Faults:
Rear transverse composite spring.
Rear struts (one set defective from auto parts).
Battery (normal).
ABS motor pack sensor, still not working... bad year for ABS on this car.
Turn signal switch (also a bad year).
Burns thru brakes after 20 to 25,000 miles, but probably due to how fast I drive this thing.
Air conditioner toasted in 1999.
Drivers outside door handle broke (cast aluminum) and window motor fried and the parts are all internal inside the door panel, that is a bear to try fix. Another poor design.
Rear passenger door lock has never worked.
Glove box latch broke.
Hood release pull inside the car broke completely.
Alternator failed.
Tie rods are getting loose now at 129,000 miles.
General Comments:
Great motor in this car. They put together a great motor and tranny with this car. Has a lot of power that I still love to hammer on. It has only stranded me once at 65,000 miles - the alternator toasted and it died on the side of the road.
The interior trim and functional parts are poorly made. The design seems to be adequate, but the manufacture and longevity of the parts suck. The doors are especially poor because they use many plastic fasteners that wear out after 100,000 miles. Can GM ever fix their window motor problems? The rear struts with the fiberglass composite leaf spring is a joke! What the heck were they thinking? That cost me $100 for the part at the junkyard and $200 to have it put in.
Overall though this has been the most reliable car I have ever owned. Well worth the price of $10,700 when I bought it with 36,000 miles on it.
2nd Jul 2010, 15:13
I have a 1994 3.4. It has 175000 kilometers. If you get a good service manual and have any mechanical skills, it is not hard to work on, and I will take its race bred power over 3.1 any day. It even beats the Mustang GT of that era. I love mine.