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I bought my 2002 Oldsmobile Alero GL from my brother in 2008 for the manufacturer's trade-in value of $1,750. But when my brother bought that car new in 2001, he paid just over $20,000 for it. Not a bad deal in my opinion. I didn't read any of the reviews about the 2002 Alero GL before I purchased it; mostly because I needed a car and didn't have the luxury of being too specific. And I had ridden in the Alero many times, and found that it seemed to be a good car. I liked the look of it too, and insurance on it would be fairly low for me. I've now owned the car for just over two years, and have never had any real problems with it.
I love music, and I have kids that I drive around to a lot of places (and on long road trips to Grandma's) and they love having their music in the car too. So I was immediately pleased with the fact that my new car came with both a CD player, as well as a tape deck. The CD player has gotten stuck a few times since I've had the car, but it's never been something that simply waiting patiently and trying the "Eject" button again won't fix.
A problem that we've had with the car is that the radio antenna seems to be non-existent, so it's a good thing we have so many other audio options! Behind the rearview mirror part of the windshield is speckled black. This is supposed to be the radio antenna but we live in a big city and can't even get the local stations much of the time.
Another problem that my husband and I often have with the car is that the dashboard lights up for no reason - a lot. Whether it's telling us that the battery life is low (which it never is); that we need to change the oil (when we just had an oil change); or showing us symbols that we have no clue what they mean, the dash does light up a lot. The good news on that is that it's usually nothing. The bad news is that it makes it difficult to tell when there really is a problem.
As for the rest of the car, I love it! And even these small nuisances don't bother me enough to dislike my car. I love all of the separate interior lights, and how they're very easy to turn on with just a flip of the switch. That's very helpful when you're groping around for that light in the dark!
I also love that everything on this car is electric! I can unlock the doors from my porch step, and unroll the window with just a touch of a button once I'm inside. And when I lock it up, I just have to press a little button on my remote. I know this is standard vehicle technology today, but it's my first car with these kinds of capabilities and so, it excites me!
I didn't bother to read any user reviews on the 2002 Oldsmobile Alero GL until after I had bought it, and then it was really just for curiosity sakes. I was surprised to find that there are many bad reviews on this car that I've come to love. I don't understand it. I've always found my Alero to run smoothly, be good on fuel consumption, and have all those little features that I love so much too! And if I have to live with the dashboard lighting up like a Christmas tree on a regular basis, I'll just remember to take in for regular service visits - something I should be doing anyway!
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