What a Joke! GM and its latest recall.

[tulenutn2o]

I bought a new truck last year to replace my 94 ranger with 250,000 miles on it. Used no oil and had not required anything other than general maintence and wear items such as, starter, brakes, alt, belts. And yes, I bought another ranger.( this is a parts chaser). What I wanted was the simplest, most reasonably priced, proven vehicle I could get. I do not like the electronics in any new vehicle. Takes the ability of the average shade tree mechanic to fix something on the road. My old 77 f150 4x4 with 400, 4 spd gets 14.5 mpg and has power to pull, whereas the 5.4 powered truck gets 13 and couldn't pull me off a bar stool. Frankly, the only option I ever require is a/c. But try finding a vehicle with only that option without special order at big $$$. For the record, I have little faith that this 09 ranger will surpass, or even measure up to the longevity of the 94. I didn't even consider GM, partly because of the Bankruptsy issue, and because I have seen too many electrical part failures, etc. I have seen how well our government runs things, now they have a hand in GM, scary times, indeed.

 

[JD755]

. But try finding a vehicle with only that option without special order at big $$$. .

Not sure what you mean here. I have special ordered all my vehicles. It costs no more to order one. I get exactly what I want, no more and no less. The dealer makes his profit without it sitting on his lot. Since I keep my vehicles 12 to 15 years I never mind waiting a month or so for it to come in. You may have meant something else so sorry if I got it wrong and have a great day!

 

[tulenutn2o]

Costs no more than what? I would agree if you pay sticker or msrp. But, if you order, no deals from manufacturer. Most already know that msrp are inflated.In other words you are paying more than you have to. That has been my observation over the last 40+ years. I never buy vehicles in same model year as introduced either. I lets the wow factor wane......... But, back to my point, try buying a new vehicle that you can repair yourself......alongside the road. Good luck. Roadside assist is fine, if you want to wait, god knows how long, and if you have phone service.(as long as vehicle is under warranty). A simple point A to B vehicle would be nice. That's probably why I like my old ford, motorcycle, and Olds. 52 p.u. is good too, but I catch too much bull(it's a Chevy) OOPS! not supposed to call them that anymore.

 

[ray66v]

Actually, no, they used to be, back in the old, old days of yore.

Now they merely design, buy parts from contract suppliers and assemble. The amount of "in house" manufactured parts is minuscule. AC/Delco is gone with the wind. Part of the reason GM only employs a small fraction of workers they once did.

Yes, they split off a bunch of their parts companies. But, they still make parts. And, if a part is not made in house, that doesn't change anything.

Big corporations are know for being very heavy handed with their suppliers. They have the power to get what they want.

GM also has lots of idle space, equipment, and workers, all over the world. So do a lot of independent manufacturers.

We had a company here in the Cleveland area, go from an empty building, to a building full of people producing oil skimmers, for the gulf, in 2 weeks.

Bottom line, If GM wanted a new harness, they would have.

 

[JD755]

Costs no more than what? I would agree if you pay sticker or msrp. But, if you order, no deals from manufacturer. Most already know that msrp are inflated.In other words you are paying more than you have to. That has been my observation over the last 40+ years. I never buy vehicles in same model year as introduced either. I lets the wow factor wane......... But, back to my point, try buying a new vehicle that you can repair yourself......alongside the road. Good luck. Roadside assist is fine, if you want to wait, god knows how long, and if you have phone service.(as long as vehicle is under warranty). A simple point A to B vehicle would be nice. That's probably why I like my old ford, motorcycle, and Olds. 52 p.u. is good too, but I catch too much bull(it's a Chevy) OOPS! not supposed to call them that anymore.

I have been ordering new vehicles for 40 years and have never paid anywhere close to msrp. I always pay dealer invoice or less They give me a copy when I ask. The dealer makes his profit from the end of month rebate they get from the factory for each sold vehicle. I have done this at several different dealers. You just have to negotiate. I know a lot of people who think ordering costs more so they don't bother. It does not cost more and there is no reason it should. It is cheaper for the dealer because he is not paying financing costs for that vehicle to sit on his lot while he waits for someone to buy it.

 

[tulenutn2o]

JD755: Seems like if the dealer is making money for sure, they wouldn't need salesmen. I've felt this way along time. Can't stand car dealers. Set price, with a profit margin, and be done with it, Trouble is, they want to make big bonuses off every one they can. I don't pay msrp either, but I also don't feel the value is anything close to what vehicles are still selling for. Although I got a couple of New vehicles now, I don't see myself buying another til I'm too old to drive.:laughing:With all the new parts I can get for my old ones, I will keep them going.

 

[CurlyDave]

I know the chance is few and far between but if it was to catch fire in your garage and burn down your home you would be up the creek without a paddle.

I am not quite so certain that is the case.

I know from experience that if someone negligently causes a fire that destroys my house my homeowner's insurance is still on the hook to pay on the policy I have. Now they have recourse against the negligent person in court, but that is something decided by the court and the law.

My suspicion is that fire insurance would pay off and then it would be Allstate, State Farm, or whoever against General Motors in court. Deep pockets on all sides. Get out the popcorn and watch the show.

 

[mjncad]

The most horrific Ford defect of all was the exploding fuel tank on the crown Victoria.

Don't forget the GM firebomb pickups with the saddle tanks outside the frame rails.

While I don't want to downplay the GM recall, if you read the article, there's been a whopping 5 fires reported in 1.4 million affected vehicles. That's less than .00001% of their vehicles. No injuries, crashes or deaths.

"GM said it was aware of five fires but there had been no injuries or crashes reported. Nearly 1.4 million vehicles are in the U.S. and more than 100,000 vehicles are in [COLOR=#366388! important][COLOR=#366388! important]Canada[/color][/color], Mexico and other international markets.
"While our analysis shows the number of incidents is very small compared with the number of vehicles on the road, we want our customers to have complete peace of mind," said Jeff Boyer, GM's executive director of safety."

In other words they're happy to hand out taxpayer money to avoid a potential lawsuit.

Costs no more than what? I would agree if you pay sticker or msrp. But, if you order, no deals from manufacturer.

When I ordered my F-250, I got it for less than what Edmunds said I should I should pay for it. Thanks to the Internet, I knew upfront what the truck cost the dealer, and I flat out told the salesman, "I want a truck, I do NOT NEED a truck. Give me your best price right off the bat and we'll either do paperwork, or I'll walk out of here." I can't stand car dealers; but thanks to the Internet, the playing field is more level now.

It is cheaper for the dealer because he is not paying financing costs for that vehicle to sit on his lot while he waits for someone to buy it.

Yep!

 

[Builder]

Don't forget the GM firebomb pickups with the saddle tanks outside the frame rails.

Which was nothing more than a witch hunt by Diane Sawyer on Dateline NBC or whatever liberal biased news media outlet she was working for at the time.

I remember the program. They tried & tried to ignite the tanks with fireworks and in the end only made themselves look like a stupid.

For Ford to continually to produce a police & family vehicle that killed 12 policemen in the line of duty and 26 people in the most horrific way possible to die is a heck of a lot more serious than a wire that statistically has a .00001% chance of melting (5 cases in 1.2 million vehicles). Also, to date this faulty wire has caused no injuries or accidents. :laughing::laughing:

It's like comparing the Hiroshima atomic bomb to a firecracker. :laughing:

But let's not talk about or warn others of the fireball Crown Vic. Let's hammer GM for a wire that has melted in 5 of 1.2 million vehicles and caused no injuries. :laughing:

 

[Bird]

I've always been amazed that we never hear anything about old pickups that had the gas tank behind the front seat.

Yep, we had that many, many years. My dad, my granddad, and I all owned such at different times. But none of us crashed ours.