[Mid]

I'm thinking about leasing a new GTO. I'd like to know what owners think about their cars.

How do you GTO owners like your GTO's? List your likes dislikes?

Consumer Reports says reliability is below average? Do you have any problems with it?

Do you daily drive it? How is the fuel economy? What are your overall thoughts on the car? Is there anything in particular I should look out for?

Thanks

 

[Jeffs386]

My GTO has been excellent aside from the minor paint issue that was easily resolved.........it hasn't been back to the dealer since
I would say the overall quality of the car is above average,the only other area of concern may be strut rub ,but so far I haven't had any(18" rims) so maybe it won't be a problem at all

 

[SoGaGTO]

This is by far the most enjoyable car I have owned or even driven. My '05 Quicksilver M6 is my daily driver for now (I would like to slow down putting miles on it). I have just over 15k miles on it and average 21 -22.5 mpg usually. Sometimes a little less if I'm more agressive; however, in Interstate driving around 25 mpg. There are only two things I can think of right now that are negatives. Getting into the back seat is not real easy and the headlights are not great (although the high beams are very good). It is a lot of fun to drive and I get a lot of attention, such as comments and stares. It is real easy to get around slower traffic - :lol:

 

[FastFreddy]

Excellent car. Mine has not been back to the dealer since I drove it off the lot 9200 miles ago. I do my own maintenance, but so far that has only been oil canges, tire rotation and new wipers. And yes, I drive it every day.

If you are looking at high performance cars, I probably drove most of them when I was looking, and the GTO had the best combination of performance, handling, braking combined with a good price and nice finish. BTW, this is the first US high performance car that I have purchased, most of them have been foreign.

Good luck with whatever you decide, but for me it was the GTO.

 

[Wing_Nut]

I drive mine about 90 miles round trip to work every day. It's 1 year old this month and has 20,000 miles on the clock. It's been a relatively trouble free car so far.

One "factory defect".....
1.) The DIC died after about a month. Replaced under warranty. No problem since.

Three dealer/factory prep issues to watch out for.....
1.) Many dealers (at least early on) were not removing the shipping spacers from the springs. Result is a really poor ride quality.
2.) Many dealers failed to adjust tire pressure from 45-50 PSI used for shipping to the 30-34 recommended for use. Again, horrible ride.
3.) Mine suffered from a very low factory fill of Mobil1. Either that or it had really bad oil consumption for the first 7K miles.

One complaint.....
1.) The OEM tires vibrated starting at 12K miles. Dealer said all four were cupped. They wouldn't do anything about it. I say bovine fecal matter.

The interior and paint are holding up very well. After a year of ownership my overall impression is that the GTO is much better than the usual GM product in materials and build quality. I actually like the fact that it isn't loaded with electronics and gizmos like my wife's car.

Fuel mileage averages 22 MPG for my mostly highway commute. On 5 hr highway trip to NY City, I averaged 25.3 MPG. In stop and go driving, I would expect 17-20 MPG.

Small block chevy engine is proven reliable.
Manual transmission and shifter take at least 10K to loosen up.

GTO does very well in snow with a set of dedicated snow tires.

Hope that helps.

 

[707GTOLS2]

No Problems At all,
For the Strut Rub Issue before you lease/buy it, turn the wheels all the way and check the tires on both sides
Never had that problem but It's always good to check
Other than that be ready for the OHHH $H!T!!! Factor
when you drive the GOAT and will have the factor as you get used to her and not want to get out of the car

 

[Mid]

^lol

THanks for the responses/write-up, soon I'll hopefully be visiting my pontiac dealer. One other issue might be getting the 6MT. Most GTO's are AT. BUt we'll see, I'll keep you guys posted.

 

[noz34me]

^lol

THanks for the responses/write-up, soon I'll hopefully be visiting my pontiac dealer. One other issue might be getting the 6MT. Most GTO's are AT. BUt we'll see, I'll keep you guys posted.

I used to have a lot of respect for CR, but lately, not so much.

Keep in mind, all cars have problems; CR's data is based on their readers feedback I believe; not the most reliable way of gathering complete data.

 

[rt66er]

This is by far the most enjoyable car I have owned or even driven. My '05 Quicksilver M6 is my daily driver for now (I would like to slow down putting miles on it). I have just over 15k miles on it and average 21 -22.5 mpg usually. Sometimes a little less if I'm more agressive; however, in Interstate driving around 25 mpg. There are only two things I can think of right now that are negatives. Getting into the back seat is not real easy and the headlights are not great (although the high beams are very good). It is a lot of fun to drive and I get a lot of attention, such as comments and stares. It is real easy to get around slower traffic - :lol:

You might try adjusting the headlights. My low beams weren't good either, until I adjusted them. Evidently, they adjusted the headlights at the factory with the shipping spring spacers in. Take out spring spacers (like they're supposed to do when they are prepping the car for delivery) and the lights are aimed too low. About 1-1/2 to 2 turns on the adjustment screw and, bam, great low beams!

 

[k1200lt]

I would say that the fun vs. price factor makes this the best car on the road today, although I'm sure there are different opinions. I simply cannot believe Pontiac can stuff this much performance into a $32g package. Although Holden deserves most of the credit.

 

[Mid]

How would I go about looking for a cheaper 05? Pontiac's website wont let me search inventories for the 05's, only for the 06's.

Also, would getting a 6MT be harder? Most GTO's I see at the dealer are auto.

 

[GOATGIRL]

How would I go about looking for a cheaper 05? Pontiac's website wont let me search inventories for the 05's, only for the 06's.

Also, would getting a 6MT be harder? Most GTO's I see at the dealer are auto.

Hi Mid...I'm a dealer in Florida and the reason why you can not search for 05's is because we are into a new model year...finding an 05 (depending your area of the country) may prove to be a little difficult...what state are you in? I might be able to help!

 

[Clueless]

How would I go about looking for a cheaper 05? Pontiac's website wont let me search inventories for the 05's, only for the 06's.

You might want to try gmbuypower.com. I can still select 2005 from the dropdown list to search, but don't get any '05 results when I use my own zip code. A few weeks ago I searched and came up with 05s. Another place you might try is with autotrader.com (some dealerships will advertise New vehicles there, and I would think they are likely to advertise last years' models).

One thing is that I've been getting quirks with the gmbuypower website lately. Yesteday, no matter what Pontiac vehicle I selected, it insisted on showing me Saturn dealerships only, even though I never selected a Saturn... :willy:

 

[kjk_L98]

Hello everyone, I'm a noob here but have been lurking for a week or so.

I test drove an '04 tonight with 14k miles. I too am looking for owners input, as I'm not sure whether to try and buy new or get serious on that '04.

The '04 is a silver auto/red interior and is listed for $21,995. I told them it wasn't exactly what I wanted so it would have to be a great deal on my end. In fact, I told them I could be a buyer at $18.5k. I would rather have a new '05 m/t for the performance gain and styling.

I've read about a $5,000 buy back and holdback, etc. Can a new '05 be had for ~$25k? I have used fightingchance.com successfully before if any of you have heard of that.

I would appreciate your feedback on pricing as well as any comparison on '04 vs 05. One specific hang up for me is exhaust; can the '04 be converted to a dual like the newer models?

Thanks and sorry for the lengthy post but I have high hopes of owning one soon.

 

[xMeekSx]

I recently purchased a used 2004 and could not be more happy with it. The power is amazing and I've had nights when I just go out and drive around. I have not had any problems with mine except getting the radio pin#, ignition code, and various other numbers that should be provided on delivery. Make sure you ask for the security codes upon delivery. Seems like people are driving away without this important piece of information.

 

[Mid]

Hi Mid...I'm a dealer in Florida and the reason why you can not search for 05's is because we are into a new model year...finding an 05 (depending your area of the country) may prove to be a little difficult...what state are you in? I might be able to help!

Hi GOATGIRL, I live in Long Island, New York.

It'd be nice if I could get an even better deal on a new 05.

My biggest problem is finding the 6MT. Lots of GTO's I see at the dealers are Autos.

Pretty soon I'm going to a local Pontiac dealership to check out what they have.

Thanks for the support.

 

[GOATGIRL]

Hi GOATGIRL, I live in Long Island, New York.

It'd be nice if I could get an even better deal on a new 05.

My biggest problem is finding the 6MT. Lots of GTO's I see at the dealers are Autos.

Pretty soon I'm going to a local Pontiac dealership to check out what they have.

Thanks for the support.

That's the best way to see if any one has a 2005 GTO...I'm not familar with what the inventory is like up north but at my dealership, I've been out of the 2005 for about a month now, all I have are 2006's...check also individual dealer websites...they maybe helpful!

 

[noz34me]

You might want to try gmbuypower.com. I can still select 2005 from the dropdown list to search, but don't get any '05 results when I use my own zip code. A few weeks ago I searched and came up with 05s. QUOTE]

:agree

Just came off their website, and you can still search for '05's.

You need to decide how far you're willing to travel. Plug those towns zip code into the BuyPower website. Best deals (logically) are in the worst climates for RWD with lots of power. I ended up making a deal on one in NY, and they met me halfway in PA. (I'm in VA)

Good luck.

 

[FastFreddy]

^lol

THanks for the responses/write-up, soon I'll hopefully be visiting my pontiac dealer. One other issue might be getting the 6MT. Most GTO's are AT. BUt we'll see, I'll keep you guys posted.

The first GTO I drove was an auto. I have always driven sports cars, so I really didn't like the auto. Many of the people on the forum like the auto because it is a bit faster, and you can't miss a shift at the drag strip. I just like the more connected feel and control of the 6 speed. Different strokes...But as I said in an earlier post, I drove a lot of cars...and went with the GTO. You won't be disappointed.