I bought a 2000 model astro van in march this year.
Since new it has suffered from brakes that allow the driver side front wheel to seize when braking, this vehicle has ABS, this system does not work. When the dealership WESTWOOD CHEV OLDS in Mississauga examined the vehicle, they returned it two days later claiming that nothing is wrong and that my experiences were incorrect, I should point out that these experiences include having the driver side front brake seize causing a full 360 degree spin.
We asked Westwood Chev to fix the front passenger door which was out of alignment by over an inch, they achieved this by buckling the door frame worsening the problem. They claim this is acceptable under the GM warranty.
The driver side door rubbed the roof line causing paint wear and difficulty in closing the door, the solution again described as prescribed under the warranty, was to take a grinder to the metal on the roof line, if you think this sounds ugly you would be right.
The body of the vehicle sits over one inch higher on the driver side than on the passenger side, this gain we are told is within spec.
Recently the steering has taken to seizing at the same time as the front brake, thus ensuring no brakes and no steering.
The vehicle came back from the service with massive wear marks on the driver side part of the sway bar, these wear marks have been caused by a tire rubbing on it. This was not a worry to this dealership. This evening my wife and I had the experience of sliding out of control brakes locked and steering seized. The dealership treats us with disdain and in a patronizing manner.
The upshot of this whine is that I have bought a van with so many gripes about fit and finish and performance, that it is a joke.
The list so far: Van runs endlessly rich blows black smoke and has soot all over the exhaust, catalytic convertor releases hydrogen sulphide fumes incessantly (rotten egg smell).
The front suspension has so much noise and clatter it sounds like a cab with 500, 000 miles on it. Nuts and bolts have fallen off of the seats, the seat release mechanism on the rear seats has never worked.
The sliding door makes a large banging noise when going over any bumps, (dealers comment) uh huh...
Test drive with dealer involved twenty mile an hour cruise around auto park, to prove that I was wrong and that all is well.
My experience with this dealership and this vehicle has been one of utter frustration, these people have all but ignored my concerns and my safety. Westwood has sold me a sub par van which they back up with really shoddy service
0 comments