eBay Find of the Day: Five of Oldsmobile's Final 500
click above for gallery of the entire Final 500 Collection
The death of the Oldsmobile brand in 2004 was certainly a sad moment in the annals of automotive history. At 107 years old, the brand had seen its share of ups and downs, and most would agree that it ended on a down note with a lineup of cars that weren't competitive at all in their respective classes. Regardless, a dealership in Indiana managed to collect an example of each vehicle in Oldsmobile's parting lineup, all of which feature the brand's Final 500 Collector's Edition Package. They include a 2004 Silhouette minivan, 2003 Aurora, 2002 Intrigue, 2004 Bravada SUV and, my personal fave, a 2004 Alero. With my own 1999 Alero Coupe suffering from a determined pull to the right, I am looking for a suitable replacement and a perfectly preserved 2004 model would be perfect. Unfortunately, these vehicles were being sold as a set (the auction is not live anymore) with a starting bid of $149,995. If I bought the whole lot of them, I'd be paying an average of $29,999 per vehicle. We're not sure any post-Y2K Oldsmobiles will ever be worth that much on their own, and I've got too many Bentleys and Ferraris in my imaginary temperature-controlled garage to fit five reminders of why GM sucked not too long ago. Thanks for the tip, Matt!Gallery: Final 500 Oldsmobile Collection
[Source: eBay Motors]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Chris 3:00PM (6/03/2008)
"This is a very rare and un-presidented opportunity"
So does this mean that GW won't approve?
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Tom Castle 3:18PM (6/03/2008)
i've never heard the words "alero" and "favorite" used together before in a sentence. cool.
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xpolarx 3:19PM (6/03/2008)
Does anyone else hear crickets chirping?
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carsteve 3:22PM (6/03/2008)
Would be neat if GM decided to develop a couple of new models under the Oldsmobile name, in an effort to make something totally new. Go back to the old school style, like the curves in the 30s and 40s, plop normally-aspirated and turbocharged 4 cylinder engines making almost 200-300 hp on aluminum frames and you have a bunch of new, lightweight, powerful, stylish, and very nostalgic automobiles that this country will go cuckoo for. GM, send me the check for this idea. Thanks.
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Mark 3:44PM (6/03/2008)
Yes, because opening up a whole new line of dealerships and stealing market share from its own divisions would TOTALLY be worth the capital GM would invest into it. Sorry man, it's never going to happen, Olds is gone for good. GM is already drowning under a brand portfolio that's far too big for its own good.
carsteve 4:00PM (6/03/2008)
@Mark.
I don't really think a couple of new models (read that, couple = 2) would necessitate the opening of new dealerships, nor steal market share from other divisions (since the other divisions don't have cars like that....no one does). You could make the same point about ANY car that GM comes out with, or for that matter, any company with multiple divisions.
That aside, you completely missed the tone and intention of my post. Whether or not Oldsmobile comes back makes no difference to me. I was simply sharing an idea.
What I do long for is for some major automaker to really start thinking outside of the box and be truly innovative!
David(Postal) 3:22PM (6/03/2008)
95% positive feedback is also pretty pathetic for this seller
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Yipcanjo 3:32PM (6/03/2008)
Well.... he *is* selling Oldsmobiles, after all....
Tom Castle 3:26PM (6/03/2008)
xpolarx - no crickets, but off in the distance, i hear a coyote howling
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Rob 3:26PM (6/03/2008)
John... it's not April 1 again yet.
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tanooki2003 3:30PM (6/03/2008)
I will bid $50 and that's my final offer.
No wait...I think I will use that $50 for a hard drive upgrade. Never mind I very happily retract my bid. I need tobuy stuff that is actually more productive and useful. This so-called car on the other hand is the total opposite.
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Vintage 3:30PM (6/03/2008)
"With my own 1999 Alero Coupe suffering from a determined pull to the right, I am looking for a suitable replacement"
This is the problem with America. Instead of maintaining something, they just throw it away and get something else. Ever heard of getting an alignment? Firestone offers a LIFETIME alignment service for just a tad over $100. I have it on all my cars. Whenever I do suspension work, or feel the car pulling, I drop it off, and have it aligned at no charge. This attitude of getting something else because it needs such minor upkeep is just totally ridiculous and disgusting.
PS: I hit 266,000 in my Accord last week. Guess what? It doesn't pull because it was aligned a few months ago.
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epilonious 3:37PM (6/03/2008)
It might also be a tie-rod or a ball joint issue which might be much more expensive than a simple alignment... especially if performed by Firestone when you came back for their LIFETIME alignment service.... and there is also a chance that the pull is not the only problem his Alero is having.
So I am going to trade in your "problem with America" oversimplification and replace it with a new one: Too many pontificating idiots who think they know everything telling other people what to do.
jwwduke 3:55PM (6/03/2008)
well said epilonious
Vintage 3:46PM (6/03/2008)
OOOooooo a balljoint? Wow. That's definitely worth replacing the whole car then. I mean, they're like $40-100 plus $60 in labor. Gosh. A tie rod? Jeez those things run like 25-75 dollars! Holy crap!
Crush it and get a new one! Quick!
Idiots.
tanooki2003 3:56PM (6/03/2008)
Vintage Dude you need to tone your rage level down about 60 notches before you get back on the road. i don't want to hear about a 30 car pileup you will cause due to your anger issues with people.
epilonious 5:07PM (6/03/2008)
Once again: You don't know what is causing the pull, I don't know what is causing the pull. But since the guy is commenting on a car enthusiast forum I am going to make the assumption that he knows about cars and the problem isn't something simple.
I am also assuming from the many times he has talked about his Alero entering a full blown jalopy state on podcasts and prior posts that the repairs needed are likely exceeding the value of the car.
I can appreciate your point, that the line for "time for a new car" seems much less far out with typical Americans... but I don't think that is the case here.
Thus, your conjecture that he is getting rid of the car when it "just needs an alignment" is borne of ignorance and reads more like an advertisement for old-school Accords than anything of value.
Good day and may your Accord last to 500,000 miles and beyond.
Kaptain75329 5:59PM (6/03/2008)
Vintage - the problem with America is not so much our consumable culture. Your opinion is all very well and good, but you're a long way off any notable revelation with regard to American society just because some dude wants to trade in his car. While you were busy trying to push a rope, I'm guessing you forgot to ask the very basic questions your post raises about people in society, specifically yourself. For instance, what does it matter to you why someone replaces a car? What difference does it make if the damned thing was totaled or it has just a scratch? You're not part of that transaction, so how does that action affect you in the slightest?
It doesn't, but you care anyway.
Nevermind what's wrong with America.. so far it appears you're the only one who doesn't see what's wrong with this picture right here.
Vintage 6:32PM (6/03/2008)
It matters because it puts a strain on our economy, and our environment. Our country currently produces so many cars that a lot of them wind up in the junkyard not even 1 decade later. Is that right? Is that efficient? Is that responsible? Is that sustainable?
The answer to all those questions is no. So yeah, if you want stupid, inefficient, irresponsible, unsustainable actions, by all means, keep throwing cars away purely because their resale value is low enough to justify avoiding repairs.
I for the record, have spent about $1500 on my $500 accord over the past 4 years. It's extremely reliable, it gets good gas mileage, and I honestly don't give a damn what it's worth, I'll keep repairing it as long as I'm able to. It's keeping a car OUT of the junkyard, and reducing demand for a new vehicle.
tekdemon 5:43AM (6/04/2008)
Vintage has a point guys, we definitely chuck a lot of stuff even though they're perfectly repairable. When was the last time you actually had a shoe re-soled so you could keep wearing it? New shoes are so cheap that most people will just buy new shoes instead of paying for someone to repair an old shoe. Same thing goes for a lot of stuff. Old TV breaks, buy a new HDTV. Hole in your shirt or jacket-buy a new one. People just don't fix stuff up anymore.