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hood release latch broken...to lemon or not to lemon???

6.4K views 37 replies 21 participants last post by  G8GTinFL  
#1 ·
Went to add some windshield washer fluid and my hood wouldn't open, latch wouldn't budge. Kept pulling at it and the latch eventually snapped off the cord/wire that runs to the locking mechanism up front.

Ironically, this happened ON THE WAY TO THE DEALER to drop my car off AGAIN for suspension/brake issues. I've had 2 sets of "old" LCA's front/back, as well as strut mounts and bushings, I've had the brake calipers checked and repaired for being loose after one of the suspension installs, now I have a brake caliper that seems to be binding originally making a popping/snapping sound now making a "squishy/loose" sound/feel. I am on my first set of "new" LCA's and after 5,000 miles I'm already getting light clunking sounds again from front end. My rotors were turned for being warped...my steering wheel cover was replaced for flaking paint, my side mirror was replaced for non-functioning. In addition I had to bring the car back twice after they installed the "new" suspension bits in order to get the alignment straight again.

Oh yeah, I'm also getting condensation in the rear tailamps and all my speakers are blown, all of them.

I have a 2008 that is just under 36,000 miles. The car qualifies as a "lemon" under MA law, but I'm hesitant to go through w/ a claim since I was a bit upside down on my trade in and basically paid close to MSRP on the G8 after the trade/rebates/cash down. I have opened a case file w/ GM and their corp. relations people call me daily to follow up w/ the pontiac dealer I bought the car from.

Basically I am pushing for a full extended warranty on GM's dime. I drive alot of highway mileage for work, and there is no way in hell I can rely on the G8 to reach 100,000, hell even 75,000 without some more BS issues. Hell I don't even know if it'll go another 5,000 miles without something else breaking.

I basically baby the car compared to most, I let it warm up on cold days, I drive like a grandma in the city watching for potholes and taking it easy, I do some WOT runs on the highway after she's warmed up...but thats about it. Car gets 93 octane and synthetic oil every 5,000 miles. Over the past 1,400 miles I've averaged 20.1 MPG, that's about 70/30 hwy/city - just an indication as to how I drive it.

This may sound like a BIT*H thread, well I guess it kind of is, but any suggestions on what I should do??

Completely unacceptable for a car that has an MSRP of $34,000...
 
#4 ·
Stories like these scare the crap out of me as my car sits in the garage with only a little over 7,000 miles.. I wonder if I'm driving it enough before my warranty is over?

...anyway good luck with your case I hope you get a decent resolution.
 
#8 ·
I think its more like "ehh, that one's goin to the states mate, lets have a pint and finish it off after lunch huh?" depending on whether or not that technician took up the offer or had one too many you get a bad holden.

I am coming from an '04 GTO I put 8X,xxx miles (forget how many now 80something) with heads/exhaust/intake/tune etc. NO PROBLEMS NONE ZERO no phantom strut rub nothing. I think I had a failed outer tie rod once...maybe, and it didn't cause the annoying sounds you get from the ruined LCA's in the G8.

So, yeah I don't want people to take threads like this and think hey wait a minute is my car a POS too or second guess buying a holden-esque car...but lets be honest here, THESE CARS HAVE PROBLEMS. big, small, and in between, these are problematic cars. I think people should be aware of that when buying them...many GTO's had similar weird issues.

I still love the car......in the sense I love how it drives in a straight line and I love the sound of the engine/exhaust (that is...when the AFM isn't on), but for the money I spent I really did get kicked in the nuts like 1000 times...I would have been much happier in a used M35X or new tahoe, which were the cars I was shopping the G8 against. I'd be even happier if I kept my GTO and money in my pocket.

Not to be a jerk, but I think alot of people underestimate how many problems these G8's have especially on forums like these...you get fanatics. Guys who mod the living hell out of the car putting suspension/FI/header etc. onto them...PLUS tunes PLUS drag racing them, and then they only put 5,000 miles a year on them...so when you hear "Oh I'm running a maggie w/ no problems or I have heads/cam setup no problems" think about how much those cars are driven. I am willing to bet the guys who DRIVE THEIR CARS like normal in commutes and such, people putting 15,000 miles a year+ have as many problems as I do...and if not they're lucky.

The car just flat out isn't well put together.

I'm failing to mention the "flexing" from all 4 doors/windows you can hear going over road inconsistencies, the whistling from the engine bay, the fact that I could dismember the entire interior of the car using just my 2 hands.....actually that is consistent w/ my GTO. When I used to go over any hard bumps w/ it the entire underdash assembly would literally pop off and land in my lap...try that in the AM while going to work w/ a coffee in one hand and your cell in the other in traffic.

At the end of the day I'm sad to say if you want a powerful rear drive american vehicle w/ a decent V8 and you want quality and reliability as well as every day driveability you're narrowed down to trucks and truck-based SUV's, that's about it.

Go ahead and argue it away, but come back to me when you start putting miles on the car and tell me how you're doing...I may be jaded, but I'm pretty certain I'm accurate.
 
#7 ·
Could be drunken fridays or hangover mondays... But seriously, continue to stay on Pontiac/GM and the dealership. I havent had all the issues you spoke of but the one time mine went in was for a bad alternator. It took a month to get an alternator from oz. I think the first kangaroo drowned on the way over... Anyway, like I said stay on them. I ended up getting a $2000 loyalty check from GM and a car payment so it can happen but you gotta call/e-mail everyone and there mom all the time... Good luck with all of this!
 
#9 ·
There is a TSB for the hood latch freezing... did you have that done on your car?

15k on my GT and other than the strut mounts, a flip key that no longer flips, and a couple of cold-weather issues (turn signal, frozen factory-fill wiper fluid) mine's been solid as a rock.
 
#12 ·
There's still the Camaro, the 2011 'Stang, and likely some newer, Chevy version of the G8, the Charger RT/SRT8, and the Challenger RT/SRT8. Yanks are still represented in the RWD V8 segment. Although, and I hate to admit this, but the 2011 Ford is going to be the quality and performance king with that nice new interior, all the options you can eat, 410 HP + good mileage and the new version of Ford's Sync - it's a killer package, as much as we all are tired of the omnipresent Mustang.
 
#13 ·
Well I have yet to associate a mustang w/ "quality" while they've always been a pretty reliable car, we'll see how the new one is. I'd entertain a mustang just stinks only 2 doors.

Maybe I'm wrong but I doubt any of the Dodge lineup is going to be of higher quality/reliability than any GM aside from the trucks.

Maybe the hood latch was frozen and broke that way, but what difference does it make? My 89 Ford Ranger didn't have that problem, why in the hell should a 2008 BRAND NEW CAR have that issue?
 
#14 ·
This is a known problem and as someone said there is a TSB out on this.
Here is a URL to go to to read more
http://www.g8board.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20064&highlight=hood+latch

And this is what I wrote about this back in July:
One thing most ( if any) dealers will not tell you is the hood latch problem. The cars were designed to be driven from the right side as you already know. When they put the steering wheel on the left they did not design the hood latch differently. The latch has to be opened from the right side so what they did is put the handle in side the car on the left as they should. But they looped the cable underneath the hood latch to open it from the right. normally not a problem until the loop gets water in it an freezes. And then you will not be able to open the hood. Talk to your service department manager they do have a fix for it. They will order a few parts and move the cable up. Better to do it now then when the winter is on you.

Use the search on this forum and put Hood latch and you will find more info if you want.

good luck
 
#15 ·
GM's corporate customer relations people have been in contact with me ever since I threatened to go lemon law on the car, although I have technically opened a case against GM, I did not pursue it yet and the legal firm taking care of MA lemon law cases does not have any of the documentation they would need to go against GM.

This I think may have worked in my favor since GM is well aware of it and they're now working directly w/ the service dept. of the dealer I purchased the car from.

They told me last that I have a legitimate gripe w/ all the issues I've had w/ my car and will entertain giving me a full 100,000 mile extended warranty for free.

I'll let you guys know what the verdict is.
 
#18 ·
Well, news isn't that good. GM called and after discussing w/ my service dept. they denied my claim and request for extended warranty. They said I would have to show repeated issues like "the transmission failing more than twice" - I laughed out loud and said if I bought a car from you guys and transmission blew more than twice I'd probably push right through the front door of your corporate office out of spite!

I also asked, "so the 4 times I brought it in for the suspension breaking doesn't count??" - They really had no answer.

I politely said then I'll have to go through a lawyer and file a MA lemon law claim, chock another one up for GM. Also promised to NEVER EVER buy a GM vehicle again....but remarked that judging by the quality of their cars and customer service I probably wont get a chance to buy another one again anyhow because more than likely GM will go under.

Sorry guys for being such a downer on our G8's, but everything I'm telling you happened verbatim/precisely as I say. All I can say is either make your G8 a garage queen or be careful how you mod it/drive it because the car (IMO) has proved to be pretty fragile and the quality very sub par. I wish I still had my GTO, there was a CLEAR difference in build quality.
 
#19 ·
I'm glad they put all the bad parts in your car, because I've had no reason to go back to the dealer yet @ about 12k so far.
 
#23 ·
There really isn't anything "LOL" about it, and yes sir, in fact they would have been out of existence right now if it wasn't for 35%+ government ownership and our tax dollars. You are aware that the car you drive or the brand that badged it no longer exists right?


I wouldn't be surprised if GM cuts back more of its brands over the course of the next decade in the very least, and I certainly wouldn't be surprised if they fail entirely. Of course, they now have an unfair advantage w/ the govt.'s continued babysitting.

Car is great when all the bits and pieces are working correctly, but about 25% of the time I've owned it it's been in the shop. I would own a GM truck or a CTS or a vette...I think they're in a separate class in terms of quality compared to the majority of their other vehicles.

Hey, I'm not trying to make you guys paranoid either...but seriously telling me you have 12,000 miles on your car and no problems doesn't mean much, knock on wood, most of my issues didn't start till around 10K. I have 36,000 now.

And I don't take lightly a guy w/ 71,000 having major engine work...will probably be a long hard aggravating road ahead w/ my G8....maybe its time to say F it, drive my 99 jetta regularly and throw a maggie on my G8 until it just blows up!:driving:
 
#26 ·
So do you have a lemon law case? I had a lemon back in 1993, bought the car in Montana and was living in CA when finally "purchased" back under the Lemon Law. They went by the mileage from when I first brought the car (Taurus SHO) in for the problem, which was like 100 miles. That cars problem started on the drive home from the dealership! So I got to drive for the car for 8 months (16,000 miles) and it only cost me ins, gas, oil & a few trips to the dealer. Ford offered another identical brand new car, but the wife said NO. And I have not purchased another new Ford since.
 
#29 ·
Even with the few years in production between Holden models and with Pontiac this "new" car needed another year or so to work out the kinks. Too many new parts and designs I think. Reminds me of my buddy buying one of the first 500 Polaris made motorcycles, "Victory". He had MANY problems (made for some interesting stories though)

I'm determined to get all MY G8 issues replaced under warranty and on my own. I just hope I get them all fixed before I run out of money or loose my mind! :)
 
#31 ·
Even with the few years in production between Holden models and with Pontiac this "new" car needed another year or so to work out the kinks.
Typically it takes 3 years for Ford to get the bugs out of a new model and 4 years for GM. Apparently the Australian years 2006 and 2007 didn't count in this case. :(
 
#30 ·
Thanks for the responses. I DO have a lemon law case apparently, at least that's what the law firm is telling me. Before I go completely through w/ it I want to know whether or not I'll be left w/ any money owed on the car, if there's even a small possibility of that happening I'll just stick w/ the car as it is and continue fixing whatever goes wrong.

I love the car when its running well, but that's not always the case...
 
#33 ·
i own 4 G.M. vehicles, and no major problems... 03 silverado, wind noise out of back side glass (extended cab) 2000 grand prix gtp, lower intake, and r/f hub bearing... 09 G8 GT, has slight oil seepage from oil pan area (waiting until more miles before resealing, 10k miles), and 86 iroc tpi... bought used and rebuilt everything because i wanted it to look new like it came off the show room floor... my wife wants me to sell it... roflmao!