool to fix it cost 3 times more than the part. Not very fuel efficient (but what do you expect for 8 cylinders??? you can't have the power for free!). Doesn't handle very well on wet or snow covered roads. Any part that it needed cost an arm and a leg with the exception of minor repairs like brakes and rotors, but even the tires designed to go on this car run anywhere from $75 to $120 per tire.

I loved that car for it's luxury and comfortability, but had to sell because I could not afford to maintain it anymore.

I still can't say that I wouldn't someday wanna own another Aurora, it's a rare car that many people don't have or know about, it's a beauty to look at, a dream to ride in, and it gave a stang or two a run for their money!

1995 Oldsmobile Aurora 4.0 V8 from North America

Summary:

Great car with some power train issues

Faults:

The first things that went wrong with it are the Oxygen sensors, Throttle Position Sensor when I first got the car. After a 1000 mile trip it started to miss and lack acceleration, so I put the tester on it. The readings made no sence so I called the dealer. It acted like it missing. It said I was running, temp wise, at 115 f. I knew it was not and it seemed to be quite hot, the fans would not come on. The dealer said it was most likely the Power Train control module. I have a spare PCM rebuilt that came with the car, but it needs to calibrated to the car. Does anyone know how to do this or is this something I should let the dealer do? The car is at the dealer today being checked.

General Comments:

The information I've gathered so far from this posting area is that the Control Module is an issue with this car, Should I be looking for a root cause for the failure of the Control Module like the alternator or is it just the Control Module decides to go it just goes? I really like the ride, drive, power and comfort of the car. If this is a way of life for this particular model I would appreciate some input. I only paid $3900 for it. It has an engine with 48K on it and a transmission that was replaced at 60k by the dealer. The interior is almost spotless. So if this fixes it I would like to keep it, but if this is just the start of the issues?!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 8th March, 2004

25th Dec 2007, 14:01

My parents bought a 1995 Aurora used. The traction off light has always had problems, so when they got tired of it I decided to fix it. In the process I learned that unlike any other GM vehicle, you must have a tech 1 to clear codes. 3 shops and 3 dealers have looked and all decided to replace parts until the problem left. Parts are unavailable. The shop manual is a 2 volume nightmare that sends you back and forth to between books for one problem. No wonder this car could not save Oldsmobile.