"The Intrigue Chronicles"

Ownership Logbook - Here are a bunch of comments and problem descriptions I have made since I started this site in April '99. Note: If you've been here before and something seems different, that is because I reorganized this page so the most recent entries are on the bottom instead of on the top. This change makes it easier for me to add new ones with the Geocities page editor.

4/19/99: The Intrigue is towed to Norman Gale Oldsmobile. We left it parked for an hour, and upon our return, it refused to start. Most of the accessories worked, but the engine wouldn't make a sound when they key was turned. When the tow truck arrived at Norman Gale, the entire sales staff ran and hid in their offices. Hmmm.

4/20/99: The Intrigue comes back from Norman Gale. The problem, as described by the dealer, was a loose wire between the battery and alternator. Why a wire would fall out for no good reason could not be explained by the mechanics, though they assured us it wasn't THEIR fault. I guess someone just came in the night and pulled it out then, huh? Well, at least the repair was made in a timely manner.

4/24/99: The left rear power window stops working. Luckily, it froze in the "up" position. Also, the front passenger seat makes a noise reminiscent of a Whoopie cushion every time the passenger shifts his weight. Looks like another trip to Norman Gale is in order, and it hasn't even been a week.

4/25/99: The power window mysteriously starts working again for no apparent reason. If I had to describe the Intrigue's electrical system in one word, that word would be "unusual".

5/2/99: Things are going pretty well, though two recurring problems that have existed since the car was new have made themselves known again. First, the rear seat belts will not retract because some confused person at Olds designed the retractors with a vertical slot that grabs the belt and prevents it from going in even when all pressure is taken off. It just hangs there limply until I feed it back in by hand. Also, when we start the car and drive a few feet, there's an odd noise from under the hood. The people at Edmund's who are currently long-term testing an Intrigue have noted the same mysterious problem. They likened it to a "Yahtzee-cup rattle", which describes it quite accurately. Aside from those two small annoyances, everything is running smoothly.

5/5/99: Following the advice of another Intrigue owner, we pull out the ABS fuse to see if the Yahtzee noise is in fact the ABS self-test that is supposed to run when you start the car. After removing the fuse and thereby disabling the ABS system, the noise did not occur, and after replacing the fuse, it came back. Mystery solved. So, that's one less problem to worry about. Now, someone needs to inform the people at Norman Gale Olds of this fact, because whenever we asked them about the Yahtzee noise, the best they could do was "cannot duplicate".

5/24/99: Although we haven't been doing a lot of driving lately, I have to say that things have been going pretty well for the Intrigue. A few of the ongoing problems that the car has had since purchase have made themselves known from time to time, but nothing new has developed. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

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