Squealing belts, column lock, differential leak, faulty gas guages, noisy fuel pumps, rocking seats, etc. Some of these threads show up at least twice a week. All of them have one thing in common (aside from the column lock). They are all minor annoyances that GM could care less about. Yet they all leave their owners on their own to figure out how to fix it. That is why the forum is great. Maybe GM should take Microsoft's lead and create a fee service to charge poor desperate folks like us big $$$ to fix their own deficiencies. And they can get all of the Technical Tips free from the forum! BRILLIANT! :party:

My wife says that I am way too cynical.... :skep:

 

I don't know Keith...Even though they are common to a lot of folks
and some do happen more than once to some, they're all fixable
and fixed by GM. Outside of the squeaky belt, there are TSB's on
all of them. There are some people who resist letting GM fix the cars.

...George

 

It just seems like these topics come up alot. And, while I completely trust my Dealership's Master Corvette Tech (Mike Arnold), I also like to think that there may be a simpler and cheaper way to fix a problem. Hence the Tech Forum. Our fellow forum members are a very ingenious. And, they are very forthcoming with their experiences and knowledge. For that I am grateful. Maybe we need a new topic on the forum. Something like FAQ's or "Knowledge Share" of known or symptematic problems. Maybe I should create a poll and ask the question at large... :grouphug:

 

I totally agree. My '97 coupe w/49k miles has suffered from many of the very common (yet unexcusable) problems - rocking seats (fixed properly myself for about 50 cents thanks to forum advice), dead passenger window motor/regulator, and bad gas gauge/sending unit. The bigger issue is not that we don't want GM fixing these, we want quality from the factory. These types of issues are clearly a lack of attention to detail that should NEVER exist in a $50k car......(never hear of this BS on a Lexus do you?) In many cases, the replacement parts are apt to fail in the same manner as the original parts. Let's hope the C6 sacks up for the money...

 

It happens on every car. There just is not that much difference. Maybe 20 years ago but not now. I went to a couple of lexus forums (yahoo search) and found several problem posts on one. On the other I found service bulletins for front suspension buzz noise, moon roof wind throb, squeak and rattle fixes, Nakamichi radio inoperative, steering wheel noise and smoothness improvement, front brake noise (groaning, squealing), false diagnostic trouble codes, power moon roof motor, shudder during 2-3 shift, rattle noise from A/C lines, exhaust rattle, A/C condenser fan corrosion, transmission fluid leak, condensation in headlamps, front brake vibration, gas cap sticks on, spring clicking noises, front stabilizer bar abnormal noise, steering wheel difficult to release from full down, etc.

From what I see on the internet it looks like they are a piece of sh**** and people should stay away from them.

Bill

 

I agree Bill. The Lexus is a highly overrated car. I also laugh at the snobby english guy in the commercials, that should be a "sucker clue."

 

Well you have to look at the fact that nobody gets on the internet bitching about nothing being wrong with thier car. We see these problems all the time and it seems like a lot, but compared to all the people out there driving C5's it's probably not a real big percentage. People only voice thier opinions or ask for help if they're having a problem. I think the corvette is a very reliable car. Every car has problems.

My other baby is a Honda VFR motorcycle. Honda's are known throughout the motorcycle community as being the most reliable motorcycle you can buy. I'm on a VFR mailing list simillar to this forum and I'm constantly seeing problems about Voltage regulator failures. I've seen that problem happen to one person I know, and the dealerships see it once in a great while. Everyone's pissed off at honda and how they should do something about it. I'm not gonna keep a spare under the seat.

My point is that the internet gives a lot of people free speech and I think we're going to hear about simillar problems on any piece of equipment no matter what the price point. I can only immagine the things that would pop up on the ferrari forums if people drove them more than 1000 miles a year.

Now I'm gonna go put on my flame suit
Luke :)

 

With all those pain in the you know where problems we as the consumer pay too much to have these problems. Sure these fixes may seem minor to some of us but again, the money we fork out to buy them you would think GM would back their product correct these problems .
Just my $.02 :cheers:

 

Bill Dearborn said:

It happens on every car. There just is not that much difference.

I totally agree, look at the Porsche forums .... complaints of blown engines in the 996 series of the 911 ... look at the BMW forums ... all kinds of complaints .... you really want some grins, read the Jaguar forums ... all of the carmakers are battling the fact that the complexity and faster development cycles for these cars make it harder and harder to produce a "perfect" car, especially when dealing in the volume that they do.

And bad dealer service isn't a Chevy exclusive either. I belong to the BMW club and the stories some of these guys tell would make a Chevy dealer smile.

My favorite is the guy who takes his 7 Series ($$$$) car in on a Monday morning to get them to fix a squeak every time he turns right. Dealer calls him that afternoon and says there are a couple of recalls on the car, and they want to do those at the same time. Fine, he says. They keep the car until Wednesday afternoon (waiting for parts) and call him to tell him car is ready to pick up. He goes to dealer and as he's signing the papers, Service Manager says "We road tested it and noticed a squeak when you turn right, we should look at that the next time you bring it in ....."

He leaves car (after letting them know what he thought of them), and finally Friday afternoon they tell him it is fixed. He goes to dealer, signs papers, they tell him it is definately fixed ... they've road tested it and it is good ... he leaves dealership and at the first right turn ..... SQUEAK !!! :mad

Enjoy the fact that for all its problems, the Corvette is just one great car !!

Steve

 

Funny you mention the Ferrari forums. I have been tracking some of them to get a feel for what goes on with Ferrari. I occasionally toy with the notion of getting one instead of another 'Vette. Not after seeing the C6!
Anyhow, most of the postings reek of " my Ferrari this and my Ferrari that".
It's kinda sickening. Some of the forums charge $100 just to join. :skep:
When you come to the C5 tech forum it's obvious that 'Vette owners are "roll up your sleeves and get to it" people. No :bs here Guido. If weve got a problem we dont have any bones about sharing it.
Good point about the 1000 miles a year for Ferrari's. At $8,000 a tune up at 35K miles I'd be keepin the b*tch (excuse me - queen) in the garage also. I wouldnt be doin any complaining to forums or dealerships either so as not to jeopardize my resale value. :thumbs:

Here's to 'Vette owners. :cheers: