LaCrosse vs LaSabre

Presently have a 98 LaSabre which has been an excellent car. However, it is
known that some models of the 3800 V6 engine
have had severe problems when the plastic manfolds decompose or begin to
leak coolant into the crankcase.

Buick seems to shuffle its feet, look at the sky, and claim 'the dog did
it'?

Is the problem solved now, or is the dog still doing it? I just want to know
the status.

Here is the email and link I sent to Buick:
http://www.buick.com/contact/email/
''I sent an earlier email about the weaknesses in the 3800 engine.
I have received no answer.

It is well known that there has been a weakness in some of those engines.

It has to do with plastic manifolds disintegrating due to heat passing
through

a tube which was a poor job of engineering.

This is well known to serious mechanics and automotive buffs.

Has this defect been eliminated from the new models?

This message will be posted on newsgroup rec.autos.tech, and your answer,

or lack of it, will be noted on the net.''



Does anyone know the status of this problem? Any opinions on the LaCrosse?

I'm not aware of the 3800 having this problem, but GM's smaller V6s (3.1,
3.4) definitely have had chronic problems of exactly this nature
anything's possible from General "Mark of Excrement" Motors. I've
crossposted your query to alt.autos.gm, which may get you more replies,
faster.

On Mon, 24 Jan 2005, HLS wrote:

> Presently have a 98 LaSabre which has been an excellent car. However, it is
> known that some models of the 3800 V6 engine
> have had severe problems when the plastic manfolds decompose or begin to
> leak coolant into the crankcase.
>
> Buick seems to shuffle its feet, look at the sky, and claim 'the dog did
> it'?
>
> Is the problem solved now, or is the dog still doing it? I just want to know
> the status.
>
> Here is the email and link I sent to Buick:
> http://www.buick.com/contact/email/
> ''I sent an earlier email about the weaknesses in the 3800 engine.
> I have received no answer.
>
> It is well known that there has been a weakness in some of those engines.
>
> It has to do with plastic manifolds disintegrating due to heat passing
> through
>
> a tube which was a poor job of engineering.
>
> This is well known to serious mechanics and automotive buffs.
>
> Has this defect been eliminated from the new models?
>
> This message will be posted on newsgroup rec.autos.tech, and your answer,
>
> or lack of it, will be noted on the net.''
>
>
>
> Does anyone know the status of this problem? Any opinions on the LaCrosse?
>
>
>
>
>

"Daniel J. Stern" > wrote in message
.umich.edu...
> I'm not aware of the 3800 having this problem, but GM's smaller V6s (3.1,
> 3.4) definitely have had chronic problems of exactly this nature
> anything's possible from General "Mark of Excrement" Motors. I've
> crossposted your query to alt.autos.gm, which may get you more replies,
> faster.
>

I wonder if HLS actually expected to get a response from such an
antagonistic email. If he did, he's a fool.
H

> On Mon, 24 Jan 2005, HLS wrote:
>
> > Presently have a 98 LaSabre which has been an excellent car. However,
it is
> > known that some models of the 3800 V6 engine
> > have had severe problems when the plastic manfolds decompose or begin to
> > leak coolant into the crankcase.
> >
> > Buick seems to shuffle its feet, look at the sky, and claim 'the dog did
> > it'?
> >
> > Is the problem solved now, or is the dog still doing it? I just want to
know
> > the status.
> >
> > Here is the email and link I sent to Buick:
> > http://www.buick.com/contact/email/
> > ''I sent an earlier email about the weaknesses in the 3800 engine.
> > I have received no answer.
> >
> > It is well known that there has been a weakness in some of those
engines.
> >
> > It has to do with plastic manifolds disintegrating due to heat passing
> > through
> >
> > a tube which was a poor job of engineering.
> >
> > This is well known to serious mechanics and automotive buffs.
> >
> > Has this defect been eliminated from the new models?
> >
> > This message will be posted on newsgroup rec.autos.tech, and your
answer,
> >
> > or lack of it, will be noted on the net.''
> >
> >
> >
> > Does anyone know the status of this problem? Any opinions on the
LaCrosse?
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >

On Mon, 24 Jan 2005, Hairy wrote:

> I wonder if HLS actually expected to get a response from such an
> antagonistic email.

Good question. I certainly never expected (and never got) a response to my
e-mail to the Fram people asking if their oil filters would stop sucking
**** now that the company had been bought by Honeywell.

"Daniel J. Stern" > wrote in message
n.umich.edu...

> Good question. I certainly never expected (and never got) a response to my
> e-mail to the Fram people asking if their oil filters would stop sucking
> **** now that the company had been bought by Honeywell.

When customers ask pointed questions the first time and get no response, a
little antagonism is certainly in order. I have no need to get asskissy
with Buick.

The oil filter issue is a hard one. I also surveyed, very tactfully, some
of the oil filter manufacturers (and got nothing) and some of the oil
formulators (and got a bit more, but nothing scientifically meaningful).

I wish someone would do as good a job wringing out the oil filter issues as
was recently posted on air filters.

I made a search about the effects of ultrasmall particles in motor oil,
since their detrimental effects and the ability of some filters to remove
them are two factors often touted by the filter sellers. Nowhere could I
find a scientific study of the effects of these particles. I know it has
been done (Southwest Research, maybe, in San Antonio) but the exact
documents seem to be sheltered.

HLS wrote:

> "Daniel J. Stern" > wrote in message
> n.umich.edu...
>
>
>>Good question. I certainly never expected (and never got) a response to my
>>e-mail to the Fram people asking if their oil filters would stop sucking
>>**** now that the company had been bought by Honeywell.
>
>
> When customers ask pointed questions the first time and get no response, a
> little antagonism is certainly in order. I have no need to get asskissy
> with Buick.

I think you need to approach everything with the correct level of
expectations. No car maker is going to tell you, upon request, every
example of their engineering designs that are causing them trouble in
the field. No product maker is going to do that, up until the point
where they legally have to do so under a recall or similar initiative.

That doesn't mean they're being "dishonest," it means they're protecting
proprietary performance information. And don't think for a millisecond
that your beloved Asian car-makers don't play close to the vest with
their own engineering shortcomings either. Try to get Toyota to admit
that their PCV systems were crap and caused thousands of engines to be
replaced under warranty and many others at owners' expense. Try to get
Honda to admit that their mid-90s ignition systems were crap and that
thousands failed. Both of those are well-known and acknowledged
shortcomings in the gearhead community (such as these newsgroups) but
neither ever quite made it to the "recall" level and so the companies
involved are mute. Same with GM and their intake manifolds. Finding out
THAT sort of information is, as it has always been, the responsibility
of the buyer.

Hairy wrote:


>
> I wonder if HLS actually expected to get a response from such an
> antagonistic email. If he did, he's a fool.
> H

I got a kick out of that too. "Your response or lack thereof will be
published on the net..." indeed! I don't care if I was at the most
buyer-supportive company in the world, if I got an E-mail like that I'd
laugh my head off as I hit the "delete" key.

"Steve" > wrote in message
...
> Hairy wrote:
>
>
> >
> > I wonder if HLS actually expected to get a response from such an
> > antagonistic email. If he did, he's a fool.
> > H
>
> I got a kick out of that too. "Your response or lack thereof will be
> published on the net..." indeed! I don't care if I was at the most
> buyer-supportive company in the world, if I got an E-mail like that I'd
> laugh my head off as I hit the "delete" key.

'Laughing their heads off' and avoiding the engine issues are a couple of
the reasons that American automobile manufacturers have lost market share
and have little credibility left.

Your strategy is certainly working.....for Japan>

HLS wrote:

> "Steve" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>Hairy wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>>>I wonder if HLS actually expected to get a response from such an
>>>antagonistic email. If he did, he's a fool.
>>>H
>>
>>I got a kick out of that too. "Your response or lack thereof will be
>>published on the net..." indeed! I don't care if I was at the most
>>buyer-supportive company in the world, if I got an E-mail like that I'd
>>laugh my head off as I hit the "delete" key.
>
>
> 'Laughing their heads off' and avoiding the engine issues are a couple of
> the reasons that American automobile manufacturers have lost market share
> and have little credibility left.
>
> Your strategy is certainly working.....for Japan>

My point is that *ANY* company representative would laugh and throw away
a combative note like that. As they should.

"Hairy" > wrote in message
...

>
> I wonder if HLS actually expected to get a response from such an
> antagonistic email. If he did, he's a fool.
> H

Well, I'm definitely not a fool, but I am certainly antagonistic. I asked
some questions via the Buick link, and they were ignored.

Now I just trying to needle them a bit.