I wasn't all that surprised about the plant closings. I've been watching the automotive markets for some time. And there are lots of underlying problems. Seems between poor product planning, poor reliability and cheap-ish materials like hard, brittle plastics and fake plastic chrome...All the past issues and tarnished reputations...well...it was inevitable. Buyer's remorse is a very powerful reaction and I feel too many of Ford's, GM's and FCA's (ESPECIALLY FCA) products have been pretty awful.

Like when I test drove the Cruz against the Mazda3 2.5L manual...no contest. The Cruze felt like a tin box. The Mz3 felt like an entry level Audi3. And it came as a hatchback. So I get near CUV utility with incredible handling, braking and an interior rivaling a European car without the problems and issues. For well under $20K. It reminded me of the same comparison I made between a Ford Escort GT and Nissan Sentra SE-R. Again, it was no contest. The SE-R was superior in every way. Both the Cruz and Escort felt agricultural and cheap in comparison.

That being said, my 2013 Z06 is very much the opposite. Though the interior is very business like and not plush, after nearly 70K miles of use, it's holding up very well. And driving wise, the car still feels new. I've had zero mechanical or electrical issues. It's been 100% reliable. The panel gaps are all nice and even. There are 'price point' issues. But, they're small and one can tell most of the $$$ was spent on the drivetrain.

'm very interested in the C8 as it'll be a true competitor to the Euro confections. My GM Buying power card is very busy. I'm hoping by the 3rd model year, most of the bugs and disasters will be worked out. But, being a totally new platform, who knows? Being an early adopter, imho, is NOT the hot tip. But, compared to my IROC, Citation X-11 and Cavalier...It's been a revelation. I just hope the new car won't have the 2014 teething issues the C7 had. We shall see...

Meantime, Mary Barra really must step up the quality of materials, quality control as well as reliability issues of their products in general. They really need to make products that'll make the Germans, Japanese and now, the Koreans, take notice. Else wise, they'll eventually go the way of the extinct.

 

Please, enlighten me on the "teething issues" that the '14 had.

 

 

Chances are, any person reading this works for a corporation. Corporation means cut cost at year's end to beef up financial standing, EBITDA, so stock values are looking good for the annual report/wall street BS... it's the yearly dance they all do (ALL OF THEM!!!!!). Once the investing idiot public stops their greed fueled-salivation on bank statements, they will drone on back to investing in anything with a marketing flair and your precious wittle corvette will be back where it was. If you own a Corvette, you'd be happy to see it slow down or come to a partial stop; am I the only person that understands "supply/demand" conceptualization, here? I guess so...

 

True, but there were no major mechanical problems w/ the intro '14. The problems you mention above continued well past the first MY, and most weren't significantly addressed until November, 2018 after the new paint plant opened. The real problem was inconsistency. The fit, finish, and panels were fine on some cars and not so good on others.

2015 brought new mechanical problems with the introduction of the A8 transmission, and those continued through several MYs.

 

When I was with the local club, everyone who bought a new '14 had issues with panel gap alignment, paint, infotainment module failures (the screen would just go blank), differential and transmission leaks galore, interior peeling of adhesives...Consumer Reports showed a decrease of reliability of about 178% overall. When I was at a reveal, I took pictures of the panel mis-alignments. Compared to the Lexus's on the other side of the showroom, it was quite striking.

I even heard rumors the middle managers at the BGK plant were forcing the signing off of a lot of this stuff much to the chagrin of the workers. So much so, the plant workers were threatening to strike. Not for more money. But, they were actually embarrassed about what they were being forced to allow to ship out. I don't know if this was really true. But, if it was, good for them!!

 

Agreed... it was sad to see new 2017s on the lot with peeling bumpers and gaps all over the place when GM shows a quality video with the "gap man" who has feeler gauges and "checks every gap". He's just checking for min gap requirement... not uniformity of gap. My 2014 has been mechanically OK... water pump, O2 sensor, and fan assembly. Was mighty annoying to get screwed on the hot rod power tour this year with my dad with a car that overheated and a fan that wouldn't come on after any highway run, then the O2 failed... it was a primary so the car wouldn't ignore it and it would have periods of rough idle. Easy fixes once home (new O2, new Z06 fan assembly with control module), but it was sure a bummer. That said, I have run the car on track number times as an instructor and it's very competent out there and the OEM Z51 brakes (with upgraded pads and fluid) are amazing.

 

Regarding particular car model lines being discontinued, GM is restructuring to meet market demands. Consider the following data...

2012 US Car Market Demand - approximately 48%
2012 US Truck and Crossover Market Demand - approximately 52%

2018 US Car Market Demand approximately 31%
2018 US Truck and Crossover Market Demand - approximately 69%

This has been a steady trend over the last six years and GM is making necessary adjustments.

 

When gas goes back up over $4, it will reverse.

 

Yep, interestingly enough my 14 Z51 was mechanically flawless, but my '18 had a bank 1 primary O2 sensor fail at 1500 miles, with the same symptoms you described. No other problems have been experienced 6K miles later.

However, there's no comparison on paint, panels, and fit. My 14 was OK, but my new plant 18 is a quantum leap better on all 3 dimensions.

 

I can remember back during one of the gas crises in the 1970's, small (relatively) high MPG cars were going for outrageous prices.
One dealer explained "People want economy, no matter how much it costs."

Ford and GM may be setting themselves up for disaster if the market turns back to sedans, especially smaller ones with good quality, and they have... nothing.
It looks like the Asians have really run the domestic makers out of town when it comes to desirable sedans. For the family sedans, we went Japanese several decades ago and never looked back.
GM is big on electric, perhaps they see a future there if gas gets expensive again.

 

I'm pretty sure they're working hard on that very eventuality, which is electric and hybrid small CUVs. Meanwhile, they're going to cash in on the SUV/truck craze for as long as possible.

Contrary to popular belief, they are neither stupid, nor ostriches. They see the future as clearly as anyone can.

 

My first day build '14 (#307) has had 0 mechanical issues and the paint is better than most later '14's and '15's. Maybe the first cars received a bit more scrutiny until the line ramped up. Mine was one of those sent to Nashville for who knows what type of quality or electrical work, as I didn't take delivery until early October. Many of the recurring problems owners are experiencing are after the '14's.

 

It's already over $4 a gallon in Kalifornia. No one seems to care.

 

Has the quality really improved since the 14's? I looked at a 2019, and the interior fit was crap, and this brand new car didn't even make it out of the parking lot without the roof squeaking. That embarrassing.

 

I have a '17 Z06 with perfect interior quality and no creaking roof so don't know what was wrong with the '19 you looked at, but maybe you should have looked at another one on the lot rather than slamming the entire brand for one bad example.