The Most Common Alero Problem
We've pulled together a list of the problems Alero owners.
How Reliable is the Oldsmobile Alero?
Alero owners have made 960 complaints over 6 model years. It ranks dead last in reliability out of 12 eligible Oldsmobile models.
Our reliability rank is based on our PainRank™ system. A higher number means you can expect more significant problems. The average Oldsmobile score is 3.73 while the Alero comes in at 17.93.
What Alero Owners Complain About
Sometimes it helps just to tally up the complaints and see where the biggest stacks are. Use this information to learn about troublespots or to run for the hills.
Worst Issues
What Breaks
- Engine 322 (100%)
- Electrical 297 (92%)
- Interior 148 (46%)
- Windows 62 (19%)
- Cooling System 50 (16%)
Alero Generations
Generations are groups of model years where few, if any, changes were made to the vehicle which means their model years tend to break in similar ways. The Alero has 1 generation available in North American markets.
Alero Key Numbers
960 complaints
Running tally of owner grievances filed to CarComplaints.com.
551 service bulletins
Documenting the process of troubleshooting common problems.
7 recall campaigns
Time-sensitive, free repairs for widespread safety problems.
Recent Alero News
There's a lot of news out there, but not all of it matters. We try to boil down it to the most important bits about things that actually help you with your car problem. Interested in getting these stories in an email? Signup for free email alerts over at CarComplaints.com.
combined
population of New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Montana, Delaware, South Dakota, Alaska, North Dakota, Vermont (Yes, there are people -- not just cows -- in VT) and Wyoming.
- The number of calories my Uncle Hank ate over the holiday weekend. Seriously, that man is a bottomless pit.
- 1997-2005 Chevrolet Malibu
- 1998-2002 Oldsmobile Intrigue
- 1999-2004 Oldsmobile Alero
- 1999-2005 Pontiac Grand Am
- 2000-2005 Chevrolet Impala
- 2000-2005 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
- 2004-2008 Pontiac Grand Prix
- GM has not announced when the recall will begin
It should be in the next couple months but it's probably hard to gauge when you have 29 million vehicles in your repair queue. - Keep an eye on your mailbox for an official recall notice with more details
Not literally, though. Putting your eye on the mailbox sounds painful and will probably worry the neighbors. - GM is stressing the importance of removing all items from your key ring, leaving only the vehicle key
At least until your ignition is fixed. Sorry bowling league keychain -- you have to go.
According to GM, this latest round of problems involves mostly ignition switch related issues that are responsible for at least 7 crashes, 8 injuries and 3 deaths. The full list and details can be found here.
Unintended Key Rotation ∞
The largest part of the recall involves 7.6 million vehicles that suffer from, what GM is calling, "unintended ignition key rotation." Of course, there's another name for that too -- "unintended holy %$#! my car just shut itself off on the highway." This is dangerous and affects a wide range of cars: