Faults:
1.) Air Conditioner died after 2nd year of ownership.
2.) Radiator Core rotted out - Needed replacement to the tune of ~$490.
3.) Carb needed to be cleaned every summer, rebuilt every 2 years.
4.) A couple Steering Column parts needed replacement.
5.) After year 20 (2005) the front-right brake line nut rusted, snapped, and the brakes went out (lost pressure) on the freeway and almost killed me. The front-right brake line was repaired the system re-pressurized, and all was good... Until the front-left one went out on me during rush-hour traffic. Once again, almost got into a major accident.
6.) Valve Cover gasket started leaking oil after 85,000 miles.
7.) Transmission started dying after 106,000 miles. First reverse quit working. Then the forward gears started to slip/die.
8.) 19-year-old exhaust system finally rusted out, and needed replacement in 2004. The ENTIRE exhaust system. Thankfully I had the tools & shop to do it myself for only a couple hundred bucks.
9.) Interior trim items started falling apart.
... Too many things to write here...
My previous vehicle was also a GM vehicle. I think after these two I have had enough of American Made cars!
General Comments:
EXPENSIVE gas & oil consumption! 12 mpg City / 17 mpg Highway (on a GOOD day)...
On the positive side, the Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Brougham was a TANK! It saved my LIFE! I don't think there's a SAFER, more SOLIDLY BUILT passenger car in the world.
On a highway, an old man in a Volvo V70 pulled in front of me (he was running a stop light) and I plowed into the side of his car. $2000 damage to the olds, but it was fixable; $24,000 damage to the Volvo -> Totalled.
The olds cut through the Station wagon like a knife through butter. Forget the "Passenger Safety Cage" that Volvo raves about in their ads. My olds sheered straight thru it (Impact at only 35 MPH), the engine was smashed off its mounts and shot out the other side of the car and slid 10 ft across the intersection. The car was obliterated and I was thankful (and lucky) that nobody was injured. The passenger was almost hurt, as their dash board was about 2 inches from pinning them to their seats. They tilted the seats back and crawled out the back hatch door to safety. Otherwise they'd have been stuck.
The car slipped & fishtailed on slick roads or snow, but once you get used to rear-wheel drive it's not a problem, and can be a bit of fun.
13th Feb 2008, 15:09
410 HP from a 307? You must be smoking some funny cigarettes!