[quote=Rt.66]Just don’t buy a Toyota Hybrid until you search the term “Toyota hybrid system failure” Now there’s some good electrical system failure reading!
Here’s a good one:
“On June 13th, 2008 I was traveling in my 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid on interstate 15 between Las Vegas & Barstow, CA when suddenly, without warning, my car lost power and effectively shut down. On the dash the warning “Hybrid system failure” appeared. After easing my car off the freeway I observed smoke coming from under the hood and within minutes a small flame appeared from under the engine compartment. I watched, helpless, as the car became engulfed in flames and was destroyed” http://getsatisfaction.com/toyota/topics/my_camry_hybrid_caught_fire_and_toyota_doesnt_care
Just a taste:
“THE DASHBOARD STARTED SMOKING WHERE THE AIR CONDITIONING UNIT/ THE NAVIGATION DEVICE/ STEREO SYSTEM, AND OTHER ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS WERE MOUNTED”
&
“WHILE DRIVING 45 MPH CONSUMER NOTICED THAT THE BATTERY AND BRAKE LIGHT APPEARED ON THE DASHBOARD AND REMAINED ON. CONSUMER APPLIED THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL AND THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE. VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR INSPECTION, AND MECHANIC DETERMINED THAT THE ALTERNATOR AND BATTERY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED, AND REPLACED THEM. HOWEVER, THE PROBLEM RECURRED. *AK PE04077_CAT”
That sounds fun, especially the “problem recurred” part.
Rt66, with that said, you probably shouldn’t buy a Camaro either…In production for less than a few months and already two recalls, one concerning a broken driveshaft. Transmission is from gentrac which makes transmissions for vipers and vette…So that’ definitely interesting.
Also, there’s “68 things to watch out for in purchasing a Camaro” list floating around…For every example of shoddy work you mention as “data” to back up arguments for why you shouldn’t buy an import, one can find several more examples at the equivalent ford,gm,chrysler.
Anyway, given that the camaro is a V0.9 beta product, and the fact that several GM dealers are marking up the camaro up to $8k above msrp (you think they would be sort of humbler these days), I’d say pass on year 1 and year 2 of this car unless you are hardcore fanatic, just like there are folks that will swear by the prius.
Not sure how effective you think you really think you’ll be by posting about reasons not to buy popular import products in trying to convince people to buy american.
Anyway here’s the list of the camaro issues being reported…It also does not include the first recall for the battery wiring and the recent broken driveshaft problems being reported on the SS.
Some Camaro fans at Camaro5 have put together a list of owner-submitted things to watch out for with the new Camaro. Although they point out that not every other Camaro that rolls off the line is a bucket of fail—this isn’t the Xbox 360, after all—there do seem to be enough first year production issues that you should inspect the vehicle very carefully before leaving the dealership.
***IMPORTANT NOTE*** The following list is compiled from various individuals who are mostly experiencing isolated incidents. These are not issues every individual is having with their Camaro. Again, these are ISOLATED incidents that have mostly occurred to single individuals. By the accounts of owners on this site, most Camaros that have been delivered have been without problems. Please keep in mind that every first year production vehicle has more issues than later production years. This list is meant to serve as a comprehensive (perhaps overly) checklist of things to check for upon delivery, and should not be interpreted as widespread quality-control issues with the 2010 Camaro.
Also note: This list is mainly a checklist for things wrong that a dealer can immediately fix. A broken transmission or bad drive-shaft from dropping the hammer on this beast is something that they won’t know until it actually happens. Thank you for submitting all your issues.
001. Loose Bolts that hold fluid back causing leaks (ex: on oil pan, tranny fluid)
002. Trunk Locking mechanism (issues with opening w/o adding down pressure to top of trunk first and/or emergency release appears to be loose keeping the trunk from locking properly)
003. Loose plastic paneling around the 4-gauges cluster, launch control, cigarette power plug as well as Left and Right A-Pillars Trim Loose, sill trim loose, and dash pannel where doors and dash meet popping open.
004. Loose Spoiler/installed correctly (Re-torque Spoiler bolts)
005. Wiper transmission cable overheating from engine causing a short circuit.
006. Matching Headlight Halos strength. (one defective being dimmer then the other).
007. Mismatched paint on parts of the vehicle (including gas door). As well as paint runs or clear coat runs. Paint Chips.
008. Loose Rocker Panel “Chevrolet” causing it to peel off.
009. Minor Problem With Window Indexing.
010. Ambient Lighting on doors defective.
011. Bad radiator (leaks).
012. Hood release/latch issues (won’t unhook to open the hood).
013. Gap at base of ONStar Antenna.
014. Battery cable routing near the starter has been done.
015. Digital Speedometer is off. Also keeps going on and off.
016. Bottom pulley shakes and needs replacement per dealer.
017. Broken tranny.
018. Ignition Mechanism Issue with key getting stuck in car.
019. Non RS taillights installed on RS equipped cars (all 4 of them).
020. Rocker Panel aligned with body and clipped in correctly.
021. Bumper rubs with body
022. Trunk opens with switch and remote
023. Correct speedo/tach gauge ring color
023. Ambient lighting on drivers door as bright as passenger door
024. Doors gaps /alignment
025. Dirt/bubbles in rally stripes
026. Door panel not scratched from seat belt.
027. Shift knobs wearing out extremely fast could be faulty material
028. AC system stops blowing cold air in random durations, most likely blockage in AC drainage and/or AC draining into the car instead of beneath it
029. Clunking noise in changing gears
030. Trunk opens with remote and laser cut key
031. USB drive and aux port works
032. Squeaky Breaks
033. GFX installed correctly
034. Rims and tires in good condition (coming off carrier in bad condition/damaged)
035. Check for damage in the interior, basic procedure
036. Check the locking mechanism of both doors
037. Scraping sound for a second when backing up
038. SS emblem on trunk is loose
039. Loose interior windshield trim loose
040. The front GFX lip is not coming loose at the double sided tape
041. The front passenger brake rotors are not wearing with a dark colored groove
042. Hood latch handle on inside of cab doesn’t retract properly (just hangs)
043. Scratches in seats
044. Oil cooler leaking
045. Once in every 10-15 times I unlock the car, the drivers side door is still locked, while
the locking knob on the door is in the “up” position
046. Faulty as gauge (improper readings)
047. Missing paint around the headlights
048. Bleed screw on clutch slave cylinder loose
049. Stickers on rockers peelin
050. Scratches on window pillars
051. Misaligned body & door panels as well as hood not centered properly (more to one side then the other)
052. Alignment of doors to dash interior the door interior seems to sag below the dash interior
053. Drivers side roof light( the one with the toggle switch) only works when its toggled over to the passenger side
054. Door sill decals peeling up
055. Paint swirls in driver/passenger door
056. Drive-shaft connection to the differential cracking when dropping the clutch
057. Tach Needle Sticking
058. Wiper motor wiring comes through bottom of the cowling-well in front of the driver. (The fix (decided upon between the dealer and myself) was to re-insulate the wires, cover the harness with a hard, slick plastic covering, drill a small hole in the bottom of the cowling-well (fill the hole with silicone) and use a cable tie down like the rest of the wiper harness uses to secure the harness to the floor of the cowling (the grommet will collapse downward with little force), far away from harm from the wiper arms.)
059. engine makes continuous clicking noise, starting roughly 5 seconds after engine starts
060. Door Sill plates wrinkled on outside edges (both sides)
061. Trunk gasket at bottom of rear window coming off
062. Uneven Dash (driver’s side dash is lower then passenger’s side)
063. Passenger/Driver’s side Fender alignment off. (wheel cover well had to come off, then loosen fender bolt, and it pops right in place)
064. Key won’t stay in folded position
065. Faulty Tail lights.
066. Weather stripping at back of rear windows loose (I can literally grab and peel it back).
067. Missing or peeling paint between trunk lid and spoiler (right rear section)-could possibly spread over time down the trunk lid.
068. Driver’s seat makes clicking noises when set all the way back.
I have to ask, even if some of these are isolated incidents, which I believe they are, why are they slipping through the cracks at dealers during pre-inspection delivery????? If I were a GM dealer and GM, I’d be going though every single delivered Camaro with a fine tooth comb…Just because there is so much riding on this car in this environment. Fact is GM/GM dealers are going to work twice as hard to win back consumer confidence and every screwup is going to cost GM/GM dealers twice as much in consumer confidence.
We’ll, good news though…You can blame some of these screwups on Canadians auto workers, where they are assembled 🙂
